Anonymous wrote:There is no magical "non-minivan" that is as good as a minivan. Your choices are to either squish into a Pilot/Atlas/Telluride size car, or fork out the money for a Suburban/Expedition. Or just get another minivan. Those are the 3 options. There is no magical 4th option.

Tardis

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Got a used suburban. It's big. The kids can mess it up. Cheap to service. The kind of car one will use and eventually lose. For environmental concerns we told ourselves that making a new car is more detrimental than simply reusing and old car. So we sleep at night.

Hahaha, no. Making a new car is a tiny fraction of the environmental impact and carbon emission of a cars lifecycle.

Hahaha. You sure?? https://www.abc27.com/news/environment/keeping-old-cars-longer-can-help-the-environment-more-than-buying-new-electric-cars-study-finds/amp/

Key word is the energy used to make all the bolts and metal etc.

Yes I’m sure. I see your rando Uni with a National Lab. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/green-life/2013/10/ask-mr-green-how-much-energy-make-new-car

There is no magical "non-minivan" that is as good as a minivan. Your choices are to either squish into a Pilot/Atlas/Telluride size car, or fork out the money for a Suburban/Expedition. Or just get another minivan. Those are the 3 options. There is no magical 4th option.

We have 3 children also and just a little older than yours. We went from the Honda Odyssey to a Volvo XC90 to a Expedition Max. The kids were getting too tall for the 3rd row of the XC90 and we were requiring a rooftop box for road trips. The expedition max solved those problems. Captains chairs in the second row are perfect.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Got a used suburban. It's big. The kids can mess it up. Cheap to service. The kind of car one will use and eventually lose. For environmental concerns we told ourselves that making a new car is more detrimental than simply reusing and old car. So we sleep at night.

Hahaha, no. Making a new car is a tiny fraction of the environmental impact and carbon emission of a cars lifecycle.

Hahaha. You sure?? https://www.abc27.com/news/environment/keeping-old-cars-longer-can-help-the-environment-more-than-buying-new-electric-cars-study-finds/amp/

Key word is the energy used to make all the bolts and metal etc.

I know it’s not for everyone, but we had a Ford Flex when our kids were those ages. It was a great transition from the minivan. The third row was much better than other SUVs.

Anonymous wrote:We have 4 kids and are on our 3rd sienna.

We test drove the Suburban and Expedition, but the trunk space is lacking (minivan trunk space goes deeper/lower like a car while suvs are high/flat like a truck). The sienna is more comfortable, slightly more affordable, and gets far better mileage.

SUV’s look bigger/better, but they aren’t.

All of this, except we have three kids. I get wanting to be done with the minivan, but there really isn’t an SUV that’s going to give you the space you want and comfort. Even when we had a suburban, we took the minivan on road trips because there was more legroom and more storage. I will say that now that my oldest is 17 and doesn’t drive with the rest of us as often, I feel like I could get rid of the minivan but I don’t want to spend the money so I’ll just keep driving in until it dies.

Anonymous wrote:I love my minivan. Would never replace it with an SUV that has less room, no sliding doors, and is less functional. But it’s not for people with fragile egos who care what strangers may think of them.

DP here. Too bad all the new minivans no longer fit through a standard 8’ wide garage door. Really short sighted on their part. I’d be on my 3rd van right now but instead will be getting a 3 row SUV, most likely an MDX. I refuse to give up garage parking.

Anonymous wrote:Got a used suburban. It's big. The kids can mess it up. Cheap to service. The kind of car one will use and eventually lose. For environmental concerns we told ourselves that making a new car is more detrimental than simply reusing and old car. So we sleep at night.

Hahaha, no. Making a new car is a tiny fraction of the environmental impact and carbon emission of a cars lifecycle.

Got a used suburban. It's big. The kids can mess it up. Cheap to service. The kind of car one will use and eventually lose. For environmental concerns we told ourselves that making a new car is more detrimental than simply reusing and old car. So we sleep at night.

We have a Volkswagen Atlas but a minivan is better. But I think a minivan is too big for me to drive and my husband didn’t want to drive a minivan anymore.

we have three kids 6, 9, 10 .. we got a Subaru Ascent a year ago .. captain chairs .. and LOVE it .. the third row is an actual seat , unlike the highlander which just folds up etc. everyone is comfy and it drives really well. We also have a Honda Pilot with a second row bench .. not as easy to access the 3rd row but also like it , the pilot has a TV etc. in it so the kids like it for trips better.

Anonymous wrote:At your budget, a minivan is really the best option. In my opinion, SUVs are only really worth it for people who utilize the capabilities for off-roading or extreme weather type of scenarios; and, people who have extra money to burn and want a status symbol/luxury vehicle. FWIW I previously drove Jeep, XC90, and 4runner. They were all nice, but not the best choice for your situation.

Yup. Totally agree.

At your budget, a minivan is really the best option. In my opinion, SUVs are only really worth it for people who utilize the capabilities for off-roading or extreme weather type of scenarios; and, people who have extra money to burn and want a status symbol/luxury vehicle. FWIW I previously drove Jeep, XC90, and 4runner. They were all nice, but not the best choice for your situation.

GMC Acadia