Anonymous wrote:Love our VW atlas

Second this. Great 3rd row

Anonymous wrote:Third row in small SUV is a death trap for third row occupants in the event of a serious rear collision.

Some of the new SUVs have third row airbags.

Anonymous wrote:+1 on the Genesis.
Maybe the CX-90, but test drive it and see how you like the maneuvering.
The MDX felt like a tank to me, I hated it.
Infinti has several various sizes and configurations of SUVs, maybe worth a look.

I loved the Genesis but the one I loved was $80k. Too much for us by about $30k.

Anonymous wrote:We LOVE our KIA Sorento. We tested the Toyota Highlander, Honda Pilot, Hyundai Santa Fe, Kia Sorento and Kia Telluride. The Highlander was overpriced and didn't handle well (and only came in 2 colors and there was a $5K over list dealer markup, it was absurd), the Pilot felt cheap, the Santa Fe is a great car, but felt too big and boxy, we liked both the Sorento and the Telluride but picked the Sorento because it's smaller and felt more luxurious.

We just ordered a Kia Sorento. The Telluride is huge and I knew I would be knocking down signs and construction cones so we went with the Sorento. The middle row has captain chairs so it seats seven. It was $45k with taxes. The Sorento hybrid would have been $55k so we passed on that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Flagging that we have a Sorento and have had a ton of trouble with it. There have/had known engine issues where the engine can freeze up and require replacing. They won't do anything for you other than sell you expensive temporary fixes until it needs replacing and then you hope that happens while under warranty. Never again for us.

Same here with Telluride. Never doing Kia again.

Same. Have a 2024 Telluride with major problems. Can’t wait to get rid of it and will never buy another Kia.

Anonymous wrote:I have one of the new (>24) Santa Fe hybrids. Love basically everything about it. 3rd row is great for kids or short trips for adults, most of the time I have it down for cargo.

+1 Love our 2024 Santa Fe

Mercedes GLS 450. I’ve owned it for 8 years and bought it for the exact reason.

Have you considered Mazda CX9. Its a solid vehicle, have had it for almost 9 years and still love it. Definitely not lame drive like some of the others in its category. Have used the 3rd row for kids when parents visited us many times.

Anonymous wrote:Lexus GX (2017) is what we have. Love it. Acura MDX 2022 and newer is also nice. Similar to Honda Pilot obviously.

Thought a Mazda CX-90 was a nice car until we rented one on a trip. Felt like junk, honestly. A sad surprise. Also rented a VW Atlas: everything's in the screen, tacky, overpriced, poor driver experience, what non-car-enthusiast people think a nice car is like.

Depending on what age kids, the Acura (and most small 3 row cars) won’t necessarily fit them. I have an average to smaller sized middle school boy and he struggles to fit in the 3rd row of an MDX in carpool. I think this year they agreed to keep him in the 2nd row. That said, a full size 3-row (Highlander, telluride, pilot, etc) are still smaller than a minivan. We have a van now, but previously had an Infiniti qx60 and the van is about 10” longer?

Third row in small SUV is a death trap for third row occupants in the event of a serious rear collision.

Anonymous wrote:NP. I thought a minivan would be less expensive, but I didn't find that to be the reality. now that I have had a 3rd row SUV, I'm interested in another. any thoughts about the explorer or the ascent?

Had an Explorer for several years and liked it. The third row was pretty comfortable. Test-drive an Ascent and found it mediocre.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Flagging that we have a Sorento and have had a ton of trouble with it. There have/had known engine issues where the engine can freeze up and require replacing. They won't do anything for you other than sell you expensive temporary fixes until it needs replacing and then you hope that happens while under warranty. Never again for us.

My understanding is that this is US-made gas engines. I have a Korean-made hybrid.

My understanding is that all Kias have engine issues.

We bought a Telluride literally yesterday. The Sorento was just too small unless you have very small kids. If you need the 3rd row, go with the Telluride. I'm 5' 11 205 and fit just fine in the 3rd row. I couldn't fit comfortably in the Sorento.

Anonymous wrote:Flagging that we have a Sorento and have had a ton of trouble with it. There have/had known engine issues where the engine can freeze up and require replacing. They won't do anything for you other than sell you expensive temporary fixes until it needs replacing and then you hope that happens while under warranty. Never again for us.

My understanding is that this is US-made gas engines. I have a Korean-made hybrid.

Anonymous wrote:You'll pay a premium in price and lost space by getting an SUV as opposed to a minivan. It's not like you'll go offroading.

Minivans are too large for my garage - small SUVs like the Highlander/Sorento/Outlander fit.