Rental Car (SUV vs Minivan) Capacity

[OCDisney]

Next trip we (family of 3) are taking a friend and her child so we need seating for 5, plus 1 stroller, 1 foldable wheelchair, and luggage (guessing up to 3 large and 3 carry-on, maybe one less of one size). I reserved an SUV because I imagine it will have plenty of room for all the luggage and stuff.

Since reserving I have started looking into the backs of random SUV makes and models in parking lots (lol) and some have a frightning small cargo area, and some like the Ford Explorer I own are large enough that I can picture fitting everything in it without problem. So I'm second guessing myself now.

I know some minivans have fold down back seats that might make the cargo area big enough but I don't want to plan on that.

Families of 5 or 6 probably have good experiance in this area. Do you think a minivan would be more likely to be large enough for everything?

 

[AspiringCindy]

Personally, I think a minivan will have more room! We have 5 in our family and own a large SUV, so a mid-size SUV would probably be too tight for us! Also, when I priced our Minivan rental, most rental agancies charge a lot more for the SUVs!

 

[zulaya]

Minivan will have more space. And they do charge more for SUVs.

 

[ktglads]

We fit 6 adults, 6 large suticases and 6 carryons in a minivan before. Not that comfortable, but If you rent from National, I know that you are allowed to choose your vehicle, so if for some reason there is one that the back does not fold down, you could just choose a different one that does.

 

[Ambassador]

Only the very largest behemoth SUV, like the Excursion, will accommodate your group. Such a vehicle would be more expensive, if available. Also, the step up into the vehicle is greater, which may be more difficult for the person with the wheelchair.

A van is your best option. Although outside of the airport, Thrifty appears to have the best rates.

 

[SueM in MN]

I vote for the minivan. We can lift DD (our wheelchair user) into a Dodge or Chysler minivan easily, but an SUV would be nearly impossible to get her into.
When we looked at SUVs at one point, many of them had way too small cargo space to fit a whelchair and in most of them, the cargo space is short and wide, which means the wheelchair would be too tall to fit.
Also, it might be a good idea to find out from your friend how the wheelchair folds and how much can be removed from it to make it smaller. For example, my DD just got a new manual wheelchair. Both her old wheelchair and the new one have quick release axels (like bikes) which allow the big back wheels to be popped on and off. The seat cushion and back also can be taken off, which allow the wheelchair to be folded. But, her old wheelchair folded in like an umbrella stroller. That makes a long, narrow package. But with her new manual wheelchair, the back folds down, but the wheelchair doesn't fold any more than that. It takes up a much shorter, but wider space.
You'll only have tight packing for your trip to and from the airport. For day to day trips, a wheelchair is likely to fit in the van cargo area with little or no folding/dismanteling. We had a Chrysler Town and Country van and were able to get DD's narrow adult wheelchair in the back cargo area by just popping off one wheel. When she was smaller and her chair was a little narrower, we could get it in without taking anything off.

 

[OCDisney]

Thanks everyone for your great responses.

The wheelchair folds like an umbrella stroller, which makes it longer and narrower, it might even be as tall as me.

I believe I will rent a minivan after reading your input.