Interesting...Smaller Car for family with more kids?

Gsanmb · Jun 26, 2008

So this week my van is being used by dh whose car is in the shop (again! -- naturally once we paid it off it has been in the shop every other week

).

So I have been borrowing my neighbor's Altima for just in and around town (dh commutes pretty far so we didn't want to borrow someone else's car for those kind of miles). I have ds's nautilus in the middle, a turbobooster on one side, and a radian on the other (also borrowed). It works. Tightly. But it does work.

I wouldn't want to do it daily because it's kind of a squeeze and a pain but it got me thinking...if we decide at some point to offload the van, clearly we can manage with something a bit smaller and more fuel efficient. I'd want something bigger than an Altima but maybe smaller than a van.

What is out there that is comfortable for a family of 5 (possibly 6 someday) who still use appropriate child restraints (2 under 6 in harnessed seats and one in a high back booster) but isn't so huge and fuel-eating? Is such a thing affordable too?

Defrost · Jun 26, 2008

Mazda5. 24/28 mpg; seats six; feels and drives like a car; sliding doors; NO cargo space, but you can fold down all four rear seats completely flat. Starting in '08 they fixed two of my three complaints - added a passenger armrest and rear air vents.

It does have some smaller storage features I really like - the 2nd row seats open for storage, the glove box is ginormous, etc. I can fit my entire family, including the four kids with 2 in boosters and one in a harnessed seat, plus all four of their backpacks, as long as we don't stop for groceries on the way home.

Starts at $17K, I believe (or at least they did last year when I got mine).

Also the Kia Rondo, but I never even test-drove one of those, so I can't tell you much.

Gsanmb · Jun 26, 2008

Wow, that's cool. Do the rear seats split so you can fold one down and have cargo space?

Defrost · Jun 26, 2008

Yup.

I have a huge long thread with all kinds of pics and such. Lemme find it the link...

Here ya' go.

mamaofthree · Jun 26, 2008

I was really stuck on having all 3 kids in the second row, but I still want to check the Mazda5 out. Is there really NO cargo space? No family vacations in this car?

Kimberly

ETA: I can't see any photos in that thread!!

Defrost · Jun 26, 2008

Hm, that's weird. I haven't moved or deleted them. I'll check it out later if I have time, sorry!

And no, there's NO cargo space. You MIGHT be able to manage a family vacation if you only had 3 kids and could tie down the cargo in the folded-down seat in the 3rd row. Folding down one seat does make a lot more room; that's what I do when I go grocery shopping without all the kids.

If you have four kids, you MIGHT be able to squeeze everyone in if you had a duffle bag for each kid and put it under their feet. Then you and dh could share a larger duffle bag and cram it in the rear glove box (that's what I call the space behind the 3rd row).

mamaofthree · Jun 26, 2008

LOL!! Well we do only have three kids, right now. No plans for more, but you never know. So, it could be doable if we fold one seat down. We really don't travel much at all. And I never go grocery shopping with the kids. Ever since #3 came along, I go when dh is home and leave the kids with him.

Kimberly

firemomof3 · Jun 26, 2008

I would look at the Ford Taurus X. It gets around 28mpg highway, you can fit 3 car seats across(its pretty wide) AND it has 2 seats that fold flat into the floor in the 3rd row. So, you'd have TONS of cargo space,
But best of all........its one of the safest cars on the road. 5star crash test rating all around!
Good luck!

cryswilkins · Jun 26, 2008

If there is not a god cargo area, you could always use a car top carrier for those rare family vacations.

SillyLily · Jun 26, 2008

Defrost said:
Hm, that's weird. I haven't moved or deleted them. I'll check it out later if I have time, sorry!

And no, there's NO cargo space. You MIGHT be able to manage a family vacation if you only had 3 kids and could tie down the cargo in the folded-down seat in the 3rd row. Folding down one seat does make a lot more room; that's what I do when I go grocery shopping without all the kids.

If you have four kids, you MIGHT be able to squeeze everyone in if you had a duffle bag for each kid and put it under their feet. Then you and dh could share a larger duffle bag and cram it in the rear glove box (that's what I call the space behind the 3rd row).

Can you put a roof box on it? That would create a ton of storage space. I saw a Mazda 5 yesterday and was really impressed. The sliding doors on a non-minivan is a cool feature, and I had no idea it seated 4 in the back!

mamaofthree · Jun 26, 2008

Yeah, the sliding doors are so practical. No worrying about the kids hitting someone else's car, or blocking someone's way while you are buckling seatbelts.

The Taurus X shows mileage as 16/24. That's not better than a minivan.

OP: I was checking out the Ford Escape hybrid. Only seats 5 though.

Kimberly

firemomof3 · Jun 26, 2008

mamaofthree said:
Yeah, the sliding doors are so practical. No worrying about the kids hitting someone else's car, or blocking someone's way while you are buckling seatbelts.

The Taurus X shows mileage as 16/24. That's not better than a minivan.

OP: I was checking out the Ford Escape hybrid. Only seats 5 though.

Kimberly

Oh, thank you Kim for catching that.....well it isn't the first time I've been lied to by a salesman!!

BW1426 · Jun 26, 2008

firemomof3 said:
Oh, thank you Kim for catching that.....well it isn't the first time I've been lied to by a salesman!!

The Ford Freestyle (Taurus X is what they named it this year) gets better gas mileage. Why it got poorer gas mileage when the renamed it....I have no freakin' clue. The AWD sucks the gas, but the FWD does pretty darn well. They're also discussing putting a more fuel efficient motor in the GMC Acadia next year (or maybe they've already done it with the '09 models).

mamaofthree · Jun 26, 2008

Thanks for that info! I like the Acadia. If it went hybrid or got better gas mileage I'd def check it out again.

Kimberly

niccig · Jun 26, 2008

We looked at the Mazda 5 and I really really wanted the sliding doors. We ended up with a CRV, a couple of reasons were more cargo space with 5 people in the car and you can put a tow hitch on the car for a bike carrier or a small trailer - has to be small as the towing capacity is small. I was trying to convince DH for roof racks with the Mazda 5, but the roof bike carrier only holds 2 bikes. We used to have a car that seated 7 people and most times it's just DS and me, so even the 6th seat in the Mazda would be unused.

With the CRV I'm getting combined driving 24-25, only highway is 27-28. I'm in LA so mostly combined driving. The other day we carpooled to the beach. I got 3 kids in car seats - but you have to have the right car seats. In the back a Graco duoglider stroller, 3 camp chairs, 1 shade pavilion, a cooler and 4 other bags with towels, beach towels, food etc. And I still had room for more things. I was impressed. I'm still missing the sliding doors though...

Defrost · Jun 26, 2008

SillyLily said:
Can you put a roof box on it? That would create a ton of storage space. I saw a Mazda 5 yesterday and was really impressed. The sliding doors on a non-minivan is a cool feature, and I had no idea it seated 4 in the back!

I honestly don't know about the roof rack.

Keep in mind the 3rd row seats are a PITA for certain installs and all booster seats. The seat belts themselves are so far forward of the seat it creates a large gap between the chest and the shoulder belt! I refuse to use them for my boostered and seat belt-only kids. Carseats tend to be more difficult to install there, as well, but I'm so pleased with my car overall I just deal with the 3rd row.

Jeanum · Jun 26, 2008

BW1426 said:
The Ford Freestyle (Taurus X is what they named it this year) gets better gas mileage. Why it got poorer gas mileage when the renamed it....I have no freakin' clue. The AWD sucks the gas, but the FWD does pretty darn well. They're also discussing putting a more fuel efficient motor in the GMC Acadia next year (or maybe they've already done it with the '09 models).

I think the gas mileage difference is a combination of two factors. Ford tweaked the engine to make it somewhat more powerful in the Taurus X compared to the earlier Freestyle incarnation. The EPA mileage per gallon ratings calculation process also changed for the 2008 model year to be more representative of "real world" driving conditions, and this effectively lowered the EPA mileage per gallon ratings for many vehicle models.

Starlight · Jun 26, 2008

Ooooh, this is on my list of things to do: Trade my van for something more economical and w/ better gas mileage.

But, I need a 7 passenger, and I can't decide. I love, love, love the Lexus RX, but pigs will fly before I spend 40k on a vehicle. LOL

:drool

UlrikeDG · Jun 26, 2008

firemomof3 said:
I would look at the Ford Taurus X. It gets around 28mpg highway....

mamaofthree said:
The Taurus X shows mileage as 16/24. That's not better than a minivan.

firemomof3 said:
Oh, thank you Kim for catching that.....well it isn't the first time I've been lied to by a salesman!!

It could have been an innocent mistake. The Taurus sedan gets 28 mpg highway (18 city). It is too bad, though. I'd really love to find a vehicle for 6 that doesn't have seatbelt issues and does have good mileage.

jewlsvern · Jun 26, 2008

starlightCPST said:
Ooooh, this is on my list of things to do: Trade my van for something more economical and w/ better gas mileage.

But, I need a 7 passenger, and I can't decide. I love, love, love the Lexus RX, but pigs will fly before I spend 40k on a vehicle. LOL

:drool

For a 7 passenger car/SUV I would look into the mazda CX-9. It holds 7 very comfortably and start around $29,000. It gets around 20 MPG

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