Quick...what is the largest mini van around

[5knights3maidens]

We need to get a new/used vehicle. (Ds totaled my 12 seater Dodge Ram :glare:) Dh doesn't want to get a large van. I think he doesn't realize we still have to take "at least" 4/5 children with 2 car seats and be able to fit grocery shopping bags and small trip luggage in it. What's the "biggest" mini van available?

I told him I'd ask all of you before he starts looking...you should have seen the look he gave me and then said, "Oh, Ok." and got up from the computer. :D :D

[5knights3maidens]

bump.

[Matryoshka]

My Sienna comfortably seats 6 kids in the back (and 2 adults or teens in the front), and still has lots of room in the way back for "stuff". The regular model has 7 seats, but at least when we bought it there was the 8-seat option, and they're all "real" seats. I believe the Odyssey has an 8-seater option as well, but last I checked the 8th seat was a skinny thing that might be nice for guests, but not for everyday use.

 

I have friends that bought the Honda Pilot, which also has room for 6 in the back, but the far back row is tough to get to and when it's up there's very little room behind the seat. Depends how often you'd use that third row, then.

[kathkath]

honda odyssey from 05 and newer can seat 8. You'd probably have to use radian carseats in the back to fit 3 across though.

[Denisemomof4]

Dodge and Chevy both make a newer vehicle (I believe one is the Envoy) that looks rather large. We're buying a Suburban or Yukon because we, too need the space, but they are much more expensive than a minivan. You can try carmax or cars.com to shop around some. It's what I've been doing for a few days now...

[LibraryLover]

I can put 8 in the Sienna, and my storage area has always had the power. :) lol

[OhM]

My Sienna comfortably seats 6 kids in the back (and 2 adults or teens in the front), and still has lots of room in the way back for "stuff". The regular model has 7 seats, but at least when we bought it there was the 8-seat option, and they're all "real" seats. I believe the Odyssey has an 8-seater option as well, but last I checked the 8th seat was a skinny thing that might be nice for guests, but not for everyday use.

 

 

:iagree:

 

And with the back seats folded down and middle row removed, you can lay down 4'x8' sheets of plywood & drywall!! :D

 

I picked up 2100 boxes (that was 175 cases) of girl scout cookies in mine, but my most astounding feat was packing 35 cases of girl scout cookies, 2 folding carts, a card table, 4 girl scouts and two adults into the van!

 

I also transport 2 adults, 2 kids, tuba, trombone, and a full week's worth of groceries - which is important for our grocery-shopping-after-band-practice routine.

 

I am constantly amazed by what we can haul in that thing.

[patchfire]

Another Sienna vote. Ours can seat 8; right now the littlest one is in her car seat in that middle middle seat (a Boulevard, so not a tiny seat, and the two seats beside it still flip up and out of the way). We routinely fit seven people - four adults and three children, all three in some form of seat - for trips, etc. We can easily fit another child in there even with our current car seat configuration. The back cargo area is amazing. We fit luggage + some food + three laptops for seven people for a seven day trip in it.

[rafiki]

.

[LizzyBee]

My Nissan Quest is quite a bit bigger than an Odyssey. The first time I saw it parked next to an Odyssey, I was surprised at how much of a difference there was. It only seats 7, but it seats them very comfortably. My dh is 6'4.5", and he can sit in any seat without cramping his knees. He has plenty of extra headroom. The back holds a lot of luggage or groceries. There are hooks to hang grocery bags on, a nice extra.

[courtney.byrum]

My Nissan Quest is quite a bit bigger than an Odyssey. The first time I saw it parked next to an Odyssey, I was surprised at how much of a difference there was. It only seats 7, but it seats them very comfortably. My dh is 6'4.5", and he can sit in any seat without cramping his knees. He has plenty of extra headroom. The back holds a lot of luggage or groceries. There are hooks to hang grocery bags on, a nice extra.

 

Our Quest has tons of room as well. It does seat only 7 but there seems to be plenty of space in all locations and tons of space in the storage well behind the rear seat. Or tons of space in the back with the rear seat folded into the well giving a flat space for anything big.

[Veritaserum]

I'm looking at getting an 8-passenger Sienna when our current Sienna (10 years old) finally dies.

[Matryoshka]

We've been looking too, for a year now at that. Unfortunately the Sienna is the only that has storage and cargo without getting a workout trying to steer it. The 7 passenger version is available in AWD, the 8 is not. I'm still hesitant to buy a Toyota at the moment though.

 

The Sienna is one of the few Toyota models *not* affected by the brake pedal recall, if that helps...

[Unicorn.]

Another vote for Sienna. Mine seats 7, but they are full size and car seats would not be a problem. There is enough leg room for adults, even in the rear seating area! Plenty of room for kids and groceries. I can even get an extra large dog crate in the back by folding down the rear seat. And I love that the rear seat is a 70/30 split, so I can only fold down part of it if I need to.

[ChrisN in NY]

If you're looking for a cheaper used vehicle, I recommend a Chev Astor/GMC Safari. We're on our 3rd one. Dh's brother says if they have a bad engine, it'll got out by 130,000 miles so we always buy ours at more than that (and save money to boot!). Our first one went over 220,000 miles; our second went over 230,000. We're on van #3 at 175,000 miles.

 

The 8-passengers have plenty of space especially if you get an extended body. I could pack for a weekend camping trip, putting all the stuff in the back (floor to ceiling) and under the seats, and tying our tents to the luggage rack.

 

I am hoping to be able to get one more after our current one dies.

[Ellie]

A Dodge Gran Caravan will comfortably seat 5 passengers in the back--2 in the front bench seat, 3 in the back (there's room to get by the front bench seat to the back without climbing over anyone), 7 altogether, and there's still room for luggage and whatnot behind the back seat.

[LibraryLover]

Oh, I can't imagine the Swagger Wagon has brake issues. ;) The commercials clearly show parents who would only buy the safest vehicle on the market. I mean, they are 'the best parents; we feed them. Every day!" :lol:

[Mommyof4ks]

Another vote for the Honda. We love ours, and after 106,000 and 7 years it it is still tickin' with no issues so far. They have some now with 8 seats which is sweet! The back seat folds flat for the time when you decided on a whim to get your dh a gun safe for Christmas and you can't go back home to put the seat in the middle of your living room lol.