Toyota Camry or Honda CRV - Which Is Easier for Getting Baby in and Out?

Your concern is reasonable and I wish I would have asked before I bought. I too wanted to get a different vehicle to replace my Avalanche thinking it would be "easier" if I didn't have to hoist a baby seat up into my truck. I chose the Camry. I love love love this car however it is alot easier setting the seat in rather than bending down. Go for the Rav4. We kept the Avalanche and got rid of my husbands truck and when he drives it is just easier doing the truck thing. Goodluck.

We have a Chevy Truck, a Dodge Durango, and a Toyota Camry. The Durango (SUV) is by far the easiest to get our son in and out of. The car isn't incredibly difficult, but I do usually have to get in to be able to put him in the seat (the seat is in the middle in the back. The Truck is by far the hardest because the back doors are those funny 1/2 ones that open the opposite direction.
Honestly, which car is more comfortable to ride in & drive, durable, price, warranty, and which car will hold all the stuff that will be going with you- sometimes we have the stroller, pack and play, portable booster, etc (overnight trips) Our Toyota trunk would never hold all that plus luggage, but the Durango easily fits it all.

I bought a Jeep Liberty right before we had our son thinking it would be the perfect height/size for a baby... it wasn't. I now drive a Camry, and I used an infant carrier and now have a toddler seat in my car and they both fit great. I would take the infant carrier with you shopping, and make sure you can put the handle all the way down - the Liberty didn't have enough space to do that. Have you looked at a Honda Pilot? Those are really roomy.

My personal experiences with Toyota and Hondas is in favor of Toyotas. We purchased a brand new Camry when we were expecting our first child 3 years ago. Hondas have less leg room in the back seat which would pose a problem if you are talll and need to push the front seats pretty far back to fit comfortably in the front. Especially for the rear-facing stage of car seating. Toyotas have far more leg room in the back. The toyota Rav-4 is similar to the Honda CRV as far as size and height. But overall, I do favor Toyotas over Hondas.

Hi U.,

I am a die-hard Honda fan, so I would say go with the CR-V. Not only do I like Hondas better, but I think an SUV is much easier than a car to fit an infant carrier in the backseat and to keep the stroller in the back, etc. Plus, as someone else mentioned earlier, the bigger framed vehicle is always better in case of an accident. I also LOVE the Honda Pilots, they have tons of room and drive really well. I had an Accord for many years while I had a long commute of 100 miles/day round-trip, and I never had one mechanical issue besides basic routine maintenance of course. Hope some of this information helps! Good luck and congratulations on the new baby!

I was in a devastating car accident two years ago, in which a person in a van slammed into us from behind while we were sitting at a red light. Based on the damage and the distance he pushed our vehicle (and the car that we pushed in front of us) his speed was estimated at over 55 mph. He did not survive.

At the time, I had my five month old daughter and my two year old son in the back seat of my vehicle.

Fortunately, we were driving a Chevy Suburban and it was able to handle the impact and subsequent damage without a single hair being harmed on my children's heads. The Suburban was totalled, of course, since the entire rear end was pushed forward into the vehicle by at least four feet. But one thing was made clear to us that day by every cop and emergency worker on the scene...my kids would not have survived if we had been in a lesser vehicle. In fact, anything short of a full-framed SUV would have been a mangled lump of metal after an impact like that.

So perhaps I am biased, but if I were you, I would go with the vehicle that is safer in an impact....which means you should probably get a large, FULL-FRAMED vehicle(e.g. Chevy Tahoe, or even a crew-cab Silverado). But if you're not willing or able to do that, compare safety reports and make your decision that way.

If cost is an issue, consider buying used and getting the better vehicle over buying new and not getting as much.

I have a Honda minivan and love it as much today and I did when I got it almost 5 years ago. The only thing I didn't like was when my son was an infant and I had to lift the infant seat in and out of the car, it was very difficut. I'm only 5'2" and he was a heavy baby (plus his seat was on the heavier side). It was hard to lift him that high to get him in and out. Once we didn't use the infant carrier anymore, it was much easier. Even with that I love my van and I think a car that sits higher up is easier compared to bending over and lifting the seat out. I'd go with the CRV but take your car seat with you and make sure it's a good fit.

Neither. Honda Minivan! My 16 month old can climb up in the car himself already so bending down isn't an issue. My husband is 6 feet and it's a little tight for him when he drives, but it's okay. I don't think he'd want to take a cross country trip in it if he was driving, but otherwise, he loves it too. The touring edition has lovely luxury features and if it's 2005 or later, it has a better crash rating. Your concern is very reasonable!

U.,

First congrats on your new baby, they are just such a blessing. I had a CRV for a long time and hatedto get rid of it. It was so easy to get the baby in and out. The doors open to a 90 degree angle so there was no having to turn the seat sideways or into a weird position to get it in the car.The features are great also. There was plenty of room for my two carseats and somoone to sit in between them. THere was also a lot of cargo room so I didn't have to worry about groceries either. I could have the stroller and the stuff I bought back there and had plenty of room. If I were you I would go with a CRV.

Good Luck and Happy car shopping!

M.

PS The CRV also has less maintenance and good Gas mileage!!

We have a Kia hatchback and a Jeep Cherokee. The Kia is about the same size as the Camry and Jeep is similar to CRV. When our DD was first born I actually pulled my back out getting her in and out of the Kia and am now doing physical therapy! I can tell you, however, that after my husband and I switched cars and I was driving the Jeep I realized that the height of the car doesn't make too much difference. Since the baby is safest in the center seat its pretty tough to get them in and out no matter what unless you SIT in the car and get them out. I'm only 5'2", however, so if you are both taller, this may not be the case for you. I would suggest bringing your car seat with you on test drives for both cars and see what you prefer. People do it all the time- dealerships are used to it! Good luck and congrats on baby #1 !!!!

I have a camry, and I am also tall, I had no problems getting the car seat in and out. My parents had a CRV when my daughter was younger, and I didn't notice that it was easier getting my child in and out of their car.

U.,

I offer different persepctive. I love our camry. However, my toddler daughter prefers my SUV (not a CRV) since the camry windows are too high for her to see as much. Since you will own this for sometime and children typically love to look out the window...I would check out the view from the CRV.

D

my advise to you would to buy a truck. Much easier for a stroller and groceries, then later on a wagon and toys for the park. mom of a 2-7- & 17

I have to agree with Kelly P. - your best bet is to take the infant seat with you when you buy the car. We have a Lexus - basically a fancy version of the Camry, and our Graco snugride does not fit correctly in the middle back seat. A regular Camry may be different but our Lexus has an armrest in the middle that folds down and when the infant seat was installed tight enough, the arm rest would start folding down. This was even when we had a certified car seat person install the seat. Since we were already committed to the car, we have just put the seat on the passenger side in the back. The result of that, is when we are going somewhere as a family, the passenger does not get much space. You can either sit in the front with your knees very close to the dash or sit behind the driver with your knees very close to the back of the seat. We're 6'2" and 5'8", respectively. We thought it was going to be a great family car but knowing what we know now we would choose something different and DEFINITELY take the car seat with us when we were shopping!

Not sure if you have considered this aspect.....I have had many times when I couldn't get the infant carrier in the car because the car next to me parked way too close and I couldn't even open the door but a few inches on either side. I actually had to back the car out a little to be able to open the doors enough. With the minivan, the doors slide open and eliminate that problem. Something to think about as you shop around.

We just bought a new CR-V about two months ago and I love it! I went to that from a 4 door Saturn sedan. One of the main reasons I love the CR-V is because the doors are so tall. With my sedan we had to tilt the carrier at a weird angle to put it in if the handle on the carrier was up. And as my son got bigger and heavier, it was hard to get him into his carseat with out bonking his head every once in a while when putting him in, and I am not a tall person who was not bending down enough (only 5'3). Now with the taller doors on the CR-V I can get him in and out while he is wiggling with out any bonks!
It is also extremely safe, gets great gas mileage and has lots of cargo room (a must have since we are about to have baby #2). We did TONS of homework on what car to get and the CR-V totally fit the bill!
Good luck & Congratulations!