What's A Good Large Family Car: Non-Minivan, Non-Gas Guzzler

[Ravenseye]

I'm not opposed to large cars, just gas guzzlers. I don't particularly care for minivans as they are just so....ugly.

Problem is we have a civic, and the babies car seat forces the shotgun passenger to sit way forward. I can't even ride shotgun if the baby is in the car. My wife who is 5'2 is borderline in there.

What happens when/if we have another kid and have to put a second seat in there. Well that means a new car. So I'm looking into it.

Does anyone have any recomendations to a larger car than a Honda Civic that you can fit infant car seats into without forcing the front seats to ride with their faces pressed to the windshield? It can be a cool car, a dumpy car, a fun car, a whatever...The only restrictions are that it's better if it's not a 'minivan' or a tremendous gas guzzler. Hybrids are good, but not necessary. Less expensive the better, used ok.

Any thoughts?

[Midlodemocrat]

1. We have a minivan

A Chrysler and it really is great. Pretty decent gas mileage as well. We also have a Toyota Avalon that all three larger kids can fit in very nicely.

[Ravenseye]

5. My Wife Is Anti-Minivan

I don't think it would be possible to even talk her into this. The thought of becoming a suburban soccer mom would probably make her run screaming into traffic first.

[Left Is Write]

15. We have a minivan too. It's a Toyota Sienna.

It drives like a car, has great cargo room, is very comfortable, gets decent gas mileage, holds its value, and fits all of our kids including two car seats. We also make an annual cross-country trip to see family, and it's nice to have a roomy, comfortable vehicle for such a long trip.

[RUDUing2]

2. A Buick Century

or a Pontiac Bonneville
or a Toyota Camry or Avalon...

We have 4 kids...we have never had a minivan..if they still made them the Chevy Celebrity was perfect..or the Olds Cierra (those are what we had when the kids were all at home..accomodated a car seat and a booster seat)...but only the Buick Century of those is still available...

[Squatch]

3. Jeep Grand Cherokee

20 mpg

[Ravenseye]

7. 20mpg really?

I thought they guzzled more than that.

Everyone around us has JGC's...In fact one of the things we do around here instead of the license plate game is to play 'Cherokee' and see who sees the most. It's like punch buggy, only non-violent.

[Squatch]

17. Advertised MPG is 20 hwy...I get more like 23

I think it's because I use a K&N filter and Bosch 4+ plugs and I drive sanely.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

25. When I had one I'd speed everywhere and not realize it...

It was so fun. lol
Duckie

[JanMichael]

4. Potential for another Subaru thread here!

Check out the Legacy or Outback! And! Check out the safety ratings! Very high-

Stephanie

[Ravenseye]

9. Thought about Subaru's

The Outback though seems too small. Are you sure it'd comfortably fit an infant seat?

[XNASA]

6. Honda CRV

Lot's of room. Peppy, yet economical 4 cylinder. Practical.

[Ravenseye]

8. Does it drive better than the Element?

That thing drives like a blue whale.

[XNASA]

12. I think so.

I test drove both before we bought a Mazda Tribute. The sportiest cute-ute (one that is really just a tall station wagon) is the Tribute. I usually drive an Integra, and the Tribute doesn't seem too ponderous in comparison. Though it is a little bit thirsty.

Most big cars drive like whales anyway.

[AlCzervik]

yes it does, i test drove both and that element, while fun

was like driving a delivery truck, the one with bigger tires and wheels wasn't near as loud as the base model but the CRV drives like a car.

[DontBlameMe]

28. CRV is actually a car frame.

At least, that's what they told us. We had one for 3 years. Great vehicle. Handles like a car, 4wd, and the cargo space of an SUV. I think we got 26HW/24City.

[Bridget Burke]

10. How about a station wagon?

The site hasn't been updated since 2002, but I bet you can find more if you look!

www.stationwagon.com/2002_models/2002_models.html

And they've got some cool vintage photos...

[Ravenseye]

11. Now That Would Be Sweet!

Can you imagine driving around in that thing all polished up and new? I'd love to get a car like that and just totally refit it with a better engine, and new interior, redo the exterior.

That's be sweet.

[SarahB]

14. Contemporary large wagons...

Ford Taurus, Mercury Sable, and most Volvo wagons include a third row of seats.

[no name no slogan]

26. I drive a Sable wagon

best car I've ever owned, hands down. Lots of room for protest signs and musical gear, a V6 engine that gets 30 mpg, and that third row of seats that folds out of the back storage area.

If I were still single, I'd call it my 'birth control car', because it's unsexy as hell-- but it gets the job done.

[flvegan]

18. I've got a "sportwagon" or whatever they call them

And I love it. The Mazda 6 is pretty sweet, as is the Subaru. The Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe is nice...

[Magrittes Pipe]

13. Toyota Avalon.

Decent looking, good mileage, not too expensive. Plus, it's a Toyota, so it'll run forever.

[AlCzervik]

16. I have an Accord and the back is plenty big enough for 2 car seats

also the trunk is huge.

[bif]

19. Ford 500

I test drove one the other day and was impressed. It's very roomy and has a huge trunk. Nice ride too.

[RUDUing2]

22. I learned to drive in a Galaxy 500 (that is the old name)...

wonderful car!...

[Beware the Beast Man]

20. Dodge Intrepid

You can get a used one at a pretty decent price nowadays. I have one, and though mine is dying of old age, I still love it. It's roomy enough to be a family car, and sporty enough as well. It's not too bad on gas, about 20mpg city/30mpg highway.

[no name no slogan]

21. I drive a Mercury Sable station wagon

Station wagons are the much-neglected red-headed stepchild of the auto industry. They're not nearly as sexy as an SUV, and not nearly as 'practical' as the mini-van grocery-getters the soccer moms drive nowdays.

But my wagon does alright. It's a 1997, 93,000 miles, six-cylinder, and gets around 30 mpg. I play in a band, and I've got room for my gear, and the bass player's rig, too (the drummer humps his own gear).

The good old station wagon: totally unsexy, completely practical, with plenty of room on the back to plaster with liberal bumper stickers. You can't go wrong, really.

[lojasmo]

23. VW passat TDI-1997 48 MPG

Honda Accord
Toyota Camry
Nissan Maxima

Off the top of my bean.

[Dora]

24. We're in the same boat! May wind up with a Volvo.

Except we have two pickup trucks with a baby on the way.

We were hoping to find a used Subaru Forester, but they're very hard to find with low miles and/or unwrecked condition.

We just test-drove and had a mechanic check out a 2000 Volvo V70 wagon. It's more than we've budgeted for, but we're going to crunch some numbers today and see if we can choke it down. It drove very nicely, and it's big enough to hold us, the baby, and a small drum set.

[Catchawave]

27. Honda Odyessy (sp?)

My son has 2 year old twins and loves this car! Never say never to a minivan, especially when your children are so young. He really had no choice, because of the baby seat safety standards, this was the only type car they could fit two in the backseat, and it's still tight, both rear doors slide open, very convenient!

He and wifey are thrilled with this car's safety features, comfort and gas mileage. Bought it used (2000 model with all the bells and whistles) for about 9k from the original owner who advertised in the Auto Trader. It had over 100k miles on it, but Honda's are just broken in at that point!

Good luck!

[jakefrep]

29. I presently drive...

a VW Passat. Plenty of room, gets reasonable gas mileage (25-30) and they are built like a tank.

I'm also seriously considering a Chevy Malibu Maxx for my next vehicle. Lots of room, thanks to the uber-cool sliding rear seats, and pretty reasonable priced.