'Bout 2½ hours too late there, spoke-. 
I believe they make minivans where the back seats can be folded down to give you room for storage. Also, Subaru makes some really good hatchbacks.
Stay tuned for my snappy comeback, about two hours hence.
That is one U-G-L-Y vehicle.
Yeah, the Honda Odyssey is nice. Not much difference in milage between that and a 2001 Santa Fe though.
“People, have you ever wanted a hardtop convertible sports car that was also a utilitarian pickup truck… oh and also, styled by a six year old boy and his pet chimpanzee?” asked General Motors.
“No!” the people cried.
“We’re sorry you feel that way,” replied GM, “because we’re building it anyway.”
2001 Santa Fe: 'bout 20 MPG and 30.5 ft.[sup]3[/sup] cargo space (78 ft.[sup]3[/sup] with the seat down).
2006 Honda Odyssey: 'bout 20 MPG and 38.4 ft.[sup]3[/sup] cargo space (147.4 ft.[sup]3[/sup] with the seats down).
2007 Pontiac Vibe: 'bout 30 MPG and 54.1 ft.[sup]3[/sup] cargo space with the seat down.
Thing is, the on-roader-type SUVs (Murano, CR-V, RAV4, etc.) aren’t really SUVs at all. Most of them have selectable 4WD (which you’ll never turn on), ground clearance that’s not really any greater than a regular car’s, and road tyres.
The Santa Fe is one of those - between it and a similarly sized wagon, there isn’t really all that much difference. The 4WD gear adds a few hundred pounds, but as long as it isn’t switched on it doesn’t affect fuel consumption much.
The Vibe shouldn’t have any problem hauling a couple of tubas. We’ve had two similar-sized objects in spaces not much larger than that.
We use the 4WD now and then in the nasty Ohio winters. If what we’re looking for “isn’t really an SUV at all,” all the better. I don’t think a utility trailer is the way to go for us – for one thing, we don’t have any place to put it, whether it’s hitched or not. We certainly aren’t looking for a Hummer.
If you do actually use 4WD, I say get a Subaru. Not an Outback, though - just the regular Impreza or Legacy wagon. The Outback is just an Impreza with a lift kit and knobbly tires, really.
Wouldn’t buying a mini-van still mean she was driving a car that messed up sight lines, took up parking space and was more deadly in an accident? Granted, the mini-van definitely wouldn’t meet the “macho” image.
Someone upthread mentioned Volvos. The Volvo cross country wagon is a decent car. Lots of storage area and has the 4wd option. Definitely NOT an SUV.
I don’t think my husband cares too much whether he looks macho. He plays the tuba, dammit. Although I still can’t get him to wear a pink shirt. But I think a mini-van would be overkill.
Great post.
But I also ski and bike. I have a small car (a VW Golf) and this fancy invention called a ski and bike rack. It goes right on the roof and, voila!
Wow? A Beetle?
Better check under his skirt. That’s a serious chick car.
There we go. New El Camino. That said, yeah, the Matrix got completely redesigned for '07. Looks good. No XRS model yet… looks like my old bird was a one-shot.
http://www.caranddriver.com/buying_guide/toyota/matrix/2007_toyota_matrix
The Subaru’s a good wagon, I’m just not sure you can fit two tubas in it. The Matrix has bizarre amounts of space, because it had such headroom. I once fit 40 computers in one, and had space left over.
Fair enough. My criteria for the steel body was based only on the station wagons – the Willys wagons had paint schemes meant to mimic the “woody” wagons of other manufacturers. In theory, you could have the look of wood without the maintenance (though I’m pretty sure the interior bed was wood).
I can’t watch their “Subaru Heaven” commercial. 
I believe that Subarus use fulltime AWD as opposed to selectable 4WD.
The Forrester is a fine wagon, my brother and sister in law have a newish one, and they need it to haul tons of cooking equipment, chafing dishes, etc and they get along fine.
While a trailer is an idea, it certainly doesn’t seem to fit what you need. Trailers are basically a pain in the ass.
I’m not saying they are not useful. I have a two axle trailer that I use to haul my tractor around, or construction debris to the dump.
Sounds to me that you already have the right vehicle in the Hyundai Santa Fe. Don’t fix it if it’s not broke. A few mpg better (if you can get it), is not going to help enough to offset the cost of getting a new vehicle.
Have you tried an xBox?
I can fit two relatives over 6 feet in the back seat. The newer version (I have one of the original model clown cars) have a bit less space, but are much nicer. I guess they finally realized they completely missed their target market, and modified the car to their actual market.
Check one it; it’s got a hell of a lot of room.