Safe, reliable, used vehicle that seats 6 around $10,000?

[deedeesmom]

Any recommendations? I'm looking for something that seats 6, with some cargo room left over, reliable and safe, decent gas mileage. I'd really prefer something smaller than a full-size minivan. Will test drive a Honda Odyssey but it seems so big to me. I really liked the sound of the Mazda5 but I don't like the seatbelt problem I've read about on here. So far, looking online in the general region of my budget range, I've found 2003 Honda Odysseys, 2004-2005 Kia Sedonas (seem to be well within the range), and one 2006 Mazda5 (almost twice the cost of the Sedonas). I can't find any of the crossovers I've seen mentioned here at a price I could manage; I guess they're all too new for that. Might be willing to consider just another wagon -- just came across a 2002 VW Passat within my range as well. Is there anything else to look for? Out of the ones I've found, what do you think?

My '99 Mercury Sable wagon's ABS system is shot and it is not braking well in our first snowstorm of the winter. It scared me pretty good yesterday so I'm planning to go car-hunting this weekend. Keeping it would mean an expensive fix and we've been considering a bigger vehicle for awhile anyway.

ETA: I have 2 kids, ages 4 and 6, thinking about one more in the near future. The kids ride in Radians in my car.

[Melanie]

just an fyi on the Sedona's...some of the first generation ones have reliability issues. It seems to be fixed when they redesigned (06 I think)

[Defrost]

Yeah, I'd be concerned about the Mazda 5 with your kids' ages. I have been unable to install the Radian in the rear row; the Regent is possible, though. If you had a third child, you could easily put the baby in the rear row and access it from the hatchback, but you'd be awfully short on cargo space.

I really do love my Mazda 5 now that we've got the custom harnesses, but it's definitely not the right car for everyone. I REALLY REALLY hope they fix those seatbelts, along with adding a passenger armrest and rear vents, in future models.

[kanga]

For that price range you could get a 7 passenger VW Eurovan 2001-2002.

[deedeesmom]

Thanks, pp's. I'm ruling out the Mazda5 and Sedona. I test-drove a Ford Freestyle today and couldn't see well out of it. I also test-drove a Mazda MPV and liked it. I really liked the size -- not too big and not too small, and didn't feel much different from driving a car. It was a 2004 and seems like it might be doable for us. There's not a whole lot written here about the MPV -- any opinions on it? It seems to get pretty decent reviews though it is listed as having a higher than average rollover risk on the Informed for Life list. What do you think?