Parents Gym car

[flipster]

Gym parents, what car would you recommend for long commutes? I am willing to drive anything that is reliable and comfortable. I would love to have comfortable driver seat and smooth enough drive, so gymmies can read and do homework, or sleep.
This may be an interesting discussion topic.

 

[Musicmama]

Our drive to the gym isn't too long, but I usually get between 50 and 70 MPG in a Prius going to meets. I'm pretty happy with that - any way to save money! It's comfortable and reliable too. It took me a little while to get over the fact that I'd never particularly wanted to be a Prius driver (I blame South Park), but I quite like it now that we've had it for 2.5 years.

It's extremely smooth. The smoothest car I've driven.

 

[beachgirl]

I haven't driven one, but because of the commute to gym I have decided that my next car will be a Chevy Volt. I've always stuck with Honda or Toyota, but the Volt gets great reviews.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

Love my Honda CRV, it has enough space to be comfortable and makes it good for travel to meets, etc but also doesn't guzzle gas as badly as something bigger.

 

[duyetanh]

We are truck peeps. Love 'em. But they get horrible gas mileage. Sooo comfy though....we drive most far away meets, and don't feel like we drove far when we step out of the car....

 

[Madden3]

Honda CRV. Best car ever. We have managed to fit everything needed for family of 5 camping for a week in the thing (plus the family of 5.)

Handles beautifully, very reliable. We bought ours new when DS 2 was a newborn and we are about to celebrate both of their 10th birthdays.

 

[dancemom]

I love my Prius. I drive it whenever possible. Only issue is that I need AWD to get to many meets due to snow. So we have a back-up car for winter weather. I'd love an electric car, but would never be able to get to meets on one charge.

 

[kitkat]

We have a Honda CRV as well. Its comfortable, haven't done any real long trips in it yet. Just got it 3200 KM ago. Appears to be good on gas.
How far are you commuting?

 

[claudidoll]

We love our Honda Pilot

 

[rosiekat]

I'll be a minor dissenter on the CRV, with the disclaimer that mine is long gone and was a 2001 (?) model so things may well have changed. It was nice space-wise, a little more room than the average sedan but not huge. My main complaint with it for travel was that I did not find the driver's seat very comfortable, and I found that the cab was not well-insulated against noise. As soon as I'd hit the highway, it was LOUD inside. I didn't dislike it, but it wouldn't be my first choice for what you're looking for. Obviously, pun intended, your mileage may vary.

I currently drive a Toyota Highlander, and greatly prefer the comfort and ride. However, I only average about 20.x mpg with it. They do have hybrid models, which we tried to get but at the time the batteries weren't widely available (after the Japanese tsunami) and the waitlist was 2 years long. I would rebuy it again, though, assuming I still needed the space and therefore a large vehicle.

I've only been a passenger in a Prius, but I did find it pretty comfortable and quiet. Mileage, of course, is good. I know there is also a hybrid Camry now - I don't know about their track record as hybrids, though we used to have a regular one and liked it. It's a little larger for a sedan, and the hybrid feature would be something I personally would like for the long drives, both for gas mileage and for quietness. On our old one, the driver's seat didn't fit me too well, but it's nothing a rolled up towel didn't fix. (I wasn't the primary driver, so no big deal for me.)

 

[BachFlyer]

Another vote for Honda here! I am on my 2nd Civic because the CRV was out of budget, but I have test driven the CRV and it is my dream car for gym and life. Not to big, not too small, a little higher off of the road for safety, handles well, and most importantly you can't beat the MPG. My new 2015 is much improved over my 2008 in the way of comfort and noise level, and features.

 

[momto2js]

I have a Ford cmax. It is a great car. Almost the size of a crv, but 42MPG.

 

[bogwoppit]

Love my Mini.

 

[AmarisDad]

Full size suv with modifications for better gas mileage couldn't be happier. Plenty of room for kids and friends if they need a carpool to practice or comp.

 

[Iwannabemargo]

Love my Mini.

Yes but Bog, cars are a different kettle of fish here. Firstly you could never park any of those monster vehicles and secondly with fuel at £1.10 / l ( $6.09 / US Gallon), fuel economy is paramount. We have a citroen C3 Picasso which average 50 mpg locally and 60 on the motorway, looking to get a Citroen C Crosser ( like a Mitsubishi Outlander but Citroen engine) when we sell the works van as we need to tow.

 

[bogwoppit]

Yes but Bog, cars are a different kettle of fish here. Firstly you could never park any of those monster vehicles and secondly with fuel at £1.10 / l ( $6.09 / US Gallon), fuel economy is paramount. We have a citroen C3 Picasso which average 50 mpg locally and 60 on the motorway, looking to get a Citroen C Crosser ( like a Mitsubishi Outlander but Citroen engine) when we sell the works van as we need to tow.

A mini is hardly a monster vehicle!

 

[Iwannabemargo]

A mini is hardly a monster vehicle!

I know, I was talking about trucks and the like. You have been tainted with Britishness !

 

[CCGymbug]

I used to upgrade my car every 2-4 years. I bought my Honda Pilot in 2004 new and I have 165,000 miles. Currently hoping for at least 2 more years. It has been very reliable with minimal upkeep. We live in the northeast and I need a 4 wheel drive. Not to mention I can haul 5-6 kids in the back. It does love gas....but otherwise it will most likely be my next vehicle as well.

 

[bogwoppit]

I think because gas is very cheap in the US, compared to the UK or Canada, really does change the types of cars people choose to drive for commuting. Also car prices are massively cheaper there too.

 

[gymmomx2]

I have a Ford cmax. It is a great car. Almost the size of a crv, but 42MPG.

Another Cmax owner here, the plug-in version. Before moving DS to a gym 45 mins away, we used to get 1800km on a single tank (45L tank) because most of our driving was on electricity, in the city. Now with the added commute, we get around 1200km per tank. Still great!

We test drove the Prius and very much wanted to love it but we didn't like the driving experience, it felt kind of like driving a boat, very unresponsive. . The CMax feels more like driving a "real" car to me, if that makes any sense. Having a plug in hybrid has saved us thousands in gas ever year, we keep saying our next car will be a Tesla but not until we stop paying for gym HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!