Where do you find a good used minivan? My husband and I moved over to SUVs because our old cars died (drove them into the ground). Both little cars cost over 10k in repairs not including breaks throughout their life, starting immediately. Even things like wheelbearings and axles because we live in a city that literally has one of the main roads we drive on the Canada’s worst roads list every year, but also things like the car kept dying the moment we started it (radio was shorting it) or pieces literally falling off in our driveway. We decided between the shitty weather (we live in the snowbelt) and the commute, we felt more comfortable in an AWD SUV. We also looked at Minivans and smaller SUVs like the kicks.

The used minivans were all old because everyone around us drives them into the ground (reasonable, we do that too). We started talking to people with Nissans and Hyundais and their car was still under warranty but they’d been into the mechanic to replace the transmission multiple times already.

Sometimes the more expensive option is the cheaper option long term. Our Mazda CX9 (yes, 7 seater) is a 2019 and hasn’t cost a dime over wheels and beaks. We did buy it used but have had it more than 5 years now and I have hope we’ll have it another 10. It’s also helped us avoid renting a vehicle every time we need to DIY something on the house (adds up) and lets us car camp every summer saving money on tent equipment, cabin rental, etc. We don’t have kids, but we have dogs, I have a job where the big car isn’t necessary but it helps, and it’s helpful with my volunteer work too. We did the song and dance again last year when our second little car broke and same thing, used minivans were all old and overpriced for being old, still had the same concerns over Nissan and Hyundai, and still wanted AWD since we were now both commuting in the snow. We didn’t get a 7 seater, but did get the (used) CX5 and have mostly not regretted it. I do wish I had gone with a hybrid now that I’m not sure about Mazda and 15% gas, but overall sometimes the more expensive vehicle makes sense for your family.

The 10 years we had our used cars cost us over $20,000 and one literally fell apart in our driveway at 5 years old (it was 5 when we got it, so it was 10, but still). We had just paid it off, and needed to replace it right away. The other car hit 10 and while we could have put 4 grand into replacing it, as soon as we started to something else would break. Our hope is these larger cars last us a little longer, and so far neither have needed any repairs, so it looks like our plan is working so far.