Edmunds.com | Inside Line | Auto Observer Your Account | Help | Directory
You are here:
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
SUVs SUV vs Minivans
1826 messages, Last post on Nov 29, 2009 at 12:33 PM
You are in the SUVs Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & tidester
|
|
|---|---|
We are going to be buying a suv or a minivan within the next couple of months. My husband and I have one little girl but plan on having many more. I HATE car payments so I want to buy a car and keep it for many many years. I think that there is no difference body style wise too drive an suv or minivan, they both have no body styles in my opinion and if I wanted to look flashy I would buy a convertible. I just want honest families opinions on what car would be best for us. We both drive foreign made cars but are not opposed too buying american. We just need advice from people who own already and love their cars! Thanks!
|
|
|
Replying to: madisonsmom (Oct 13, 2009 10:24 am) They are roomier, cheaper to buy, more user-friendly, and cost less to operate. You give up 4WD and a low range, and can't tow 9000 lbs, but for most people those things are overkill anyway. Definitely try a minivan. What features to get? Power sliding doors. Love 'em. Much easier to carry a sleeping child if you get home late. Consider a power hatch also. We have an 8 passenger Sienna LE and love it. 266hp, power sliding doors, 149 cubic feet of space to fit all your stuff. Paid around $25k and it still costs about that much today. The XLE adds a power liftgate and more goodies but would be closer to $29k or so. |
|
|
In my family we have both a Ford Explorer (v8) and a Toyota Sienna LE. The Toyota has more cargo space, more room to comfortably seat adults, and gets about 4 mpg better than my v8 Ford. The Explorer has good towing capacity and has been a reliable, safe and fun vehicle. In fact, its safety profile is excellent (check out the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety), better than the Sienna's if I recall correctly. A couple of things to consider that I didn't think of when we purchased our 2010 Sienna: the liftgate is pretty heavy, so getting a power liftgate may be more of a necessity than a luxury. I didn't even think about that because my Explorer has a split liftgate and the top half is light and easy to open and close. Also, in order to get automatic headlamps on the Sienna, you need to buy them as an option or get a Limited edition. My Explorer and previous vehicles have had automatic headlamps, and remembering to turn the Sienna's lights on has been an adjustment. I'm frankly surprised that a vehicle with a standard 6 disc cd changer, and so many other features doesn't have this important safety feature. (and if anyone has tips for me for dealing with this please let me know. One friend suggested that I leave the switch in the on position so that the headlamps are on during the day and night, but I'm a little wary of doing that.) good luck,
|
|
|
Replying to: aggie76 (Aug 06, 2001 6:38 pm) |
|
|
Replying to: tmk100 (Oct 14, 2009 8:31 pm) The only catch is the interior lights dim slightly - so the trick to overcome that is to crank the dimmer switch all the way until it clicks, then the dash will stay at its brightest. Works for me. |
|
|
Replying to: ateixeira (Oct 13, 2009 10:31 am) 1. Look and image. While some SUV look just a boxy and un-sporty as MV, they certainly have better chances to look more exciting than MV. Image, well, let's just say some soccer moms/dads just don't want to look that soccer'd! 2. Luxury and brand cache. The MB/BMW/Lexus of the world don't make MV. So if you care about that then you have to get SUV. 3. Enough superficial stuff. For people do go (unpaved) outdoor a lot, SUV does make a bit more sense due to its higher clearance and suspension (more or less but generally better than MV).
|
|
|
"Park scientists have found that the bears tore up minivans more frequently than other types of vehicles. It found that minivans represented 29 percent of the 908 vehicles torn into by bears between 2001 and 2007, even though they made up just 7 percent of the cars that visited Yosemite." For Yosemite bears, dinner arrives in a minivan (Idaho Statesman)
|
|
|
Replying to: steve_ (Oct 25, 2009 11:11 am) It's not the type of vehicle, it's the stuff inside, the smells of all that spilled food. No doubt.
|
|
|
Replying to: ateixeira (Oct 27, 2009 9:53 am)  I can say that to you since we both own vans. 
|
|
|
Replying to: steve_ (Oct 27, 2009 10:56 am) 
|
|
New? Join Now!
Forum Tools
Search Forums
Browse by Vehicle
2007 Dodge Caravan
2010 Ford Explorer
2009 GMC Envoy
2011 Honda Odyssey
2010 Nissan Pathfinder
2011 Toyota Sienna
Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
Today's Chats
