Best Family Capable Rig?

[rking.1688]

While the Willys Truck is my starting point, one of these days I'm going to have to think about a family capable rig. My son is 9 months old now, and eventually one day we will be a family of four God willing. So, those of you with (young) kids, what is a good rig for the family to explore in?

 

[Barton Fink]

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[RaggedViking]

I've always been a pick up truck person, but once we had our first daughter I realized that even the biggest quad cab wouldn't do it for us - so I picked up a 4Runner and as long as Toyota keeps making them like this; I'll keep buying and building them. Our daughter is 3 now and we had a second who is 6 months and though we've got our camping / traveling gear organized to the point where I can load and unload the car in a few minutes, it's nice that everyone is comfortable. What's more - I can drive it everywhere. So we're safe, secure, and prepared for pretty much anything.

 

[Stoute]

I'd say for a family of 3-4 a 4Runner 3rd gen or newer are great family rigs. My family is only 3 and my daughter is 4 now. We bought an '07 Sequoia because of the full size with third row seats. While we as a family don't use the third row, we often take trips with our friends (a family of 4) and we can all fit in one rig. So now we don't need to take two vehicles we can just take one. But if we can't have any more kiddos now that our friends also bought a Sequoia, we might think of getting a 4th gen or 5th gen 4Runner down the road.

 

[Lifestyle Overland]

Nothing but love for the 4Runner platform, no matter the year. It has enough space for 2 kids comfortably and 3 (small) kids if needed. The solid roof makes installing a roof rack very easy, which is pretty much a necessity with 3+ people in the rig.
That's just my opinion though, there are a lot of other factors to consider like; How long of a trip would you like to take? How important is gas milage? Is this a daily driver? What is your budget? What type of trails do you want to be capable of traveling? Etc.
There are lots of capable platforms out there, but knowing your game plan will help tailor that to your needs.

 

[Scott]

I'm gonna go off base here for a minute. My rig is a dodge ram 2500 4 door long bed.. While it's not always easy to manuever, I've always gotten where I needed to go.. With the cvt mt. Denali rtt that holds 5 to 6 people, and a large interior and a truck bed to store gear, I find it works great for me and my family of four. Takes me 15 minutes to set up camp...

 

[Egan]

I have three kids, although two of them are no longer at home. My oldest daughter lives in San Diego and my son is at college at Humboldt State. He is football player 6'4" 300lbs and is comfortable in the backseat. They do get home several times a year so we can explore together. When they were all at home, we bought an 03 Excursion, It has plenty of room for people and gear, it is never an issue. I know most people think they are too big, but I have never had an issue getting to places we want to go. It is very capable on the trail, my only issue is the width which has left the paint with plenty of brush marks.

 

[Scott]

I have three kids, although two of them are no longer at home. My oldest daughter lives in San Diego and my son is at college at Humboldt State. He is football player 6'4" 300lbs and is comfortable in the backseat. They do get home several times a year so we can explore together. When they were all at home, we bought an 03 Excursion, It has plenty of room for people and gear, it is never an issue. I know most people think they are too big, but I have never had an issue getting to places we want to go. It is very capable on the trail, my only issue is the width which has left the paint with plenty of brush marks.

Yeah the only down side I have found is width.. After my first trip out, I quickly realized brush scratches were just going to happen and I stopped caring.

 

[Billy "Poserlander" Badly]

I'm facing the same issue as well. When it was just my wife and I + our 2 dogs, we packed out the Xterra completely. Now, we have to account for a car seat as well... I'll probably upgrade the roof rack in the near term, so I can put more up there, but long term, I'm thinking trailer. I like the idea of a having a trailer pre-loaded and ready to roll, for last minute trips and whatnot. Just hook up and go!

If I was starting fresh though, I'd probably look pretty hard at a 4 door pickup like @Scott up there. Ample passenger room plus tons of storage, and the truck bed makes it extra versatile for other uses (like helping your friends move!)

 

[Scott]

I will say when I started doing more camping and overlanding I used my truck because it was what I had and it was paid for. Now that it's been a few years I wouldn't do anything different and I'd start with a full size truck from the get go.

 

[Egan]

I would not change anything either, I was talking about selling the Excursion about a year ago and was quickly talked out of it by the kids. I do not know what I was thinking i really do not want to drive anything else. I did not mention that in addition to the three kids I have three bullmastiff, about 400lbs of dog. They do not go every trip but when they do go they take some space. The female is a Princess and doesn't like the outdoors, so most of the time she stays home.

 

[RaggedViking]

Dogs add a whole other level of complexity - but if they're into it - it's well worth it. We had to stop taking our big guy out with us a couple of years ago - as he was just too old and wasn't enjoying the ride anymore. But I took our new puppy out for a quick off-roading adventure this weekend and she was happy as a clam.

 

[The other Sean]

To add to the topic, anytime someone uses the word "Family" I always put budget right on top of the list. Having fun is one thing, but Mortgages need to be paid, Mouths fed and persons clothed. So, sometimes the vehicle you can afford is the best vehicle. Growing up We camped many a time using my dads 2WD Toyota pickup and many many miles were put under a minivan. Ideal vehicles? no. Practical for the other 360-some days of the year? yes.

My wife tells me of many a road trip / camping trip back in Communist Poland with the entire family packed in to a Fiat.

 

[RaggedViking]

To add to the topic, anytime someone uses the word "Family" I always put budget right on top of the list. Having fun is one thing, but Mortgages need to be paid, Mouths fed and persons clothed. So, sometimes the vehicle you can afford is the best vehicle. Growing up We camped many a time using my dads 2WD Toyota pickup and many many miles were put under a minivan. Ideal vehicles? no. Practical for the other 360-some days of the year? yes.

My wife tells me of many a road trip / camping trip back in Communist Poland with the entire family packed in to a Fiat.

Well said, I couldn't agree more.
We used to take my inlaws Minivan because it had a hitch.
No ground clearance, what so ever, but I digress.

 

[The other Sean]

Well said, I couldn't agree more.
We used to take my inlaws Minivan because it had a hitch.
No ground clearance, what so ever, but I digress.

And listening to my wife tell childhood stories of packing People in an old Fiat clown car style, road tripping to the Baltic Sea in Communist Poland are quite amazing.

 

[RaggedViking]

And listening to my wife tell childhood stories of packing People in an old Fiat clown car style, road tripping to the Baltic Sea in Communist Poland are quite amazing.

That has to be bot intense and awesome.

 

[The other Sean]

Most of her stories about Poland both before and after the fall of Communism are pretty epic.

 

[Raul B]

For the most part we have always camped with trucks but I did have a diesel excursion at one point and do miss it. It had soo much room for gear and people. I always contemplate getting a other one.

 

[Lindenwood]

We chose the 4Runner because we have 3 dogs and are looking at kids within the next several years. The two larger dogs ride in cargo area and the smaller one rides on a little padded throne in the back seat. We are actually heading out this weekend with 2 friends. It will be a tight fit with 4 adults and 4 dogs plus gear up top, but its actually a short trip haha.

 

[Teague]

I'm surprised some of the subaru guys haven't spoken up. I figured it would be mostly subarus and mid sized suvs, but it's a nice mix of full sized vehicles.