Is a prius a good substitute for a minivan?

For me, no. I have my Prius for commuting, but discovered it is physically impossible to haul myself, the wife, the baby, and all our stuff to the airport in the Prius. We fly a lot, and I was proud of myself that I had just squeezed everything we needed into the Prius. Then my wife came out and said, "Great, but where do we put the stroller?" I reluctantly loaded everything into our 1994 Camry (Sedan). No matter what I did, I couldn't close the trunk. I finally relented and loaded everything into my 2000 Trooper.

I've got my heart set on a Sienna, but I'm holding out for a Hybrid version (Rumored, but not yet announced). The Trooper is still with us, but we rarely drive it. I think I buy 18 gallons about every 6-8 weeks.

We drive the Prius anytime we can, including with the baby, and it will hold what we need for day trips, but this doesn't include any soccer balls.

I think the Hybrid Highlander is the best soccer mom vehicle available. Take a look, you may be pleased.

For us, we decided to hold out for the Hybrid Sienna.

Let me stress, that I do haul the family in the Prius for 90% of our family excursions. But there are times when we simply must bring the Trooper, and are glad to have it.

Nate

 

I suppose it is a matter of what you are used to more than anything. When our baby was born, we had two choices: 1995 4-door Corolla sedan (small trunk) and 1997 2-door Pontiac Sunfire GT (larger trunk, but tiny opening to it). We managed just fine with whichever vehicle, but the two door thing got old.

In January 2004, we ditched the Sunfire for a new Camry, which has been much easier to use as a family car. We've gone camping numerous times in the Camry and hauled whatever we needed.

Weather/climate would have played a role in what we purchased if we lived somewhere with any weather! LOL

We've had the Prius just under two weeks and it is working out fine for a family car and we are quite pleased with the car in all respects.

 

An experienced soccer dad here. Since 01 our soccer car has been a Wrangler. Moving up to the Prius was an incredible increase in space and comfort. The only problem we've run into so far is I don't want my goalie daughter sitting on my new Prius seats after a game/practice. But they always prefer taking the Prius.

In Dec we took at week long trip to FL with soccer gear and suitcases for three.

gb

 

Well, considering that the new one is still in the oven, stay with the Prius. It will do fine for the next 5 years. It has 4 doors, car seat tie downs and plenty of room for kid stuff. You might want to Scotchguard the upholstery...
When you have 2+ kids at over 8, then the minivan starts looking better, especially if the relatives arrive. By the time you need it there should be better alternatives.

 

It really depends what you want to fit.

Prius will fit 3 adults and a baby. A stroller car seat. Pack and play.

And 2 medium size duffles.

 

I did not take out the floor of the cargo area, it still would not have been enough room.

But like I said, it's great for 90% of outings, and we use it for that. Too bad you can't get a Pulsar NX style hatch wagon for the Prius! For those of you who don't know, there was this weird accessory for the 88 Nissan Pulsar that converted it from a hatchback into a wagon. It was cool, but strange. You actually unbolted the hatch and set it on the ground, then bolted on the wagon hatch. It took at least two people, and was cumbersome. I can't find an image, but I'll post one if I see it.

Nate

 

My wife and I and my 5 year old daughter took the prius on a 10 day trip from Philadelphia to Myrtle Beach, SC. We took three suit cases, our own pillows, beach toys, and several stuffed animals and toys for my daughter.

However, I must say that we bought a pair of new suit cases to go along with a similar one we already had. They were those "carry on" type with the wheels and the handle that extends out, but they were on the upper end of the size range for "carry on" bags. They three of them fit quite nicely in the back, along with the other stuff. It was a tight fit, but I still had an unobstructed view out the upper part of the hatchback. (the lower window was blocked.) We also had a small crate on the floor in the back seat with much of my daughter's toys.

Now, as far as traveling with a baby goes... You would probably have trouble getting one of those massive Graco strollers in the back of the Prius. But, you will find that those massive strollers look a lot more usefull when they are sitting in the store showroom than they really are in practice. We started with one of those when my daughter was born and they are damn annoying to use. They're big, heavy and hard to get into and out of any car. And that feature of being able to snap an infant carrier onto the stroller looks appealing, but you will only really use that feature for the first couple of months, and then you are stuck with this SUV of a stroller.

We finally ended up spending a little bit more money for one of the higher end lightweight strollers. It has a reclining back (so it can be used with an infant), a hood, and best of all, you can fold it up and put it into the car with one hand.

And our Pack-n-Play play-pen never left our den and didn't get used much anyhow.

You truely don't need to lug around as much stuff with a baby as the baby industry wants to sell you. All you need is a good quality, lightweight stroller and a medium size diaper bag to hold a couple of diapers, baby wipes, a changing mat, and a bottle or two.

 

I'm a little surprised that you are opncsidering a light tractor or a minivan when you have one baby. I'm in a similar situation where I expect me and my fiancee will have our first child within a couple of years. I picked the Prius for just that reason. It's relativley roomy, has child-seat hook-ups. Is safe and has a lot of area in the back. This should be a lot more room then you need on an average day no? My sister has a nice stroller that folds with one hand and can easily fit in the back ot the prius with plenty of room left over for day to day driving.

For the airport I will take a cab and for longer vacation I would rent a light tractor if needed.

 

We have found that the Prius sits five: Two adults and three children. It is not comfortable for three adults and two children if a car seat is used, because the car seat is much wider than a child's hips. Without a car seat, three adults and two children are fine.

We have also found that you can only install two car seats or booster seats in the back; it is not wide enough to have three across. This limited the number of children I could take on preschool field trips -- some might consider this a drawback, but I thought it was a real bonus!

I agree with BeGreen that you will not need a larger car for several years, unless you haul around a lot of visiting adults. Have the car seat professionally installed (usually free at the local police station) and do not ever uninstall it, because you won't be able to do as good a job. In a year you'll get a toddler seat and have that professionally installed also. When your child is approaching five you can get a booster seat that doesn't require installation, it just sits there to raise the child higher so the seatbelt is in the proper position and he/she can look out the window.

By the time you truly need more space to haul the soccer team, which is not something I myself have ever wanted to do, surely there will be many new fuel-efficient options, including minivans, and our Priuses will no longer be the greenest vehicles around! In the meantime, you've got five years of non-gas-guzzling.

I also agree about not needing to fill up your trunk with a huge stroller. For the first year you will want to use a stroller base that the car seat basket snaps into, and that will fold quite flat. After that, you can use a small stroller for the car and save the monster all-terrain stroller for trips from home to the playground, etc.

Have fun, and get some sleep while you can!

 

'Needing' a bigger car in my experience usually means either needs a diet or needs a Yoga class.

My perspective on car sizes is not american, but our twins were born in the US. Our three door hatch Dodge Colt (aka Mitsu Mirage) was a bit of a tussle sometimes, but never a big deal.

Loonnng driving vacations or extended family vacations are managed with a rental -- that I am always *so* glad to return.

 

Works great for us, with an almost 3 yr. old and a 2 mo. old. The Prius' rear legroom is much better than our compact Volvo wagon. The toddler has plenty of room to stretch out without kicking our seat backs (not that he would do THAT over and over and over and over again). Plenty of storage for routine missions. Stroller fits fine in the back as long as you aren't going to the airport with a full complement of luggage. We take a stroller with us and are still able to get $150 worth of groceries in the car, no problem. We had the same concerns before we got the Prius, but have been pleasantly surprised. It is the 'room' car in the fleet now!

 

Glad to hear. I think you will be fine in the Prius for several more years!

 

We have a 2004 Prius and a 2005 Prius, with a 4 year old and a 5 year old (both girls). We find the Prius is all we ever need. No problems at all. If you have 2 or fewer children you shouldn't need a minivan or SUV.

 

I haven't tried to haul a 4x8 sheet of plywood yet in my Prius, but in that regard, our van can't be beat.

Our minivan is more like first-class seating with spacious leather bucket seating - something the Prius is not. It has all wheel drive and is better than most four wheel drives in the snow.

Still, I'm glad we have our Dora and user her for 99% of our family travel. She's much safer in a side impact collision. The trunk is more than adequate for the oversized sports bags that our children need for their activities. And, oh yea, she gets way better gas mileage.

 

I would like to say that the prius or any other sedan ... is not a substitute for a minivan if that's what you NEED.


Let's move on

 

Yeah, it's a need vs. want thing. Most people don't need the space of a mini-van but want the extra space or 4wd. I would say that you probably don't need a mini-van or anythin bigger then a mid-sized sedan unless you have more then 3 kids. Your want's might be different!