What kind of car do you drive?

[jesusloveme007]

@olaitan I drive a Ford Explorer and the second row is way too small for my liking. I’m considering trading it in for a Ford Flex with captain chairs. Essentially a prettier mini van lol. But the second row has much more room!

 

[prell81]

@olaitan Good timing with this post! We have a 6 and 10 year old and checked out three row suvs yesterday. I thought the Highlander was great, but the atlas is roomier. We want to check out the telluride and pilot also. Leaning towards the bench for the second row (extra seat and a way to block our dogs in, using a fence/gate). I think we’d use the third row only when bringing extra kids on a trip. Any thoughts on this plan?

 

[duke845]

@olaitan Just buy the minivan if you have a third kid. It was great being able to have the whole family (2 kids) plus my mom in a single car. But it got totaled by a drunk driver and I hated the mpg with my long lonely commute so I switched to a RAV4 hybrid. Minivans are bigger inside than a midsize 3-row SUV, get better gas mileage, and are easier for toddlers to get into. Stick with odyssey and sienna though.

 

[dy08aab]

@olaitan I do not personally own this vehicle but the VW Atlas was so amazing. We drove it when we visited family. It’s my in-laws car, and damn that thing is great. It has the third row, the middle row is captain seats. It drives like a dream. I wish it were ours.

 

[alpash8]

@olaitan I've got a Honda Odyssey. Love it so much. It's 11 years old but it has so many amazing features. The doors slide automatically (it's a pricey fix though if they break, which is why we're only using one side) and it's got so much room.

 

[strelok0017]

@olaitan Have a Kia Telluride I love - but trying to get the Kia Carnival to have the sliding doors.

It’s been so hard to get the middle of the line model where I am, so by the time i can get my hands on one I’m sure the sliding doors won’t matter

 

[skylite]

@olaitan I had a new Jeep Grand Cherokee L with captain’s seats in the second row, and it was awesome. You could likely get a CPO for a bit less, as the car came out a few years ago. I had the Overland which was amazing. I wouldn’t buy new. The only reason I got rid of it was because even though I’m trying, I still can’t seem to get pregnant and love BMWs, so I went back to an X3 for now.

 

[lorrieh1]

@olaitan I only have 1 but I currently have a Volvo XC-60 and I love it! If we do end up with a second kid (which right now we’re leaning towards one and done) I would upgrade to the Volvo xc-90 with the captain chairs in the 2nd row! I test drove it when shopping for my xc60 and it drove so smoothly! Plus Volvos have amazing safety ratings too (and some xc-90s come with a built in booster seat too!)

 

[caffeinatedben]

@olaitan Yukon XL seems to be a popular choice with those in my area that have 3+ kids

 

[tonyc1965]

@olaitan I don't see any love here for the Transit van! It's a bit bigger than most recommended here, but it's at the top of my list of ultimate family vehicles. I had a passenger van configuration, but the seat rows were configurable. I only have one kid, but traveled often with three dogs and three cats, one dog is a mastiff. I removed all rows except one, so the dogs and cats could sprawl out. The van was also a one ton, rwd, with pretty good towing capacity. Meaning the horses were towed behind often. So if you're looking for maximum utility (can you say home depot trips?) this is a great option. I'd have one again in a heartbeat!

 

[nccountryboy]

@olaitan The MDX (at least 2022 and later) have middle rows that convert from a bench seat to essentially captains chairs - you can remove the middle seat to allow walking access to the third row. This was a key feature for us. (3 kids here!