[edgemar]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

In that case I retract many of my recommendations. From my perspective (kids 3/6/9) for a family car you need to go try out your choices with the God-forsaken rear facing removable child seat that the kiddo will be riding in. Reasons:

You will be amazed how heavy the little bundle of joy is once you strap him/her into the big heavy car seat. And they only get heavier.

Big heavy car seat needs a big door that opens wide to get it through or you'll be cursing daily as you maneuver it in.

Recommended safe location is rear middle. In a smaller car that means you'll be maneuvering it in sideways then rotating it to latch into the base, i.e. leaning in with your arms straight out then rotating 90 deg, all while trying to be smooth and steady to avoid waking the kid. Oh yeah, and if your car is low you'll be doing that all while bending over at the waist.

Smaller back seat + baby seat = no room for anyone else. It also could mean that you drive with your seat forward to allow the seat to fit.

As much as I hate to say it, there's a reason why SUVs are so popular with families. It is SO nice to not have to bend over while maneuvering a baby seat into the back. Especially since you will be probably doing it multiple times per day. Also, with it being your wife's car, I would rule out anything that is older and European. Do you really want your wife and newborn broken down because you wanted a "fun" family car? There are a ton of good Japanese midsize SUV choices in the under $20k range, I would (and did) go that route. We had a 2003 4Runner with kids 1-2, then a Nissan Armada when kid 3 came. There was a Cadillac SRX and Mazda MPV in there as well, which were respectively too small and a minivan (which my wife hated). Now our family car is a 2012 F150. I would look at:

Honda Pilot
Toyota Rav4
Toyota 4Runner
Acura MDX
Mazda CX7/9 - my personal favorite, I'll probably be buying a CX9 soon
Nissan Murano
Lexus RX

All are good SUVs that can be had for under $20k used.

Thx for the good info.

for the mazda cx-7/9 are you recommending new or used?