best 7 seater cars

Hi my husband and I are seriously thinking about having #4 (crazy i know) and if we decide to have another child we want to get a new car this yr I like the territory ,captiva , sorrento,kluger but thinking my kids would grow out of the 3rd row quickly my kids are really Tall and i like the Kia carnival but heard engines aren't good on them and would imagine they uses fair bit of fuel

Any one have a dodge journey Nissan pathfinder Mazda cx9 Mitsubishi outlander santa fe what are some of the pros and cons

I want to stay away from cars that have expensive parts eg Subaru and I'd love a pajero or a land cruiser but they are so pricey

I want something that's stylish and got the following
boot room
Isn't squishy
Good fuel
Easy to clean

Haven't owned a pathfinder, but have used a late model one.. I find it great that the rear seats fold flat if not bring used, and enough leg room for an adult to sit (I am short though). I don't think there are anchor points in the rear row though.

I own a little Mazda 3 and honestly did not feel like I was driving a huge 4x4 while using the pathfinder. We are considering one when our larger car is traded in a few years time.

Eta - we had 7 people and were able to fit 2 large suitcases and 3 luggage size cases behind the rear seat. And there would've been room for more room if needed..

We have a Mazda mpv and we love it. Can only get them secondhand now as they no longer make them.

With the Grand Carnivals, I think it's a totally different engine by a different company now. I think 2006 and back they could be hit and miss.

We love ours. I feel a bit smug on rainy days when everyone piles in, shuts the doors, and I just stand inside to do seatbelts lol. Stacks of space. I think 15 cup holders? Ridiculous. Maybe plasticky, but seems solid, we needed a cheaper people mover than say a Tarago, and whatever it is our kids will scuff it anyway clambering about.

Not super light on fuel, but plenty of power. It doesn't seem too bad to me but our fairmont wagon before was a guzzler so it might be a greater issue for others.

It was only very slightly longer than our wagon too, so I could park as terribly as ever. Actually, better, cos it has reversing sensors that beep. I'd really recommend those, visibility behind people movers is not great.

I totally rate sliding doors with little kids too, they can let themselves out and I don't stress in carparks!

Anyway. I really like it. It's super practical, and has so much space. For three kids there are heaps of 7 seaters that are lovely, but for four kids I think the field narrows a bit and I reckon on the lower end of the budget (that's us lol), the Grand Carnival is pretty great.

All the best looking - car hunting is a combination of really fun and exasperatingly despair inducing - I hope you find something while it's still fun.

My dad has a Sante Fe. Loves it and it has plenty of room. He says it is good on fuel and lovely to drive.

Opps, scrap that, he has a Tribeca not Santa Fe.

We looked at the outlander recently (we bought a Captiva though) and it was by far my favorite but just above our budget. It will most likely be our next car though.

I have the Santa Fe and love it, we decided to keep it rather than trade it in when the lease came up last year. We have leather seats which are easy to clean but I don't know how easy it would be to use with 4 kids unless the older ones are out of boosters as getting into the third row is tricky with lots of seats in and there would be no room for a pram with the third row up.

We have a pathfinder, can't say if it's the "best" as we have nothing to compare to but we like it. Biggest con would be it's hard to get into the 3rd row when both seats are up - climbing over seats is not the most elegant way for an adult to get in a car ;) Pros would be the 3rd row fold flat so it's got a massive boot space when those seats aren't being used, and there is still *some* boot space when the 3rd row of seats are up. Hubby was happy with the diesel usage over long trips.

I have a Honda MDX and I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with it. Its a beautiful car to drive, all the luxury stuff, very comfortable to drive in and there is a reasonable amount of room in the third row - enough that my kids would be fine in there for some years to come. Two of my SsIL have Klugers - one basically brand new and the other about 8 years old and the Honda has much more room in the third row than the Klugers do. They don't bring the MDX into Australia anymore though so it would be a second hand one.

HOWEVER, I can't use the third row at the moment because the anchor points are in the roof, so all three kids are across the second row back seat. Doing up seatbelts is a major pain in the whatsit. I had to get a hire car late last year and I got a Kia Carnival and yep, Nelle is spot on. I have serious envy of mums with Carnivals and similar because it is just so much easier getting everybody in and out, not worrying about my bigger girls opening doors into other cars in the carpark, and oh my goodness when its raining everybody just diving in and not getting drowned is brilliant. While nowhere near as luxurious as my car, it was still nice to drive, easy to park, and not so bad fuel economy for a car that takes lots of people

Agree with Nelle and LuluHB about the Carnival - pre 2006 dont buy. We love ours, no more taking two cars and good features :)

We went with the Mazda MPV. Mechanic said Toyota or Mazda, so I listened!!!

We love it, it has plenty PLENTY of room, each seat can individually be taken out if you want some extra space. All seats glide forward to back to ensure great leg room. Mechanically cheap to fix, plus they have a timing chain as opposed to a timing belt which means 100,000's more km's you can get on the clock. I find the space more then the toyota. And the car is much cheaper to buy.

We have a 5 seater outlander which is also a good car. I just found any of the cars with extra row of seats weren't as roomy as an actual people mover.

We own a 2012 ltd edition territory. $100 a f/n to fill my car is the family run around car so work daycare school shopping etc. Beautiful car.

Captiva is small & 3rd row pretty much sits up against the window. I also know someone who owned one (2012 model) & has had all sorts of issues. They are also made by daewoo (they went bankrupt in 2006 I think)

kluger I was horrified at. Cheap nasty rubbish(IMO)

Whatever you do, don't buy a 4cyl 4x4. It's pointless in my opinion. You want something with a bit of power.

Go check out the local yards, take them for a test drive.

Eta: cx9 chew ALOT of fuel

We have a cx-9. They do chew alot of fuel but the pros outweigh that con, we love it!

Any ideas on 7 seaters for four adults maybe five and two kids in seats? My parents want to become grey nomads for half the year (they actually live in England) and dad was asking about a seven seater for pulling a trailer tent idea of seven seats would be so we can join them for holidays etc or if they in Melbourne can all go in one car. I am just not sure how practical the idea is really or if better them getting whatever and accept having to take two cars - most times if local use public transport anyway. Fuel efficiency is important if you are grey nomads I think.

We have a dodge journey and LOVE it! It's stylish, comfy and fuel is good too. I like the room. We have rear sensors and a DVD player. I was just thinking before when I went up to the shop that I LOVE my car ;) it's like driving in a really comfy chair ;) we've had it for nearly 3 years.

I have a pajero. Lovely car to drive, heaps of room and the third row folds into the floor when not in use, anchors in both rows, reasonable room in the third row (I can sit there comfortably), good on fuel. BUT, there's stuff all boot space when the third row is up. No room for groceries or a pram easily (it does fit, but I have to take the wheels off and I have a compact pram).

In a couple of years when we look at a fourth, I will be looking at people movers. We won't trade the pajero in (we live in the desert - not having a 4WD isn't an option), but it won't be our primary car.

We have a captiva and love it. Granted we have not used it with 7 people in it, we have sat 1 of my brothers in 1 seat of the 3rd row and they have had to climb in and out thru the boot due to fact 2 car kids seats are in 2nd row, but sure will be great when older and not in seats anymore.

:

---

We have a cx-9. They do chew alot of fuel but the pros outweigh that con, we love it!

---

Totally agree. We love ours too! I don't find the fuel consumption that bad though.

Just adding, the biggest draw for us (with what will end up being 4 strapping boys!) with the cx-9 is that the back seats are adult sized. Not the weird small seats like most 7 seater SUVs have. We can comfortably fit two adults there easily. The seats also fold down completely flat. We do ALOT of travelling and it is just awesome, we can fit everything we need to in it easy peasy.

Its by far our most favourite car and we've previously owned a Tarago and a Kluger.

Taurean/Freya - how do you get people into the third row of the CX9? Does a seat in the middle row fold away, or do you have to climb over somehow? They look very pretty ;-)

We keep one slid forward and folded down (locked in).

:

---

Taurean/Freya - how do you get people into the third row of the CX9? Does a seat in the middle row fold away, or do you have to climb over somehow? They look very pretty ;-)

---

That's the only issue, the car seats make getting into the third row a little difficult. The entire second row slides easily BUT with the seatbelts threaded through the car seats it can't move. We haven't really tested how easy it is to unthread one seatbelt to see if it works but I suspect all car seats would need the seatbelts removed. I'll check it out later :D

At the moment if we have anyone traveling in the third row, they climb over the back. If its only one person, we keep one of the third row seats down. Totally agree with Freya about the size if the third row seats though, they're big and super comfy! Ours even have their own drink holders and are leather like the rest of the car. DH and my dad have travelled in there together very comfortably, lol.

With the Cx-9 for example - I assume they are like any car where you struggle to get two toddler seats and an adult in the front row?

Just had a quick look and totally forgot the second row also has a 60/40 split so you could unthread the seatbelt from the single car seat (the 40 split) and easily climb into the third row then just rethread the belt which isn't that difficult or time consuming I guess :)

:

---

With the Cx-9 for example - I assume they are like any car where you struggle to get two toddler seats and an adult in the front row?

---

Not really. My parents and inlaws and both DH and I have all travelled between the two car seats at different times and it's been fine. There isn't loads of room but it's not uncomfortable either. We've got a SNS Meridian and a Maxi Cosi Complete Air (both forward facing) and revelry had another decent sized forward facing car seat between them with DD1's friend traveling in it. No dramas at all. They are pretty roomy cars.

:

---

With the Cx-9 for example - I assume they are like any car where you struggle to get two toddler seats and an adult in the front row?

---

Nope! We've done it with some of Dh's strapping army mates lol when bub comes ds1 (adult belt booster) and ds4 (rear facing) will be in the middle row - ds1 in the middle seat and ds4 behind the driver so we can still slide the outside seat forward so the other two kids can get in the back. But I've got kids in adult belt boosters not a couple in 5 points so we can be a bit more flexible with seat placement etc.

We have had adults with two seats in the front row with the Santa Fe and also in the third row. There is room for adults its just with three or more seats in the car it gets tricky. It has anchor points in each row in the back of the seats though which is handy.

Hey everyone - I am writing an article about 7 seater (or more!) cars in Australia - if anyone can help, I have a few questions I would like to ask! Please email me: kelly@bellybelly.com.au!