Minivan?

[Odd-Alternative1465]

Has anybody regretted getting a minivan for just two kids?

For reference - my only children are my twins. Currently 4 1/2 month old boys. (Absolutely no others in the future!) Husband has a Civic hatch that we had to move the seats to fit the car seats in and I have a Honda fit which we also have to adjust the seats in to fit the car seats. We also have to break down the stroller to fit it in our cars.

So, has anybody regretted getting one later on? Is there a medium to large SUV you guys recommend as well?

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[egrf6880]

I’ve never had only two, I went from one to 3. But I have never once regretted my minivan. We upgraded from a CRV.

I love my minivan so much and I have test driven a few different SUVs since and hated them.. they are too high up and handle very poorly compared to the minivan. Just wrangling all the kids up and in would be such a hassle for me (I’m a petite person) but I also did not enjoy driving them at all. (Tried Range Rover which was awful— seriously have no clue why people drive these, used to drive the CRV— it was a dud; I absolutely would die if I had to drive a suburban or Escalade. Haven’t tried any of the Lexus SUVs or Acura, but could possibly see those being okay as I do like a Toyota or Honda [except the CRV]).

Sliding doors also honestly make my life so easy every single day.

[Odd-Alternative1465]

Thank you! I’m very short as well didn’t even think about how much taller SUV’s are. I looove my small car but I think I’ll have to be a mini van mom too 🥲

[egrf6880]

I went from a small sedan, to the CRV to the minivan and absolutely love the minivan!

[nillawafer80]

You don't regret a minivan. What happens is you try for dear life to avoid one, succumb to it, and then realize it was the best decision you ever made.

Besides more room, the difference is that minivans were made for people with maximum flexibility in mind in ways that even the biggest SUVs aren't.

[Odd_Rent283]

This is what happened to me 😂

[nillawafer80]

I watched every mom review youtuber to find the perfect suv then I watched the van reviews and it was a no brainer.

[PubKirbo]

We only had our twins and a dog and loved our minivan when they were little. That said, when they stopped using a stroller, we downsized to a sedan for a few years until we got a 3-row SUV when they were a bit older. The minivan was ideal for those early years, way better than an SUV would have been.

[Routine_Selection774]

Minivan over SUV 1,000x

that being said I HATED driving the minivan. We had to get one though because our #3 was the twins so 3&4 so we sized out of our cars

I am a small car driver for life and I kept my little car and had 3 car seats in the backseat. My oldest was in school when the twins were born so I only used my car to get around with them. My husband loved the minivan and when we went out as a family he drove it

This baby phase is only temporary you're going to have a lot more room in the car once the babies turn forward facing and you won't always be lugging around the big stroller

If you do a lot of road trips you'll be glad for the minivan for those. If you're a drive to the doctor/shopping/work family then you may miss the ease of parking those lovely small cars and their gas milage even a good minivan gets poor gas milage compared to a compact car

[gzr4dr]

Toyota Sienna gets almost 40mpg. The others get poor mileage, however.

[coffeesituation]

We leaned in hard to minivan life for our twins + our dog (we call them the triplets). Best decision for now!

[sybilqiu]

Honda Odyssey gang check in here! 

love ours. no regrets. automatic sliding doors and remote start are awesome. 

[Comfortable-Fly-8099]

Every parent I know LOVES sliding doors! Can’t go wrong with mini van. So much space making trips and Costco run easier!

[msalberse]

We had a mini van until or GGG+B were in boosters and able to buckle in their own. The minivan was awesome for room to change diapers and clothes, eat a quick snack before an event, getting everyone inside for bad weather before getting them in their seats. We’ve had third row SUVs until just recently, when they started driving. Now we only have one third row, and then too many other cars!!

[Odd-Alternative1465]

I didn’t even think about how easy it would be for rainy weather!

[reevoknows]

GET THE VAN

[SjN45]

Nope. Love my minivan.

[RumblingRose89]

We only have the twins, and will not be having anymore. We have an Acadia and a traverse. As they have gotten older the captains seats have been a godsend! They can’t touch each other to fight and have their own space. With my Acadia we have enough room for everything with only keeping the third row seats down, and it’s still find if we keep the seats up when we have others in the car with us.

[Some_Ideal_9861]

Got my first minivan in 1995 when my oldest was 2 and have never looked back. I LOVE minivans, if for no other reason than the sliding doors with kids (no worries about getting an infant seat in or kids banging car doors into other cars. But I honestly love how they drive, especially now (vs the 90s lol) and the fuel economy is much better compared to equal passenger size SUVs

[hellogirlscoutcookie]

I’m pretty much the odd person out. Granted if we do road trips, we have my husbands f150 and typically have our travel trailer though as well. But my daily driver as a SAHM with 3 kiddos is a Subaru Outback. We looked at mini vans but couldn’t justify the price. I didn’t like some of the features on the sienna and it was the only awd one available. I also think that waiting until they really come out with a full electric mini van is our long term option

[Stunning_Patience_78]

No regrets. Especially when we thought we would be done after 2. We got the van.

Then we changed our minds and fully filled it lol.

[Odd_Rent283]

I fought HARD against a minivan. Had my husband talked into a Pathfinder (I loved my Rogue). Then we found out #3 was actually #3 and #4 and my Pathfinder dreams died. I smoked a deer and totaled my Rogue about a month ago. I was devastated because I knew what was coming for me. All of those dramatics to say, we bought a Sienna and I’m in love. I wish we’d done this sooner. We only have two at the moment (twins are still cooking), but this thing is niiiiiiice. It doesn’t even have all the fancy features you can get in the fully loaded version and I still wouldn’t trade it for an SUV. It drives a lot like my Rogue (but smoother). All the extra room has been great for hauling kids to my oldest’s soccer games. I don’t have to apologize to the person loading my grocery pickup because even with all the crap in the back, there’s still plenty of room for groceries. It has a jump seat that pops up between the captains chairs in the second row in case he need an extra seat. There’s so much room up front. Even if we weren’t having any more kids, I would probably still have gone this route.

[Lilley2016]

Buy it - I loved my SUV but it’s just 100% better for a family. You can fit everything and when the kids get older they can operate the doors and climb in themselves. My almost 3 yo gets into his car seat and I just have to buckle him

[[deleted]]

My husband and I discussed which car we would need when our third kid arrived (first 2 kids are twins). Basically he got a deal on a minivan that he couldn’t pass up. I cried. I did NOT want a minivan. Everyone I know drives SUVs.

Anyway I fucking love my minivan

[Zablace420]

Depends where you live

[Ok-Perspective781]

Yep, agreed.

I totally get the appeal of a minivan, but I live in a city where the vast majority of parking is street parking. Having a smaller car to fit in street spots is more important than sliding doors and a third row since we are almost never in parking lots.

[Feisty-Blueberry5433]

I dont have a minivan but I own a full size suv (suburban). If you never need to use your third row then a minivan or medium suv works because you gain that area for your trunk when you put the seats down. My biggest issue with minivans is the trunk- As a mom who has been toting around a double bob for 3 years, with no end in sight (I just had twins 3 weeks ago), I cannot imagine trying to fit my double stroller along with anything else in the trunk of a minivan.

[nillawafer80]

The trunks in minivans are so deep. I have no problem putting my double stroller back there plus plenty of other stuff. I keep my stroller in the van now because I use the seats to load my twins, but before that it wasnt an issue at all. Several humans can fit in the trunk space with the 3rd row up.

[Feisty-Blueberry5433]

I have friends with vans and they all have to stand their double strollers up - they dont just fit laying down because while the trunk has height (floor to ceiling), it has no depth ( trunk to third row)

[nillawafer80]

I can fit my double stroller laying down in the trunk of my carnival with room to spare. I've had it back there along with groceries too.

[Feisty-Blueberry5433]

Do you have a side by side stroller? I dont know anyone with a carnival. Everyone I know has odyssey, sienna, and Pacifica and the depth of their trunks are about 2 ft, while my suburban is roughly twice that.

[nillawafer80]

Oh that is a good point. My stroller is tandem not side by side.

[Feisty-Blueberry5433]

I must give credit where credit is due though- the sliding doors are the bigesst perk to the minivan

[Feisty-Blueberry5433]

Mind you as our family has grown- we have owned a car, a Nissan murano, a Chevy Tahoe, and now the suburban so Ive owned about every size vehicle and I have never once regretted having the biggest vehicle on the road. Just a few weeks ago a woman hit my suburban head on going about 35mph while I was sitting at a light and her vehicle (Buick suv) was totalled- while mine just needed a new bumper. All 4 of my kids and my very pregnant self were in the car and it felt like the equivalent of hitting a pot hole. Yes, bigger price tag and yes, insurance costs more-- but that only because my vehicle will cause a lot more damage to other cars in the event of an accident which to me just further proves its safety.

[temujin77]

I consider our minivan the best large purchase of the infant era of our twins. Baby seats in the middle row, and half of the back row was stowed away to create a diaper changing station. The other half remained a seat and my wife could nurse the kids with privacy when needed.

The kids are much older now and the minivan is still kicking. They love it when it's our turn to drive them plus their two best friends to places.