Any great smaller SUVs than a Suburban?

[mermaidwannabe]

My family of 5 has had a Suburban since 2001, which works very well for us on Montana roads with all of our ski/snowmobiling equipment. It has $130K miles, and things keep needing replaced. Well a new thing has happened, and we're thinking of just getting another used Suburban or Tahoe or something similar before we pour more money into our current one. It gets 15 mpg (Eek!).

Does anyone have a smaller SUV that they love? We have 3 kids.

Thanks!!

 

[vitfamily]

I have a Ford Excursion and I love it. It's my 2nd one. I don't see us getting rid of it any time soon. Love the room and we also have a camper we pull. Good luck.

 

[natenapril]

It's not smaller but we have a Toyota Sequoia and love it. We live in Alaska so we both are feel better having 4x4. Ours is older with aolt of miles (140,000) but other than changing the oil and replacing the battery we haven't had any problems wit it.

 

[luvmylittleboy2003]

We love our Hyundai Veracruz , although its more of a cross-over than a SUV

 

[Deffenm]

We have a Ford Expedition which is smaller then the excursion. We are a family of 5 as well. The second row has 2 captain seats and then the 3rd row has the bench seats. I love that the kids do not have to climb over the seats (they don't put them down to get to next row). It is also Extra Long so the back "trunk" area is large. We currently have 2 Expeditions and love them. My next choice is the GMC Acadia. It also has captains seats in the 2nd row and bench seat in 3rd row. It is a crossover so the "trunk" area is not huge but the gas mileage is way better. I think I am going to get one of these next time. Hope that helps.

 

[Anne34]

I'm also a person who loves her Suburban. We downsized with my husband's car this year (From a Durango to a Saturn Vue). It's horrible when we have all 3 kids in the car -- the back seat is really made for 2 people. We take the Suburban when we are going any distance -- the kids can spread out, have the DVD player and we still have tons of room for luggage & dog in the back!! I can't imagine getting anything smaller for a while!!

 

[daileyad]

We have the Toyota RAV4 with the extra third row seats and we love it. I'm always amazed by how much we can fit in it. The two seats in the third row work good for younger kids but I wouldn't recommend for teens + since there is not much leg room.

 

[Dictator]

get a Jeep Commander. You can get a killer deal on them right now.

 

[mrsklamc]

I have a ford escape- smaller version of the expedition/explorer and I love it.

 

[amjg]

I am on my 6th Suburban and getting ready to purchase my 7th, so we love it. But I only have to fill up my gas tank twice a month, so we do not drive a lot. We actually thought about downsizing and drove a smaller suv, but it was too small. We have 4 kids in car seats and could not find room for all those groceries, sports equipment or luggage in the back. We also feel much safer in the bigger suv. It was not worth the little bit of extra gas mileage you get with a smaller suv.

Anyway you asked about something smaller. The new Chevy Traverse is great! It probably has the most room behind the 3rd row seat. The Buick Enclave and the GMC Acadia are very nice. You can get a used Chevy Trailblazer or GMC Envoy for a steal right now.


Good Luck!

 

[mermaidwannabe]

Thanks for all the replies! I've been researching all of them and then pestering my husband at work to look at the websites.

He already said we have to stay in the large SUV market. How else will we transport his RC planes?? Goodness...

There should be some really good deals out there, but I'm sure our 140,000 mile 2001 Suburban won't bring much trade. Still, we need to do it. Thanks for everyone's opinions. I trust all of yours so much more than other reviews online!!

 

[NJGirl]

Chevy has 0% financing up to 60 mos. (I think 72 goes to 1.9%) through the end of March on mostly all models.

I'm waiting for my Chevy Equinox (alot smaller than your Suburban!) to arrive at the dealer. They had to find the color/model I wanted. They were also very generous with my 8 yr old trade in. My Saturn sedan only had 65,000 miles on it...but stuff was starting to go and I didn't want to get into the nickel and diming cycle where every few months I was sinking 500 bucks into the car.

 

[mermaidwannabe]

Chevy has 0% financing up to 60 mos. (I think 72 goes to 1.9%) through the end of March on mostly all models.

I'm waiting for my Chevy Equinox (alot smaller than your Suburban!) to arrive at the dealer. They had to find the color/model I wanted. They were also very generous with my 8 yr old trade in. My Saturn sedan only had 65,000 miles on it...but stuff was starting to go and I didn't want to get into the nickel and diming cycle where every few months I was sinking 500 bucks into the car.

Thanks for the info! That 0% financing will come in handy if we can't find a decently priced used vehicle. We've never bought new, but if there are good deals, we may!

 

[a1tinkfans]

My family of 5 has had a Suburban since 2001, which works very well for us on Montana roads with all of our ski/snowmobiling equipment. It has $130K miles, and things keep needing replaced. Well a new thing has happened, and we're thinking of just getting another used Suburban or Tahoe or something similar before we pour more money into our current one. It gets 15 mpg (Eek!).

Does anyone have a smaller SUV that they love? We have 3 kids.

Thanks!!

WE LOVE LOVE LOVE our Honda CRV (we also have a FORD expedition, and though I like it, I do not LOVE it!)

 

[weHEARTmickey]

We have a 2008 Toyota Highlander & we absolutely LOVE it!!!!! We have the third row seat (for 7 passengers.) The 2nd row has 2 bucket seats, with an interchangeable console/7th seat in between them. The 2008 is a new model, where the 2nd passenger seat slides all the way fwd...the 3rd row is easily accessed (2007 & before models-the seat wouldn't slide so you had to climb over.) There is TONS of leg room for the front 2 rows. The 3rd row probably wouldn't be comfy for an adult for a long trip. We shopped around online & got a great deal on a demo car. Good luck w/ your search!

 

[shelly3girls]

We have a Honda Pilot and we also have 3 kids. I love it! The gas mileage is not bad and there is plenty of room. It has been extremely reliable and has a comfortable drive. We also have a Ford Expedition. DH likes it but I hate the gas mileage.

 

[akenneson]

I drive a Ford Expedition which we love because of all the extra room. Totally sucks on gas, but we don't use it too much. My husband drives a Ford Escape hybrid because he drives 30,000 miles/year. We live in Maine and we certainly know about horrible driving conditions. The Escape (which is A4WD) has great gas mileage and is awesome in all weather conditions. I feel very safe driving it no matter what. The interior size isn't the greatest, but is ok.

 

[karliebug]

I love my chevy equinox. It is very roomy inside.

 

[Slayerextreme]

we just got a saturn outlook and love it!!!!!

 

[DawnM]

We have a Sequoia. We LOVE it! It is a 2004 and runs and looks like the day we bought it. We take care of our cars and drive them until they die! I don't think this one is going to die for a good long while.

It seats 8 and the 3rd row has plenty of room.

The SUV was our compromise. I wanted a van for seating and DH wanted a truck for hauling. We bought an SUV and a cargo trailer.

Dawn