Vehicle shopping - multiple children

[sketty55]

We have a two and a half month old and we are starting to vehicle shop in order to replace our older car. We plan to have another child in the near future, and are considering what options are best for two parents and two small children. My wife would still like to remain in the back seat with both children and believes this means that we need a 7 seater vehicle as it may not be practical for her to sit in between both of them (in our current 5 seater). I'm not really too sure what most people do in this situation. Some have said that most parents stay in the front and children in the back, but with another infant that may not work. I'm sure i'm not the only one who's been in this situation before. Any recommendations (besides re-mortgaging the house and buying a Lincoln Navigator. Lol!).

[TruHP]

You could get a mini van. That should solve all your problems. All depends on if you can live with a mini van.

[volan]

With our first my wife sat at the back until he was a few months old, with our second she did not (you'll find you do a lot of things differently with your 2nd). Of course one reason she didn't sit at the back is that both seats were taken up.

We ended up getting a minivan with captains seats in the 2nd row so each kid has his own seat and the two are far enough that it prevents hitting. Works really well.

[zeddy]

Get a car - they are usually cheaper to buy and cheaper to operate. I have never sat in the back with my kids. What is the point? Anyways there are lots and lots of cheaper vehicles than a Navigator - mini vans, SUVs, crossovers, etc.

[dc88]

A great SUV is a Highlander-that is what we have and it is great.

BUT: You cannot walk around the back to care for your child like you can in a minivan.

Minivans offer great value. Cheaper to buy, insure and operate but not as "sexy". We had two of them when our kids were younger.

[krobin]

I just want to applaud your wife for sitting in the backseat of the car with your little one. We have a Grand Prix with three carseats in the back and it fits...just. Somedays I fantasize about a sexy minivan.....

[nalababe]

No way we will ever have a minivan....four of us in the Mini Cooper-S!

[volan]

No way we will ever have a minivan....four of us in the Mini Cooper-S!
Wow! That's awesome!

For us the minivan works really well. All 4 of us can go to Costco and there is plenty of room to put everything we buy at the back when the rear seats are down.

[ricoboxing]

check out a mazda 5.

we considered getting a 5, but its too expensive.

We have a pontiac vibe, and when we bring out niece out, we can fit 3 car seats in the back.

[L_Mo]

With two kids, strollers and lots of "stuff" to consider, we bought a Toyota Rav 4. Lots of storage, but great on gas. The kids sit in the back, parents up front. I sat in the back on the way home from the hospital with child #1 and never again. Get yourself a mirror to hang on the back of their seat so you can see what they are up to. Most of the time infants sleep in the car anyhow. ;)

[masterc]

If your wife wants to be in the same row as the 2 kids, you'll need something big - a full size SUV or Enclave or the like.
Or get a mini van with captians seats in the second row and you can get from 2nd to 3rd row if needed.

Another option: The current generation of mid size sedans are very big - Accord, Camry, Fusion, Malibu, Altima - the back seat is plenty big and the trunk is cavernous in all of them. These would be the best bang for your buck, fuel efficient (4 cyl versions) and most comfortable to drive, IMHO.

[nalababe]

Ok...we also have a Fusion...and my wife can sit in the back seat between the baby seat and booster if need be....fwiw, we are both over 5'10...so not tiny either.

As a note, there are strollers that will fit in the Mini's trunk.

[ayeung]

We are exactly in your (OP's) situation except that we are not planning for the 3rd one (for now, 2 is really overwhelming).

We are waiting for the Mazda 5 2010 because it has traction control (2009 doesn't) and the price will be just under 30K including tax etc. It's like a mini van (sliding door, with 6 seats, etc) but a little smaller and looks way better.

We really can't find other cars that are comparable for our needs (no mini vans, but with sliding door due to our narrow single car garage). We thought about RAV 4 but ...

Mazda 5 type of car is very popular in Hong Kong or Europe, but for some reason, they are not available here in Canada. How frustrating.

[Mayoo]

Get a car - they are usually cheaper to buy and cheaper to operate. I have never sat in the back with my kids. What is the point? Anyways there are lots and lots of cheaper vehicles than a Navigator - mini vans, SUVs, crossovers, etc.

+1 for car .. mid size as Camry or Accord would be the best .. for maintenance and gas mileage .. if u want more then i would say get CRV ..

[Goober56]

Bought a Flex in April and I love it. Wife and I have 4 kids and couldn't be happier with it. The only thing that would have made it 100% perfect was if there was sliding doors on it, but aside from that I am happy we bought it.
All 6 of us took a trip to Arkansas in Sept and with all our gear I didn't even need the rooftop carrier that I regularly used on my old Freestyle.

[Whiplash7828]

check out a mazda 5.

we considered getting a 5, but its too expensive.

We have a pontiac vibe, and when we bring out niece out, we can fit 3 car seats in the back.
Isn't the 5 technically a 4 seater?

I mean the one I looked at (08?) had two rear bucket seats and then a third row for very small people. If you had groceries or were going on a trip there is no way a parent could sit in the back with their kids.

http://images.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/images/vehicles/gallery/MZ5/pho_gallery_MZ5_int3.jpg

btw, why would you want to sit in the back (no offense intended)...why not just buy mirrors?

[brendonp]

We have a two and a half month old and we are starting to vehicle shop in order to replace our older car. We plan to have another child in the near future, and are considering what options are best for two parents and two small children. My wife would still like to remain in the back seat with both children and believes this means that we need a 7 seater vehicle as it may not be practical for her to sit in between both of them (in our current 5 seater). I'm not really too sure what most people do in this situation. Some have said that most parents stay in the front and children in the back, but with another infant that may not work. I'm sure i'm not the only one who's been in this situation before. Any recommendations (besides re-mortgaging the house and buying a Lincoln Navigator. Lol!).

I like reply to one of these every few months.

Don't buy the car to fit the car seats, by the car seats to car.

Even if you end up spending premium dollars for a car seat, it's much cheaper then an entire vehicle!