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

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius @ Apr 19 2007, 02:57 PM) [snapback]426318[/snapback]</div>

hey a baby thread would be good. i have more pics on link at bottom of signature

 

I'll contribute to the baby thread in about 6 weeks.

Going back a few posts, I'll clarify a little on the "rental" bit I mentioned. I absolutely understand it's not ideal for all people, especially when you have 5+ people to transport on a regular basis. For 4 or fewer people though, I've found it to be very workable. Maybe a nice hybrid minivan or a stretch-Prius w/ 3rd row seat will come out before too long.

 

A bit slow in getting pics up, but here's the newest Prius passenger, little Lucinda Tai-Yi moments after taking her first breath, but a few days before the more important step of taking her first ride in the Prius. Sorry about the white-balance, I had other things on my mind than taking perfect photos

[attachmentid=9201]

 

I can now chime in here as well, as our little guy came into the world 12 days ago. Being his daddy's son, it seems he enjoys car rides, as they put him right to sleep. Then again, he does sleep most of the time right now... Here he is at the ripe old age of 5 days...

[attachmentid=9209]

He was almost a week late, but was still only 7lbs 9oz at birth, he is a pretty lean baby. Therefore, most of the outfits we have are still a bit big on him, as you can see in this pic. :lol:

We have a Graco Snugride travel system and the car seat/base fits just perfect in the centre position, even with the driver seat all the way back (I'm 6'2"). The stroller, on the other hand, fills the better part of the hatch. <_<

B)

 

I have 11-yr old twins and a 19 month old. The baby sits in the middle, the twins on two sides. Works out beautifully. In time the child seat will be replaced by a smaller booster seat as the twins get bigger. Don't anticipate any issues there, either.

Of course, by the time they all get really big hybrid minivans will be selling like hotcakes anyhow...
Here's a picture of my stroller solution in case you haven't seen it already:

[attachmentid=9210]

 

Here is what we did for the BIG stuff. We drove over to the local county auction and bought a used 2000 Nissan Frontier with like 60k miles on it for 4k and we use that if we need a truck. Otherwise we use the Prius. We do not have kids but we have a fetus so that is why I got the Prius. I used to drive a convertible which is not good for a family.

Hope that helps!!

 

Prius Vs Corolla!!

Prius has more room PERIOD! Mine is in the shop for an MFD malfunction, so the loaner is a Corolla, and the car seats barely fit, in fact there is ZERO room between the drivers seat back and the carrier, I had to put the seat back all the way up, uncomfortable for me. The oldest is really squeezed in there now, cant wait to get the prius , or as my daughter calls it the peeus back.

 

Nice lookin' kid, sarge. Ours was 8 lb - 3 oz. and she was induced a week early. I can't imagine how big she'd have gotten if she'd have hung out in there for another couple weeks!

We got a Graco SafeSeat, and it's a close fit w/ me driving at 6' tall and the seat pretty far back. If I were taller, my seat would run into the baby seat, but I imagine in most cars there's the same or less space.

ZenMachine, are those straps made for cars, or something you got at the hardware store, or threw together yourself? Looks like a nice solution, especially for shopping when you don't want the stroller rolling over the eggs

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ichabod @ Jun 26 2007, 01:02 PM) [snapback]468413[/snapback]</div>

For only $7.99, you can get it right here:

Right Start

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ichabod @ Jun 26 2007, 02:02 PM) [snapback]468413[/snapback]</div>

Thanks... he was actually 6 days late, and still was only 7lbs 9oz. I imagine he would have been pretty tiny if he were on time!
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ichabod @ Jun 26 2007, 02:02 PM) [snapback]468413[/snapback]</div>

With the seat in the middle, I keep the driver seat all the way back but rather upright, and the car seat just slightly touches my seat. I would NOT be able to put the carseat directly behind the driver seat without adjusting my seat a notch or so, which wouldn't be the end of the world, but would be a bit less comfortable for me, as my right knee is pretty close to the dash as is.

 

I had the same question about a month ago. We had a Sienna that we used, but I realized that 40% of the car wasn't being used 90% of the time! We also have a Tacoma that can fit all of us, so we didn't really *need* the van for hauling stuff.

We were mostly concerned about whether or not the Prius would have enough pick-up to haul all of us when getting onto the freeway or going up a hill - no problem!

We have 3 kids, two 8-year olds and an almost 3-yr old. She is still in a car seat, the other two aren't. We've found that we could carry all the family AND put the dog in the hatchback, if we wanted to. We don't want to because he sheds too much, but it's good to know it's possible.

So now we have a truck for longer trips and times when we have lots of stuff to haul, and the Prius for commuting to work and making trips around town. We use the Prius 90% of the time.

To be honest, even though the truck is a MUCH bigger vehicle, the size isn't in the cab! It was a very cramped ride when we drove to/from Los Angeles last week. I would have been happier in the Prius, but we couldn't fit an 8' tall doggie door and a 9' tall Christmas tree, plus the luggage, plus the dog in our Prius.

 

on my car seat, it has one belt going through the slot and the other belt going over the car seat. am i missing something? how do you do that?