Back in the day, before you ever thought that you might have a family, you might have tried to buy the hippest, fastest, and most expensive car that you could afford.
When you have kids, or if you are expecting a baby, your priorities will hopefully change a little and you will look for the car that is the safest for your family. Although disappointing for many parents, that likely means that you won't be getting a convertible or a two seater sport's car.
When looking for a new car for your family, in addition to good rollover ratings and crash test results, you should look for a car with the latest safety features, which can include:
- LATCH to make it easier to install a car seat
- a backup aid, such as a rear view camera/video screen or backup sensor so that you don't roll over your child when backing out of a parking space or your driveway
- a window lock and child safety locks so that kids can't open the car's windows or doors on their own
- antilock brakes (ABS)
- electronic stability control (ESC)
- adjustable rear shoulder seat belts
- a tire pressure monitoring system to let you know if a tire is underinflated, which might lead to a blowout
- daytime running lights to make you more visible to oncoming cars
- a built-in car seat
- a lap and shoulder seat belt in the middle of the back seat (some car's only have a lap belt in the center seat)
- push-pull power window switches, which can make it less likely that a child accidently closes a window on himself, which unfortunately causes many injuries and deaths
- a trunk release mechanism inside the truck so that kids can escape from the trunk if they get trapped inside
- manual air bag on/off switches or an occupant sensor system so that air bags don't hurt younger children
In addition to finding a safe car, you should look for a car that is practical for your family. That might mean an SUV or mini-van if you have three or more kids that need to sit in the back seat or need a lot of cargo room.
If buying a used car, keep in mind that many cars built before September 2002 don't have LATCH and may not have many of these other newer safety features.
What about a TV and DVD player? Although nice to have for long trips in the car, does your child really need to watch more TV every day?
