A word about minivans

They're boring, yes. Street cred? No. Versatility and comfort, though, far outweigh the uncool factor. Hell, with all the SUV's out there now, I feel like I'm the rebel. If you want to put your image before carting around a load of kids and cargo comfortably and with as few headaches as humanly possible, cross minivans off your list. If you want to lug around kids, stuff, dogs, and possibly even tow a small trailer, all the while enjoying comfort and safety, come into my parlor.

I drive an '05 Toyota Sienna XLE. I love it. You will have to pry it from my cold dead fingers. 6 adults can have an enjoyable time riding in this vehicle. My husband, our three kids, and my niece and nephew can fit in easily and without much fuss. And it has surround sound. My house doesn't have surround sound. It has 17 airbags, for Pete's sake! The carpet is stained, the leather has taken quite a beating, and there is an interior odor that I can't quite put a name to. Oh wait, it's called "kids."

Frankly, though, people expect minivans to be treated in this manner, and Toyota built the Sienna to gracefully handle this abuse. I've got almost 60,000 miles on this thing and I still love it. It's boring, but the point of it's entire existence is to make my life easier. How can you not love that?

Anyway, I plan to start driving of the new minivans, specifically the Chrysler Town & Country and the Honda Odyssey.

Enjoy your weekend!

2008 BMW X3si

260 horsepower inline 6, 225 lb-ft of torque. The horsies are right there when you need them, and so are the brakes. The interior feels...AWESOME! The leather is some of the nicest I've ever felt, the seat comfort is excellent, the only sounds you hear are the ones that originate inside the vehicle, visibility and instrumentation are great, no torque steer (thanks to the AWD and inline 6) and this baby is planted--make that glued, to the road. I'd love to take it for a spin through the twisties! The inline six makes for an ultra smooth engine, which BMW has known since the early 1970's. Inline six engines are also super duper reliable.
Two rows of seats this time; BMW didn't try to make it into something it's not. Cargo space behind that second row of seats is quite ample! I don't see three full-size car seats in the rear seats, though. Perhaps one full-size car seat and a booster on either side, but it would be tight. It is only rated to tow 3500 pounds, but as it requires premium gasoline, I wouldn't want to actually tow anything with it. (Highway mpg is rated at around 24, in town it's about 17.)
Starting price is around $38,000 but if you want nav, "comfort seats," premium sound, rear side-impact air bags, leather upholstery, or any other fun add-ons, be prepared to pay quite a bit more than $40,000.
In typical BMW fashion there are so many buttons and knobs that one is momentarily stymied. The gas and brake pedals are almost kissing each other down there on the floor board, so wear appropriate (narrow) footwear. Remember the nasty bit of publicity that Audi got in the 1980's?
If you absolutely must have a fun-driving small SUV, and can afford to take it in for service at the EXACT recommended intervals, or any time a gnat gets stuck in an air filter, then check this car out. I understand why people drive BMW's now. I had a blast driving it, but it doesn't seem light years different than anything else out there. Not for the price, and the premium gasoline! And, if your kids puke on this upholstery you will cry.



Thanks to www.analogstereo.com for the picture!

Your thoughts, and more safety

Are there any specific vehicles that you would like to see reviewed here? Own one of the vehicles I have reviewed? Is there an aspect of car ownership that you would like me to explore more fully? Let me know!

Now, for something completely different...

Kelley Blue Book:
www.kbb.com

Seat Check Saturday locations for 9/20/08. Listed by state.
www.nhtsa.gov

Crash test and rollover ratings:
www.nhtsa.gov

Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe:
http://www.albeebaby.com/fiprsavodeco1.html

2008 Volvo XC90 Sport

The Volvo XC90 Sport is a great-driving car. (Once again, as with all small SUV's this this is really a car. Period.) Handling was outstanding for a heavy brute, visibility was excellent, interior was top-notch, comfort was A++. The engine is a V8 with 311 horsepower and 325 lb-ft of torque. It goes, and goes well. The V8 will make it expensive to feed, though, and it still only seats 7. No more than my minivan, and the XC90 only gets about 19 mpg on the highway. My Sienna gets 24. And doesn't start out at almost $50,000.

It's a Volvo, folks, so it's comfy, safe, and refined. It is easy and fun to drive, and can tow a whopping 4900 pounds--my Sienna is rated at 3500. Customer reviews on websites such as Edmunds, however, have been mixed. Some people love the thing, and will never buy another vehicle. Some people hate the thing, and will never buy another one. Volvo has been having some reliability problems, and it shows in the owner satisfaction (or lack thereof) ratings.

Some kid-hauling inconveniences revealed themselves to me on the test drive, too. The third row is hard to get to. I'm not sure why, but this seems to be a recurring issue with these mini-SUV's. They're trying to cram too much in, and you sacrifice third row (and in some cases second row) comfort and accessibility. Three car seats will not fit in the middle row. The middle row of seats does have the integrated booster in the middle seating position, which seems a convenient space-saver, but my 4-year-old fit the size criteria and I was not happy with how she fit into it. The seatbelt still cut across her neck, and she didn't seem either secure or comfortable. Getting the big Britax car seat installed was another chore. An impossibility, really. The XC90 headrests, a la' Volvo's safety theme, cannot be removed. They can only be raised, and not raised enough to accommodate the high back of the Britax Marathon. I couldn't get the back side of the car seat to rest flat against the seat back; the top of the car seat was pitched forward, due to the fact that the Volvo headrest pitches forward a bit, and doesn't go up very high.
That said, this is where I tell you my Volvo headrest safety story. My husband, then a teenager, and his sister were riding in the back of the family car, a 1970's-era Volvo (I forget which model/year exactly), when their parked Volvo was rear-ended by a teenage girl in a lifted full-size Chevy pick-up truck going 40 miles an hour. The police who investigated said that if they had not been in a Volvo (which had head rests and crumple zones during an era when American cars did not) my husband and his sister would have been decapitated.

Volvo is still a leader in vehicle safety, and their commercials and brochures really make you feel like a bad parent if you're driving your offspring around in a non-Volvo!

In summation, this is a really nice-feeling car which may exhibit some reliability issues. The price tag is a bit much for hit-or-miss quality, in my opinion. If you can afford to take your car in to the dealer every time a warning light goes on, and/or all your children are in boosters or old enough to ride without them, this is an interesting candidate. If you are looking to haul 7 people comfortably and get good gas mileage at the same time, try something else.

The XC90 is rumored to be discontinued in 2012, and Volvo may (or may not) be redesigning it for 2009. Rising gas prices have probably contributed to its possible demise. If you want to test drive one, go for it. It's a great drive...for free.


Thanks to discount Volvo parts.com for the photo.

Edmunds

http://www.edmunds.com/

This website has all the technical info you need for buying new and used cars. You can search dealer inventory, read owner reviews, and build and price your car. Enjoy!

I'll be posting my review of the 2008 Volvo CX90 Sport very soon! That was a fun one!

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2008 Toyota Highlander

http://www.toyota.com/highlander/index.html


I've spent a full day with Big Blue. I like it! It's not as roomy inside as my van, and the storage behind the third row seat is virtually non-existent. The third row is not a split seat, so it's either up or down. The middle row of seats do not tumble, they just fold forward, making it necessary to walk on the back of the seat to reach the third row bench. Which is located conveniently on the floor, so that unless you are a 7-year-old child your knees are up your nose.
The middle row of seats cannot hold all three car seats, either. Even the back seat of Drew's Mazda can handle the big full-size seat in the middle with a booster on either side. This arrangement is impossible in the middle row of the Highlander.
The biggest negative for me is the storage. My van is cavernous behind the third row!

Now for the positive aspects, and there are many. The engine, for one. It's bigger than the 3.3 L V-6 in my van. It's a 3.5 liter and I can tell. It goes like stink, considering it's a huge heavy vehicle. (It's not really a truck, by the way, and even calling it an SUV is a stretch. It's frankly a minivan for people who refuse to drive minivans.) The breaks work great, and all the controls have a solid feel. (The turn signals click very quietly--if you see a "periwinkle blue" highlander driving around Roseville with the blinker on, it's me.)

It also feels more planted to the ground, thanks to it being all-wheel-drive. The AWD aspect helps eliminate torque-steer. There is none. My van will rip the wheel out of your hands if you romp on the gas. The Highlander simply rockets forward. The seats are comfortable, being longer on the bottom, offering more support for your legs. The visibility is really great, and the height of the vehicle is perfect. There's also that reassuring expanse of hood between you and the car in front of you.

I like the vehicle! It doesn't suit my every day needs as well as the van, but it's a nice solid vehicle that I could drive every day quite happily. Until I had to go to Costco with 6 people in my vehicle. Which I do.

Honestly, though, it's a girl car. If you're a single guy and drive this, you probably also have cats and Michael Buble's latest album.

2008 Chevy Suburban

Thanks to http://www.chtruckparts.com/chevrolet-blog/category/chevrolet-suburban/ for the picture!


Well, well, well. Okay, I love this thing. It's big, it's everywhere, it's expensive to feed. But I love Suburbans! I learned to drive on the family farm in a big, old, squared-off 1970's model that had been spray-painted camouflage and it was love at first sight.

I'm not going to fill this blog entry with technical specs, which can easily be found on the Chevy website, and vary from model to model. I will, however, provide an honest opinion of the vehicle. I'm not paid to like these cars, remember.

Let's get down to business. Drew and I test drove an LS model, basically the bottom of the line. No frills, but seating for eight, which is something we'd like to have in the future. We cart around our own three kids, plus we have a niece and nephew who are frequently with us on our camping trips, etc. Seating for 9 is available, but, once again, check the manufacturer's website for your options.

So, the ride quality was really nice and it was easy to drive. Not so easy to park, which, you know, you may have to do some day. And forget reaching that sippy cup that your kid threw on the floor and is now leaking milk onto your expensive new Chevy carpet. This thing is huge. However, the space behind the rear seat is a little less than I expected from a vehicle this big. I can't help but compare these vehicles to the decidedly un-cool but amazingly spacious Toyota Sienna that I drive. The rear deck is at a comfortable height for getting groceries in and out, though, and the lift gate is easy to operate--not super heavy. The biggest complaint I have noticed from web forums is that the 2007 and earlier Suburbans had room for a sheet of plywood if you took the seats out. The 2008 model does not. Enough said.

Oh, and getting to that third row seat will be a pain. And, a pet peeve of mine, the third row sits right on the floor of the vehicle and is dismally lacking foot room. It is not a third row for adults. The other issue I have is the LATCH placement. There are only about three locations where LATCH equipped car seats can be anchored. Are you kidding me? People buy Suburbans because they have lots of kids. Helllllooooo GM!!!

Fit and Finish: Well, once again, we are dealing with a GM product. There are body lines and plastic pieces on this brand new vehicle that gap and don't line up properly. If you can ignore that in a $30,000-plus vehicle, then fine. If you can't, well...

In my opinion, for most people, the Suburban doesn't do anything that a nice minivan can't do. Of course, there is a segment of the population that owns boats, horses or both, and has more than three kids. If you have to tow something heavy, and seat more than five or six people, the Suburban is awesome. If not, get a minivan, attach a tow hitch, and enjoy your 20 miles to the gallon.

Safety stuff

Yes, yes. Boring ol' safety. Before the 1980's we didn't need safety. Now we do. I personally own seven carseats (you heard me!). Three 5-point harness seats for my van, two boosters for Drew's car, and two boosters for my parents' cars. This blog entry is dedicated to keeping your kids safe in your car.

Child safety seats: Getting these in correctly is the secret to being safe. The NHTSA has an ease-of-use ratings sheet:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/staticfiles/DOT/NHTSA/Communication%20&%20Consumer%20Information/Articles/CPS%20files/seats.pdf

Britax consistently rates very hgh, becasue they are extremely easy to install and adjust. I personally own 4 seats made by Britax and sold under the name Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe. They are Britax car seats, made in the Britax factory, and the registration card is actually sent to Britax. They are a fraction of the cost of the seats that say BRITAx on the front--by as much as half! I got mine at www.albeebaby.com

Parents can also go to their local CHP office and have carseats inspected/installed for free. Goore's in Sacramento will install seats for free at time of purchase and for a small fee thereafter.

Welcome!!

Welcome to Cool Mom Cars! I got so much positive response regarding my review of the Toyota Highlander that I decided to start a separate blog aimed at women and moms who are looking for a new car. I will post reviews of cars that I test drive, safety info, price, special deals, and other tips and advice for anyone interested in checking it out.
Frankly, this will also allow me to drive some pretty nifty cars, and I plan on contacting major dealerships and manufacturers to set it up. I love writing, but don't have the patience to write an entire book; some of those things are long.
So, here we go. Keep checking back for more new stuff.
Vrrrrrrooooooommmm...