About 3 weeks after I got my MINI, my wife informed me that we are expecting another child. I'm very excited about the child, but I quickly realized the MINI is not conducive to a rear-facing car seat. So I'll likely be going from a MINI to a Mini-van .

Does anyone know if they make coil-overs for a Toyota or Honda Minivan?

I'll post a for sale ad in the proper section, but my car has only 4900 miles on it and has only seen rain once. It isn't my daily driver. If you want a virtually new car without the wait or price of a new one - PM me and I can send some photos.....

 

You don't need a minivan! See my gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/coolminis/ We are a very happy 2 MINI family. We have a 17 month old toddler boy. Ever since he came home from the hospital, all he is ever ridden in are MINIs! There you'll see pics of my '05 R53 S and our new '08 R55 Clubman S. The perfect family cars! let me know if you have any questions. MINI + BABY = FAMILY FUN!

 

The Britax Roundabout car seat you see in my R53 S can be installed rear facing with no penalty for front passenger legroom at all! I'll give you some tips for adjusting your MINI to baby lifestyle! Is fun! Don't sell your MINI! You'll regret it!

 

for real man, youll regret it big time. and why do you need a minivan for one child? you could at least get a family sedan, anything but a minivan or an suv. mazda 6s are reasonably sporty (for what they are) and would have plenty of room. ANYTHING BUT A MINIVAN!!

 

Do you really want a car with a V6 engine, when $4 per gallon gas is just around the corner?

 

Thanks for the replies. I actually work for Britax - so I am familiar with the entire product line. My issue is more with me getting two kids rear-facing buckled in properly. I'm tall. My wife has a bulging disc in her back and so to get contorted in the position of securing two children rear-facing would be difficult - it's difficult in any 2 door vehicle - this isn't specific to the MINI. You have to imagine lifting the child over the back of the car seat - between the cieling of the car and the top of the seat. I typically use Boulevard seats, but Diplomats would be the best choice for this size car (if there were only one child!) Fitting a stroller and all the !@#$ that my wife "needs" to take would also be a challenge.

I agree with you guys that I'll miss the car dearly...and I'm not looking forward to the gas mileage penalty at all - I drive 75miles/day minimum to and from work! I'm sure I'll get back into a MINI when both kids are forward facing. As far as the selection of vans over sedans, thats a personal preference my wife has made....I figure I'll let her pick this vehicle out and I'll pickout the next one - no worries.

 

Here is a taught..... Why don't you take a closer look at the Clubman S? Same car as you have now, but better ride quality and wayy more comfortable out in the back, not to mention a better sized trunk (About double the size of the standard MINI). Having that extra Clubdoor, really helps IMHO. So you work for Britax? Great product! I love your car seats. However, I am having a little annoying issue with the new Britax Boulevard I have in the Clubman and maybe you can help me sort it out. I'll send you a PM shortly.

 

Load the baby from the trunk. That's what we did when my boy was still riding rear facing. We opened the hatch, lower the left rear seatback and plucked him into his Britax Roundabout seat. No problems for the first year we did this and it is actually easier than going sideways to place the baby in a regular 4 door car. I loved the look of people when the "cruel" parents where putting their baby from the rear. It was funny!

 

Don't mean to sound heretical, but the new Scion Xbox is pretty cool, and tons of room inside. Plus lots of opportunities for "youification"

Just sayin......

 

Here's a minivan for you:

 

When we had two young children, we had a Honda mini van. It was a great car for that stage of our lives. It may not be as fun to drive, but it will make daily child related activities much easier.

After 5 years we traded in for a Volvo XC90, and still got 11k on trade in. Not bad for being a vomit receptacle.

 

I Nismo catalog with a full line of performance and aero parts for the Nissan vans... and they do make coilovers for the honda's and toyota's (obviously not Nismo, though).

I add another suggestion of the Clubman for comprimise.

 

Got my second on the way and this has been on my mind as well (not the minivan part). I have long legs and find it very uncomfortable with my 4 year old behind the driver seat (he has long legs two). Have to see how our rear facing fits behind my seat. (We currently have a graco). Getting the kiddo in and out doesn't worry me - I just put the top down Been considering the clubman but don't know how much extra backseat room it really gives (heard it was minimal).

BTW hope you don't mind a carbio driver butting into R56 land

 

Yeah - a cabrio would be helpful for getting the kid(s) in and out when rear facing! It'd almost be easier to put the kids in through the rear hatch

I heard the clubman has an extra 3-4 inches of rear leg room.

 

The extra few inches legroom in the Clubman do make a huge difference and so does the Clubdoor. Also the Clubman has about 2-3 inches more shoulder room than the cabrio in the rear.

 

How long do you think they'll be in a rear facing car seat? You'll regret it and it'll be another 5 or 6 years before you actually get another Mini. You'll keep hitting your head and questioned why you did it. I take my 7 year old daughter and my 6 year old niece to all the cooper events. You will too.

Why not keep the Mini and get a second vehicle that's 4 or 5 years older?

 

I would just buy a Clubman S if I were you

 

Odyssey. All the way. My wife drives one. Gets better mileage than my MCS. On the highway it runs on 3 of the 6cy. Tows my pop-up trailer like it's not even there.

BTW it's fast and fun to drive. Get the Honda...& keep the Mini.

 

Best choice would be a Clubman, I think. Or go ahead and get a minivan--for your wife! If you're commuting that much, you'll really get hurt by the rising gas prices if you sell your MINI. Don't think $4.00 a gallon is the ceiling!

Here's a question for all of you--can you think of a car or minivan or whatever that can carry a baby--put in the carseat by a disabled person in a wheelchair? I'm thinking of my daughter here. Her arm strength is great, but there's nothing below the waist. BTW, she drives a MINI convertible--takes the wheels off her chair, and chucks the rest of it in the back seat (it doesn't fold). She's got it down pat. They are thinking of having a baby, but this sort of thing is a major sticking point right now.

 

Here's your Van with coilovers:

 

We rented a Mazda5 while in Hawaii. It was small and very much a car, yet holds 5 people with ease and has mini-van doors on both sides. We took it up from 0' elevation to 4500' and, while it was no barn-burner, it had adequate power. Actually, I think it had a 3rd row of seats, which we kept folded, but not certain.

 

No problems with babies in the MINI here...

I used a rear facing infant car seat from a Evenflo Travel system for 8 months with no issues. It was REALLY easy to snap it into the base in the car once I got the flick of the wrist right. Usually took less than 10 seconds.

I also think my daughter holds the unique position of being the youngest registered NAM member to slay the dragon (albeit as a passenger). She was only 4 months old!

If you are looking for a different vehicle, my wife has a Honda Element that she really likes. It gets decent milage, the suicide doors make it easy to get children in and out, and there's a great web community too!

 

I'm not sure that a Honda Fit qualifies as a van.

 

The Fit is Go!

 

After my wife blew the engine in our Mazda MPV a year ago, we bought a new Toyota Sienna. There's a ridiculous amount of room in there and the engine is as smooth as butter. We do need the room so I can't complain about our less than MINI-van and it's certainly better than an SUV. Do get the optional 17" wheels though - it makes a huge difference in handling (using that term loosely).