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Well, if you get a Pacifica, looks like you won't have much choice. But, hey, you'll be like me when my new Lacrosse comes in LOL.........having to put with a less-than-ideal shifter for the love of the rest of the vehicle.
Yup, **** shifter it'll be!
I wouldn't say I *love* the Pacifica lol. One day about 4 years from now I can see a day when I can have two vehicles I love again...
I wouldn't say I *love* the Pacifica lol. One day about 4 years from now I can see a day when I can have two vehicles I love again...
I don't know if you saw my earlier post (you didn't respond to it), but it's a shame that you can't still get those built-in, pull-down child seats on Chrysler-designed minivans any more. They probably would have been ideal for your wife and the small twins. Like the built-in vacuums on some of today's minivans, I thought that the built-in child seats were a superb idea.
I don't know if you saw my earlier post (you didn't respond to it), but it's a shame that you can't still get those built-in, pull-down child seats on Chrysler-designed minivans any more. They probably would have been ideal for your wife and the small twins. Like the built-in vacuums on some of today's minivans, I thought that the built-in child seats were a superb idea.
I posted in response:
Originally Posted by SW15LS
The reason you don't see these is safety. Carseat safety has come a LONG way since these seats existed. Looking at the picture below, as a father who can write a book on how to install child seats I can tell you its all kind of wrong for modern times. For one, that baby is too young to be forward facing today. The prevailing wisdom today is that a child stay rear facing until the child is 2 AND has reach something like 30 lbs, preferably even longer. Once they are converted to forward facing, that seat doesn't incline properly for a young childs head and neck.
Other issue is comfort. We need kids to sleep in carseats. Kid aint sleeping in that lol.
When I was a kid and the age and size my kids are now, I just sat in the seat. I remember riding in the middle on the bench seat of my Dad's Oldsmobile. Times are different now, in MD kids need to be in carseats until they're 8 and 4'9" tall.
The reason why these aren't around is parents didn't want them, and/or they weren't deemed safe.
Adding to that, modern carseats have so much more safety tech. Big side bolsters for head protection, shock absorption. Good carseats are heavy, metal, serious pieces of hardware.
Here's my son asleep in his new 5 point booster (bought one for each of them to use in the Lexus), you can see how much side impact protection there is, head support, etc and you don't get any of that in those old built in carseats:
Did you look at a Grand Caravan? I haven't looked closely at the latest version (since it will probably be out of production soon)...but it may or may not have the required-easy-access your want to the third-row seat.
Some lower-level GC's are going for unbelievably low prices...at least on paper. The big Jeep/Chrysler/Dodge place in Chantilly has some SE models with 19K asking prices...that's with V6 engines. They may not have the equipment/amenities, however, that you want.....you're probably used to a lot of goodies.
The Grand Caravan is archaic (we had one for a week when the Sedona was being repaired from the fire), wouldn't be an option...and anyways the Grand Caravan failed the IIHS small overlap crash test spectacularly, wouldn't even consider it from that. Pacifica is a much better vehicle, happy to pay the premium for one over a Town & Country/Grand Caravan.
The Town & Country's structure also collapsed around the dummy. Intrusion measured 15 inches at the lower hinge pillar and the instrument panel. The skin on the dummy's left lower leg was gouged by the intruding parking brake pedal, and its left knee skin was torn by a steel brace under the instrument panel. The head barely contacted the front airbag before sliding off and hitting the instrument panel, as the steering column moved to the right. The door sill and the steering column both moved in toward the driver. The side curtain airbag deployed but lacked sufficient forward coverage.
Measures taken from the dummy indicate that injuries to the left hip, left knee and left lower leg would be likely in a crash of this severity. As with the Quest, some of the forces were off the scale.
These results apply to the 2008-15 Town & Country and the 2008-15 Grand Caravan. (They also apply to another, discontinued twin, the 2009-12 Volkswagen Routan.)
The structural collapse of the Chrysler Town & Country was so severe that the dummy's tough skin was torn in two places on the left leg by intruding structure.
It could be the best deal on earth and I wouldn't put my family in one of those things. I was nervous enough with them driving it for a week.
Sedona, Pacifica all earned GOOD ratings in that test. As did the outgoing Odyssey and I'm sure will the incoming Odyssey.
Adding to that, modern carseats have so much more safety tech. Big side bolsters for head protection, shock absorption. Good carseats are heavy, metal, serious pieces of hardware.
Here's my son asleep in his new 5 point booster (bought one for each of them to use in the Lexus), you can see how much side impact protection there is, head support, etc and you don't get any of that in those old built in carseats:
Thanks! He had passed out after an epic meltdown that ensued because he couldn't get the plastic car glued to the tip stand at the carwash off to play with it LOL. The poor guys drying the car off tried to give him stickers, he was having none of it! They sure look peaceful when they're sleeping LOL
The Grand Caravan is archaic (we had one for a week when the Sedona was being repaired from the fire), wouldn't be an option...and anyways the Grand Caravan failed the IIHS small overlap crash test spectacularly, wouldn't even consider it from that. Pacifica is a much better vehicle, happy to pay the premium for one over a Town & Country/Grand Caravan.
It could be the best deal on earth and I wouldn't put my family in one of those things. I was nervous enough with them driving it for a week.
Well, OK, if you don't feel safe in one, or don't think your family would be, that's certainly a valid point....I can't argue with that. The latest Grand Caravan received some refreshes in the last few years, but not a major redesign which would have helped its safety-ratings. I may have spoken too soon, though, about its imminent dropping. The latest figures show that GC sales were up some 26% last year (perhaps as a lower-cost alternative to the Pacifica), and Sergio Marchionne now says he may keep it in the lineup for awhile.
I see some comments about Hyundai and resale values. They simply do not have the perceived reliability of the Honda or Toyota. Add in higher rebates does not help either. I doubt anyone is going get to Toyota or Honda resale value levels.
Well, OK, if you don't feel safe in one, or don't think your family would be, that's certainly a valid point....I can't argue with that. The latest Grand Caravan received some refreshes in the last few years, but not a major redesign which would have helped its safety-ratings. I may have spoken too soon, though, about its imminent dropping. The latest figures show that GC sales were up some 26% last year (perhaps as a lower-cost alternative to the Pacifica), and Sergio Marchionne now says he may keep it in the lineup for awhile.
I don't see an issue with them keeping the Grand Caravan or T&C, it's an affordable vehicle for people. Not everybody has the knowledge to look into a vehicles safety ratimngs, or the money to pay a premium for a safer vehicle for their family. I have both, so I'm buying the safer choice lol
If I can drive around in an $80,000 Lexus I can certainly provide my wife and kids with the safest vehicle I can buy for them that fits their needs.
Have you considered the hybrid pacifica? Looks like a terrific bargain.
I'd have to drive it, but the hybrid loses the stow n go seats and I also believe the second row tip access to the third row which would be a deal breaker.
I see some comments about Hyundai and resale values. They simply do not have the perceived reliability of the Honda or Toyota. Add in higher rebates does not help either. I doubt anyone is going get to Toyota or Honda resale value levels.
Perhaps not in the lower-priced class, but BMW, in particular, is known for low depreciation and high residual-values....that's one reason why they have had such good lease deals. Unfortunately, BMW does not market a family-type minivan vehicle, here in the U.S. that Steve or his family would probably be interested in. That gets back to my earlier post, above, how the automakers have neglected the American minivan market in favor of the SUV craze.
05-16-17, 06:20 PM
