Buying a family-friendly vehicle

We’re expecting our second child in the spring and we’re car shopping. We want to buy a new vehicle that’s family friendly. Any pointers?

You bet. To zero in on a vehicle that’s right for your growing family, consider these questions before you hit the car-sales lots:

How many people will you be carrying? If you have one or two children, a small or midsized sedan should do, while saving you money and offering better fuel economy than a larger vehicle. But remember, kids must ride in the back, away from front airbags, and in appropriate restraints, so if you expect to transport a group—your own kids plus friends some day—you’ll want room to put them all in the back. A roomier choice is a minivan or SUV that offers seating for as many as nine. All vehicles that seat seven or more include a third-row seat that can be folded down or removed when not in use. You must still use an appropriate car seat for each child.

How old are your children? Plan ahead. Young children may not need much room now, but the kids will grow. Also consider how much room you’ll need for child safety seats. They can take up a lot of space, and having your seat kicked from the rear gets annoying. If you have older children, consider a car that has as many safety features as you can get and that will be easy to handle as they learn to drive. Small and midsized sedans and wagons are usually good choices; larger vehicles are harder to maneuver.

How much cargo space do you need? The trunk of a sedan may provide enough cargo room for smaller families. A vehicle with more space may be a better choice for large families and those who travel frequently, have a lot of outdoor activities requiring lots of gear, or need extra room for transporting a stroller, a play yard, or portable infant swing to and from Grandma’s. Depending on your cargo needs, your choices range from small wagons to minivans to large SUVs.

How flexible is the vehicle? Does the rear seat fold down? If so, is it a split design that lets one side fold separately from the other? Can the front passenger seat fold down to accommodate long items? If you’re considering a seven-passenger vehicle, check to see if the third-row seat folds flat or has to be removed from the vehicle to enlarge cargo capacity. Remember that vehicles that sit lower to the ground are easier to load and unload.

What conditions will you be driving in? If you’ll be driving in rain and very light snow on predominantly cleared roads, a two-wheel drive (2WD) vehicle will work fine. All-wheel drive (AWD) or four-wheel-drive (4WD) provides additional traction that is a plus for heavier snow conditions or for traveling on dirt roads without high rocks, deep sand, or steep inclines. If you drive on a lot of snow and ice, switch to winter tires for extra grip and safety, no matter what type of vehicle you have.

How important is fuel economy? As a general rule, the larger the vehicle, the lower the fuel economy. Small, lightweight sedans usually get the best mileage; heavy SUVs get the worst. If you need more cargo room than a sedan can provide, consider a minivan, smaller SUV or wagon. Some have as much usable cargo space as a larger SUV, but they usually get better fuel economy. In our testing, hybrids have achieved some of the best fuel economy in their classes, but you’ll pay a premium for one. Diesel cars also typically get better fuel economy than similar-sized gasoline-powered vehicles.

What safety equipment is included? By law, every passenger vehicle comes equipped with dual front air bags. But most now also have sophisticated systems have occupant sensors to determine if the air bag should deploy and at what strength. An increasing number of vehicles have head-protection air bags that deploy to protect occupants in both the front and rear seats. In general, the safest place to put an infant car seat is in the center rear seat of the automobile, whether or not your car is equipped with air bags.

Our auto experts also highly recommend electronic stability control (ESC), especially on SUVs. It’s designed to help keep the vehicle under control and on its path during cornering and prevent it from sliding or skidding. Stability control can help prevent SUVs from rolling over and can be a very important feature for helping to protect new, inexperienced drivers.

Visit ConsumerReports.org for our latest new and used car ratings (available to subscribers). 

Comments

[James Spillers]

Hi...
I have to get this out- this company makes me so mad!!!

Consumer reports has always been biased to foreign brands/inferior brands and has very often written reviews that are not true.

For instance- In the automotive world, the "comparisons" that you've done in the past, such as the Geo Prizm/Toyota Corolla? Why does the foreign brand always rank higher? Do you know that BOTH of these are the SAME vehicle with a different badge? How does one consistently do better than the other? Was the namebadge on the Toyota lighter, therefore giving it wings and superpowers?

Does the company hate the United States, or do they just get paid by Japan and other countries? Perhaps they are nothing more than an advertising firm. I think that they don't give the slightest bit of consideration to their "Consumers".

I mean, really-- RYOBI power tools are better than DeWalt, Bosch, Porter Cable? Really? I think just about EVERYONE who's ever used a power tool for more than 2 minutes would disagree...

I think that consumer reports is a consumer deception. I'm sure that you'll keep up the false work.

My rant: Consumer reports, you disgust me.

Change your name to 'Highest Paying Manufacturers Propoganda'.

James

[Product Blog]

I found this article to be very informative. I am in the process of researching new cars for my new family. My husband and I just adopted two children and we are in need of a family friendly vehicle.