Trading Automobiles

Hi,

I need to trade my Honda pilot becuase it's getting old and I need something that gets good gas mileage becuase I drive about 75 miles a day to work.

My hushand wants to stick with a Honda pilot or minivan but I want to go back to an accord. We only have the twins that are 19 months old.

Anyone else drive a car and find that it meets your needs or is a minivan/SUV a must?

Thanks!

 

Back when we only had 2 kids I drove a Honda Civic, and loved it. If you don't plan on having more kids, I would definitely stick with a sedan (if only because it's a lot easier to reach them from the driver's seat That being said, we did have to pack carefully when we went away, BUT we were able to fill that little car with everything we would need on a camping trip last summer, and it worked out just fine.

 

Nana has an Accord and it fits everything nicely. She took the children away on vacation and didn't have any trouble getting everything in. She is able to put two boosters and an infant carrier in the back together. I think if the Accord is what you want then you can make it work.

 

We have a car, but it's a station wagon. I don't think it matters as far as the carseats go, but we are definitely happy for the extra trunk space (especially for carting the Mountain Buggy around). When our car dies, we'll probably get a minivan.

 

I had an Accord before (and for their first month home) that I had the girls. I miss it so much!

I think there were only a couple of reasons that the Accord didn't work for us: 1) Most likely the main reason: 2 door coupe, not a lot of room in the back seat. I'm tall so w/ rear facing infant seats I was eating the steering wheel, I think if the girls were in forward facing seats, we would have been okay but that leads me to 2) I couldn't get the &^&(^% duoglider double stroller into the trunk without dismantling it each time, and I was frustrated enough by getting out of the house at that point without having to take the stroller apart....

So I think if you get a four door and bring your stroller with you to test drive and see if it fits in the trunk, you should be good to go!

 

I hauled my infant carriers and stroller to every car dealership I could find because I didn't want a big SUV or a mini van. After trying to fit everything into about a million cars I ended up getting a cross over SUV. Mine is a Cadillac SRX but it is equivilant to a Chrysler Pacifica or a Dodge Magnum. It has lot of extra storage that you just can't get with a car. Not what we are into "big kid" carseat and mostly using our Jeep SBS it doesn't seem like such a big deal but i love love love my car now and wouldn't trade it for the world. It's really safe and gets GREAT gas milage.

 

Well I have 3 kids, so a mini van is a must. But I personally can't imagine having a Honda Accord with twins, especially when traveling. JMO.

 

We have a Ford Taurus. We never have had an SUV or minivan. With just 2 kids, it works fine. We traveled from Mexico to LA when they were 10 months. No problems. We could get the Duoglider and a week of groceries in the trunk. If you have skinny carseats, like the Radian, you can still fit an adult in the backseat.

 

I have a wagon and love it. I need the space in the trunk for the Mountain Buggy.

I had a minivan before this and hated it. On a daily basis I did not need the extra space. I hated how it drove and also how other drivers would drive around me. (People see a minivan and insist on getting ahead of you -- even if they cannot safely do it.)

 

I've been driving my Accord for the last 7 years, and I have 4 kids. As long as I don't have to bring my DH, we all fit just fine. It was tight when the girls were rear-facing, but it's fine now. My 10 yo is getting a little cramped between the carseats, but she'll be OK until we can switch to boosters. We don't go on long hauls in my car, but it is used daily for back & forth trips. I love my car. I love the gas mileage, the fact that it has 150,000 miles on it - and it's still ticking. I actually plan on driving it until my oldest (almost 14) turns 16, and then giving it to her. Then I'll probably get another Accord.

BTW - I put the DuoGlider in the trunk more times than I can count. It did have to go in one certain way, but once you figured out which way it was, then you were fine - and had room to spare.

 

I have a VW Passat wagon. It's great. I would have kept my Jetta but it didn't fit the car seats. I refused to get a mini van or SUV.

 

I have an Audi A6 Wagon and LOVE it! I have 3 Sunshine Kids Radian carseats in the back seat. I have more storage space in the back than my friends with minivans. We bought a Yakima box for the roof for big trips, so we can carry alot of stuff!!!

 

In a Nissan Maxima and a Pathfinder ('94) here (both 5-speeds). We can't get another adult safely in either car, but I can sit sideways between the seats for short trips. We've gone on long trips in the Maxima with no problem (other than the tons of gear that accompany infant twins). We actually have more cargo room in the Maxima than we do in the Pathfinder - especially since you can't have stuff that sticks above the back of the seats for safety. The duoglider was a pain regardless of the car, but I could make it work.

My aunt just bought an Impala, I think, and the trunk space in there is unbelievable - you could fit a whole casket in there! And the car itself is pretty roomy. My cousin has done her whole time with 2 kids in a sedan. So it's all doable.

That said, we'll probably get a minivan when the Pathfinder runs out. I like the higher level of the seats (I don't have to bend down so low), the nice open doors on each side, and the additional cargo space/room to spread out since in the sedan, our front seats are usually just as packed for long trips. I do not want a minivan - it goes against everything that tries to be cool in me. Maybe if I get it purple with metallic stars down the sides? Do they make minivans in 5-speed? Something, anything to make it cooler? Argh. I'd get an SUV, but gas mileage is just rotten.

Good luck!

 

I have an Impala- and for now, it's just fine. Really, the only times I find that it is too small is if we want to go anywhere w/ another adult (I can squeeze in between the two MAs in the back seat- but it's not a comfortable option!) and when we travel. We've made two trips home (10+ hours) and while it WORKED, I definitely would've preferred more room. But on a day to day basis- it's perfectly adequate. I can get our double stroller in there just fine, plus groceries (LOVE the huge trunk!) and rarely is it anyone other than myself, DH and the boys.

 

Up until this week, I didn't have a mini van. I had the twins and the oldest in the back seat of a Ford Focus. With the new arrival expected in August, I didn't have a choice. I had to but something larger...but that is the only reason that we had to upgrade.

 

I really don't think anyone with fewer than 4 kids NEEDS a minivan. I drive an Impala and there is more than enough room for my twins, myself, DH, and one other small-medium sized passenger (we have one carseat in the center). We've taken it on trips and fit a stroller, three suitcases, two PNPs, an ice chest, and a duffel full of toys in there. Very full, yes, but also 30MPG.

 

Ditto on the other Accord posts. I have a '97 Accord and am tall too and had the same eating-the-steering-wheel issue when the seats were rear facing, but now that they are forward facing it's not a problem (they are in britax roundabouts, not sure the larger britaxs would fit, not sure what you've got).
My duoglider was kind of a pain (had to take off snack tray and canopy to fit), but my side-by-side stroller fits well with some room for groceries, and hey, that's what the front passenger seat is for, right? Couldn't fit another kid in between with the roundabouts, but my dog (or DH!) can ride shotgun when necessary. It's a bit of a squeeze, but not bad. They are great cars and run forever!


QUOTE(jamey @ Apr 24 2008, 09:48 PM) [snapback]737875[/snapback]
I've been driving my Accord for the last 7 years, and I have 4 kids. As long as I don't have to bring my DH, we all fit just fine. It was tight when the girls were rear-facing, but it's fine now. My 10 yo is getting a little cramped between the carseats, but she'll be OK until we can switch to boosters. We don't go on long hauls in my car, but it is used daily for back & forth trips. I love my car. I love the gas mileage, the fact that it has 150,000 miles on it - and it's still ticking. I actually plan on driving it until my oldest (almost 14) turns 16, and then giving it to her. Then I'll probably get another Accord.

BTW - I put the DuoGlider in the trunk more times than I can count. It did have to go in one certain way, but once you figured out which way it was, then you were fine - and had room to spare.

 

We have a saturn station wagon. We find it gets pretty good gas milage. We could fit all of the stuff in the back/trunk well. It now fits 3 car seats across the back. It is a little tight, but after they are all buckled in, it is fine. We have decided to drive it until it dies and know we got a great deal over all with it.
We used that as the family car right up until Ainsley was born. DH had just totalled the just paid off pick up truck, so we decided to go with the minivan when A came. BUT we also often take one or two extra kids/people with us on trips around town, so it works well for us.

 

We have a Prius and love it. The mileage, obviously! But the carseats fit easily, and there is tons of room in the hatchback for stroller etc. You don't need a behemoth, don't worry.

 

we only have the twins and no other kids.
We have a Toyota Camry. It meets our needs on 95 percent of the occasions.
Exceptions: When grandparents are in town, it's nice to have a mini van b/c then all 6 of us can fit in one vehicle; we like to be in one vehicle together so that grandparents can spend more time with the girls plus save on gas. Or, when we have a teen mom's helper/ sitter along to help with a major all day outing (making it a family of 5) it's uncomfortable for someone to squeeze in the middle back seat in between the car seats.

the duo glider fits fine in the trunk and other things have to go toward the back.

 

I have a VW Passat Sedan and I love it! We have two Britax Roundabout car seats and they fit great. It has the biggest trunk we could find at the time and my Graco DuoGlider fits fine without having to take it apart. We are also able to fit lots of groceries and other items in the trunk with the stroller. We almost bought an Accord, but I liked the Passat better. We will be taking it for our first "family" vacation in June so I will be finding out exactly how much it will hold. It is great on the highway and gets pretty good mileage to and from work.

 

Four door Accord here and it works fine with two kids.

 

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