A minivan for just one kid seems like a bit much.
Recommend a family vehicle please
- Thread starter NavyVet88
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edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
Being the age that you are, assuming that you and your wife intend to have additional children, a minivan is THE way to go. Nothing beats sliding side doors when it comes to dealing with little ones in the back seat, especially in the garage or crowded parking spaces. Additionally, nothing smaller than a Suburban is going to give you as much people room, cargo space, and/or luggage capacity. Mid-size SUVs don't come close, keep this point in mind for the occasions when you are moving, traveling, or going to the grandparents for the holidays with your children. If you can get over the stigma of what you think OTHER people might think of you driving one, it is easily the most practical vehicle for your purpose going forward. They are still quite popular, look around on the roads.
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edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
If SUV, nothing beats VW Atlas room wise. Also, seats fold with child seats on them to gain access to third row seating. IMO, captain chairs are best bet here, regardless SUV or minivan
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
That is bare bones Sienna. Best bet is used Limited as long as it is not 2017 model. That one should be avoided like a plague.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
To confirm this. Sliding doors are HUGE deal. I didn’t think of them until I already got a van. Kids can get in and out much easier. Taking kids out of seats or putting them in is big deal.
Owning minivan is fun. AWD and snow tires and leaving behind “bro” with oversized tires in JEEP in snow is a lot if fun
IDK. You certainly wouldn't want to tow anything in excess of 20 feet or so. I'm sure somebody will post someone stupid towing with this thing...but anything over 20ish feet and it will the tail wagging the dog.
I started out towing with a 4Runner. The 4.7 -V8 (at the time) was an incredible motor and could tow much more but the rest of the vehicle is it's limitations. It has a wimpy v6 now.
Not so sure about that. Captain chairs will turn the vehicle into a 4 seater.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
But you do have third row, and in Atlas it is real third row. Also in minivan it is bench third row. Plenty space.
Toyota does not manufacture a "bare bones" Sienna anymore. The $35k LE comes with all of the power equipment and a full suite of safety features. Moving up a step from an LE is a LOT more money ($5k more) and doesn't really get you very much for your money.
I finally got around to driving the new Sienna Hybrid. I was a little sceptical about giving up the V/6, thinking that it wouldn't be powerful enough. I was wrong, it actually accelerates better than I thought it would. Accelerating away from a stop is actually better than my V/6. The instant torque supplied by the electric motors make a big difference here. The fuel mileage is phenomenal, given how big and roomy it is, nothing else compares.
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edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
You have two seats that fit adults in Atlas. I can easily sit and I am 6.2. Bigger than Pilot, especially Highlander.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
Power equipment is fine and safety features (though I would pay them to remove some). But you don’t get seats like in limited and even with those there is a lot to wish for. Then audio system etc.
yes mpg is better, no doubt.
WE have a Mazda 5 and it is perfect for a family with baby seats. We have a 7 month old grand daughter and can say with out any reservation that the twin sliding doors are a HUGE benefit. When you go anywhere with a baby seat the door is totally out of the way and loading and unloading is a breeze. Minivans are good that way too. Baby seats have gotten bigger and safer and heavier than ever. Think about access before buying anything. Wife and I are very happy with the sliding doors.
The OP has a $35k budget, the LE just makes it. Have you looked at the prices of used Limiteds lately edy? What the OP is going to find is something around a 2017, maybe a 2018. If you were thinking about getting rid of yours, NOW would be the time.
It doesn't seem like it, but the US has been in a lot of wars lately, Iraq and Afghanistan. At least Afghanistan is over, but there are still troops in Iraq.On a side note, I think of veterans as older gentlemen, like 60's or 70's. You just had a kid?
I bought a CR-V in 2016 when kiddo #2 was on her way. Two years later, I was buying a van before kiddo #3 was born because we couldn’t fit three child seats across in the backseat. We kept the CR-V as a second vehicle, but we might as well have skipped it and bought the van.
We were in a similar situation in 2019 with our first child. We got a CR-V because the wife was in love with the 90* doors....I wanted a CX-5. Had the CR-V not have 90* doors, we'd have a CX-5. Then we had our second child in Sept. last year and we sold the wife's Camry and bought our Odyssey. It is a LOT nicer than the CR-V space-wise....we shouldn't even have gotten the CR-V, looking back. We should have gotten something bigger like a Pilot or CX-9 or the minivan sooner. Go bigger than what you think you want/need.
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