It’s Family Day—here are our favorite family-friendly vehicles

Monday, February 19th is Family Day—and If that’s not a good reason to explore family-friendly vehicles we don’t know what is!

To be clear, by “family-friendly” we mean those seating six or more. These are vehicles designed for larger families or anyone who wants comfort and interior room.

We took a look through all of the Buick, GMC, Cadillac and Chevrolet ranges we sell at Budds’ and found eight SUV’s and one van meeting our definition. Here’s a look.

Buick Enclave

This full-size SUV looks sharp and is well-equipped. There’s seating for seven in the Buick Enclave, with Captain’s chairs in the second row and a bench behind. Fold down the second and third rows and you get 2,764 liters of cargo volume.

Get-up-and-go comes courtesy of a 3.6 liter V6. There’s lots of standard equipment but if you really want to pretty it up, look for the Avenir trim.

Chevrolet Traverse

This Traverse is new for 2018 and looks better than ever. In LS trim it seats eight while higher trims swap the second-row bench for two Captain’s chairs. Seats flat, cargo volume is 2,780 liters.

A 3.6 liter V6 is standard in the LS and LT trims but higher grades of Traverse get a torque-ier (is that a word?) and more efficient 2.0-liter turbo.

Chevrolet Tahoe

If your family needs a trailer, consider the Chevy Tahoe. In mid-range LT trim it seats 8, while Premier replaces the second-row bench with Captain’s chairs. Don’t despair if your family is bigger; just pick the LS trim and check the option for a front bench seat. That way you’ll have room for nine. And with the seats folded, there’s 2,682 L for cargo.

Under the hood, there’s a 5.3L V8, and frame construction means the Tahoe can tow up to 3,901 kg.

Chevrolet Suburban

The Big Daddy of the Chevy range, the Chevy Suburban carries up to nine adults and tows as much as 3,765 kg. (That’s less than the Tahoe because, as a cargo volume of 3,447 liters shows, it’s bigger.)

Built-in OnStar® 4G LTE with Wi-Fi lets passengers connect to the Internet. If that doesn’t keep them occupied there’s also an available Entertainment System that puts screens in both second and third rows.

GMC Acadia

The three-row GMC Acadia crossover SUV comes in SLE, SLT and Denali trims, plus there’s an All-Terrain variant with extra off-road capability. The SLE and Denali seat six while the All-Terrain can be configured for five, six or seven seats. Maximum cargo volume is 2,237 liters.

All but base SLE get a 3.6L V6 and all-wheel drive is standard across the range. Distinguished by a smart grille, the Denali also gets real wood, aluminum accents, and leather.

GMC Yukon

As with the Tahoe, pick the base SLE trim and you can have a bench front seat that takes capacity to nine adults. Without the bench, there’s seating for eight in the GMC Yukon, unless you buy the Denali. That range-topper swaps the second-row bench for two bucket seats. Capacity drops to seven, but think how much room they’ll have! Seats flat, interior volume totals 2,682 liters.

Power comes from a 5.3L V8 and the towing limit is 3,856 kg. 4WD is standard.

If the Yukon gets cramped, how about the eXtra Long? Cargo space increases to 3,446 liters and as with the “short” Yukon, maximum seating capacity is nine. SLE and SLT trims come with the 5.3L V8 but the Denali hides a 6.2L under the hood. 4WD, with a transfer case, is standard.

GMC Savana

The GMC Savana is that rare thing these days, a full-size van. Depending on wheelbase it can be configured to seat 12 or 15. It’s also possible to add various wheelchair lift options.

A 4.8L V8 is standard although there’s an optional 6.0L . To give a sense of just how much room the Savana offers, maximum cargo volume is 6,122 liters.

Cadillac Escalade

Style and luxury all come standard with the Cadillac Escalade, as does almost everything else you might want. It seats seven and were you to sully its leather-trimmed interior, maximum cargo volume is 2,667 liters.

Power comes from a 6.2 L V8, there’s a choice of either 2WD or 4WD and you can tow up to 3,674 kg.

If you need even more room, look at the Escalade ESV. With larger doors and more legroom, this pampers up to eight people.

Try one for size

Put five people in most cars and things get pretty snug. A three-row vehicle makes traveling more comfortable, and even if you don’t fill all the seats, they provide more room for luggage.

As we’ve shown here, there are a lot of options to consider—so if you’re interested, come down to Budds’ Chevrolet Cadillac Buick GMC and check them out for yourself.