Best 7/8 Passenger Used Vehicle Under $30K

[spike98]

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Wife likes our Expedition Max Limited, except for it being a boat to park

They're hard to find with the middle row bench seat though as usually the max limiteds and max platinums came with captains chairs

I don't know if you'll find an Ecoboost aged one in the 30k price range and if gas mileage really is a consideration then the V8 is a no-no (i think we've been averaging about 19-20l/100km) but since she doesn't drive much it's not bothering us

Captains chairs works well for little kids as they can get to the back through the space. Then you aren't messing around with tilting or folding seats forward to get back there.

[Buster]

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Is that the Atlas? thats actually a decent trunk with the seats up. My bro has an escalade non ESV and with the 3rd row up there is enough room in the trunk for a couple back packs

Crossovers have much better packaging for interior space than body on frame SUVs. The rear seats in the Atlas are actually quite comfortable.

[ThePenIsMightier]

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Crossovers have much better packaging for interior space than body on frame SUVs. The rear seats in the Atlas are actually quite comfortable.

Agreed, but exceptions to this would be the Lexus Land Cruiser variants. (GX and LX).

Oh no! Now there are Japanese Variants!!
Quick! Alert the meedjia!

[haggis88]

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Captains chairs works well for little kids as they can get to the back through the space. Then you aren't messing around with tilting or folding seats forward to get back there.

True, although I was very surprised at how easy the Expedition seat folded forward...literally lift the handle lightly and it snaps forward.

It's a pain in the butt to get flat flat like the rears though if you want the cargo space, which is weird

[03ozwhip]

Acura mdx?

[Rocket1k78]

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Wife likes our Expedition Max Limited, except for it being a boat to park

I love the new expeditions but man those would be a beast to DD.

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Crossovers have much better packaging for interior space than body on frame SUVs. The rear seats in the Atlas are actually quite comfortable.

Yeah definitely very surprised with the trunk space with 3rd up. Looks almost the same as a standard 2 row trunk space wise.

[C4S]

Odyssey first choice ..

Siennia .. but they are hard to come by, and most the new one was sold and exported!

I am not going to suggest 7/8 seat SUV, I know people love them, and pay for one ..but if someone wants to fit 6-7-8 people in a vehicle all the time, get a Mini Van ..

[ercchry]

Disappointed... answer is always wagon

E-class w/rear facing jump seat

[you&me]

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Odyssey first choice ..

Siennia .. but they are hard to come by, and most the new one was sold and exported!

I am not going to suggest 7/8 seat SUV, I know people love them, and pay for one ..but if someone wants to fit 6-7-8 people in a vehicle all the time, get a Mini Van ..

As someone who's constantly fitting 6-7-8 people in a vehicle all the time, I disagree strongly.

We're essentially a household of 7 (4 kids + MIL). We mostly had MB GL/GLS' through 3 kids, but the 3rd row access sucks, there's no practical storage behind when the seats are up and as Buster mentioned, there's something that makes them feel less durable than the domestics.

When we found out I slipped #4 past the goalie, we resigned ourselves to minivan life... Ended up test driving the Pacifica and Odyssey and basically decided on the then-new Pacifica. Somewhat conveniently, we'd planned a 3 week trip to cottage country in ON and decided that would be the ultimate way to test out a new car, so we rented a Pacifica. As it tends to happen, the rental shop at the airport didn't have a Pacifica (or any van), so they offered us the last-gen Expedition Max... We begrudgingly accepted and proceeded to load up 3 weeks worth of crap for 3 adults (MIL came too) and 3 young kids... Fit like a dream and we were almost all set when the rental co called to let us know a Pacifica had been returned and since we'd made a bit of a stink when they originally told us it wasn't available, they wanted to let us know... Since we really wanted to try out the minivan in the real world, we accepted and started to swap our enormous amount of crap out of the Expedition and into the Pacifica.

Shit. Would. Not. Fit.

So, it was back into the Expedition and off we went, with plenty of room. The moral of the story is to make sure you assess real life applications. A Minivan is a great option, but the true practicality can be limited depending on the lifestage of your family, i.e. baby gear will eat up a lot of the room behind the third row. Hockey gear for older kids would do the same... Sometimes, bigger truly is better.

[cidley69]

Went and test drove a 2016 Honda Pilot and a 2017 Toyota Highlander yesterday. Wife preferred Highlander, as more "car" like ride and driving feel, although not as much cargo space as a larger SUV, we're good with the trade off to have smaller profile, and better fuel economy. Now on the quest to find a unicorn that checks all boxes (AWD, leather, 2017+, <90K km, light color, <$30K).

[ExtraSlow]

Highlander is a decent choice. One of the better "family" SUVs. Almost as good as a minivan.

[dj_rice]

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Went and test drove a 2016 Honda Pilot and a 2017 Toyota Highlander yesterday. Wife preferred Highlander, as more "car" like ride and driving feel, although not as much cargo space as a larger SUV, we're good with the trade off to have smaller profile, and better fuel economy. Now on the quest to find a unicorn that checks all boxes (AWD, leather, 2017+, <90K km, light color, <$30K).

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/...o-fees/m377139

[cidley69]

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https://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/...o-fees/m377139

That is damn near perfect, but no leather seats. Leather is high on wish list as our midgets are messy, like the durability/cleanability leather provides.

Any opinions on how much "haggle" room dealers have in their listed price? The second dealer we went to quickly said they will drop the $899 licensing fee. We didn't even start talking about price and they offered that up.

If price listed as $32,990 + gst + license fees, how much would be realistic for dealer to drop price, if at all?

[ThePenIsMightier]

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That is damn near perfect, but no leather seats. Leather is high on wish list as our midgets are messy, like the durability/cleanability leather provides.

Any opinions on how much "haggle" room dealers have in their listed price? The second dealer we went to quickly said they will drop the $899 licensing fee. We didn't even start talking about price and they offered that up.

If price listed as $32,990 + gst + license fees, how much would be realistic for dealer to drop price, if at all?

It totally depends on the dealer, I think.
Some show inflated prices so they can "slash" them way down to make people feel like they got a good deal. Others don't.

[ExtraSlow]

Walk in, without your wife, offer a fair price, and if they don't accept it, leave.
Or ask to make a telephone appointment, without your wife, and try the same thing but most car dealers are stuck in the stone age and don't understand anything except face to face dealing.

[Buster]

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That is damn near perfect, but no leather seats. Leather is high on wish list as our midgets are messy, like the durability/cleanability leather provides.

Any opinions on how much "haggle" room dealers have in their listed price? The second dealer we went to quickly said they will drop the $899 licensing fee. We didn't even start talking about price and they offered that up.

If price listed as $32,990 + gst + license fees, how much would be realistic for dealer to drop price, if at all?

Average similar models on AT, then chop about 10% or so to get to wholesale price. This is pretty rough, but that's how I do it when I'm just glancing through.

[msommers]

Used 4Runner?

[killramos]

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Walk in, without your wife, offer a fair price, and if they don't accept it, leave.
Or ask to make a telephone appointment, without your wife, and try the same thing but most car dealers are stuck in the stone age and don't understand anything except face to face dealing.

They aren’t stuck. They know pressuring people in person works.

[jutes]

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, as more "car" like ride and driving feel,

Body on frame is the only way to go. Suburban, Yukon, Armada, Sequoia etc are the only true SUVs left. We couldn't stand the car-like SUVs, but see how they appeal to the masses who largely stay in city proper.

A Blackwing Escalade is rumoured....

[Buster]

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Walk in, without your wife, offer a fair price, and if they don't accept it, leave.
Or ask to make a telephone appointment, without your wife, and try the same thing but most car dealers are stuck in the stone age and don't understand anything except face to face dealing.

Canadian car dealers have come a long way in the last few years. Many more of them are willing to work via email. I exclusively work via email. I'll allow a phone conversation if it is to sort out details on something we already have underway.