So how many of you minivan proponents bought the car for your first kid?

 

Range Rover Evoque or a Q5 should be big enough, assuming you can fit your chosen infant seat in the back. Friends of ours are managing well with an A6 Avant and both the original and new Cayennes. I don't see any reason why you would need to switch to a Minivan.

 

Didn't get mine until the 3rd kid, wife wanted one with the 2nd but I didn't. Honesty, it would be helpful with the first one. It carries everything you need, diaper bag, stroller, etc with plenty of space left over. You can change diapers, get them in and out quickly. If you get the Odyssey, it drives more like a car. Great gas mileage, plenty of pros, the only con is no one looks cool in a minivan even if your name is Brad Pitt.

 

the best car?? a leased one, and I'm serious. It will be impossible to keep clean with all the cookie crumbs, spilt milk etc. After 3 years you won't want it anymore and it would be a nice option to just turn it in. We have a Lexux RX and it does the job fine. Very reliable and low maintenance. I think there's a lot of good suggestions, and as someone mentioned, price point plays a big factor too.

 

We bought ours with the second child.

However, looking back now and how useful it is, we should have grabbed a minivan when we had our first.

Makes life simpler.

I figure the minivan and the Porsche basically cancel each other out, our third vehicle is a 2010 Jeep Unlimited. So, all in all, three cars that equal complete normal-ness.

 

All of my married with kids friends have: X5's, Acura MDX's, a couple of Range Rovers, Toyota or Honda minivans, and a few american SUV's thrown in. The latest to partake in the kids club just traded his audi sedan for an X5.

Out of all of them, I like the X5 the best, but the Acura isn't half bad.

The issue I've seen them all have to deal with is the multitude of sports they are involved in and tracking all that gear around and dealing with the stroller/carseat/stuff that seems to be needed at all times with kids.

 

I'm in the same boat. Only thing you really need:
* 4 doors
* A decent size truck
* decent legroom in the back for the rear facing child seat.

The third point is really your main restriction. How much room do you need for your passenger? I have a 4 door GTI and it works but the legroom for the passenger is pretty restricted. Still fine for day to day but not very practical on longer trips. I will probably use our ML for that.

Bottom line: there really is a lot of choice. It really depends what your main 'want' is. You can go from a minivan to a performance sedan like an M5. Both will do the job just fine.

 

Yeah I think the biggest thing to tackle with kids and transporting them isn't really fitting them physically in the car.

The rub is they require alot of products (especially when very young) like a stroller, bags for baby supplies, toys, dvds, small food coolers for small trips.

That's not even counting luggage, and all the coolers and other passengers for long haul vacations.

A minivan is also alot cheaper than a X5 and if it gets scratched..........well who cares.

 

To be fair - I bought for the 2nd as we had a 4-door already. BUT if I were to do it again, I would get a minivan with 1 if I had to buy something to accommodate the kid. With two it is a necessity.

 

One of the safest vehicles you can purchase is a Volvo Wagon. When we started having children, now three, we always had a Volvo wagon.
We had three Volvo's totaled while we were in them. In every accident, we were hit by the other driver, and in each case we were unhurt with the other drivers taken to the hospital.
When the kids started driving we gave each a used Volvo to drive while in high school. Luckily, no accidents.
Not too expensive, timeless design and can haul anything. Much larger cargo space than any SUV.
For us, safety was the most important factor.

 

While this might not be a popular choice on this forum, I went with a Tundra.
Plenty of space, power (I put in a supercharger, 505hp)
We use it on family trips, towing, an atv fits in the bed. All around most useful car/truck you can think of.

My wife and kids love that truck so much that She won't hear about any other car. I guess she feels safe with the kids in it.
Actually I truly enjoy it too, I think it might be faster than my porsche

 

If your having a second kid, go with the Toyota sienna se. Very roomy and convinient

 

I'm also thinking about to get an additional family car for the new born to drive around town, daycare and maybe short road trips when he gets older.

A 2008 RX400H with 40k miles or a 2009 E350 4matic with 25k miles for around $35k.

They are same priced, boring to drive, awd for winter, safe, roomy interior and truck. The 2009 E class have wide back seats, solid feeling, seems pretty reliable for it's final year but the repair bill and maintenances cost will be higher. Lexus is reliable as usual, taller to climb to buckle up, SUV, better mpg. Can't decide!! Which one would you guys get? btw, I don't want a mini van yet. : )

 

I personally dislike Lexus. I would go with the E class.

 

I did and I couldn't be happier.

You can easily handle one child under one year old in most good sized sedans, SUV's and wagons but trust me... when he/she is 12-24 months you'll be thanking everyone here who is recommending a van. The lift in height is ideal. The sliding doors are a HUGE, HUGE, HUGE thing and all the extra room for pack and play's, strollers, etc. can't be discounted.

The biggest thing that many people don't realize is the sheer size of today's rear facing seats for children 1-2 years old. They are MASSIVE. Edmunds.com's InsideLine recently did a piece where they showed how some of the most popular models just barely fit in the back seat of a newly redesigned Explorer. And that's not a small car.

If you and your wife only have one kid, you'll likely have room to spare with a modern minivan but we've found that luxury to be worth it's weight in gold. Never mind the dramatically improved driving dynamics over most SUV's, substantially better real world gas mileage, lower insurance, and lower cost of entry.

Most of my friends and associates know what a car nut I am and are shocked to hear how I gush about our minivan but it truly is a magnificent vehicle for what it is.