What GM van to buy?

cmm7

New member
What are some good mini vans for both safety and ease of use features? It must be a GM.

Seats in it would be a Britax Parkway, Britax Marathon (FF), and, in a few months, a Combi infant seat.

Thanks!
 
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lovinwaves

New member
I would not recommend a GM van of any year, mainly because of safety. Here is a link to the crash tests for minivans. Keep in mind this is for 2007 models. This website will also have data for previous years also. The Kia Sedona is an awesome van for many reasons. Many standard safety features, GREAT PRICE, and was in the running for Motor Trends Car of the Year.

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/summary.aspx?class=80
 

WESTMICHIGANLEO

New member
I'm going to guess either GM employee or they have a GM card w/ some $$$ available from it.

My best friend is in a similar scenario. They have almost $3,000 on their GM card to put towards a vehicle. They want something safe and practical for a family w/ one little one and planning on a 2nd. There just aren't many out there that fit the needs. The Pontiac Torrent is about what they are looking for, and although it has 5 star ratings, it doesn't even offer side-curtain airbags.


Any suggestions??
 

LuvBug

New member
The chevy malibu did good if they dont mind settling on a car.
If they made sure to get front and side airbags, antilock breaks, and stability control then that would help. When buying a vehicle you should always get those.
The impala is bigger and would definitely fit a 2 adult 2 child family(really even a 3 if you didnt mind fitting 3 into a car) but it has a little lower rating.

Is the card good towards used vehicles at a GM dealer?
 

WESTMICHIGANLEO

New member
He said that it is to be used on new cars only. I asked the same thing and was going to have him look for something different.

We went out looking together, and the Malibu Maxx is kind of neat and does most of what they want. His wife just wants something along the lines of the Equinox or Torrent.

Unfortunately, he is probably stuck w/ one of them.

I only wish he could get Honda to accept the GM Card. :)
 

Alicia-N-2SafeBugs

Senior Community Member
I drive an '05 Saturn Relay (this is essentially the same vehicle as the Chevy Uplander and the Pontiac one). The safety ratings aren't the highest, but as far as ease of use and carseat fit goes, it's been great. We love our van. Right now I have a FF Marathon and a RF Scenera in the captain's chairs with easy rock solid installs. I've also used a Britax Companion and Roundabout both RF and FF. The 3rd row isn't as user friendly since there is no LATCH, but I haven't had a problem getting seats tight using the seatbelts with a little more effort.
 

skipspin

New member
If you have to choose a GM mini van I would go with the Saturn Relay. It's probably mostly the same as the others, but we have recieved legandary service at our local Saturn dealership and have heard simiar things about many other Saturn dealerships.

We currently have a VUE (bought new in Dec 02) and really love it, but take any other vehicle we own (GMC truck and a Jeep) to the Saturn dealership unless it's for a warnatee issue that they can't cover. They are really that great.

When we replace the VUE it will most likely be with a 4-door Wrangler Unlimited, but we wish we could buy it from Saturn!
 

cmm7

New member
Yup, it is a relative that works there. This isn't for me, but i sadly do have a GM. Chevy Cavalier :-( not too safe of a car but nothing I can do about it for now.
 

Splash

New member
Honestly, good negotiating skills can meet or beat a "family discount" any day. Also many other dealerships will honor that family discount just to sell a vehicle. No matter what any car salesman tells you, a dealership IS NOT going to take a loss on a new current model year vehicle. GM isn't taking a loss on the sale to you, and no one else would either. You really can get VERY good deals with a little research and haggling. Plus, GM vehicles are priced much higher than other vehicles of comparable or better quality and safety, so even if you buy a cheaper car at closer to retail, you might still spend less than a GM at lower than retail. You can definitely get a safer vehicle than a GM minivan, which are the lowest scoring minivans (anf among the lowest scoring vechiles period) on the US market.
If you really want to get a GM vehicle, I would skip the minivans entirely and go with a Saturn Vue if you only need 5 seats, or a 7 seater Tahoe even.
 

cmm7

New member
Thanks everyone! I passed on all of the information to her and now it all depends on what she chooses.

Thanks again!
 

tchrgrrl

New member
If you talk to her again you might mention to look in to internet pricing or Costco's auto buying program - we saved $$ on our Odyssey even when they were in high demand and getting MSRP at other dealerships.
 

jen_nah

CPST Instructor
I'm going to guess either GM employee or they have a GM card w/ some $$$ available from it.

My best friend is in a similar scenario. They have almost $3,000 on their GM card to put towards a vehicle. They want something safe and practical for a family w/ one little one and planning on a 2nd. There just aren't many out there that fit the needs. The Pontiac Torrent is about what they are looking for, and although it has 5 star ratings, it doesn't even offer side-curtain airbags.


Any suggestions??

The Torrant does offer side curtain airbags.
 

jen_nah

CPST Instructor
I just want to say we are a family that refuses to buy foreign vehicles (Honda, Toyota, Kia, etc...). It doesn't have to do with how much a vehicle costs. We just refuse for our hard earned money to go over seas. We want our money to keep Americans in work & our money here.
 

WESTMICHIGANLEO

New member
jen_nah,

I hadn't even looked to confirm the side-impact airbags/curtain. He is the one buying it and was told specifically by the salesman that it doesn't have them and that it doesn't need them because it gets the 5 starts w/o them. I'll be sure to pass it on to him that yet another sales person has proven that they are unfamiliar w/ their products.

I see that it is part of a package, but very much available.

thanks for pointing it out.
 

Splash

New member
I just want to say we are a family that refuses to buy foreign vehicles (Honda, Toyota, Kia, etc...). It doesn't have to do with how much a vehicle costs. We just refuse for our hard earned money to go over seas. We want our money to keep Americans in work & our money here.

I don't want to helplessly nitpick, but do you own any appliances? Any clothing? Toys? Televisions? Computers? Shoes?

There is absolutely no way to buy only made in America things. By saying you refuse to let your hard earned money go overseas, you're implying that you never buy anything not made in America. And that is completely impossible.
 

LuvBug

New member
There is absolutely no way to buy only made in America things. By saying you refuse to let your hard earned money go overseas, you're implying that you never buy anything not made in America. And that is completely impossible.
actually it isnt completely impossible, just hard. You can find american maid appliances, clothing, ect. Usually it is more expensive because they tend to be smaller companies that cant mass produce, but they still exist out there.

And actually we have a honda plant and a kia(or is it hyundai) right in my state that makes these things, so technically the ones coming from these plants are made in the US lol!(not sure if the part are shipped here or not? I dont know exactly how a vehicle is made, but thanks to the honda plant we have a MUCH lower rate of unemployment, they will hire anyone that is trainable and they pay well).
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Yup, a lot of "foreign" brands have plants in the U.S. now, and vice versa. Some of the "foreign" vehicles built at U.S. plants have higher domestic content than "domestic" brands, depending on the model. I realize the profits still can go overseas, though. I used to be a die-hard buy American car customer but now safety ratings and overall fuzziness of what's foreign vs. domestic have made it more of a secondary consideration for me and my family. Even my WWII veteran father, who bitterly swore never to consider a Japanese car after a scary encounter with a kamikaze pilot, has conceded on globalization and has not disowned me for driving a Sienna. ;)
 

TXDani

Senior Community Member
My husbands Nissan Titan is made up of something around 70% American parts and was built here, yet is a foreign vehicle. Whereas many Chevrolet's these days have a lot of foreign made parts and are assembled outside of the US.
 

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