Funny - my mom had a PT Cruiser, and I was surprised that it was smaller inside than I believed. I think it was because when they first came out, it was a while before I saw one, so I was thinking it had minivan room. It doesn’t. They’re compact cars. Nothing wrong with that, but don’t think that it’ll compare with a minivan for space.
The storage space in the rear isn’t as big as you think, and it’s oddly shaped, so it really ended up being not useful for much. Groceries will fit easily, but hauling “stuff” will be difficult (sometimes, even getting the stroller back there was a treat). However, the seating was roomy, and we had no trouble with the carseat Mom had for my two-year-old niece. Generally the carseat was in the middle, which left enough room (in a pinch) for two other people. It was a squeeze, but it could be done. With two car seats, you wouldn’t have room for much else, but that’s true of any sedan, really. The Cruiser’s cute as all get out, that’s true. Fun enough to drive, but a little anemic - coulda just been the model my mother bought, however.
Now, let me put in a plug for the Mazda Protege5 (now the Mazda 3) sport wagon. Excellent, excellent car. Mine’s a 2002 with close to 60K miles, and there’s been nothing but routine maintenance. Nice cargo room in the back. It’s also a compact, and it would be nice to have more leg room in the backseat for kids. Car seats would fit well - the doors open wide - and if you’re husband isn’t the 6’6" freak that mine is, they’ll probably have more room. I generally get right around 30 MPG, as well. I loves me my little car.
I like the Mazda 3, too, Snickers – it was on my short list and is a really cute car. It came in an absolutlely delicious yellow that I loved. However, for the main thing I haul often (my daughter’s wheelchair) the Cruiser’s cargo area was better because it is taller than most. With the Mazda 3 (and the Matrix), I would have had to fold down or remove the push handles on her wheelchair every time I stowed it – no easy task. I do have to remove the wheels, but that’s a lot easier, in the case of her particular wheelchair, and it was also true of the other cars I tried – in every car except the Cruiser, I had to take off the wheels AND fold down the pushbars. I might have been able to stow the wheelchair whole (without even removing the wheels) in the miniSUVs I looked at (the RAV4 and the Honda CRV), but the seats on those were too tall for my (4’9") daughter to get in and out of on her own, so we never considered them seriously. The Cruiser is the easiest car my daughter has ever gotten in and out of, BTW – the door opens just wide enough to let her back in on her crutches, but not so wide that she can’t reach to pull the door closed once she’s in. That, plus the wheelchair thing (she doesn’t use the wheelchair everyday, but often enough that it’s a consideration), made the Cruiser the best bet for us. As for the overall cargo room – the seats tumble toward the front really easily if you want to use the whole back for cargo. Or, you can pop the seats out completely for even more room. Obviously I can’t carry as much as I could in my damned Windstar, but I can carry a surprising amount of stuff.
And here’s the interior. I had the paint on the inside changed to match my flames and added some other chingaderries – flame pinstripes for the airbag cover, jewels to trick out the dash knobs – all kinds of silly things. This is one of the fun things about this car – so much cool stuff to buy and add.
Is this anything like pre-chewed food? I really dislike the term, as you can probably tell.
Anyhow, check out this site for professional opinions rather than anecdotal information. I have a CR-V and have owned used Accords in the past. Hondas are bullet-proof, IMO. Structurally sound, comfortable, no bullshit options to deal with, and engines that commonly last 100-200K miles.
I just put a Honda Accord out to pasture with 180,000 miles on it; the Accord that it replaced was still running, and sold well, with 170,000 miles on it. Even if you don’t take care of them they continue to run well. Likewise, Toyota’s whole line of cars run very well and will take good care of you as long as you treat them well. My wife drives a bare-bones Corolla, and it’s great, but the occasional electrical fault (recurring dead headlight, probably due to a short or bad fuse wiring) makes me wary of recommending their super-cheap cars. I am currently driving a gently-used 2000 Mazda Protege (only 60k miles!), which is nice, but I suspect that its transmission is going to die on me in the next three years, and the electrical system is already developing gremlins. I’ve driven my family’s Volvos and always been amazingly happy with them. Maintenance is expensive but rare, and the engines run forever – dad sold his 1987 Volvo when it had over 200k miles on it, and it still ran quite well. Volvos will take you through 500k miles if you treat them nice, and their safety record is impeccable. A Volvo wagon would be my choice if money were no object.
My choices would be, in order:
Honda Accord
Honda Odyssey (the guys from Car Talk can’t shut up about this model)
Volvo wagon (S70? I can’t keep track of their model numbers)
Toyota Camry (I don’t like the small rear window on the new ones)
My mother was car-shopping and tried a couple of wagon types.
The PT Cruiser is cute cute cute. She drove the convertible (but the top was up, so visibility was bad) and we sat in the sedan.
She loved the Subaru Outback, but that’s out of your price preference.
She also really liked the Chevy Malibu Maxx? I might be mangling the name. It’s a Malibu station wagon. It had a surprisingly nice ride and some nice features including the OnStar system. I’m not sure where these are, price-wise.
I’m desperately trying to tell him that - I love CRVs and have wanted one for years. He’s against SUVs, but I might be able to convince him.
I’m reading all of the advice and taking it into consideration! With luck, we’ll be able to get out and start test-driving a few cars in the next month or two. Another friend just recommended the Toyota Sienna, which may be out of our price range.
My wife loves the Sienna and has targeted it as her the replacement for the Villager. I have long been surprised that the car manufacturers have allowed the Oddysey and Sienna to remain (what many feel are) the premier mini-vans without challenging the market with sme high-end mini-vans. Considering the huge market for these vehicles, where is the Infinity, Lexus, Saab, BMW, Mercedes, etc?
I drive a 2003 Subaru Outback wagon, and it’s never spent a day in the shop (other than oil changes & routine maintenence). I chose the Outback because I’ve heard a lot about Subarus being reliable cars, and that’s what I was looking for. The car I owned previously (a VW New Beetle) was a complete let-down. I wasted so much time in the shop waiting for that thing to be repaired, UGH! So I chose not to go with VW again. I bought my Subaru new, but a pre-owned car might be within your price range. You should check it out. I don’t have time to write anymore now. Good luck!