3rd row SUVs and minivans

[boiler717]

I’ve read the million recent posts but love to get your input!
- SUV vs van and why?
- 2nd row: bench vs captains chairs?
- hybrid?
- other features to consider/add?

We haven’t driven anything yet, we are planning on looking at the Odyssey, Pilot, Highlander, Pacifica, and Ascent but open to other options! DH would love an Audi but I vetoed. Primarily looking as our current cars (Rogue and CRV, replacing the CRV) don’t have space for 4 adults and sometimes is tight or storage space for trips/big purchases. We have one kid and are 50/50 on another. I’ll drive the new car during the week, and the weekends it may depend on what we are doing which car we take (longer distances use the Rogue but if we need extra space we will use the new car). Next year when we replace the company car (Rogue), we may switch to an Altima instead since we will have a nicer big car.

We are also considering leasing instead of buying for the first time (opinions welcome). Estimate based on past usage we will be putting on 9000 miles a year. We definitely don’t want to keep the car for 11 years like we did with the CRV as the money we are spending on repairs stinks and the car is so outdated now but we loved the lack of payments. Trade in value of the CRV is $6000.

We have family that owns Honda and Chrysler dealerships where we get excellent pricing (a few other domestic brands as well, but not currently considering). We will drive the Odyssey, Pilot, and Pacifica for probably a week each to help decide but won’t have that option for Toyota or Subaru vehicles.

[ktw]

I have a 2014 Odyssey with bench in the middle row, but you can remove any of the 3 seats there to make any configuration you want. I preferred the Odyssey to the Sienna when test driving. The only thing that would make me reconsider is the Sienna offers AWD, which I could use at times, but I knew that when I chose the Odyssey.

I love my van. The pros of an SUV over a van, I think, are that they are "cooler" and 4WD/AWD options. The pros of a van over an SUV, for me, are:

-cargo space even with back row up, and even more so if it's down
-automatic doors, so nice with young kids
-so many seat configuration options
-I can basically stand inside the car to buckle my kids. Granted, I am short, but my van is low to the ground and very spacious inside.

My favorite features are the safety cameras/parking assist. The van is bigger than my past cars, so I like being able to see the whole right side of my car on a camera, plus the backup camera. And having something that beeps to let me know how close I am to objects is really helpful, too.

[tigress]

We currently have a Toyota Sienna minivan and a Cadillac Escalade ESV (so long like a Suburban). We have had a Toyota Highlander in the past.

As uncool as a minivan is, the Sienna fits stuff/people better and travels better for us. We have 2nd row captain seats in both and like it for ease of getting to the back row. In the minivan the 2nd row seats move back and forth for flexibility. The 2nd row in the Escalade are fixed. I don't know your child situation but sliding doors are great for little kids as they can't hit any other cars when they get in and out. My H was driving the minivan this weekend and marveled how much smoother it drives than the Escalade. My childless BIL loves driving my Sienna.

My H drives the Escalade daily and I drive the minivan. Sometimes I think I should switch to an SUV but honestly it would not be the best choice.

Both cars have DVD players and leather seats.

I don't know a lot about Hybrids.

Sorry that's a jumble of thoughts.

[boiler717]

Jul 22, 2019 8:43:31 GMT -5 tigress said:

We currently have a Toyota Sienna minivan and a Cadillac Escalade ESV (so long like a Suburban). We have had a Toyota Highlander in the past.

As uncool as a minivan is, the Sienna fits stuff/people better and travels better for us. We have 2nd row captain seats in both and like it for ease of getting to the back row. In the minivan the 2nd row seats move back and forth for flexibility. The 2nd row in the Escalade are fixed. I don't know your child situation but sliding doors are great for little kids as they can't hit any other cars when they get in and out. My H was driving the minivan this weekend and marveled how much smoother it drives than the Escalade. My childless BIL loves driving my Sienna.

My H drives the Escalade daily and I drive the minivan. Sometimes I think I should switch to an SUV but honestly it would not be the best choice.

Both cars have DVD players and leather seats.

I don't know a lot about Hybrids.

Sorry that's a jumble of thoughts.

Do you like the DVD player in the car vs kids having an iPad or kindle? I assumed playing movies for the whole car would be annoying but maybe I’m not thinking of everything!

[dcn]

We have an ascent. We just didn’t really want a van so didn’t look at them. We have captains chairs - we like that it is relatively easy for people to get to the 3rd row if needed. My mom and sister had no issues. We’ve put car seats back there too.

I originally wanted a hybrid, but the mpg wasn’t that much better (3 or 4 overall) to make the extra cost worth it for me. I drove the ascent from Georgia to New York and back and averaged a little over 28 mpg, which for a big vehicle I thought was pretty decent.

I prefer Subaru’s seats compared to Hondas, Nissans, and Toyotas. We had an outback prior to this car. I love the ascent - love the rear cross traffic alerts, eyesight, blind spot indicators, etc. There’s good air flow to the rear which was a must have here in Georgia for the kids. There’s also USB ports in the back which makes long trips easier so the kids can charge their iPads etc.

My sister is using Carvana to test out a car - if it’s available near you it might be a good option?

[ktw]

Jul 22, 2019 8:45:51 GMT -5 boiler717 said:

Jul 22, 2019 8:43:31 GMT -5 tigress said:

We currently have a Toyota Sienna minivan and a Cadillac Escalade ESV (so long like a Suburban). We have had a Toyota Highlander in the past.

As uncool as a minivan is, the Sienna fits stuff/people better and travels better for us. We have 2nd row captain seats in both and like it for ease of getting to the back row. In the minivan the 2nd row seats move back and forth for flexibility. The 2nd row in the Escalade are fixed. I don't know your child situation but sliding doors are great for little kids as they can't hit any other cars when they get in and out. My H was driving the minivan this weekend and marveled how much smoother it drives than the Escalade. My childless BIL loves driving my Sienna.

My H drives the Escalade daily and I drive the minivan. Sometimes I think I should switch to an SUV but honestly it would not be the best choice.

Both cars have DVD players and leather seats.

I don't know a lot about Hybrids.

Sorry that's a jumble of thoughts.

Do you like the DVD player in the car vs kids having an iPad or kindle? I assumed playing movies for the whole car would be annoying but maybe I’m not thinking of everything!

We have the DVD player in the Odyssey, too. It's actually pretty great! My only complaint is that it's not useful until kids are FFing, of course. The van came with two pairs of headphones. You set the rear audio to the DVD player, kid puts on headphones, and then you can use the front audio for whatever you want while the kids watch the movie through the headphones. That being said, I think the GPS and the DVD were packaged together, and we don't even use our built in GPS because Google Maps is far superior. So, a case could be made to just give the kids tablets.

[tigress]

Jul 22, 2019 8:45:51 GMT -5 boiler717 said:

Jul 22, 2019 8:43:31 GMT -5 tigress said:

We currently have a Toyota Sienna minivan and a Cadillac Escalade ESV (so long like a Suburban). We have had a Toyota Highlander in the past.

As uncool as a minivan is, the Sienna fits stuff/people better and travels better for us. We have 2nd row captain seats in both and like it for ease of getting to the back row. In the minivan the 2nd row seats move back and forth for flexibility. The 2nd row in the Escalade are fixed. I don't know your child situation but sliding doors are great for little kids as they can't hit any other cars when they get in and out. My H was driving the minivan this weekend and marveled how much smoother it drives than the Escalade. My childless BIL loves driving my Sienna.

My H drives the Escalade daily and I drive the minivan. Sometimes I think I should switch to an SUV but honestly it would not be the best choice.

Both cars have DVD players and leather seats.

I don't know a lot about Hybrids.

Sorry that's a jumble of thoughts.

Do you like the DVD player in the car vs kids having an iPad or kindle? I assumed playing movies for the whole car would be annoying but maybe I’m not thinking of everything!

It is fantastic for long trips. We only use it if we are going longer than an hour. They have headphones (2 wireless ones that came with the car and then the back row has headphone jacks that they can plug into) that they can listen to the movie and we can turn it off or listen to something else. We have kindles/ipads/etc with movies on it but I think the novelty of having it on the screen keeps their attention. 

[countthestars]

We have a Pathfinder and a Highlander. I much prefer my Pathfinder, H slightly prefers his Highlander. I think the Pathfinder is a smoother ride and the 3rd row is definitely bigger. I don't like the middle console in his Highlander.

Pros of the Pathfinder for me: smoother ride, more comfortable seats, bigger 3rd row for seating
Pros for the Highlander: split opening trunk/back door thing, built in window shades

[cosmowife]

I only know of two electric vehicles that have three rows - Volvo XC90 and the Pacifica hybrid. Highlander has a hybrid model but it isn’t a true plug in vehicle. I really want an electric vehicle with three rows but unfortunately I cannot afford the Volvo and have no desire to buy a Chrysler. I also do not want another Toyota because my sienna has issues with mold in the vents and I’ve heard that this issue is prevalent among Toyotas. So I’m stuck right now waiting for a car to be produced that will fit my needs.

[ssmjlm]

1. I only have 1 kid, so I don't see a need for a van. And I've never been a fan of them. I much prefer an SUV. We got a 3rd row one with E was 6m and honestly I'm not even sure it was worth it. I don't mind it and it's there, it's just again, only 1 kid.

2. I would much prefer captain's chairs. If we go 3 row again, I will get that configuration.

3. I have a pathfinder and have been unimpressed with how it has aged.  A lot more rattles and I haven't even hit 6 years yet.  Also it seems to wear tires A LOT.  I don't drive that much. I LOVED my xterra and cried when we traded her in, but I don't know that I'll buy another nissan at this point.

[imbatman]

We have a 2018 Pacifica. I was on the fence about buying Chrysler since I've always had Hondas, but so far I really love it. Coming from a 2012 mid-grade CRV to this has been a huge upgrade. We have captain's chairs in the middle and I absolutely love them. Evidently the 2017 model had a lot of transmission issues (why we went with 2018), but I think most first year models tend to have issues and kinks that need to be worked out. It's an incredibly smooth, quiet ride. I love that the rear windows all come with sun visors that you can pull up. The storage in the floorboard is also wonderful. Also the second row seats can tilt forward with a carseat installed (with latch) to allow someone to enter the 3rd row.

[konapoppy]

Highlanders have a tiny third row, so if you want to be able to transport 4 adults and possibly 2 kids, I would skip it.

[starryfish]

Jul 22, 2019 10:29:56 GMT -5 konapoppy said:

Highlanders have a tiny third row, so if you want to be able to transport 4 adults and possibly 2 kids, I would skip it.

this. I have one and wished I got a minivan or a bigger SUV. It is our family car and roadtrip car (we regularly drive 8 hours to ILs). there is ZERO room for a suitcase in the trunk with 3rd row up. The car itself is good but wished we had gone bigger. 

My DH SUV has the built in DVD system and OMG is it the BEST thing ever. I thought tablets would be sufficient, but my DD (2.5) likes to watch movies and play with toys at the same time, and so the DVD system works best for us. Plus I can control it from the front, whereas she would have to keep handing me her tablet to play movies. Next car will definitely have DVD built in. I switch cars with him if I take her to the ILs by myself. 

[Saudade]

We have 3 kids.

We have an Odyssey, Tesla 3, and a CRV. The crv is the back up car now. The odyssey we use for long trips. But the kids are in the Tesla daily.

[Susie]

We have a VW Atlas, which I am not sure if I would specifically recommend (you've probably seen my posts), although I do like the size and space.  It is one of the largest cargo/passenger space volume 3 row SUVs.  I prefer that over mini van partly because of vanity, and partly because we get a lot of snow, and I like having the higher ground clearance and AWD in the snow.  If we replace it, I will likely look first at Honda Pilots, as they were our 2nd choice (over Highlander) when we were shopping 2 years ago.  The Ascent wasn't out yet at the time.  I would prefer to buy CPO this time if we replace the Atlas, and the Ascent is likely too new for that to be viable.

We have a 2nd row bench now, which slides and tilts, so you can still access the 3rd row even with car seats installed:

I really love that feature, and would miss it if we replace.  If we bought an SUV that didn't do that, I think I would opt for captain's chairs.  I just hate how expensive the trim packages are that come with captain's chairs.  I think only the Touring and Elite Pilots have it.  The EX-L is otherwise more in line with what I'd want in a car and want to spend on a car.  I like a few bells and whistles, but not alllll the bells and whistles.

The only time I sort of wish I had a minivan, is in the parking garage at work.  The spaces are snug, and sliding doors would be nice.  But, we commute together and usually take the Jetta anyway, so that's not a huge thing.  We never seriously considered a mini van.

[glitzy07]

dcn I'm glad to hear good things about the Ascent! There's a rumor that it will be my option for a 3rd row vehicle through my work fleet when I'm due for a new car. I currently have a Ford Explorer, which is ok, but I HATE that the middle row is a bench seat instead of captain's chairs. Then again, I can't really complain about a free car through my job, so it'll do. lol

[melsbels]

We have a Dodge Caravan.

We have the captains chairs in the middle which I think are the best feature. Our twins are in large rear facing car seats and we still have plenty of room around them. The back row is stow and go, so I can fold them down and put both our giant double stroller and a huge load of groceries in the back, we can also just have one or two seats up on the back bench. It’s nice when my FIL visits because we don’t have to take two cars around town. I also love the sliding doors and automatic trunk, and the open/close buttons for both on both the key fob, and the roof console.

We’ll keep it for another couple of years. I’m almost positive the boys will play hockey (because Canada lol) so we’ll always need lots of cargo room, but we can achieve that with an SUV as well. I wish we could have afforded a van with AWD (also because Canada) but we also have a small SUV with 4WD, so we make do.

My sister drives a VW Atlas which I don’t think would be big enough for us, but my niece is just in a small booster and my nephew is in a high back booster now, so it’s more than enough room for them plus carpool kids in the third row.

[preppy]

I am planning to buy a VW Atlas when my current lease is up in December to replace my Rouge. Our other car is one of the new VW Tiguans and I LOVE it and generally like VW. I test drove it the other day when I was getting the Tiguan's oil changed and I am sold.

[penguingrrl]

I love my Honda pilot so much.

We had a Toyota Sienna and traded it in after 18 months (having bought it intending to keep it for 10+ years) because we hated it so much. It was too big, too long, too low and really hard to drive IMO. Somehow even though it was only like a foot shorter the sienna felt like driving a tank where the pilot doesn’t to me.

We also found that the storage space in the minivan with captains chairs was a deal breaker for us with 3 kids. Yes there is more cargo space behind the third row of a sienna than a pilot, but I usually keep the third row down and the storage behind the 2nd row of the pilot is great. We also had no trouble fitting my running stroller and a week’s worth of groceries behind the 3rd row of the pilot (it was larger items that we simply couldn’t transport in the van with the kids that we can now without a problem).

Two of my kids are over 5’ and neither finds the 3rd row tight or uncomfortable when they use it, and my 6’ tall husband finds it fine for short trips (he has sat back there several times). But usually my kids are across the middle row and they have plenty of room to sit comfortably there as well.

But it also depends what you’re coming from in terms of a vehicle. Prior to buying our first pilot we were a 1 car household with 2 RF kids in a beetle, so the third row of just about anything was going to be just fine with us. And before the beetle I had mid 80s to early 90s compact cars, so the beetle was actually the biggest car I had before the pilot, so as long as I have enough seatbelts for everyone to be safe I’m good.

[miamigirl]

I drive an Atlas and love it. I haven’t had any issues with it (got it Dec 2017). The amount of space is awesome and it drives great IMO.

The version I have has the bench in the middle row. Right now I have two Clek Fllo and a Nuna Pipa installed. Mine also has the sunroof which I think makes it seem more spacious as well.

If I could change something I think I’d get captain seats instead of the bench. It would be nice to have easier access to the third row. Although it does allow you to access even with a carseat installed (ff only).

[kellikans]

We'll be in the market for a 3 row SUV in December when the lease is up on my SQ5. I'm looking at the Volvo XC90, the Audi Q7 (mainly because it would be an easy transition since I already drive an Audi) and my DH wants to look at the Kia Telluride.

Those with captain's chairs in an SUV... Are you still able to fold the third row down when not in use? I could swear I saw that you couldn't on the Telluride with the captain's chairs in the second row (and the trim I would want only has captain's chairs). I'm leaning toward the XC90, though, because it has almost 90cuft. of total cargo space and one of the most spacious 3rd rows on the market. With 2 kids and 2 100+ pound dogs, we need the space.

[starburst604]

Jul 22, 2019 19:56:19 GMT -5 kellikans said:

We'll be in the market for a 3 row SUV in December when the lease is up on my SQ5. I'm looking at the Volvo XC90, the Audi Q7 (mainly because it would be an easy transition since I already drive an Audi) and my DH wants to look at the Kia Telluride.

Those with captain's chairs in an SUV... Are you still able to fold the third row down when not in use? I could swear I saw that you couldn't on the Telluride with the captain's chairs in the second row (and the trim I would want only has captain's chairs). I'm leaning toward the XC90, though, because it has almost 90cuft. of total cargo space and one of the most spacious 3rd rows on the market. With 2 kids and 2 100+ pound dogs, we need the space.

I LOVE my XC90. Just one kid and no dogs here though. I’m interested in what you think of the space when you drive it - I’m not sure I’d have bought it if I were going to use the 3rd row regularly, it’s just tight to move around but I did successfully transport 5 other adults to a concert. The cargo space with the 3rd row folded will be good for your dogs I think.

[pinkpeony08]

We debated, but decided the sliding doors were key given how often my kids just swing the door open despite a lot of instruction. We ended up with a 2019 Odyssey. It's really nice, but I admit it feels huge. I love the third seat for the second row. When we have another adult riding, I pull it out and put it in the trunk, then I slide the two captain chairs right up next to each other (both have carseats installed). It makes it easy to climb into the third row without climbing over anything. When we go on road trips, I put the middle seat back in the middle folded down - it's like a table between the two kids with cup holders.

We debated Sienna vs Pacifica vs Odyssey. We ended up with the Odyssey over the others because of the flexibility for car seat placement (every seat allows top tether vs other vans limit options) and because my brother bought a Pacifica and has had tons of issues with it. All under warranty, but it's annoying to have to keep taking your car in.

[dcn]

Jul 22, 2019 19:56:19 GMT -5 kellikans said:

We'll be in the market for a 3 row SUV in December when the lease is up on my SQ5. I'm looking at the Volvo XC90, the Audi Q7 (mainly because it would be an easy transition since I already drive an Audi) and my DH wants to look at the Kia Telluride.

Those with captain's chairs in an SUV... Are you still able to fold the third row down when not in use? I could swear I saw that you couldn't on the Telluride with the captain's chairs in the second row (and the trim I would want only has captain's chairs). I'm leaning toward the XC90, though, because it has almost 90cuft. of total cargo space and one of the most spacious 3rd rows on the market. With 2 kids and 2 100+ pound dogs, we need the space.

Yes, we keep the 3rd row down unless we need it for a passenger.

[ilikedonuts]

We had an Odyessy. Then a Sienna. Now we have a pilot. I love my Pilot. I don’t miss having a van in anyway shape or form. We have a bench row in the middle bc I wanted that third seat option without having to use the 3rd row. I have 2 kids.

[Deleted]

I’m on my second Pilot (2009 and 2017).

We have the Captain’s chairs, and one kid. He’s five and is in a HBB.

Pros:

- I like the space between the captains chairs. We can put C’s “stuff” there. For road trips that’s his bag with activities, toys, and snacks. Every day it’s whatever he has in the car with him (usually a stuffed animal). Technically you could walk through to the back seat, but we never do.

- The third row has a 60/40 split, and 99% of the time we have the third row down, or 60-down/40-up. It has tons of space with the seat down, and a good amount with the 40-up.

Cons:
- You lose a seat with the captains chairs. We usually carry 3 people so it’s no big deal, but as soon as we have grandparents with us, we have 5, and that has always meant me climbing into the 3rd row which sucks. Now that C’s in a booster, we will move him to the third row if we need to.

- The third row is okay for kids, but sucks for adults (and I’m short). At least with the captains chairs you can stretch your legs into the space between seats.

- There is very little cargo room with the third seat all the way up.

[Mimi]

Jul 22, 2019 8:46:58 GMT -5 dcn said:

We have an ascent. We just didn’t really want a van so didn’t look at them. We have captains chairs - we like that it is relatively easy for people to get to the 3rd row if needed. My mom and sister had no issues. We’ve put car seats back there too.

I originally wanted a hybrid, but the mpg wasn’t that much better (3 or 4 overall) to make the extra cost worth it for me. I drove the ascent from Georgia to New York and back and averaged a little over 28 mpg, which for a big vehicle I thought was pretty decent.

I prefer Subaru’s seats compared to Hondas, Nissans, and Toyotas. We had an outback prior to this car. I love the ascent - love the rear cross traffic alerts, eyesight, blind spot indicators, etc. There’s good air flow to the rear which was a must have here in Georgia for the kids. There’s also USB ports in the back which makes long trips easier so the kids can charge their iPads etc.

My sister is using Carvana to test out a car - if it’s available near you it might be a good option?

How does the ascent drive?  Is it responsive for merging?  There's some short/sloping up on-ramps here.  DH thinks I should avoid cars that are not V6.

[dcn]

Jul 22, 2019 22:12:44 GMT -5 Mimi said:

Jul 22, 2019 8:46:58 GMT -5 dcn said:

We have an ascent. We just didn’t really want a van so didn’t look at them. We have captains chairs - we like that it is relatively easy for people to get to the 3rd row if needed. My mom and sister had no issues. We’ve put car seats back there too.

I originally wanted a hybrid, but the mpg wasn’t that much better (3 or 4 overall) to make the extra cost worth it for me. I drove the ascent from Georgia to New York and back and averaged a little over 28 mpg, which for a big vehicle I thought was pretty decent.

I prefer Subaru’s seats compared to Hondas, Nissans, and Toyotas. We had an outback prior to this car. I love the ascent - love the rear cross traffic alerts, eyesight, blind spot indicators, etc. There’s good air flow to the rear which was a must have here in Georgia for the kids. There’s also USB ports in the back which makes long trips easier so the kids can charge their iPads etc.

My sister is using Carvana to test out a car - if it’s available near you it might be a good option?

How does the ascent drive?  Is it responsive for merging?  There's some short/sloping up on-ramps here.  DH thinks I should avoid cars that are not V6.

Ours has a turbo so it’s peppy! Does great merging. We have the limited. Not sure what the other lines have as far as engine. .

[humpforfree]

We went with a minivan (I hated and was totally against) over SUV bc the space in the trunk, even with the back seat up was a huge difference. We also went to a car show to compare & H brought a tape measure 🤣 In the minivan we are able to fit full sheets of plywood and drywall, they wouldn’t have fit into even the larger third row SUVs (unless we got a suburban, which was a giant no for us).
I’m kind of obsessed with my van now 🤷🏼‍♀️ It’s amazing for the kids, the dog, our camping gear, double BOB, Costco/grocery combined trips, carrying friends, etc.

(ETA we have 2.5 kids- had one at the time and planned on 3. We ended up with a 2015 odyssey.)

[tealblue]

DH thinks my transmission may be going out, so I’m looking again for 3rd row SUVs. I was behind a new Hyundai Palisade which looked really nice. I looked at them online and like them, some have a bench in the 2nd row and several had captains chairs in the middle at the same cost and trim package. They were all in the low- mid $40’s range. They are new for 2020 all together so just starting to come to the market.

I’d also like to test drive the Subaru Accent and I’ll drive a newer Explorer too as I do like mine.