Question of the Day: What’s a Good Lightweight Family Vehicle?

Sammy B January 31st, 2008 5:11 PM Link

3 car seats in the back of a Mazda6 wagon or Subaru Legacy/Outback wagon is do-able, but will be tight for sure. Most smallish CUVs would probably be the same.

I would vote for the Mazda5. If it was me, I’d rock that for sure and remove one of the two middle row captains chairs. This would give plenty of easy access for the 3rd row. Ideally, the biggest kids go back there and the youngest in the middle captain chair.

Otherwise, go for an older minivan. A 1st gen Sienna is smallish and light. The current Odyssey and Sienna are huge (and plenty heavy!)

Ducati Minor January 31st, 2008 5:17 PM Link

The Mazda5.

DOWNSHIFTER. January 31st, 2008 5:17 PM Link

Try this–http://news.windingroad.com/caption-it/caption-it-a-rarely-seen-tata-nano-test-mule/
But maybe you had something a little more substantial in mind…
Please note, the one ‘child seat’ @ left front is somewhat deficient.

Dave January 31st, 2008 5:17 PM Link

Mazda5 with a roof box for road-trips or multiple strollers, scooters, etc. is perfect.

Three across in one of those wagons is really tight.

DOWNSHIFTER. January 31st, 2008 5:19 PM Link

Any of the above are certainly better suited than the picture shown.

BoobsMcGee January 31st, 2008 5:31 PM Link

A4 Avant 1.8T
Volvo v70 (3rd row seat optional)
Scion Xb’s were light, now bigger with more hp but still an option.

ziptron January 31st, 2008 5:32 PM Link

It won’t work with three kids, but with two kids in my family, the Mini Cooper S has taken us on weeklong vacations when we’re willing to pack efficiently. We don’t even need a roof rack.

Ricky January 31st, 2008 6:02 PM Link

Subaru legacy (gt) wagon.

Wes January 31st, 2008 6:07 PM Link

For some reason the Mazda MPV comes to mind. But if you don’t want a minivan, I’d go with the Ford Edge, or some other crossover like Nissan Murano. You’ll want some thing that looks good and those are my top crossover picks with Chrysler Pacifica as a not too distant third.

Mike F. January 31st, 2008 6:11 PM Link

Not the lightest, but small and roomy; I’ve been eyeing the Rabbit as a possible next vehicle

john January 31st, 2008 6:15 PM Link

It weighs 2800lbs and is made of high strength steel and aluminum. It is slightly smaller than the Malibu and is powered by a 4 cyl turbo diesel with 6sp auto trans…And it doesn’t exist.

VMMVMMM January 31st, 2008 6:27 PM Link

If I were faced with this decision, I would go with the Mazda 5 if I had to haul all three and have car seat room. If you were looking at not having to carry all three children in this car, I’d go for a MINI Cooper S.

Ben January 31st, 2008 7:01 PM Link

I think the MINI Cooper S is a bit small for a small family… How about the MINI Coopers S Clubman?!

Jeb January 31st, 2008 7:06 PM Link

I say sell the LR3, for starters. There are much better family vehicles out there than that. If you sold it, you’d be in a position to get something like a top-line Odyssey, which is lux enough to make you forget the LR3 and an excellent family machine, plus its city fuel economy roughly equals or beats the LR3’s highway economy.

But, if you’re not game for that, then definitely the Mazda 5 is the best lightweight family hauler for more than two kids.

Aaron January 31st, 2008 7:19 PM Link

Another vote for the mazda5. To my knowledge it’s the only minivan on the market the you can get with a manual trans.

I think it’s good for kids to grow up seeing their parents drive stick, it being a dying skill in this country and all…

chris January 31st, 2008 7:53 PM Link

I couldnt sleep at nite knowing I put my families saftey in the hands of a frickin mini cooper, thats a compromise I would never make with all the soccer moms on cell phones out there driving really big SUVs. If a mini van is not macho enough for you then maybe a crossover vehicle would be more appealing to you. Ford Edge, Pacifica, Infinity FX…..some thing along those lines. I know none of these are exactly light weight, but I think saftey should be your first concern, not how light weight it is.

Jeff January 31st, 2008 8:19 PM Link

2008 Saab 9-3 2.0T SportCombi

Safer than a Volvo, great looking, versatile, fun to drive, stylish, passing power to spare, zero turbo lag, comfortable seats, and one of (if not THE) best handling front wheel drive chassis on the planet.

94 taurus owner January 31st, 2008 8:38 PM Link

Ford aerosatar!!

94 taurus owner January 31st, 2008 8:41 PM Link

Ford Aerostar weighs 3500 has great leg room(even with the short wheelbase model)!!

Paul In Jersey January 31st, 2008 8:45 PM Link

No brainer. Mazda 5. Next!?

Jonathan Fung January 31st, 2008 9:50 PM Link

I would suggest the Mazda CX7 or CX9. I don’t know how light they are, but they are nice CUVs that can get you from place to place, and they’re somewhat sporty too.

Tony D January 31st, 2008 10:50 PM Link

Kia Rondo

kennethm3 January 31st, 2008 11:12 PM Link

We thought about a small SUV. The Pilot got terrible mileage and was too generic looking, the CRV was too small and we hated the folding center console, it seemed cheap. The Hyundai Veracruz wasn’t out yet and the Santa Fe was a strong contender. In the end we bought a Subaru Legacy Outback, LL Bean Edition, loaded to the gills for under $30K. The thing gets about 22.5 MPG around town and even at 82 MPH on the freeway from L.A. to Phoenix it gets 26 MPG (you can monitor the mileage live on the multifunction display screen). We have been very happy with the car. Plenty of room, it fits in a garage, great mileage compared to an SUV, and it goes like a bat out of hell.

I have always been intrigued by the MB R class, I think it is a great touting vehicle and an alternative to a SUV. I have been waiting for Toyota’s interpretation. We’ll have to see how the Venza turns out.

Phil February 1st, 2008 5:18 AM Link

Ford Freestyle…. weighing in at just under 4100lbs….not bad for a 7 pas. SUV when most others are weighing in over 4500. with the CVT tranny on the highway I get 28 mpg. Light for an SUV, plent of room great gas mileage.

Ben February 1st, 2008 7:14 AM Link

What happened to the lightweight part of the question (Edge, CX-7/9, Land Rovers, Pacifica, Infinity FX-45)? Safety, as in protection, is a matter of engineering, and not a matter of weight. To add to that, if most vehicles lost a few hundred pounds of body weight, the force of most collisions would be reduced, and thus make the roads a bit safer for everyone, not to mention the increased ability to avoid collisions in the first place.

Peter February 1st, 2008 8:35 AM Link

Honda Fit. The lightest and sportiest 5 seater out there wins hands down. Close but not as sporty, the Yaris and Versa

BruceinCary February 1st, 2008 9:10 AM Link

Wow it looks like this is a popular topic. Thanks for the help guys.

Just a quick FYI, the LR3 is a company vehicle so that’ll stay in the fleet regardless of it’s monstrous inefficiencies. Ever since Clarkson scaled Ben Tongue it’s had street cred in spades!

And I’ve looked at the Cooper S/Clubman S but there are only two seat belts in the rear for US cars!!

Seems like a Mazda5 is top of the list at present.

The first car that came to my mind was the Honda Fit but three car seats across is always going to be tricky, but not impossible.

Bruce

Sammy B February 1st, 2008 9:47 AM Link

Also consider the Toyota Matrix. The new generation out this spring probably won’t be much bigger than the last, so any model could be used to test out. If you’re lucky, find an XRS with the 170 hp 1.8L from the Celica GT-S and you’ll get a nice little family hauler.

Mazda3 hatch might work as well, but I think the back seat is tighter than the Matrix’s.

I would still vote for the Mazda5 as you’ll have a little bit of space leftover and sliding doors! Get the 5MT model and smile while driving the rugrats around

AlfaElan February 1st, 2008 2:14 PM Link

Nothing made today that will haul a family is light.

You used to be able to get a Focus (>3000lbs) 5 door or wagon that was relatively light and would seat 5 if the three in the back were small, but they don’t make them anymore.

The Pontiac Vibe is under 3000lbs and may have enough room.

The Mazda 5 others have pointed out isn’t too heavy at around 3500lbs.

If you want a sedan there are lots of choices from the domestics and Japan that are in the low 3000 lbs range with decent mileage. I do find that if it is from Germany you can add 200 to 400 lbs and the resulting loss in mileage compared to the domestic and Japanese brands.

We like our Volvo 960 Wagon which is 3600lbs, and the new V70 seems about that without the AWD. The outgoing V70 is a little cramped for it’s size compared to the 960, but the new one seems about right. Volvo does offer dealer installed rear facing child seats, but they aren’t as nice as a real 7 passenger vehicle. Plus the Volvos will tow the Elan or the Alfa without problem, but then you have the LR3 for that. Also Volvo puts the DVD screens in the seat backs so they don’t block the rear view mirror like the drop down out of the ceiling ones.

We’re thinking the 960 will eventually get replaced by a Taurus X (4000lbs) since we would like to have 7 seats for trips with the grandparents. We would look into a lowering kit if we do go that route. I got so used to sitting down into the 2 seaters that the Focus SVT feels too tall to me.

Others we looked at during our rounds of the Detroit Autoshow were the Pacifica which is a whale at 4700lbs. The Caravan was better at weight, but a bit too tall (and my wife doesn’t want a minivan). The Odyssey as nice and roomy with a low floor for the kids to get in easily, but it is obese also.

When it comes to lightweight, sporty and able to seat 5 we go with my wife’s 1974 Alfa Romeo Berlina which will be up to 2400lbs once we get the interior back to street from the racer it used to be.

Andrew February 1st, 2008 6:13 PM Link

My 4-door family oriented sedan is an ‘06 Subaru Impreza WRX STi. I know a couple of other STi guys with baby seats in the back, and one of them has 3 across (a 1yr old in the center, 3 and 5 on the sides). Kids _love_ riding in my car. And as long as you can resist kicking the turbo, it’s unreasonably fuel efficient. Even when I fail to resist (which is most of the time), it’s _still_ about as efficient as my Mom’s Honda CRV. And it handily smokes the toupe wearing crowd in their cocksters while remaining easier to spot in the parking lot.

Son of a Beach February 1st, 2008 9:45 PM Link

Most efficient: Honda Fit. Better for you: Mazda 5.

Joe March 24th, 2008 1:40 PM Link

I find this topic really interesting as I’m in a similar position trying to decide on a future family hauler.

I want to share this video with you which demonstrates just how far modern engineering has come in crash protection..
Bigger is not always better and newer is generally much better than bigger and cheaper.

On a side note, my mother in law has a Honda Fit, interestingly when we traded in her minivan she really wanted an SUV (to be up high)so she got an Equinox, then we traded in her Saab 900 turbo and got her a standard Fit sport, guess which one she loves driving more. The fit (at least here in Canada) is loaded to the gills with safety features and the front end was specifically redesigned for the NA market.

I do love the Mazda 5 though it’s a very unique car in the NA marketplace, and now it has been revised for 2008 with added safety it’s even better.

Enjoy this video,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3ygYUYia9I