Rhode Island Nesties
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Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
minivan/SUV owners come in
becoming a family of four we're starting to look into getting a larger car. right now we have a forester that we love, but we also travel quite a bit and feel like we may need something larger. so... what do you have? what do you like about it? what don't you like? and i'm sure i can find it online, but if you're willing to share, what kind of mileage do you get and how much did you pay for it? thanks!
Re: minivan/SUV owners come in
Well, I am no good to you on what I drive..since I have a malibu. It works with the 4 of us but it is tight. I can tell you I have looked at the Traverse and really like it. The Tribecca still seems really small..not much room in the back at all for cargo. The Arcadia is nice same as the Enclave, they all have the same lines/ideas as the Traverse.
I LOVE the Pilot but again with the 3rd row seating, you lose the cargo room.
I may just go the van route if I do get another car..the new Odyssey looks awesome and I like the Town and Country. Plus you do have so much room in them.
I have a CR-V, but you're probably looking for bigger. I love it, fits both girls w/o a problem. We've taken it to OBX twice, but that was pre-kids. I like that it has 4wd, but I don't like that it's automatic and I can't put it in 4wd, kwim? I get about 21mpg now, when I was working/hwy driving, I got about 26mpg and when we went to obx (all hwy there & back, we were getting 31-32mpg
We're looking for a new car as well. We have two toddlers and had a Ford Explorer, but honestly, it just wasn't big enough between two carseats and a double stroller and we do travel quite a bit.
We're looking at 3rd row SUV options now. I'm scared of minivans
We have a CR-V and a Pilot.
We have done the NY-RI weekend trip in the CR-V before. It's tight, but it works. It was also before we managed to streamline our packing for each trip so now it would probably work out just fine. Mine is older (2002) so my gas mileage is starting to drop, but I'd guess that we still get about 25-26 on the highway when not totally loaded down. And the CR-V backseat is really roomy and I have had no car seat issues in it, even with the giant Graco SafeSeat rear facing. Bought it certified used for $14K in 2007, cloth seats, sunroof, 6disc changer.
The Pilot kinda rocks (2006). I do love it. And we never use our third row seat really so we don't lose cargo capacity. But when we want to take a few extra people along it is there and has come in VERY handy at times. The kids' carseats are in the second row/backseat, and there is a TON of room in the cargo area for our stuff. It gets lower gas mileage than the CR-V, obviously, but still good, usually around 23-24 highway, even higher if it's a straight, cruise-control drive w/o wind (calculated last cross-country trip). It's tighter in the backseat for car seats but it works. Bought it brand new in 2006 for $30K, leather, sunroof, everything basically but the DVD and Navigation system.
4wd is a big plus for me in the winter, especially when we lived in Minnesota. I still love it here - I never worry about if I can get somewhere (unless it's icy because then all cars are useless).
"It's not a sprint, it's a marathon." - Alex & Ani bracelet
My blog: Dodging Acorns
We have a Grand Caravan and it's perfect. We do lots of trips to Prudence and it fits everything we need. The 3rd row is removable and that adds lots of cargo space. I didn't like how big it was at first, but evey so often when I drive Dan's sedan I don't feel as safe.
It's really good on gas too. I don't know the mileage but I know I don't have to fill it often.
We have a Honda Odyssey, and we LOVE it. I love how roomy it is. I am very comfy in the passenger seat (I felt squished in DH's old Sante Fe that we traded in for the Odyssey). It's a 2006 and we bought it used in 2010 for about $20k. The gas mileage is not that great; I am guessing that the people who owned it previously did a lot of city driving. And so does DH (primary driver of the van), so it hasn't improved much since we've owned it.
We are taking it to NC in the summer, so I'm curious to see how we feel about it after the 15 hour trip!
If you go the minivan route, get the automatic doors. Love those!
We have a 2006 odyssey as well. We travel a few times a year from Western MA to Western PA (8 hour one way) and are quite comfortable with the 2 kids in the back. I love my van, sad but true.
we have an 06 sienna, i love it...
and i am totally jealous of kmm's auto doors every time we leave library, it looks way easier to get her kiddos in and out
I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Volvo XC90. I have the 7 passenger if I need extra seating, but have great storage in the trunk with the seats folded. I love that it is an SUV with all the benefits (like it is fabulous in snow), but drives like a car. The only thing I don't like is the repair costs, but luckily haven't had any major repairs. I get about 20mpg and 25mpg highway. I bought it as a certified used car and it was two years old then. I think I paid $27K for it, much better than the price on a new one.