Parents Considering a New Car Purchase

Since Bill was born, we have been considering a new car. We are avoiding the rush to buy one, thinking it best to wait until Steph goes back to work. Plus we are both similar in temperament, often choosing to delay purchases just to see if we can talk ourselves out of it. The prices aren't going up as we wait, and we like to first figure out what we want.

Currently, we have a 6 year old Toyota Corolla and a 12 year old Toyota Tacoma. This configuration has served us well for the last few years. We have the truck for getaways to the mountains and the car for commuting. This last year, we got to use the truck quite a bit to drive gravel logging roads and 4x4 in the mountains and on snow. We value having a vehicle that lets us get to beautiful places. But at the same time, we don't really want to put a bunch of miles on it driving around town or on long highway trips. That is to say we value reducing our fuel consumption.

The Corolla is great. It is a simple, very reliable car that gets 40 mpg on the highway. It is a perfect, inexpensive commute and highway car. We enjoy how simple it is. The car seat works great in the back of the Corolla, but is unusable in the truck. It is a bit cramped when we take the car to the park for a walk with the dog. Dog in front seat, parent in back with baby. It would be great to have an area to isolate the dog away from the baby, somewhere he can be a dirty dog without making a dirty automobile.

To put it simply:
The new vehicle will need good car seat handling, safe space for the dog, and the ability to drive on snow and gravel without much concern. It needs to replace the truck.

We kinda like being a Toyota family, but they aren't the leading candidate at this point.

1. Subaru Forrester - moderate price, good visibility and clearance, suv fuel economy
2. Subaru Outback -Subaru Forrester - moderate price, good visibility and clearance, suv fuel economy, AWD. Daddy likes the looks of the Outback, and was surprised that the price of the low end model is the same as the Forrester. Disappointed in the fuel economy.
3. Toyota Highlander Hybrid - Better gas mileage, good visibility, It's a Toyota, 4x4. Fairly expensive, but the reviews I've read liked it.
   
4. Honda CR-V. SUV gas mileage, ugh. Pretty much a city SUV in the price range. Honda's and Toyota's tend to have the highest resale values, meaning quality. 100,000 miles before any scheduled maintenance is not bad either.
5. Ford Escape Hybrid - Comparing SUV's and sport wagons online, it is impossible to miss the Escape. Overall, I'm not a fan of Ford. The Big Three auto-makers seem to do everything they can to thwart attempts to increase mpg and make greener transportation; not to mention a poor record for maintainability. But when you look at the numbers, you gotta be impressed with the mileage that the Escape Hybrid gets. The $28,000 base MSRP is a little high for our target but significantly less than the Highlander and probably better for rougher roads. I wish I liked the "bold new styling" better, but can't say that I do.
   

As it is, a new car should make life easier this next year. We are crammed into the Corolla, and the truck is basically unusable for any trip with the baby.