pnutkitten

My "wife" drives an 84 Toyota Celica Supra.



And that doesn't help you at all.

Tibbi

Just because someone has kids doesn't mean they instantly get neutered. There's plenty of sedans and larger hatchbacks that are a ton of fun to drive and still reliable family cars. My wife and I have tested the Mazdaspeed3 on numerous occasions and keep coming back to it as one of our primary options. It's decent sized, handles great, has tolerable luggage space and can be driven off boost very easily for good city driving, with of course boost on demand for fun times. It's very well priced too. IMHO a great option for fun weekends and sensible daily driving. It's not going to be as lavish as as an SUV or Minivan, but it's going to be a lot more fun for you and the family.









On topic, my wife drives the '09 MC Accent as her DD.

In a couple of years she's planning to import a Mazda ZA-1 through our RI as her toy

SR Tech

My wife drives a 4 door Cobalt SS that I've tastefully modded for her. Has some nice pep to it if you wanna get on it but averages 25mpg if your just driving normally.



My nephew has his own car seat in the back that fits well, idk about fitting 2 back there though.



As far as a family hauler goes and straying away from imports.... I've become a big fan of the new Ford Escape. With the 4cyl ecoboost motor that thing gets 30+mpg all day long and I'm starting to like the exterior.



I've driven a few so far and I would definitely recommend it. It doesn't have as much room as a minivan but its still got a decent amount of room inside.

ScoupeLS

My lady drives a '12 Forester limited. Its the n/a model. She averages 26mpg mixed. It has some mods like wrx struts and still springs and full JDM version OEM lip kit and cf rear hatch spoiler.

i8acobra

The Subaru Forester just won MT's SUOTY. I'd check them out.

Stocker

After getting one for my wife, I recommend you at least look at a Suburban (or GM/Cadillac equivalents). You want to talk about plenty of room for everybody and their stuff, this is it. Gas mileage sucks obviously, but if you want 'cartwheels down the middle of the car' kind of room, Suburban. If you're used to an Explorer, maybe look at Tahoes instead of the full-length truck.



We had to rent a new Explorer and it sucked. I wouldn't have thought a biggish midsize SUV would be claustrophobic but it was, even in the front.



random link from google http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com...-Midsize-SUVs/

i8acobra

BTW, the new Pathfinder is getting a hybrid variant for '14. Supercharged 2.5L 4-banger plus an electric motor.

Tibbi

All these SUVs The appeal of this garbage to the mall crawling, average consumer makes no sense at all. I will never understand it

Now if you actually do take it off road periodically, then I can it. However the vastest majority of them in production are useless off road.





I can't wait to build the Wagon and prove once again that wagons can be cool.

Whatnot

Kia Sorento 2.0 T. (same engine as 2013 Sonata 2.0T). Decent hp, decent gas mileage, decent size, decent price, comes in AWD if you live up north.

pas1216

After a couple of months of research I bought a used 2011 Honda CRV as the new family hauler / wife's vehicle. It's pretty good on gas ($55 to fill from empty) as it's a 4 cyl but still has over 200hp so when you put your foot down you get a decent response. Lot's of room for everything that comes with having a kid or kids (something some of these people don't seem to understand). It is also has a great safety/crash rating, which was important to me as my wife and son drive in it 95% of the time. You may want to consider the Honda Pilot too if you're looking for something bigger than the CRV.



Personally I would stay away from the Ford Escape, it was just named one of the least dependable cars on the road. And IMO, anything built by Ford is a POS anyway (I drive a E250 daily). I test drove it and wasn't the least bit impressed.



I REALLY liked the Sienna mini-vans when I was looking for something new, but thought they were a bit pricey (even used). I believe they come with a V6 too, so gas mileage, while not bad is not great either. But you can't go wrong with a Toyota or Honda when it comes to re-sale value.



Either way, take your time deciding, test drive a bunch of car's/suv's/van's, it's the only way to decide which one is best for you.