pollysmommy
New member
My husband and I are having a "discussion." I want a minivan. He wants a Suburban or an H2. 
He's pulled up a Ford Motors crash statistic saying that the fatality rate for a third row seat with less than three feet of crush room, in ANY rear end collision, is 50%. Whaa?
So he says only the huge SUVs like Suburbans or Hummers are safe, if you have enough kids to be putting some into the third row regularly. The only reason that mid size SUVs and minivans get good safety ratings, he says, is that the third row is always empty for most families, and because they don't test for rear end accidents. I realize that they are also rare, but a 50% fatality rate??? Ack!
He's not buying the minivan vs. SUV average safety statistics I keep pulling up, trying to convince him to go for an Ody. He says they only apply to families who don't use the third row. Since third rows are only used 1-2% of the time, the avg. stats reflect that. If you have enough kids to be using your third row every day, he argues, you need to look at the safety statistics for third row occupancy as much as the other rows.
So if we are going to be putting some of our kids into the third row regularly, how can we research and make a list of the safest types of vehicles? Are there "safer" vehicles for kids in the third row?
Thanks. I keep saying he'll have to drive a Hummer over my dead body, but if it's true that only the monster mobiles are safe for families with a pile of kids, I guess I'll suck it up.
Edit: I should add that we are currently stationed in the crap-ass middle of nowhere with a ton of snow, so my husband wants something he can put a plow on the front of. I say we should buy a beater pickup for plowing instead.
He's pulled up a Ford Motors crash statistic saying that the fatality rate for a third row seat with less than three feet of crush room, in ANY rear end collision, is 50%. Whaa?
So he says only the huge SUVs like Suburbans or Hummers are safe, if you have enough kids to be putting some into the third row regularly. The only reason that mid size SUVs and minivans get good safety ratings, he says, is that the third row is always empty for most families, and because they don't test for rear end accidents. I realize that they are also rare, but a 50% fatality rate??? Ack!
He's not buying the minivan vs. SUV average safety statistics I keep pulling up, trying to convince him to go for an Ody. He says they only apply to families who don't use the third row. Since third rows are only used 1-2% of the time, the avg. stats reflect that. If you have enough kids to be using your third row every day, he argues, you need to look at the safety statistics for third row occupancy as much as the other rows.
So if we are going to be putting some of our kids into the third row regularly, how can we research and make a list of the safest types of vehicles? Are there "safer" vehicles for kids in the third row?
Thanks. I keep saying he'll have to drive a Hummer over my dead body, but if it's true that only the monster mobiles are safe for families with a pile of kids, I guess I'll suck it up.
Edit: I should add that we are currently stationed in the crap-ass middle of nowhere with a ton of snow, so my husband wants something he can put a plow on the front of. I say we should buy a beater pickup for plowing instead.
Last edited:
