@barnabas17 I love our minivan. We got the Honda Odyssey that has those "magic/sliding" seats in the second row. So nice to get our oldest in a booster to the back seat while the 15 month olds are still in base+car seat. Not having to fold the seats down was the ultimate deciding factor
SUV for tall husband with second row a/c and good gas mileage
@tdear25 We're in a similar boat, minus the 6'4 part. I'll tell you this - strongly consider going ahead and ensuring there's a third row. We have not been able to find a two-row SUV that can support a third seat/booster. Our Nissan Rogue is loved - we love it so much - but we need 2 boosters and a car seat and it just wont fit. I tested three seats in a new Chevy Blazer and i couldn't get them to fit either. I just dont think it's possible. Our favorites were the Pathfinder, Acadia, Traverse, and Explorer. Though, if you're really ballin' the Nissan Armada was super nice. Kia and Hyundai have models that appear to be great and have crazy long warranties, but they are priced accordingly.
Id stay away from the "compact" third row. Compare the VW Tiguan to the GMC Acadia, with the 3rd row seats in sitting position, and youll see what I mean. There's considerably less storage space in the back, and the 3rd row leg room is really cramped.
Get a sitter and go to Carmax and spend a morning just walking around looking at different models. They usually have almost everything so you can just browse them all in person. Don't fall in love with one there, cause you can probably work a better deal somewhere else.
Minivans are Niiiiiiiiiice.
Get a power liftgate! youll thank me. That usually means the 2nd-best Trim Level for each model. Which fortunately means it comes with a ton of other nice features. If you're getting a power liftgate, you're getting most every other good feature.
We are actually holding out for the electric trucks next year, if we can survive that long. If you want a truck at all, it's worth considering because they are the exception to "two rows wont fit three kid seats." And most of them now you can fit a ton of stuff in the back cab.
Id stay away from the "compact" third row. Compare the VW Tiguan to the GMC Acadia, with the 3rd row seats in sitting position, and youll see what I mean. There's considerably less storage space in the back, and the 3rd row leg room is really cramped.
Get a sitter and go to Carmax and spend a morning just walking around looking at different models. They usually have almost everything so you can just browse them all in person. Don't fall in love with one there, cause you can probably work a better deal somewhere else.
Minivans are Niiiiiiiiiice.
Get a power liftgate! youll thank me. That usually means the 2nd-best Trim Level for each model. Which fortunately means it comes with a ton of other nice features. If you're getting a power liftgate, you're getting most every other good feature.
We are actually holding out for the electric trucks next year, if we can survive that long. If you want a truck at all, it's worth considering because they are the exception to "two rows wont fit three kid seats." And most of them now you can fit a ton of stuff in the back cab.
@asvin Okay, going to Carmax with a measuring tape sounds brilliant! Thanks for the encouragement to get a third row. We definitely do not want more than our two kiddos, but we live close to a lot of family so I’m sure there’ll be a time we’d want more seating.
My husband is dying for the new Ford Lightning! I hate driving his truck though, I’m too small to drive it comfortably, it gets terrible gas mileage, and my work parking garage is really tight.
My husband is dying for the new Ford Lightning! I hate driving his truck though, I’m too small to drive it comfortably, it gets terrible gas mileage, and my work parking garage is really tight.
@tdear25 I'm 6'8“ tall, and our first parent car was a Subaru Forester. It's been great. It can fit 3 kids in car seats in the rear seat, and has plenty of room for me in the driver's seat. It gets 27 mpg on the highway and is fun to drive, too.
The only downside for me is sitting in the passenger seat with a rear facing car seat behind it is uncomfortable as i would have to sacrifice my legroom for the car seat to fit. This isn't a huge problem for short trips, but impractical for long trips. What it meant most of the time is that I would drive.
Another option is the slightly larger Subaru Ascent, but it doesn't get as good of gas mileage.
Also, our second parent car is a Honda Odyssey which has also been great, but it doesn't have as much legroom/headroom in the driver's seat. Minivans really are great, though, as they can fit SO much stuff.
The only downside for me is sitting in the passenger seat with a rear facing car seat behind it is uncomfortable as i would have to sacrifice my legroom for the car seat to fit. This isn't a huge problem for short trips, but impractical for long trips. What it meant most of the time is that I would drive.
Another option is the slightly larger Subaru Ascent, but it doesn't get as good of gas mileage.
Also, our second parent car is a Honda Odyssey which has also been great, but it doesn't have as much legroom/headroom in the driver's seat. Minivans really are great, though, as they can fit SO much stuff.
@mathias36 Hmmm, thanks for your note. You’re taller but my husband and I split driving responsibilities so he needs to be comfortable in either seat and our twins are still in rear-facing. I’ll check out the Ascent as well.
thisname4now
New member
jiggypiggy
New member
@tdear25 I would consider changing the car seat first! I'm 6'7 and our first car seat wouldn't fit behind me in either our Ford Escape or Toyota RAV4. I reached out to Reddit and was told that the Chico KeyFit 30 was the shortest car seat. We gave it a try and it worked in both our cars! So maybe you can save a few dozen grand by just changing the car seat
learningbygrace
New member
@jiggypiggy @tdear25, This is what we did too. My husband is 6'6'' (more legs than torso). We had to upgrade our preschooler's 5-point harness to a skinnier Graco SlimFit 3LX, but the new seat in the middle with two KeyFit 30's on either side fit in the back of our 2019 RAV4 and allow acceptable leg room for both the driver and passenger. When the twins need the rear-facing convertible seats, we'll buy a second SlimFit 3LX and move the then 5-year old to a cheaper booster seat so we'll have the SlimFits behind the driver and passenger and a booster in the middle.
This was literally the first task my husband tackled when we got the news of twins and he researched it rigorously! Even if you decide to buy a new car, the RAV4 with this set up works and the Hybrid especially has great gas mileage!
This was literally the first task my husband tackled when we got the news of twins and he researched it rigorously! Even if you decide to buy a new car, the RAV4 with this set up works and the Hybrid especially has great gas mileage!
@jiggypiggy Thanks for the suggestion! We actually used those infant seats and were just able to make it work! My husband was uncomfortable but not suffering. But the rear-facing convertible seats are too big since they’re taller. I actually tried to find the smallest European ones I could, but no dice. I’ve had my Mazda for over 6 years so it’s not terrible to buy a new one now, just earlier than I’d hoped.
@tdear25 Get a minivan and revel in the fact that transportation is no longer something you have to think about. Use that extra brainspace and energy to make your lives better in every way.
If you like suffering at the expense of being able to say "I don't drive a minivan" the Volkswagen Atlas is amazing. We have one and we fit three Diiono Radian's across the second row, and the third row fits two adults easily. If the car seats are forward facing there is a ton of room. I'm 6'0" and fit fine even with a rear facing car seat behind me, with a forward facing one its plenty large. There is also a ton of storage space, its easy to use, etc etc.
The downsides are that it drives worse than a minivan without the capability of a truck, and with gas at $5/gallon it sucks through hundreds like its ordering bottle service in Miami.
The minivan is the correct answer but if you have money to frivol away the Atlas is it.
If you like suffering at the expense of being able to say "I don't drive a minivan" the Volkswagen Atlas is amazing. We have one and we fit three Diiono Radian's across the second row, and the third row fits two adults easily. If the car seats are forward facing there is a ton of room. I'm 6'0" and fit fine even with a rear facing car seat behind me, with a forward facing one its plenty large. There is also a ton of storage space, its easy to use, etc etc.
The downsides are that it drives worse than a minivan without the capability of a truck, and with gas at $5/gallon it sucks through hundreds like its ordering bottle service in Miami.
The minivan is the correct answer but if you have money to frivol away the Atlas is it.