Need a Bigger Family Car: SUV or Minivan?

I don't like minivans- so let me offer another suggestion- I have 4 little kids ranging in age from 4 mos. to 6 yo and I swear by the Volvo V70 wagon- we have a 3rd row seat and so it fits 7 comfortably- I can also get an umbrella stroller in the back w/7 people in. For bigger items (a jog stroller...) I did get a roof rack with bungee cords to tie things down. My Volvo was about $22k because it was a few yrs. old w/low miles. It also has 2 integrated booster seats that I use (1) for the 6 yo. When I don't need them, I put them down. Think about it!!!!

I know what you mean. We are expecting number 2 in january and our first well be almost 2. We are looking around for a bigger car too. The one piece of advice ihave gotten so far was to take the car seats with you and put them in the car. That seems to be the only way to know for sure if they well fit and give you the room you need. the other thing i want to get is one of those roof trunk things. You can put all the stuff you need in it that you don't have to get to at any given moment. Emergency stuff, extra cloths diapers you know all the stuff you have to have but don't need in the car. I would also take the stroller or strollers you well need to fit as well to see what kind of extra space you well have left over.
Hope you find what you need.
A.

We love our Pilot! I have two girls, ages 13 and 10 and they are always having friends come home from school with them. I also teach a class where I have to bring equipment back and forth and I am able to leave it in the back while being able to seat three kids in the middle section, one in the back and one in the front. My brother has a Pilot and has two kids, ages 5 and 2 with another on the way. It has worked really well for their family, too! I think a mini van seats seven and having that one extra seat really makes a huge difference.

Good luck with your comparison!

M.

Hi!
We have a nine month old and just got the 2008 Toyota Sienna. We needed a second car and debated about getting a minivan or mini-SUV. With plans to have a second baby (hopefully next year) and the need to drive an additional two people from time to time, we opted for the van. I love it! There's so much more space! We have tinted windows, which allows me to nurse in the van with privacy, and the automatic dual sliding doors are great too! My friend has the Odyssey and she loves her van too!

Take care,
Genevieve

We're had a pilot for almost two years. It fits two car seats in the back seat quite easily. Since it's a high car, i have to climb up to buckle the seat when my grandson or daughter can't do it. The third row is convenient when we go places with our son or daughter's family; we can take one car, not two, to hold four or five adults and car seats. My son recently drove his mother in law's crv from the bay area to l.a. And said it handled well. There were four adults and one four yr old in a car seat.

Why don't you want to get the minivan? I, personally, would get that! The convenience and accessibility it offers far outweighs the SUV! You can put more people in a minivan, travel in it more comfortably, and (hopefully) is cheaper than the SUV. :) There's storage space in a both, but one looks more sporty and less "mom-ish" than the other. I'm actually in the market for one myself! I have a 4 door sedan and a small SUV, but we always have to take both cars if we have more than 5 people. My daughter is still in a car seat and my SUV works fine it it's just the 2 of us. It's when we have company or play dates that we start get concerned. ;) Good luck!

HI Lorie. We have both the Odyseey and the Pilot. We got the Ody when my 2nd child was born. We LOVE it. It is so easy to get the kids in and out and to have guests, we have done many road trips in it (farthest being Disneyland). I would suggest the minivan at least for the first 6 years when dealing with carseats.

My husband got the Pilot 18 mos ago. We love it but it is the car he uses most. It does have two carseats in it, 1 at each side and placing a person in between in doable but very tight. We have not used the 3rd row at all, it is small for long legs and not easy to get to. We used the Pilot for our last trek to Disney and we will never do it again, it was just too small for such a long trek with kids.

So for most our family outings with both kids we take the Ody. I would suggest that. We love it and it is so easy with carseats and still have loads of room for strollers and grocercies and passengers. PLus as your kids get older and you have playdates, you can easily transport them-I have an extra carseat in my 3rd row most the time.
If you want a good place to buy, email Bobby (female) at Anderson Honda in Palo Alto. She gave us a great deal.
____@____.com

I can't speak specifically for the Honda (I have a Toyota Sienna) but I do have to say I always loved SUV's until I got my minivan. Never in my wildest dreams would I be caught in a minivan. Now that we have an option to buy a car again (or even an SUV) I would never give up my van! It rides like a super nice comfy car but I have all the space in the world (yes, to keep my two kids separated in the middle row) and if I don't have passengers I take out the back seats to save gas and have even more room for those dreaded costco runs (with the emergency box, the stroller, and all the other extras we keep back there).

I agree - bring your stuff with you and see how it fits - especially the carseats! Sometimes the seats you have aren't compatible with the car (added stress of buying new carseats..). See how they drive, and pretty important these days - what's the gas mileage like? :) Good luck!

We faced this decision a few years ago. My husband REALLY did not want to get a minivan, thinking it was too uncool. We did research on-line and saw some reports that said that SUVs have a much higher roll-over risk than mini-vans, which pushed us over to the mini-van side.

Now, I am very glad we went with the minivan. We have since had a third child. And is is very nice to be able to easily fit in two additional children for playdates and carpooling. And I find the sliding doors (that open using the remote) to be a real major benefit. The kids can get in the back row easily without having to fold down a seat in the middle row.

We just had a second baby and bought a GMC Acadia. I LOVE IT. It is so roomy, seats 8 people comfortably. The third row lays flat and you just pull it up if you need more room. It has the auto tailgate open/close,and so many other features. You should definately test drive one in your search. We looked at the Pilot and others but the Acadia had them all beat. Congrats and good luck!

Hi Lorie,

It is always a hassle and time consuming when looking into getting a new car. It is a big decision and something you will live with for quite a few years. When we had our 3 kid we decided to buy a Mazda CX9 and I have to say that we love it. We looked at the Pilot too, but since we quite often have family and friends coming into town we needed some extra seats. The CX9 has 7 seats and still a spacious trunk.

Good luck ;o)
H.

We have both an SUV and an Odyssey. I LOVE my Odyssey. Getting kids in/out of the SUV is a pain; and VERY easy in the Odyssey. And I thought the push-button automatic side sliding doors were just a gimmick, but I love them.

A friend just bought the Pilot and is happy with it, but she did say she wished she bought the Odyssey.

Either way, Hondas are fantastic cars. We've owned Hondas for over 20 years, and have never had any major mechanical issues.

I had the same dilemma last year when we were expecting our second child... and with the exact same cars. We're a Honda family for sure. I wasn't ready for the minivan to be honest, nothing against them other than I just wasn't ready to make that step. We opted for the Pilot, and I love it. I only wished we waited one more year because the new body style is SO nice. We have the optional 3rd seat, and keep it down most of the time, so there is lots of cargo space in the back for a stroller and more, and the 2 kids in their car seats in the middle seat works just fine, especially for loading them in. We have used the 3rd seat on occasion, so my husband just moved one carseat to the back and I sat with one child while a guest sat in the middle seat comfortably with my other child. However, we are possibly going to try for baby #3 next year and will most likely move up to minivan-status if that happens.

One thing to keep in mind though is gas-mileage. I believe the gas mileage on the Odyssey may be SLIGHTLY better than the Pilot, but I haven't looked into it yet. Good luck on your decision!

Hey Lorie -

I have a Pilot, and I LOVE IT. I could not see myself in a minivan, and was moving from a BMW 740il, and wanted something efficient, comfortable, and useful. I've had my pilot for four years now, and am so glad I have it.

I've had three car seats all in a row in the second seat, no problem. The new LATCH system in all cars makes this so much easier.

The far back seat is really useful when you have a crowd, and yes, it's a bit tight to get into, but my 15 year old can do it without a problem (he's 6'1"!).

We have the DVD, and I couldn't live without it on long trips. My daughter can watch a movie in the back with headphones, and we can listen to music in the front. Or, the kids can plug in a gaming console and play games while I drive.

The only thing I don't like about it is that the headrest is not adjustable and the steering wheel adjusts up and down, but not in and out -- okay, so I was spoiled by my beemer!

Overall, I can't say enough good things about my Pilot!

J.