2010 Best Vehicles for Families

The year 2009 is over halfway through and the assembly for many 2010 car models has been completed. There are many wonderful vehicles to choose from. This article focuses on the best models for families. Whether you have a small family or a large family, it is important to have a vehicle that will provide the utmost comfort, affordability, and safety. The following is a list of the best cars for families. Factors such as fuel economy, size, safety, and affordability were taken into consideration.

1. 2010 Honda Odyssey

The Honda Odyssey is the perfect minivan for a large family. The minivan has enough seating for 8 passengers. It has some wonderful features including satellite linked navigation, DVD entertainment center in the rear, and a lot of storage space. With the DVD entertainment center, children will be entertained during a long drive. The Honda Odyssey is a great pick for safety reasons considering it has an antilock breaking system, Vehicle Stability Assist with traction control, and three-row side curtain airbags. The Honda Odyssey is one of the more fuel economical minivans with 20 MPG for city driving and 25 MPG for highway driving. Prices range anywhere from $30,200 to $34,000. The Honda Odyssey also has ample storage and passenger seating, something that is very important for families.

2. Chevrolet 2010 Equinox

This Chevy is perfect for a large family. It has many wonderful safety features including Auto Crash Notify, a side airbag in the front, a tire pressure monitor, trunk release, electronic stability control, daytime running lights, and more. The interior is comfortable and stylish. There is a lot of room between seats and there is ample legroom. One of the rear bench seats can slide eight inches to allow more room for passengers or cargo. There is enough room in this vehicle to put a weekends worth of luggage for a family of four. The Equinox gets decent gas mileage at 19 MPG in the city and 25 MPG on the highway. The Equinox prices range between $22,440 and $29, 795.

3. 2010 Toyota Camry

The 2010 Toyota Camry has a number of safety features and is perfect for a small family with a desire for an economical car. This vehicle is a 4-cylinder with a pretty good fuel economy. As a matter of fact, it gets 22 MPG for city driving and 33 MPG for highway driving. This is a gas/electric hybrid. Safety features include an antilock breaking system, traction control, antiskid system, front side airbags, and a driver knee airbag. Speaking of Safety, the Camry received a five star rating in 4 out of 5 categories. Prices for the Toyota Camry run between $19,395 and can go up to almost $30,000.

4. 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan

The 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan is the first choice on the list. It is a perfect family vehicle and is a safe one at that. As a matter of fact, all of its safety ratings categories were no lower than a 4 on a 1-5 scale. While the fuel economy is not as good as it could be (11 MPG city and 16 MPG highway), the safety features make up for it. Prices range from $22,800 to $28,735. There is a lot of room for seating in the back and there is ample room in the back for luggage and other items.

5. 2010 Buick LaCrosse

The 2010 Buick Century is a very reliable car for a small family. Buicks have been around for many years and have always been rather high quality. As a matter of fact, my family had a 1987 Buick Century which lasted for 20 years and got up to 250,000 miles before it died. It went on numerous family trips and went across the country two times. There are three cars in the Buick family. The LaCrosse has some great safety features and has ample room and a lot of comfort. The LaCrosse runs between $27,000 and $28,000. Depending on the type of LaCrosse, the fuel economy is between 16 MPG for city travel and 27 MPG for highway travel.

Sources:

Automotive.com, http://www.automotive.com/2010/09/dodge/grand-caravan/index.html

MotorTrend Magazine, http://www.motortrend.com/new_cars/04/dodge/caravan/index.html

CarsExtreme.com, http://www.carsextreme.com/Honda-Odyssey.html

Iguida.com, http://iguida.com/2010-honda-odyssey

Automobile Magazine, http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews/driven/0906_2010_chevrolet_equinox/index.html

CarsExtreme.com, http://www.carsextreme.com/chevrolet-equinox2.html

Toyota.com, http://www.toyota.com/camry/

Internet Auto Guide.com, http://www.internetautoguide.com/crash-tests/09-int/2010/toyota/camry/index.html

Consumer Guide Automotive, http://consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com/2010-toyota-camry.htm

Buick.com, http://www.buick.com/vehicles/2010/lacrosse/overview.do