Safe, Affordable Family Vehicle?

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Princess_Abby:
Any ideas? We’d like to purchase a vehicle in the next month or so, but don’t feel pulled in any particular direction as to what would be best. Our main concerns are that it be safe for the new baby and fairly economical, as well as reliable. In our experience, American cars have not offered reliability. So we would probably prefer foreign car suggestions, just FYI, unless someone has had an amazing experience otherwise.
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We have a Toyota Camry…it’s awesome. We were actually just in an accident a couple of weeks ago (the whole family in there!) and our car hardly looks as damaged as it is and we are all fine. Gets great gas mileage. We have 141,000-plus miles on it and plan that we’ll have many many more.

OUr next family vehicle will be a Toyota Sienna…we’re saving up for that one right now. Toyotas are reliable, good cars.
 
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Princess_Abby:
Oh, and I’m tall. 5’10. Hubby is over six feet. We want to make sure we’re not smushed. 🙂
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In this case I’d recommend the Toyotas over the Hondas. My husband is tall and the Honda seats “cut him off” in the middle of the leg instead of giving him the full cushion for all of his leg. I have known many other tall people in his family to say the same thing. I’m not overly tall, so no biggie for me…but for tall people…might want to go with Toyotas.
 
Michelle in KC:
In this case I’d recommend the Toyotas over the Hondas. My husband is tall and the Honda seats “cut him off” in the middle of the leg instead of giving him the full cushion for all of his leg. I have known many other tall people in his family to say the same thing. I’m not overly tall, so no biggie for me…but for tall people…might want to go with Toyotas.
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My husband’s car is a Toyota and he wants to stick with them, whatever we buy.
 
We love Ford… especially the wagons. Very economical and you get more car for your $ vs. Honda or Toyota. If you’re going to drive it until it dies… who cares about resale? We always buy the dealer vehicles that have less than 15,000 miles on them and are only 1 -2 years old. For example now they are putting out the 2006 - you could get a great deal on a leftover 2004.

When I had my first baby Princess Abby I too was terrified that I’d be in a car accident with him. I remember telling a car salesman that I wanted THE SAFEST VEHICLE ON THE ROAD!!! He said, “If it’s safety you want… here’s my advice: DRIVE CAREFULLY.” 😉
 
carol marie:
We love Ford… especially the wagons. Very economical and you get more car for your $ vs. Honda or Toyota. If you’re going to drive it until it dies… who cares about resale? We always buy the dealer vehicles that have less than 15,000 miles on them and are only 1 -2 years old. For example now they are putting out the 2006 - you could get a great deal on a leftover 2004.

When I had my first baby Princess Abby I too was terrified that I’d be in a car accident with him. I remember telling a car salesman that I wanted THE SAFEST VEHICLE ON THE ROAD!!! He said, “If it’s safety you want… here’s my advice: DRIVE CAREFULLY.” 😉
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🙂

I have never hit anyone with my car. There is not much one can do to guard against a caravan of partiers on Cinco de Mayo who are all drunk and slam into you and each other on I-70…

It’s the unexpected situations that scare me. I can do my part, but the reality is that we can’t control the actions of others on the road. We can just pray and drive safely ourselves, with as much awareness of what is going on around us as possible.
 
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Princess_Abby:
My husband’s car is a Toyota and he wants to stick with them, whatever we buy.
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If I am not mistaken, the “insides” of the Pontiac Vibe are the same as the Toyota Matrix.

Malia
 
Feanaro's Wife:
If I am not mistaken, the “insides” of the Pontiac Vibe are the same as the Toyota Matrix.

Malia
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Hmmmmmmmmm I really appreciate that info. Thanks very much. 🙂
 
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Princess_Abby:
Any ideas? We’d like to purchase a vehicle in the next month or so, but don’t feel pulled in any particular direction as to what would be best. Our main concerns are that it be safe for the new baby and fairly economical, as well as reliable. In our experience, American cars have not offered reliability. So we would probably prefer foreign car suggestions, just FYI, unless someone has had an amazing experience otherwise.
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Princess_Abby, go to this website to get the 5 star crash test rating. You can punch in any make or model, any year and you will get a rollover and front & side impact safety rating.
nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/testing/ncap/
This is how I chose my vehicles for my family. To me, safety ratings are important as I have seen much carnage on the highways. Some vehicles are literally ripped in half and when we arrive, we find the people are out walking around! They’re either blessed or protected by a very safe vehicle.
 
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paramedicgirl:
Princess_Abby, go to this website to get the 5 star crash test rating. You can punch in any make or model, any year and you will get a rollover and front & side impact safety rating.
nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/testing/ncap/
This is how I chose my vehicles for my family. To me, safety ratings are important as I have seen much carnage on the highways. Some vehicles are literally ripped in half and when we arrive, we find the people are out walking around! They’re either blessed or protected by a very safe vehicle.
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This is so helpful. Thank you so much!!!
 
Our family just went through this process. We chose a one year old Saturn. Domestic, safe, good mileage, and from all the folks we know who have them, very reliable. I know many who drove them well over 200,000 miles.

Our insurance went down because it’s safety features were so much better than our Voyager van.

Buying domestic is very important to me.

cheddar
 
One other safety factor I forgot to mention - white vehicles are more visble that other colors. (Hence the police cruisers and ambulances are white). I have heard that in some states, white vehicles are cheaper to insure based on this higher visibility. Can anyone confirm that?
 
Ford Minivans are a great way to go, especially right now if they still have the employee discount incentive. Ford is really motivated to sell this year to keep up with chevy. We were able to trade in our 2001 Ford windstar with no extras, not even a tape deck or cruise control, for a 2005 Ford FreeStar (the new improved version of windstar) with EVERYTHING except a navagational system and leather seats. IT has a DVD player, CD player, orgainzatonal system in the back, 3 zone air conditioning system etc. etc. etc. We were really poor when we bought our first van so bought whatever we could afford and had a high interest rate, which we had already refinanced last year, for a much lower rate. They were going to give us less for our van, and when my husband was ready to leave the lot they stopped him and decided to give him $3,000 more for our trade in. That means we paid less than what we originally paid for our first wimpy van and have a much nicer van, exactly what we wanted and needed!

Before we had a minivan we all crammed into a Honda Accord. While driving in a smaller car, I felt so much more vulnerable to larger vehicles, once we had babies in the car, I was determined to find the safest vehicle I could so based my choice purely on safety ratings and a size that 5 people could fit in comfortably.

I know you are just expecting your first baby, right? If you are hoping to have more, the minivan is a great way to go.

They get fantastic gas milage, more like a station wagon than an SUV.

The Ford Windstar has amazing crash test ratings. That was the reason I chose it, originally! I wanted the safest vehicle on the market for my kids, and Ford Windstar (NOW Freestar) had the best safety ratings coupled with the best reliability.

It has a smooth ride, you would have plenty of room to haul visiting grandparents. (This is a plus for us because we have out of town visitors freqently and we like to go places all in one vehicle.

I really like my Ford Freestar van!
 
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paramedicgirl:
One other safety factor I forgot to mention - white vehicles are more visble that other colors. (Hence the police cruisers and ambulances are white). I have heard that in some states, white vehicles are cheaper to insure based on this higher visibility. Can anyone confirm that?
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yellow vehicles are supposed to be the safest color, and even more visible than white. Yellow screams caution to the other drivers. I only know this because I’m a bit of a safety freek.
 
I’d say Honda… I just got a Honda Civic a year and a half ago because it pretty much had the best crash and safety ratings for a car that size (I don’t remember if it was absolutely the best - but it was certainly at the top)

If you decide to look at the CRV their SUV (dont’ know how big your family is so I don’t know how big a vehicle you need - maybe you’re looking for a mini-van for all I know!), just know that the CRV rides like a truck not a car (my parent’s have one and my mother has NOT been happy with it because of that) I have a friend who already dreams of a Honda Minivan despite not being married yet, much less having kids - so they must be pretty nice (I’m assuming she knows someone who has one)
 
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paramedicgirl:
Princess_Abby, go to this website to get the 5 star crash test rating. You can punch in any make or model, any year and you will get a rollover and front & side impact safety rating.
nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/testing/ncap/
This is how I chose my vehicles for my family. To me, safety ratings are important as I have seen much carnage on the highways. Some vehicles are literally ripped in half and when we arrive, we find the people are out walking around! They’re either blessed or protected by a very safe vehicle.
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Thanks for posting this! It is what I used to choose my vehicle a few years ago and I found it extremely helpful.

Another great thing about new vehicles, they have a new safety clamp system for car seats. Child safety seats now have a special clamp system that connects them directly to steel loops in the seats, It allows for much easier carseat installation and a much tighter fit. Car seat safety is crucial, and the car seat should not budge without force. Alot of parents think they have their car seats installed properly and are mistaken.

Our 91’ Honda’s seatbelt system, combined with the shape of the seat, made it impossible to use an infant carrier-type carseat. We had to purchase an additional convertable seat after our first baby was born because we assumed the infant carrier would work.

Also, just a reminder that I feel I need to throw in for parents of older kids. Just because your child is 6 or a cetain weight doesn’t mean you need to take the booster seat away. The recommendations are to use them until the seatbelt rests on the child’s shoulder comfortably and booster seats go up to 80 lbs now. The law doesn’t require the use of one, but safety does. My 8 yr old is finally big enough to ride without a booster, but it is because she is tall for her age, and the back seat of the Freestar is made smaller, so she fits better than our last vehicle.

A friend of mine lost her niece in a head on collision. She had just turned 6 and was riding without a booster seat for the first time. She was small for her age. The seat belt killed her. It broke her neck and the lap belt caused internal injuries. Had she been in a booster seat, the belt would have fit properly and she would have been protected. This news was extremely hard for the family to hear. My friend went around schools and to all her friends telling them to keep their kids in a booster seat until they are a proper fit. The laws are not quite up to par with older kids and booster seats.
 
For safe and economical, I would recommend Toyota or Honda.

We have a Toyota Tercel and Corolla and are looking at buying a Camry because of the space issue. DH is 5’11" and at 6 years DS is 4’4" and DH likes his seat and backrest right behind, which makes DS uncomfortable in his car seat. So…
 
AmISearching?:
I’d say Honda… I just got a Honda Civic a year and a half ago because it pretty much had the best crash and safety ratings for a car that size (I don’t remember if it was absolutely the best - but it was certainly at the top)

If you decide to look at the CRV their SUV (dont’ know how big your family is so I don’t know how big a vehicle you need - maybe you’re looking for a mini-van for all I know!), just know that the CRV rides like a truck not a car (my parent’s have one and my mother has NOT been happy with it because of that) I have a friend who already dreams of a Honda Minivan despite not being married yet, much less having kids - so they must be pretty nice (I’m assuming she knows someone who has one)
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We looked at the Honda minivan. They are more expensive and the crash test ratings were not as good as the Windstar (In 2001, they could have improved since then) We have always been Honda people, but I honestly think the Ford Minivans are better. The Honda minivans are also harder to come by, they are in high demand. They are hard to find on a lot, so you would be less likely to get a good “deal” on one.

Right now Ford will do just about anything to sell. I am not sure about the other companies, just our experience with Ford this year. I’m also not a big fan of the CRV. It rides like a jeep with weak shocks, but doesn’t feel as sturdy as a Jeep. (we are also “Jeep” people… we like the autos that last and last) I felt like I was riding in a toy truck if that makes any sense. My cousin has one and it isn’t as nice as other models of Honda. Accords are generally terrific, but some years are better than others.
 
Princess_Abby said:
🙂

I have never hit anyone with my car. There is not much one can do to guard against a caravan of partiers on Cinco de Mayo who are all drunk and slam into you and each other on I-70…

It’s the unexpected situations that scare me. I can do my part, but the reality is that we can’t control the actions of others on the road. We can just pray and drive safely ourselves, with as much awareness of what is going on around us as possible.
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I was terrified of a car accident with my first two. We were all crammed into a Honda Accord and the crash test ratings on that particular year were not good.

The way I look at it is, I do everything to insure that we are safely bukled into proper car seats in the safest vehicle I can afford and I put the rest in God’s hands. Until I had a safe car, though, I worried, because I *knew *I could do better for my children if I could only afford it. We had to buy a minivan with my third child and I never worry now, because I know I have done everything in MY power to have a safe trip. All that is left now is to drive safely. It has been a huge lift off my shoulders to Know we are as safe as I can make us, and everything else is in God’s hands.
 
If you spend $5 to subscribe to Consumer Reports’ website for a month, you can see all of their reviews of new and used cars. I did it when I bought my last car, and it was the best $5 I ever spent. It also convinced me not to buy an American car; I now own another Japanese car.
 
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paramedicgirl:
One other safety factor I forgot to mention - white vehicles are more visble that other colors. (Hence the police cruisers and ambulances are white). I have heard that in some states, white vehicles are cheaper to insure based on this higher visibility. Can anyone confirm that?
Click to expand...
I don’t think my insurance agent ever asked the color of my car. I doubt it matters. Living in Minnesota, I’m reluctant to buy a white car for fear of getting stuck in a blizzard and being invisible to those looking for me. There was a case of this happening a few years ago. A woman got stuck in a blizzard in the middle of nowhere. She called for help on her cell phone. They sent planes and helicopters, but they couldn’t see the camoflauged white car.
 
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