...

[talulabelle]

Ok, 1st, I don't care what you drive (said it in the post you quoted.) Just that a minivan is infinitely more convenient then a SUV for most of the reasons people say they need SUV's. My minivan fits 5 car seats just fine too, some do more (8 seater's). besides full size vans, not a lot of cars or SUV's seat more then that. Depending on what you need to store, a mini van can be better too (they have some great storage options with them lately.) I can see having some large thing that might not be as well. I know for a fact my Oddessy will fit more then my friends Caddy Esclade.

Like I said, drive what you want, I don't care but for the most part a mini van is going to be easier and better for kids anyway (and better gas mileage, and that does mater to me.)

As others have said size doesn't mean it is going to "win" in a fight anyway. Safety issues really mater too (and the type of the accident.) Mini vans are much less likely to roll over also.

SUV's are ugly too, it is just a mater of opinion.

No, way. There is no possible way an odyssey fits more cargo than an escalade. No way. My brother and neighbors both have odyseys (nice as minivans go) but I'm sorry, they do not fit anywhere close to an escalade. We are talking full size escalade right (like a suburban, not a tahoe) Never mind, even a tahoe fits more cargo than a minivan (not more people though).

 

[dcgrumpy]

My SUV seats 8 but we uslually take the third row out and use it for storage space. We got a great deal on it, DH bought it from a friend who wanted to get rid of it quick. All we had to pay was what was owed on the loan. If we found a minivan with that deal we'd probably take it.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

SUV's are ugly too, it is just a mater of opinion.

If you think that SUVs in general are ugly, I'd hate to think what you thought of mine...

It looks like something out of a cartoon! AND I LOVE IT!!!

 

[katerkat]

SUV's are ugly too, it is just a mater of opinion.

I dare you to say that to my baby's face, I dare you!

(Er, baby being the SUV, not Russ. )

I've never seen a minivan that can fit as much as my SUV - with the third row down. Third row up, of course, there's no room for anything.

 

[DisneyPhD]

Oh jeez, now we SUV drivers are not only wasting gas, but we are clogging up the whole system for all the perfect little law-abiding minivan people!

The teachers asst. comes out and takes the kids out of the cars at our preschool. Even the minivans. Kids aren't allowed to get out out of any vehicle in the parking lot or drop off line with out holding a teachers hand.

I would love for you to be behind me in drop-off line one day. I would take my time opening all the doors.

Aren't you being all lovely and defensive tonight????????????????? Any time anyone says anything you take it right to heart and personally.

Actually my DD's school has much bigger issues then most schools since it has NO parking lot and the road it is very short and falling apart. SUV might help because the pot holes won't swallow it up as fast as most cars.

They are building a new school on the old school propriety and the whole thing is a mess. No teachers help out at all, but this is another issue all together and don't get me started on it. It doesn't really mater what kind of car you have I know people who get out and leave their small car blocking all the traffic. It is so bad none of us can move until the person in front of them goes. The rest of the people are left blocking traffic on the main street. It isn't pretty. I can't wait until it is warm enough to ride bikes again.

There is this guy with a double wide truck that really pisses me off, but it more about the way he drives then what he drives.

hrh_disney_queen, yeah that is um well...... ugly (and orange) and most importantly to me personally hard to get in the back seats. It is kind of cartoon like. My point is people complain about the way a mini van looks or what it stands for (mommy mobile) but SUVs are just as bad. Not necessarily ugly, just I don't think they look any better then a minivan and they scream mommy just as much.

 

[DisneyPhD]

Oh about the fit, maybe my friend just packs really poorly, but I know I have stuffed more in my car they she can in hers (she does have 3 kids and I only have the 2 so that does make a difference.) Then again she doesn't always use the most common sense in doing things but that is just her.

Then again I can fit a darn lot in my Odyssey.

 

[DisneyPhD]

I dare you to say that to my baby's face, I dare you!

(Er, baby being the SUV, not Russ. )

I've never seen a minivan that can fit as much as my SUV - with the third row down. Third row up, of course, there's no room for anything.

See with the 3rd row up there is still a heck of a lot of room in the back of the Oddessy. With it down we can fit most trips to home depot just fine. I think the SUV is a bit wider, so you can fit more in it that way.

Oh and as I said before if you have to tow something an SUV wins hands down over a minivan. DH wants to get a camper, but there is a limited amount we can tow with out getting a bigger vehicle and I don't want that.

 

[Beth76]

I can open my door myself (and do for the drivers side) but my kids can't so the sidling door really makes my life easier. Especially since drop off and pick up is hell at my DD's school and I just have to pull up, hit the button once and she is out of the car, hit it again and I am off. Same for pick up. Much easier then the moms that have to get out of the car, walk around it to open the door and let the kid in.

My kids can open the door themselves and they can shut it too. And even so, the teachers open the doors to let the kids out. I never had to get out of the car to let my kids out of a drop-off lane.

SUV's are ugly too, it is just a mater of opinion.

And I think minivans are ugly, so there you go. Isn't it great that we can all find a vehicle that we love.

 

[Ariel Wanna-be]

...but SUVs are just as bad. Not necessarily ugly, just I don't think they look any better then a minivan and they scream mommy just as much.

Well, excuuuse me, but my Tahoe screams "HOT SEXY CHICK!!"

Then it whispers "...who happens to be a quintessential soccer mom."

 

[DisneyPhD]

My kids can open the door themselves and they can shut it too. And even so, the teachers open the doors to let the kids out. I never had to get out of the car to let my kids out of a drop-off lane.


And I think minivans are ugly, so there you go. Isn't it great that we can all find a vehicle that we love.

Yeah, I already explained my own personal hell that is pickup and drop off at my school. Don't get me started on it. My kids are pretty small too (for their age, just tiny girls.)

That really was my point, people say mini vans look dumb, I don't think so (and don't care) I also don't think an SUV looks any better or cooler.

Yes it is great we can all find a vehicle that works for us. I won't give up my sliding doors for anything. I can't stress how much they make things easier.

Like I said before I don't care what you drive, but I don't see SUV's being all that convenient, just bulky and big.

 

[DisneyPhD]

Well, excuuuse me, but my Tahoe screams "HOT SEXY CHICK!!"

Then it whispers "...who happens to be a quintessential soccer mom."

That is funny, my minivan screams the same thing (well not soccer mom per say, just the same idea...........)

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Aren't you being all lovely and defensive tonight????????????????? Any time anyone says anything you take it right to heart and personally.

Actually my DD's school has much bigger issues then most schools since it has NO parking lot and the road it is very short and falling apart. SUV might help because the pot holes won't swallow it up as fast as most cars.

They are building a new school on the old school propriety and the whole thing is a mess. No teachers help out at all, but this is another issue all together and don't get me started on it. It doesn't really mater what kind of car you have I know people who get out and leave their small car blocking all the traffic. It is so bad none of us can move until the person in front of them goes. The rest of the people are left blocking traffic on the main street. It isn't pretty. I can't wait until it is warm enough to ride bikes again.

There is this guy with a double wide truck that really pisses me off, but it more about the way he drives then what he drives.

hrh_disney_queen, yeah that is um well...... ugly (and orange) and most importantly to me personally hard to get in the back seats. It is kind of cartoon like. My point is people complain about the way a mini van looks or what it stands for (mommy mobile) but SUVs are just as bad. Not necessarily ugly, just I don't think they look any better then a minivan and they scream mommy just as much.

LOL, it's actually school bus yellow...bad picture. It's not hard to get into the back, it has suicide doors..they open like a clamshell on it's side. I have side rails on mine because I am short like my kids. It is so much fun to drive, which is a huge factor for me. If I hate driving something, I want to get rid of it right away, like my Freestyle.

Another thing I love about it is that it has NO carpeting..nothing on the floor but rubber. The only clothlike material is on the ceiling. We have vinyl fitted covers on the microfiber seats, so we can just about turn the hose on the interior! It is great for sand and doghair which we have a lot of. When we go to the beach, we just take along a big brush and brush all the sand out in a couple of seconds...no more vacuuming carpeting!!

That's OK, no hard feelings about the "ugly" thing..Except for my brief lapse into insanity when I was test driving the deluxe minivan..I think minivans are pretty ugly, too. to each her own..

 

[DisneyPhD]

LOL, it's actually school bus yellow...bad picture. It's not hard to get into the back, it has suicide doors..they open like a clamshell on it's side. I have side rails on mine because I am short like my kids. It is so much fun to drive, which is a huge factor for me. If I hate driving something, I want to get rid of it right away, like my Freestyle.

Another thing I love about it is that it has NO carpeting..nothing on the floor but rubber. The only clothlike material is on the ceiling. We have vinyl fitted covers on the microfiber seats, so we can just about turn the hose on the interior! It is great for sand and doghair which we have a lot of. When we go to the beach, we just take along a big brush and brush all the sand out in a couple of seconds...no more vacuuming carpeting!!

That's OK, no hard feelings about the "ugly" thing..Except for my brief lapse into insanity when I was test driving the deluxe minivan..I think minivans are pretty ugly, too. to each her own..

Well it does sound like a good fit for your life. Man I would love to be able to drive to the beach. I would even trade a car like that for it. It isn't like every other car out their either.

That is my point, it is all a mater of personal opinion.

 

[tiggersmom2]

Hi, Tiggersmom here - proud SUV owner who doesn't feel the need to justify WHY I have one.

 

[tonilea]

It is amazing how people's identities are so wrapped up in what they drive.....

Of course, my mini van bumper sticker says my other car is a Mustang!

 

[talulabelle]

Hi, Tiggersmom here - proud SUV owner who doesn't feel the need to justify WHY I have one.

Oh come on, don't you want to try and earn DisPhD's seel of approval and see if she thinks it soundls like you need one?

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Well it does sound like a good fit for your life. Man I would love to be able to drive to the beach. I would even trade a car like that for it. It isn't like every other car out their either.

That is my point, it is all a mater of personal opinion.

Actually, it is EXACTLY like the one next to it in the driveway. When my DH picked up my car after we bought it, he drove it home and told me I would have to find another one, because he was keeping mine...and he got his own about 2 months later..So now we are one of THOSE couples... It must be a regional thing here.. there are a few of them, but I haven't seen any of them anyplace else.

 

[HelenePA]

My fil says we don't need 2 cars. We both work and dh sometimes gets called into work in the middle of the night- he might be gone an hour, he might be gone a week. Yeah, one car would be really practical.

I only have one car, it sucks. Dh has been home for about 5 hrs (that I've been awake) this week. Yesterday I escaped the kids for a few hours and went shopping alone (okay not alone but with my brother which really wasn't much better than taking the kids) We really couldn't afford 2 cars until this year. Next one is a used minvan/suv that fit's at least 6 people only because I need the seats.

 

[afcgirl]

So freaking what? Why does there have to be a need? I WANT an SUV. I've wanted one ever since the Explorer came out. I finally got my 2 row SUV when I had my second child. I love it, but it's too small. I want and I need a bigger one. I hope to get the Hybrid, but we'll see if it truly meets my needs. It should definitely meet my wants. But guess what, I have the right to fulfill both of those requirements. I don't get why it's okay for one person to have an SUV and not another.

You know, we could turn it around and say by only having two kids, DH and I aren't overpopulating the world. I'm sure your extra kids produce extra waste as well.

Ha ha, so true!

It's like the old saying, "When you point a finger at someone else, there are three fingers pointed back at you!"

 

[DisneyPhD]

Actually, it is EXACTLY like the one next to it in the driveway. When my DH picked up my car after we bought it, he drove it home and told me I would have to find another one, because he was keeping mine...and he got his own about 2 months later..So now we are one of THOSE couples... It must be a regional thing here.. there are a few of them, but I haven't seen any of them anyplace else.

Well it sounds like it fits your lifestyle well. At least you don't have to fight over it. Couldn't you get different colors? I haven't seen many around here.