Anyone use the Prius for a " Young Family Car?"

I use the Prius for a young family car. We bought this car with 3 children, ages 3, 6 and 9. They all fit fine in the backseat with the youngest in her booster seat. We have taken this car on an 11 hour one way trip to Indiana, where our family is at. Packed it with winter clothes (all the extra blankets and pillows fit great in the understorage, as well as all the hats, gloves, etc... in the side storages. We still have our minivan. And that is really handy when we have out of town guests with us, and we all are going to the same place. I really hate to get rid of the van, but we use the Prius as our main car. We haven't driven the van in months. However, because we had the backseat out of it, I just popped a large, already standing, dog crate in the back of the van 2 nights ago and took it to my neighbors house. Might have been able to do that with the Prius, but didn't try, since the van was there and needed limbering up anyway.
I rate a 100% satisfaction (especially with gas) on the Prius, and our day to day business. But rate it at 75% satisfaction for when we have a lot of company. I also like to haul the dogs in the van.

 

I have two car seats in mine plus a 12YO, works fine for now, but I think when the newborn hits one year, he may outgrow the carrier, and at that point may need a second vehicle for when we all go somewhere. Too bad the freestyle is going away, it is the most efficient for a 6 passenger vehicle. I was planning on ordering one later this year, only to find out they stopped production on them to convert to the TaurusX model, which there are no EPA numbers for yet, and is getting a bigger engine and losing the CVT. Instead I bought the Prius, 'cause it was the best deal around in many ways.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ACD @ Apr 19 2007, 10:24 AM) [snapback]425964[/snapback]</div>

You might look at a Mazda5. We looked at the Freestyle and decided it was too big for us, and opted for a Mazda5 instead. It's a "micro-van" - a small minivan. Seats 6 (4 adults and 2 kids) with minimal luggage space, or fewer people with more luggage space -- seats fold down for cargo space, sliding "minvan-style" side doors. Same footprint as the Prius, slightly smaller turning radius. We're getting about 29 MPG with the manual transmission and conservative driving (vs rumored 20 average for the Freestyle). Only annoying thing is that Ford actually manufactures its own version of the Mazda5, the S-MAX, which was European car of the year -- but Ford doesn't sell the S-MAX in the US.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(efusco @ Apr 19 2007, 10:31 AM) [snapback]426000[/snapback]</div>

You're braver than I am. I just didn't feel comfortable with the way the car seats were at weird angles because they interfered with each other. We have all Britax seats, and I just couldn't get it to work.

 

I got he Prius before starting the young family, but I'm excited to drive my kid around in it... as soon as she's born.

The one factor that I don't think enough people consider is that you can always rent a vehicle for those few occasions when more capacity is needed. I do that when I need to haul stuff that won't fit the Prius, which is a pretty rare event. That way I don't have the overhead of insurance and maintenance on a vehicle that I only drive 3-5 times a year. It's all about making tiny adjustments to your life to fit your ideals and your needs together!

BTW GoEco, red is a VERY good choice of color Don't worry about being a "follower." The more followers that get on board, the sooner we'll have more and better options in the hybrid (and hopefully EV) market!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ichabod @ Apr 19 2007, 12:22 PM) [snapback]426058[/snapback]</div>

Ichabod, you must have been reading my mind, as I was going to post (almost) the exact same message.

My wife and I also purchased our Prius last year pre-kids and we anxiously look forward to the arrival of our son in June! We purchased a Graco travel system some time ago and finally got around to doing a test run install in the car this past weekend. Seat fits like a charm, though the rear-facing position would be a bit of a challenge placed behind my seat, as I am 6'2" and need to keep the seat at the furthest position to keep my knees from hitting the dash, which naturally interferes with the car seat. <_< Middle position it is! No problem at all fitting the stroller in the hatch.

Furthermore, I second your comments about buying the most practical car for your daily needs and then renting a vehicle for exceptional use. Especially with the gas savings on a car like the Prius (vs. the alternate big vehicle), the rentals likely pay for themselves!

 

That's funny Kevin... ours is due 1st-2nd week of June as well. Sounds like an arranged marriage is in order.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Apr 19 2007, 12:07 PM) [snapback]426043[/snapback]</div>

We had the Britax seats as well... can't imagine 3 of those in a Pri <_< - they are definitely supersized compared to most others.

 

Nice to see everybody doing mostly ok with a kid and a prius. We have a little one on its way, so beginning to debate this issue ourselves. Now I have ammo against getting a minivan.

 

I had considered the renting part, but, I have a different situtaion as My wife and I share a home with my mom, so if all of us need to go shopping, fitting 3 adults, a 12 YO and two car seats in the Prius, doesnt work, renting a car to go shopping, well, kinda hard when you live in the country. Currently we all fit in my F350 Crew Cab just fine, it is just when my son gets to be a year old and outgrows his carrier car seat that we will need a family vehicle for our excursions. I had checked out the Mazda CX9, has all the room we need, but the console was too big and my right knee hits it just sitting still. I really liked the Pacifica, but after test driving it, found it too minivan like, I hate mini vans, prefer the armrest console type feeling like I have in my current vehicles. The Freestyle and Mazda both have that feeling, but the Pacifica didnt. I also was not crazy with the transmission, it was too clunky. I may revisit the CX9 next year unless something else comes out in the crossover styling for our family vehicle. As far as insurance goes, my rates are pretty good, the Prius is only $600 a year for me. My F350 is just under $500 a year too. A lot can happen in a year too, so time will tell if we will need a weekend outing vehicle next year. For now I think we can get along with the Prius for our daily commute with two car seats and my wife, the 12 YO will be in school taking the bus, but summer is coming so we need to decide what to do with him during the days, hopefully the "Y" has a program he can attend that we can afford.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(WhitePriusZOOM @ Apr 19 2007, 12:16 PM) [snapback]426121[/snapback]</div>

Oh yes, the Prius does just fine with kids, as long as it's hte minimum needed to be plural ( i.e. two).

That rent a bigger vehicle when you need it is not really a good argument. I need one every morning when I take the kids to school.

Right now my 4 year old sits in the front seat. the Prius seat sensor accurately disables the airbag when he is there. However, I will only drive the short distance from our home to the daycare with him there. There are no speed limits above 35 mph on this trip. If I need to take all three anywhere farther, I arrange to drive the SUV that day. It's a bit inconvenient.

So to summarize:

Is the Prius a good family car?

No, it's actually a GREAT family car, AS LONG as you have 2 or fewer children. If you have three and they are all grown enough to NOT require a car seat, then it will also work very well.

 

Well, the Prius is our "big" car. I call it our SUV, in fact (it has more room than our Rav4EV that "they" call an SUV). When we need the extra room for the three humans and one dog, we take the Prius. It is a no-brainer. More car than most people need, certainly.

 

We have a gas guzzling Isuzu Trooper and the Prius. I drive the Prius the 38 miles round trip to work and back, and my wife takes the Trooper around town most of the time. When the three of us go out, we take the Trooper if it is kind of close or very far; we take the Prius for medium length excursions.

We tend to find the perfect balance of comfort, convenience and efficiency; using the big vehicle whenever we really want to or have to haul stuff.

We have found it to be almost impossible to ditch the Trooper, since we have needs to haul things, people, towing a trailer, etc, but we put far more miles on the Prius than we do the Trooper.

Overall, we use about half as much gas in the Trooper as we do in the Prius, even though it only goes about 1/3 as far on a gallon.

I guess that means we use the Prius six times as much as the Trooper, but when we need it, we really need it.

By the way, I will be trading it for an AWD Hybrid Sienna the DAY they come out.

Nate

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Apr 18 2007, 05:39 AM) [snapback]425232[/snapback]</div>

hmm, maybe its because our son just passed 9 lbs today, but we are in the identical situation and have not really noticed a large drop in mileage. last tank was not good (49 mpg) but most of that tank was before baby anyway. my son is now two weeks old (was in hosipital for 5 days so very little driving during that period), current tank is 5 days old and am averaging current 56 mpg at 151 miles.

no doubt a major change in the weather is responsible for most of the gas mileage. yesterday, it was bright sunny, and 65º.

i will say its a bit crowded but tried putting car seat on other side and Lindsey had too many problems reaching over. (her C scars still healing didnt help much) so moved it to the center, but that does allow much more conveinient storage space. and in a year or so (provided baby is AT LEAST 20 lbs) , turning the car seat around will allow more space for front seats although, there is no issue for us now and i have my seat one notch from all the way back. i guess it does affect how much you can tilt the seat.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DaveinOlyWA @ Apr 19 2007, 04:55 PM) [snapback]426274[/snapback]</div>

OK, cute factor = 10 +. Thanks for sharing!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(screaming red @ Apr 19 2007, 04:04 PM) [snapback]426280[/snapback]</div>

Noticed your sig,

Here is mine from the diesel stop site.

U.S.N. Paradise BB91904

'99 F350 CC LWB DRW
Mods, SuperHyper Improbability drive stage II.
Hypermax 5" turbo back system, triple pillar guages, Heater core shutoff.


AEM Brute Force intake. 3.73 gearing. DP PCM with 80HP Installed!

 

Here's my contribution to the cuteness.