<p>well by the end of the summer I will have a 07 or 08. Time to retire 92 Honda.</p>
<p>
He’s taking a couple of summer classes and most likely working in a biosafety level 3 lab (that he will also be working in next fall!).</p>
<p>
Ummmmm, wanna send one of those new ones this way, simba?? 
Haha! Or, heck, we’d settle for the ol’ 92 Honda… ;)</p>
<p>~b.</p>
<p>I drive a Honda Pilot. I do worry about not being able to see things behind me. I like the ability to carry 8 people, but 80% of the time it’s just me by myself, driving to or from work or errands. Seriously considering getting a Toyota Prius, for the fuel efficiency…</p>
<p>When I test drove the Prius I also drove a Camry. OK, how dumb is this? I LOVED it. It was WONDERFUL. After having driven a minivan for more years than I care to think about - A CAR!!! - it was wonderful! (I also liked the Prius.)</p>
<p>(I also drove a Rav4 and a CRV. Both felt too much like the van. Hey if I can get by without 4 wheel drive in Rochester, anybody can.)</p>
<p>Alas, I don’t think I’m getting a new car… :(</p>
<p>I’ve been happily driving an SUV since 1991. (I have van-phobia.) 13 years in a couple of LandCruisers, which were the ultimate rig for hauling little ones and all the stuff that went with them. Loved my LandCruisers but just didn’t need all that room anymore so downsized to a smaller “SAV”. Happy with it, too, as I like sitting up a bit higher and knowing I can get just about anywhere I want to go, anytime I want to go there. I like the flexibility of the open cargo room and fold down seats. I’ve hauled bookcases, small tables, big rugs and lots of other things I never could have handled in a regular car.</p>
<p>Okay, so once a guy at a gas station looked at me with mild disgust and asked point blank if I’d ever taken my newest rig off road. Does field parking at soccer tournaments count? I’ve never felt the tailgate area was any more concerning than in my hubby’s sedan; I always try to be a very careful, thoughtful backer upper no matter what I’m driving. Family as a whole will almost always chose to back in for parking if possible to make it easy to pull straight out (we refer to it as our quick getaway park job).</p>
<p>I drive a Volvo SUV and I feel like it has lots of blindspots. 
So I try to be EXTRA careful…I don’t know if I want my kids driving it when the time comes! (I drove a Honda minivan before that…loved it!)</p>
<p>Zoosermom and Berurah,</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I have the reputation of being a bad driver and avoid driving on long trips whenever possible (especially if other adults are in the car…it makes me nervous). My husband claims I can’t talk and drive at the same time! (That’s why he got me the Volvo a few years ago; it’s supposed to be safe).</p>
<p>
I purchased my Jeep Cherokee new, picked it up and drove home, immediately loaded it up with camping gear, and 20 minutes later was headed to Death Valley for a week of camping and 4 wheeling. You should have seen what this brand new vehicle looked like after a week of 4wd trails on some muddy and otherwise trails (I actually drove on a snow-covered trail in Death Valley).</p>
<p>I drive a Toyota minivan and, fortunately, it has the same type of rear-mounted camera that Weenie referred to in her post. Depth perception(while parking)was the biggest challenge for me when I first started driving a minivan, but I’ve long since adapted. However, I definitely plan to transition to a more fuel efficient vehicle when it’s time for a new car.</p>
<p>u<em>u</em>d - I am envious. There was a time when I like to think I would have done that sort of thing. Heck, as a young adult I did do that sort of thing, just couldn’t afford a nice rig then to do it in. Sigh. I have grown soft in my “old age”.</p>
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<p>Reminds me of when my Blazer needed a new transmission under warranty at 50K miles. The dealer asked me in sort of a “you shouldn’t have done this” voice if I had driven it through a stream. Apparently there was water in the transmission. My reply: “Last time I checked it was a <em>sport</em> <em>utility</em> <em>vehicle</em> that is supposed to <em>go</em> off road and through streams. The ones in the ads go through streams. However, it has only been to the athletic fields and they do have some monster mud puddles. One would think nothing more than a <em>SUV</em> could manage.”</p>
<p>We had a Honda station wagon for years, and I developed really bad sciatica from dipping down a hundred times a day, in and out of that car. That’s the way I justified buying our SUV…getting up into a car made all the difference. It was gone within 48 hours! (the sciatica, not the car!) We bought a Lexus RX300 which we’ll keep for 10 years total. Love it. We did rent a Pacifica when we were in Vermont last summer and really liked it alot. Handled well and very roomy. I guess that’s considered some sort of crossover vehicle. The Lexus gas consumption is worse than the Honda wagon, but better than alot of other SUV’s I think. My sister lives in Latin America and shames me every time she comes to visit that I drive one, but she’s an empty nester!!</p>
<p>I have never driven an SUV, but I did drive mini-vans for years until my last child left for college. Then I reverted to my love of convertibles and now drive Mini Cooper convertible! </p>
<p>When we needed to move darling d up to NYC last fall, we borrowed a family member’s van (rented one the year before). We save enough on gas during the year that this just makes sense for us. It is also a whole lot of fun to drive the mini!</p>
<p>I, too, have had SUVs since early Explorer days. Never a mini van.</p>
<p>I have the most awesome vehicle. It’s name is “Big Blue”. It is a Toyota FJ Cruiser and it is M&M Blue with a white top. The minute I saw one I knew I had to have it. (also comes in bright yellow, but I already had that with an XTerra)</p>
<p>We the people of BP, CVX, RDS and XOM thank all of you SUV and mini van drivers from the bottom of our heart.</p>
<p>I think it’s funny how many of my friends think an SUV is “cooler” than a minivan. Oh please. Not cool.</p>
<p>Oh, and for the 4 wheeler crowd - hey! Buy a pair of hiking boots! You’ll have more fun and be thinner too. Who wants roads all over EVERYPLACE? They wreck really nice places.</p>
<p>Our SUV experience has occurred in just the last week. Went to pick up freshman son who is 11 hours away. Requested a mini-van from rental company–only to arrive that morning to find that we had been given a SUV. Had some doubts as to whether all of his “stuff” would fit, but as we had an 11 hour drive, we did not have much choice at that point. Well, all went well until about halfway when we were rear-ended by somone driving a mini-van. Her mini-van crumpled like a piece of paper while SUV had a small dent in bumper. And, neither of us were driving that fast. (Thank goodness no one was injured, she had 6 or so kids in the car!) Not owning an SUV made me think after this incident how safe these vehicles are. On the other hand, we plan to rent another mini-van this fall to return son to college with his “stuff”. And, this time, we have to have a mini-van there is even more “stuff”!!</p>
<p>I think SUVs are cooler than minivans. Minivans serve a purpose, but no one ever accused them of being “cool”!<br>
For those of you SUV haters, what do you suggest would pull a small travel trailer (to use to take us to the neat places we can go hiking and biking)?<br>
What else holds a large dog, some kids and a bunch of other stuff to haul?
Yeah- I don’t like the gas usage either, but there are trade-offs to everything. Besides that, I feel more safe in Big Blue.
To each his own.
H and WildChild drive Subaru WRXs and D drives an older Focus that gets great gas mileage. We ALL like having Big Blue in the family, though (especially the huge Golden Retriever).</p>
<p>Last summer, our 94 Dodge caravan minivan hauled five people and their luggage, three kayaks,and two bicycles down the shore for our vacation.</p>
<p>Now that we have our Honda Civic Hybrid, which we adore, the minivan mostly sits forlornly in the driveway, waiting for kayak trips, college pickups, and the occasional borrowing by adult D who lives nearby, carless.</p>
<p>If I ever buy a car because it’s “cool”, shoot me now. I will obvously have lost my mind.</p>
<p>I don’t see what’s wrong with thinking certain cars are “cool”. We spend a LOT of time in them! Why not have something we enjoy. I like “cool” clothes and shoes, too. I guess I’m a superficial, materialistic moron, but it seems like my co-workers enjoy talking about cars, trucks etc. We like functionality, comfort and, yes, coolness!</p>
<p>garland: That is what I was hoping to do with my minivan - have it sit forlonly in the dirveway waiting for trips to the Adirondacks and college drop offs. Cool shmool. I just want to be able to zip around and get in and out of parking spots quickly and quit going to the gas station every week.</p>
<p>momofwildchild: Some care about cool, some don’t. Whatever. Different strokes. :)</p>