Deciding to Buy a Car or Suv

I bought a minivan when baby #2 was on his way. A minivan with a remote control key fob is sooo much easier than a car; I'd have the preschooler in one hand, the baby seat over the other arm, and I could open the door before we even got there and because it's a sliding door, was always able to fit in between our car and the next one to get the kids buckled in. An SUV has a door that opens out, so that is just as hard as a regulary car. Go with a minivan with remote key fob and sliding doors!

I wanted an SUV too, but monitarily we couldn't afford one. We went with a Minivan and I'm soooo glad we did. I can't believe how much I've filled up the back on trips up to my parents. There's no way all that stuff would have fit in a SUV.

My husband has a 4 door car and though he can get the boys in, there's not much room to work with when tightening the harnesses ect.

I think Mazda's and Kia's are pretty affordable, even comprable to the price of a car, if you get a good deal and it's year end, so you might be able to get a really good deal on a 2007 model.

We personally have Mazda's and I like it. I have a friend with a KIA (I believe) van and she likes hers. I have never looked at Honda and Toyotas, but I hear Toyota's are pretty much maintain themselves. Crysler is kinda expensive and I'm not sure about Ford.

I'd look into a minivan if you can. THere's so much room and with all the fold down seats now, they are easy to haul passengers in when needed and fold down when you need more room to haul all the baby stuff.

Hi E.,
I've got to tell you I just love my Camry. It easily fits 2 car seats, the trunk is huge and it gets around 28 mpg (it's a 4 cylinder, but it's not doggy). It's a 2002 with 94,000 miles, so this fall I had to change the tranny fluid and the coolant. Otherwise I've had it 2 years now and I've put tires on it and changed the oil and filters. I had a Jetta before this and I was always dragging that thing into the shop for something. I like the idea of getting a highlander, but cars are cheaper (and get better mileage) and I like that my trunk is closed and no one can see what's inside. I'm sure I'll be driving it 100,000 miles from now.

FYI, my sister has a CRV and totally loves it. I don't think you can go wrong with Toyota and Honda, it's just hard choosing what features are most important to you. Good luck!

We have both an accord and a civic and our car seat (for our six month old) barely fits in both! I can't wait to purchase a mini van or SUV, by the time I have her in her car seat, my husband in the passangers seat (he's 6'3) and our stroller in the trunk there isn't room for anything else! Its really hard to drive with friends anywhere too....maybe its just our car seat, but it takes up so much room in our accord (its a 95, but really roomy!). I too would like a mini van but we want something that will do better in the snow. hope that helps!

Just keep in mind that in a few years if your car pooling kids or have your kids friends come with alot you might need something bigger. If not you can do just fine with a 4door car.

I have a 2door hatchback Ford Focus and love it. I have (1) 6 year old and it's fine. Although anytime I am babysitting, or car pooling I wish I had a minivan. It's horrible trying to buckle a baby back there.

We have an accord, & the infant seat barely fits in the middle next to our toddler seat. I like having a smaller car & love our accord, so that doesn't bother me. The problem comes with trying to travel with anyone else. If my family is in the car (3 yr old, infant, husb & me), we can barely fit another small adult in. We'll be getting a larger car primarily for this reason.

I had a Civic too but we ended up selling it after both kids were born. Like you I debated about buying an accord or an SUV or a station wagon. We decided against the accord because of trunk space. This is because we travel a lot with the kids and it really does not fit all our stuff for a trip like suitcases, stroller, etc. We did test drive minivans and SUVs but we really didn't like the low gas mileage so we opted for a Volvo station wagon because of the room, safety standards, and ok gas mileage. Yes it is a very pricey car BUT since Volvo cars retain their value so much we were able to get a lease for a very low amount. We pay $363/mo. No one else could even come close to that for a car that is just over $30K. Our lease is up in May but we plan on purchasing the car at that point. We plan on having this Volvo for a long time and I have known several people who have driven theirs over 200,000 miles. I don't know about the Honda SUVs. I don't think we test drove those because at the time they didn't have side impact airbags. They may have them now and Honda is also a very reliable brand car that hold it's value. I would look into the larger vehicle and consider a lease.

In my opinion, I drove a VW Jetta 4 door when I was expecting our second, after trying to keep the baby seat in the middle and the other carseat next to it, we sold it there was no practical way, the only practical way could have been to have the infant next to one of the doors and I dont do that, so we went to an SUV and bought a Dodge Durango, However I wish we would have bought a Chevy Equniox, that middle seat actually moves forward and backward and if I remember correctly it also reclines back, it is pretty spacious too. I guess it all depends on the real features you want besides space.

I know you said you are open to something other that Honda, but I am a Honda lover. I had a honda odyssey, but couldnt do the mom mobile thing anymore, plus it is not that good in the snow. We recently bought a Honda Pilot and I LOVE IT. Yes, a little more pricey than a car, but sooo worth it. They hold there value well too. We shopped for months to find a car that worked for me. It ended up between the Saturn Outlook and the Pilot. I have 2 kids, it fits them great. It is nice to have the extra seats for my kids friends when needed. I can't say a bad thing about it. Good luck with you shopping.

We have both a Pilot and CR-V. Our CR-V is a little older (2002), but my husband still loves it. My Pilot is an '06 and I really love it. I like sitting up higher and the 4WD it has (the CR-V also has 4WD). After driving only cars until now, I wouldn't go back. I think I just feel like I'm being "seen" on 494 by all the trucks! The CR-V might be a little better on gas mileage, but the Pilot gets around 23 I think. Good luck! I think Honda's reputation for resale value and safety are worth every penny (and they are pretty competitive).