Best road trip vehicle?

[Sequoiasoon]

I'm going to go a different route than every one else. A full sized GM SUV with a 3 liter duramax. Good mileage and you can see all the traffic ahead of you.

And up the subscription to the Super Cruise. Ask @wwillson how he feels about the super cruise and the duramax in his Tahoe.

 

[UncleDave]

The Mini Van even beats the Suburban for interior space, and it certainly beats it mileage wise unless you get a diesel.

Targeting the Sienna as you can get it in AWD it bests even the suburban for Interior space.

The Sienna has 162.5 cubic feet, compared to the Suburban’s approximately 144.7 cubic feet

 

[Speedy3861]

Honda CRV Sport Touring Hybrid checks the boxes, I'd upgrade the factory installed tires to either Michelin Continental high performance all-season. 14 gallon tank, 40-50 mpg. Large comfortable rear seat. Power drivers sear has memory for two drivers. Power rear hatch with large cargo area.

 

[Elkins45]

How many $$$$ you willing to spend?

$15k is optimal but might go up to $20k for something really low miles or very recent.

 

[The Critic]

Minivan, but honestly, the best road trip vehicle is the one you don't have to use.

I used to be a huge proponent of road trips but as I've gotten older, I realized there are better uses of time.

 

[CheezWhiz]

half ton with a standard bed and a cap to sleep under. you can build a wood floor over the wheel wells, put a foam sleeping pad on top and use the space underneath for storage.

went cross country with my brother 25 years ago this way, right after i got out of the army. 45 days on the road and only two nights in a hotel, through the south, across I-10, up the 101, through Montana and the black hills and then back home on the east coast. we did want to kill each other by the end, but it might be the single best memory of my life.

 

[4WD]

$15k-$20k cuts off allot of suggestions - reset in order

 

[IndyIan]

Minivan, but honestly, the best road trip vehicle is the one you don't have to use.

I used to be a huge proponent of road trips but as I've gotten older, I realized there are better uses of time.

Private plane then? I do agree though, I did some very long drives when I was younger too, and its kind of neat to see gradual geographic/climate changes that you only get by doing the miles on the ground, but now I like the small campervan setup combined with a "drive less/see and do more", itinerary.
One of these for $20k would be nice! We did 6 weeks in one in Australia and I would do it again tomorrow. Hiace hi-top is a KISS cheap way to go and is easy to maneuver everywhere but a parking garage!
Not the best for 40mph crosswinds on the interstate I suppose, but we didn't do much 4 lane driving unless we had to.

 

[Pew]

A full size SUV or minivan. I take up an entire sedan by myself on a week long trip.

 

[BobsArmory]

$15k-$20k cuts off allot of suggestions - reset in order

With that budget you might want to think about a rental when you need it?

 

[4WD]

With that budget you might want to think about a rental when you need it?

Thought of that but he listed lots of days ?
Used mini van is about the only good fit I can see …

 

[ripcord]

VW T7. End of discussion.

Not in the USA. When it breaks down in Fargo North Dakota, no one will work on it.

 

[4WD]

Not in the USA. When it breaks down in Fargo North Dakota, no one will work on it.

Gives rise to checking dealerships along the planned route …

 

[ripcord]

My father in laws Lincoln Town Car was pretty nice rolling down the highway.

 

[Elkins45]

With that budget you might want to think about a rental when you need it?

$15k-$20k cuts off allot of suggestions - reset in order

OK, then make it $30k.

 

[Owen Lucas]

Honda CRV Sport Touring Hybrid checks the boxes, I'd upgrade the factory installed tires to either Michelin Continental high performance all-season. 14 gallon tank, 40-50 mpg. Large comfortable rear seat. Power drivers sear has memory for two drivers. Power rear hatch with large cargo area.

I just transported a 40 gallon hot water heater still in the box in a Honda CRV hybrid. It was a tight fit, but it worked.

 

[edyvw]

So, we did numerous multi-thousand-mile road trips, the longest being 5,200 miles in 2018 with BMW X5 35d (exceptional, and IMO still best road trip vehicle we had). We also had a Toyota Sienna after the X5 (multiple road trips) as the X5 became small for two kids and their stuff. Then we had Atlas, and now we have Sequoia.
So, I will try to give you my perspective based on your criteria.
1. You will be hauling camping gear? Off road? FORGET minivan! Yes, it is most practical, but guess what is one of the reasons why we got rid of our Sienna, which was AWD? Clearance! While SIenna had decent 6.8" clearance, once you load it, it drops, and the bike rack in the back will always scratch the road when you encounter even the smallest dip. Plus 6.8" is not a lot with that wheel base. Just forget it unless you are staying on asphalt 100% of the time.
2. SUV? OK, so you don't want big V8, you want decent mpg, so that means BOF SUV is out of the question. We had VW Atlas. IMO, it is the most practical SUV in that category. Huge first and second row, and one of the largest third rows. I drove Grand Highlander, new and old Pilot, and IMO, they are not even close to Atlas in practicality. GHL has too small first and second row, and the new Pilot is smaller, albeit not bad for its size if you can get away with it (which I think you could). GHL seems rushed as Toyota realized regular HL won't cut it against the competition. Horrible seats, tight first row, second row the same. The third row is OK, not bad.
We got rid of Atlas bcs. windshield issue. I really liked that vehicle. Good turbo engine, decent AWD, 8" clearance, interior design typical utilitarian German, like they used axe to design it, which is good. We loved it. Did several multi-thousands miles road trips, the longest being 4,200mls. However, the windshield kept cracking, and I lost patience. We would keep it even though we had third child on the way. However, once we got rid of it, I started to look for a vehicle that can do the road trips we are doing, but with 3 kids, their gear, bikes, grill, cooler, etc. I checked GHL and Pilot as I said. We could probably get away with both, barely. I would give preference to Pilot as I think it is better executed vehicle. It has excellent AWD, Trail Sport is really good, more outdoorsy SUV with true underbody protection. The engine is a bit gutless, especially in the Trail Sport version, but not too annoying. We realized that it would be a struggle with three kids, so I got Sequoia.
Still, IMO best road trip vehicle we had was that BMW X5. Superior performance on the road, excellent power, brakes, handling, it is just joy to drive, which kind of matters when you do multi-thousands miles road trip (I absolutely hated Sienna). Last October we rented X7 in Hawaii, and if I did not have a third kid now, that one would be in the garage. Exceptional engine and mil-hybrid. 29mpg in 5,400lbs vehicle that corners like some serious sports car. Power is always there, brakes are exceptional, you can adjust height. Really good full time AWD. You just need beefier tires, and it is good easy-mild off road vehicle.

 

[edyvw]

$15k is optimal but might go up to $20k for something really low miles or very recent.

OK, just saw this. That excludes a lot of vehicles.

 

[RooflessVW]

If you were buying a vehicle primarily for the purpose of taking 2-3 person multi-week road trips what would you choose? Probably it would see a lot of interstate miles and would need enough storage to hold a tent and some camping gear in addition to the normal luggage and stuff. It would be shared between drivers so an auto transmission would be necessary. Decent gas mileage would be appreciated so probably no giant V8, but AWD might be a nice feature for light off-highway travel on FS or BLM roads.

Minivan? Mid-size SUV? Put a roof rack and hitch hauler on my Scion? On two previous trips we’ve driven my Titan because both destinations involved true 4WD off-road usage, but the gas mileage was less than optimal for crossing the plains and everywhere except actually off the road.

I’m considering another trip now (no off-road) and the current plan is to take the 2012 xB once I replace the front struts, but I’m still actively looking for an AWD vehicle. I thought I was buying a 2014 CX-5 but it sold yesterday.

I think I'd pick up a used Bentley Continental Flying Spur.

 

[Cujet]

Full sized 4 door pickup with a tonneau cover. These things aren't designed for farm use anymore, and if you haven't ridden in one lately you'd be surprised by how luxurious and comfortable they are, back seat room is enormous compared to most cars/suvs, and you get all of that storage space in the bed.

I might have a problem paying as much money as these things are selling for these days, but they really are great road/passenger vehicles.

During covid, I was driving 10K miles per month. Rentals 3x per week, company vehicles, my vehicles, etc. Often driving 1350 miles in one day.

Hands down, the V8 F150 Lariat 4x4 SuperCrew was the best road trip vehicle I've ever driven. So much so, I purchased a brand new one at the end of last year. The V6 ecoboost versions were not as smooth and not as pleasant. In fact, I found the V8 so much more agreeable on a long trip, I refused to purchase the Ecoboost, despite having two of them in the past and really liking them.

The Chevy 4 cylinder truck did one trip and that was that. It was good at times, and as annoying as a 4 cylinder can be at other times.