...And 3 is a crowd

[Linctex]

Originally Posted By: ATex7239

When you go from 2 kids to 3+ kids you have to change from a man-to-man defense to zone coverage, in order to maximize efforts. ANYTHING you can do to make simple day-to-day tasks easy to navigate will make your life better less stressful.


SO TRUE!!!!!!!

"Petty" ideas like: "I can't bring myself to buy a minivan"
will fade into the past along with so many other unimportant things.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Chrysler Town & Country, Chrysler Pacifica or Chevrolet Traverse.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Chevy Suburban. Nine passengers.


I did see a guy once squeeze 3 kids into a Geo Metro.

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Originally Posted By: KMJ1992
Im in the same boat. The regular cab truck has gotta go, and im thinking about an suv. I work for Ford so ill be getting either an Explorer, or preferrably an Aviator. The wifes car holds everyone, but just barely. I cant bring myself to buy a minivan.

My son works for a Ford dealership. He took me for a ride in an 2018 Explorer. They also just happen to have an 2018 Navigator on the lot as well. The Navigator makes the Explorer ride like a Chevy Silverado with NO suspension. Forget the Explorer. Consider the Navigator.

 

[Rolla07]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: SuperDave456
"Two is company...3 is a crowd"

Now that we are contemplating a 3rd kiddo I'm wondering how to get them around
We already have 2 SUV's and a truck. But they all have 2 rows of seats and cannot fit 3 car seats on that back row.

So I'm going to need something with a 3rd row of seats.

Kiddo #3 isn't on the way... yet.
But I figure that this is something I need to begin to research.
The oldest kiddos will be 3 years and the middle kiddo around 2 years.

What are your feelings on SUV's with 3 rows of seats?
Minivans?
Anything else I'm missing?

I'd love to purchase used.


Welcome to my consistent gripe about so-called suvs. Suburban or minivan has been my realized claim for years.

Buy a minivan, save a ton of money compared to a suburban, and enjoy space and cargo capacity. 3 row suvs that aren't a suburban are idiotic. There's negligible cargo space behind. We had friends that were convinced a three row SUV would be fine for their third. A minivan was bought soon after the birth.

I did recently rent a suburban that returned 27MPG over a long highway cruise. It just can't hold up in city driving. But the new suburban mpgs are pretty impressive given the engine size and rating. A modern base suburban makes the same hp as the big block 454 from 1998.

But a suburban starts around $50k, and it's easy to get out of a dealership with a minivan for 30-40k, saving a ton of money.


+1

 

[Rolla07]

Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
Originally Posted By: KMJ1992
Im in the same boat. The regular cab truck has gotta go, and im thinking about an suv. I work for Ford so ill be getting either an Explorer, or preferrably an Aviator. The wifes car holds everyone, but just barely. I cant bring myself to buy a minivan.

My son works for a Ford dealership. He took me for a ride in an 2018 Explorer. They also just happen to have an 2018 Navigator on the lot as well. The Navigator makes the Explorer ride like a Chevy Silverado with NO suspension. Forget the Explorer. Consider the Navigator.


Whats the price difference?

 

[KrisZ]

A suburban or a minivan, nothing else will even come close.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Wolf359
Originally Posted By: Donald
Chevy Suburban. Nine passengers.


I did see a guy once squeeze 3 kids into a Geo Metro.


Without car seats, especially rear facing ones, much more is possible. Car seats make for big access issues.

Of course, growing bodies and luggage then take over, but it's never as bad as seats, strollers and pack and plays.

And I shouldn't say bad. Young kids are the joy of my life. I love having to take all that stuff, because I love little kids and doing things with them. It's just that the stuff doesn't fit!!

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
Originally Posted By: KMJ1992
Im in the same boat. The regular cab truck has gotta go, and im thinking about an suv. I work for Ford so ill be getting either an Explorer, or preferrably an Aviator. The wifes car holds everyone, but just barely. I cant bring myself to buy a minivan.

My son works for a Ford dealership. He took me for a ride in an 2018 Explorer. They also just happen to have an 2018 Navigator on the lot as well. The Navigator makes the Explorer ride like a Chevy Silverado with NO suspension. Forget the Explorer. Consider the Navigator.


Do they still make an extended one like the suburban?

 

[Superflop]

We had a 3 row volvo xc90. Always having to fold seats regardless of how easy just gets annoying. Traded it in on the grand caravan and havent looked back... I would pass on the suburban without a second thought.. oh and this minivan is awesome in the snow.

We have three kids, the mini van having its two slider doors and rear hatch auto open and close makes getting the kids or anything else in and out veru easy.

Stow and go is fantastic. I keep a car seat for the youngest in the drivers side middle seat and the passenger side middle seat is folded flat into the floor. Click the buttons both side doors open and all kids are in without hold ups.

But just to mention it i can get 3 car seats across the back seat of my saab.

 

[Huie83]

We had our 3rd child in 2013. At the time we leased a 2013 Ford Explorer because it had a 3rd row and my wife just wouldn't do a minivan.

It worked OK, but it was a real pain having to help the kiddo's in and out of the 3rd row all the time. That and the small door opening made it hard to get the baby seat in and out. We had one of the cool ones that released from the base. Also, as the kids got older the 3rd row got a little cramped.

In 2016 we turned it in and purchased a Toyota Sienna used. We love it and would never go back. Large power doors to get the kids in and out. Low load height, our 4 year old can just climb on in and get himself into his seat. Tons of room behind the 3rd row too with that deep storage well.

Van's ride real nice too.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted By: Al
Pass on the 3rd kid. in another 10 years you will understand why.


Al, you crack me up with your bluntness in this realm.

I can't say I disagree with you. For me, having 4 children isn't the worst thing in the world, but it is indeed a hardship and getting harder as they age.

For the darling bride and I, 2 kids was a snap at the time. Sooo easy. The 3rd just sort of 'happened' and the 4th was a whoopsie for sure. I got fixed after that.

2-3 is almost a vacation for me and like mentioned above, can easily be done with a 5-seater vehicle, you just need to plan your car seat purchases accordingly and test fit.

 

[riklyn]

I had 3 kids and a Grand Caravan. worked great for us. liked it enough that I bought another when they were grown. very versatile vehicles even if they are not sexy.

 

[Tahoe4Life]

My vote is for the Suburban or Yukon Denali XL with the 6.2.

 

[Subdued]

I wouldn't even consider anything smaller than a minivan for 3 kids.

3rd row seat SUVs are just asinine. Where, exactly, are you going to put the stroller and all the other stuff you need to haul around for 3 kids under 5?

 

[dareo]

Originally Posted By: FORD4LIFE
My vote is for the Suburban or Yukon Denali XL with the 6.2.


User name checks out, lol. Seriously though, those are great vehicles.

If long trips and lots of cargo are top of your list along with low cost you can get some nice full size vans for cheap. They don't have that cool truck suv price gouging thing going on. Like a 2010+ GM FS van is really sweet with the 6.0 6 speed.

FS vans can come close to 300 cubic feet of cargo and a suburban is only at 121' cargo. Combine the shorter overall length and its even easier to drive. Downsides are if you need 4x4 good luck finding a FS van with 4x4 for any kind of decent price.

 

[FutureDoc]

Originally Posted By: SuperDave456
"Two is company...3 is a crowd"

Now that we are contemplating a 3rd kiddo I'm wondering how to get them around
We already have 2 SUV's and a truck. But they all have 2 rows of seats and cannot fit 3 car seats on that back row.

So I'm going to need something with a 3rd row of seats.

Kiddo #3 isn't on the way... yet.
But I figure that this is something I need to begin to research.
The oldest kiddos will be 3 years and the middle kiddo around 2 years.

What are your feelings on SUV's with 3 rows of seats?
Minivans?
Anything else I'm missing?

I'd love to purchase used.


Minivan. Or go full-out full, fat Ford Transit 12 passenger like a friend of mine with 6 kids and live-at-home parents. 10 in that clan.

Personally, I would not want to try and get a kid into a 3rd row seat. That has to be an all time PITA and that is coming from someone who has carseats in the back of a coupe.

But, wait... you can't fit three car-seats abreast in a Texas truck? (Sorry, stereotyping... but aren't all Texas trucks able to accommodate a small New England state?). Since vehicles are $XX,XXX+ why not rethink your carseats. There are some car seats specifically designed to fit 3 across in a small sedan, let alone a Truck/SUV. You might have to give up some car-seat cupholders and the "lounge chair" design, but they are still just as safe, etc. I think my Evenflow and Cosco could do it. The Graco/Britax might be a bit more snug.

By age three, they can climb in if you need access to the middle. My not-quite 3 year old can climb into my Ginny's carseat without an issue (thank goodness). So if kiddo #3 is not on the way "yet" then you are realistically have a kid that can seat himself so it becomes an issue with buckling.

However, if you are needing to keep the peace... well, 3 rows do work sometimes.

 

[FutureDoc]

And for anyone saying "Suburban"... quit being so impractical. If you need to move people and passengers, then the best is a true Van. More space, more seating. Better mileage. They can be upfitted much, much better than a Suburban and the new Transits are much, MUCH better to drive.