BuyinganNVP

There are so many used Transits on the market, and I've found a few for others to buy. I am jealous of their storage space and better window visibility, but on the other hand, they can't open the side window, rumor has it that driving it on the mountains was not stable and quite noisy whereas our NVP was a breeze. Still unclear about the back row in the Transit; I know in the 15 passenger version you can't remove the middle backrow seats, not sure about in the 12 passenger. I've gotten over my jealousy ;) ETA: Also our brakes work faster it seems, which is a lifesaver IMO

I have a V6 and didn't actually calculate MPG, but it's not as bad as I would have thought. We fill it up once when taking it on an 8 hour/500+ mile trip, probably at around 350 miles loaded with a family of 9 and all our stuff. I don't drive it that much in the city to make calculating worth my while (put it this way, we have put 3K miles on it now, including 200+ from the dealer, 400 or so from lending to a friend, and 2000 from 2 of our 500 mile trips both ways, so around 400 miles in city traffic over 1 year; we bought it last August!)

That's very cool! My base model NVP doesn't have a console, though, and our cupholders are usually used for one drink and one charging station (for multiple devices) :( (I completely forgot I posted this, I started a new job that week and my mind has been all over the place...but long trip coming up soon, and it would be nice if I could figure out a workable solution.)

Am I the only one with this issue? I don't have the nav package, so I rely on my phone to be my GPS. I first mounted a suction cup on my windshield, but it interfered with visibility (could be because we're short?!) The dashboard slopes so much downward, I can't find a place to put one there. Right now, I've been sliding my phone into the thin slot and just not seeing it, hoping I'll hear the directions, but I'd really like to find the right location to have my phone visible for easy viewing of the map/directions.

I posted in the other thread, but built in lockoffs are the bomb, and honestly the seatbelts are designed that if pulled out all the way and slowly, slowly released, they will automatically lock. Diono Radians are notoriously hard for installs, but I installed mine easily with a seatbelt in this van! My infant seat has a built in lockoff which is awesome and my Britax (pre-click tight) convertible did great too with the ALR system.

Depending on what else you have, I found being able to put my baby in the first seat I can reach (behind the passenger) to be most convenient for when I don't need others climbing into that row. And when I do, it fits on the floor next to the middle row so my baby isn't outside while waiting for others to scramble in, and then I can just click it into the base when I am ready. I keep the passenger seat folded for more ease of access to the row behind the front. Good luck! (Oh, and if you're car seat shopping for an infant seat and don't plan on using the middle seat, look for built in lockoffs on the base since there is no LATCH on the side seats.)

Honestly, I think it's overkill to get a long running board on the side where just the driver steps in. It's already asymmetrical because that side is doorless for the passengers, so I think it looks normal to have a short one on that side. That's my take as far as aesthetics. FWIW, I thought we would need running boards, but I waited as people on here advised me to do, and I'm pleasantly surprised to see the step in is not as bad as I thought. I do lift my 2 yo on to the step for him to climb the rset of the way (we run short), but he probably could climb in if I wanted. He does jump out with my assistance. My very petite 4 yo climbs in and out without a problem.

A little late here, but in case anyone needs help with this, we have 7 kids and cloth seats. Never had leather, and in fact, I'd be worried about car seat damage to leather (unless you get seat protectors). The cloth on this is not as fabric-ky as the other vehicles we have driven. It's smoother, more like a microfiber type of feel, and cleans fairly well. I will say that I don't have my kids drinking anything but water when we drive, which may affect my answer, but I wouldn't hesitate to go for the cloth seats if it's a better option independent of the seat fabric.

Update: I moved my 2 yo to a rear facing Diono Radian behind the driver's seat with an angle adjuster. We're not the tallest people around here, so the driver's seat is never fully back, so I don't know if someone would be able to use that option if they needed the driver all the way back.I have a Graco Click Connect 35 (with a base with built in lockoffs which is great for a non-LATCH seat) outboard in the same row. I can easily fit a booster in between for an older kid to take care of my 2 little ones.

The 2016s are not hitting the market for a couple more months, I believe.

I check the forum but have nothing much to discuss at this point. I worked out most of my snags and questions from my purchase in August, and just drive it without any problems (when need be -- it's almost 2 months old and we're just going to fill up the tank for the first time now! And that includes the 250 mile drive back from the dealer ;) )

I have been told that you cannot install car seats in a rear facing seat.

So that's the difference here...all my kids are still in seats, as my 10 yo is very short and needs a booster, so I can't really rest it on the seat next to it as I climb in. I'll have to play around with my options.

Do you find it hard reaching into the middle seat to click and release an infant seat? I was thinking I would purposely want to place it outboard so it wouldn't be a long reach in.

I know this is an old, old thread....but, car seat nut here with 6 kids in seats (7th on the way). I drive an S without a console, so there is more room to walk behind the RF middle car seat so an older kid can get to his booster on the side. I also am very short (too short I think for this van, I added a pillow to increase visibility over the hood since we don't have power seats, but now reaching the accelerator isn't so comfortable, so I'm looking into pedal extenders) so no installs have interfered with position of the driver's seat (yet -- my husband is 5' 5", but he hasn't driven it with the seats installed for me to know if it works). Right now we have a Cosco Scenera RF in the middle position as we needed something quickly. I am not happy with the install at all, I don't feel like it's as good as we have gotten with other seats, and it could be due to the common need to use a noodle. But I just bought a Diono Radian RXT, and I will hopefully be trying that instead for that position. I am unsure if I will need an angle adjuster yet since the seat is completely forward right now and we have space behind the seat to maneuver without a console. Behind the driver's seat I have a Harmony Literider and it's a cinch for my 8.5 yo to buckle himself there. I moved my 5.5 yo's Evenflo HBB to the passenger side of that row from the middle of the next row, since the three across there was too tight to easily buckle a booster in for her. Next row has a Britax RA Classic installed FF for my 4 yo and I can basically reach in to unbuckle her without climbing in (buckling I do climb in, but she does half of it herself). I can fit a narrow seat next to that, but right now it's empty. Driver's side has another Evenflo HBB for my 7 yo. My 10 yo opted to go in the backrow with his Harmony Youth booster (he prefers his Bubble Bum, but we need that in our Sienna for 3 across right now for daily use, I told him for trips, he can swap them). I'm thinking of moving the Britax over one seat when I need an infant car seat to go in, and put the infant seat where the Britax is. But I have a couple of months to worry about that.