Car buying with kids

[morethanjustamom]

Agreed on the need to include all costs to get an accurate picture but disagree about public transport.

There are thousands of places in this country with NO as in ZERO public transport AT ALL. I live in a county that does not even have a taxi company in the entire county. There used to be one in Delta, about 30 miles away, but they shut down a few years ago. Mearest taxi company is 75 miles from us.

There is one senior bus that will come pick you up for senior daycare or to the once a week seniors lunch and a bus that goes once a day to and from downtown to the pool the next town over so kids can get a rid to the pool but otherwise there is no public or even private paid for transport at all.

If you cannot drive you depend on the neighbors to take you.

For most of rural western US public transportation is a total joke, the nearest bus station for long distance travel is also 75 miles away as is the nearest train station.

Agreed. We do have public transport in our nearest city, but I don't live in the city...I live 15 miles away from the closest bus stop, 10 miles from the closest grocery store, and 5 miles from my youngest children's school, on rural roads with blind hills and curves, no shoulders and no sidewalks.

A car is a necessity where we live...two cars a practicality.

[leadchipmunk]

I find it hard to imagine somewhere with no taxi service! I've never lived anywhere that isolated.

Most anywhere will have taxi service. The Question is are you willing to wait (and pay) for the taxi to come 75 miles, in Oogiem's case, to pick you up? If you are willing to pay, they will come to get you.

[wildross]

Thus this initial disclaimer. I know not everywhere has great public transport, sadly!

I find it hard to imagine somewhere with no taxi service! I've never lived anywhere that isolated.

That would be most of the US geographically. And I've lived most of my life without meaningful public transport.

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[morethanjustamom]

Thus this initial disclaimer. I know not everywhere has great public transport, sadly!

I find it hard to imagine somewhere with no taxi service! I've never lived anywhere that isolated.

Isolated, hahahaha!

It's not that a place without public transport is isolated, it's just how it is. I live in a large rural area where everyone wants a piece of land (average home tract around here is 2-5 acres), but not a whole farmstead. My kids' elementary schools are 400 kids each (K-2, 3-5), so we live in a very populated area, it's just that everyone is spread out.

[AriAnnabri]

I have a hundai sonata minivan. I LOVE IT. We had the dealer bring the van to us to test drive. I never stepped foot on the car lot. My husband only went to sign the final papers. It was the only way to see the car since we have a kid!

[Archer]

My family of five fits comfortably in a Honda Accord. 30 mpg and I don't feel like a minivan dork. You could get a good price on a 2008 model (the current style) The trunk is big enough for us to go camping for 3 days too.

We have a Jeep Grand Cherokee, but with its 18 mpg and less comfortable ride, we don't drive it much unless hunting. No family "needs" a big vehicle until kid #4 requires a third row of seats.

[wildross]

Meant to say this earlier, but some families of 5 will NEVER fit in an accord... Some families of 4 won't (Dad is 6'3, son #1 is 6'2, son #2 is getting there, mom is 5'2)

[KillerGriller]

My family of five fits comfortably in a Honda Accord. 30 mpg and I don't feel like a minivan dork. You could get a good price on a 2008 model (the current style) The trunk is big enough for us to go camping for 3 days too.

We have a Jeep Grand Cherokee, but with its 18 mpg and less comfortable ride, we don't drive it much unless hunting. No family "needs" a big vehicle until kid #4 requires a third row of seats.

I don't know about that, if you have more than one kid in car seat it real estate is at a premium. Even trying to sit in the backseat of our Passat with a carseat and a booster seat on either side makes for a very tight squeeze.

[Saoirse]

Isolated, hahahaha!

It's not that a place without public transport is isolated, it's just how it is. I live in a large rural area where everyone wants a piece of land (average home tract around here is 2-5 acres), but not a whole farmstead. My kids' elementary schools are 400 kids each (K-2, 3-5), so we live in a very populated area, it's just that everyone is spread out.

lolz.

our town has a population of 70k. Not big, but big enough. there are some specialized mass transit option (individual daycares, school district bus, party bus in lieu of a designated driver, senior bus), as well as the city bus and taxi cabs. Taxis are expensive and the city buses take forever to get from point A to point B. The price is probably pretty cheap, but completely not worth it because of the time. I can't imagine carting $150 worth of groceries, a toddler, and two children around town on the bus for 1 1/2 hours just to avoid owning a car. many of our activities also require leaving town (hiking, camping, etc.) where of course there's no mass transit.

We were driving a Ford focus for a while with three in the back (two boosters and a car seat). it was tight, and the kids in boosters couldn't operate their own buckles due to the squeeze. now that the oldest is out of the booster, we could probably squeeze all three in back again but we bought an older Dodge Caravan. So far it has been okay, with a few problems. first, the instrument panel randomly stops working. I have no clue why. Second is more frightening: on hot, wet days, the serpentine belt will randomly come off the track leaving you without power steering, power brakes, or the fan to cool your engine. That was fun! Other than those two issues, even though I hated the idea of buying a minivan, it has been alright. It's nice to have space for my family and more if i need to.