Ideal SUVs for Growing Families in Charlotte

If you're a Charlotte driver with a growing family, you know how demanding life in this corner of North Carolina can be. Whether it's taking the kids to school or visiting Discovery Place Science on the weekend, traveling throughout this iconic city demands a vehicle built for carrying around your loved ones and doing it in comfort and style. This is why SUVs have become the go-to options for families needing a spacious interior further complimented with many desirable features and tech. But how can you find the perfect SUV for you and your passengers? If you're hunting for a great car dealership in Charlotte, NC, look no further than the Hendrick Automotive Group and our abundance of locations throughout North Carolina and beyond.

At Hendrick Automotive Group, we understand that buying a vehicle for the family is more than just finding a model that will get you from point A to point B. After all, you're carrying the people that mean the most to you, so you want a vehicle that will keep everyone on board safe and comfortable. This is where we can help. Each of our many dealerships offers an array of SUV options to discover the perfect model you and your family will love. SUVs provide a great balance of space, performance, and, most importantly, safety. Let's take a look at some standout SUV models that would be perfect for you and your family.

The Honda CR-V

As one of the most popular SUVs to ever hit the marketplace, the Honda CR-V was also far ahead of its time in relation to the direction of how SUVs would be built and designed in the future. In an age where “bigger” was the guiding principle of the vehicle class, the CR-V challenged this conception by proving that all of the advantages could be delivered in a smaller and more economical package. The CR-V offers seating for five with 77 available cubic feet of room for storage.

Honda has always had their finger on the pulse of consumer needs, and the CR-V has everything a growing family could ask for. The hybrid version of the vehicle offers 43 MPG while operating within the city limits and utilizes a Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT) to handle the traffic patterns that accompany living in an area with a high population density. And because safety is always a concern for many family-oriented drivers, Honda equips the CR-V with a wide range of standard features, including adaptive cruise control, a collision mitigation braking system, and a road departure mitigation system.

The Mazda CX-50

Believe it or not, there once was a time when Mazda’s primary role as a manufacturer was making corks. Luckily for them and the rest of the world, who have benefitted from their unique offerings, they eventually took to the manufacturing of vehicles. The CX line of SUVs from Mazda are among some of the most stylish and technologically advanced to be found. Mazda has been repurposing its efforts in recent years to focus more time and energy on its fleet of SUVs, and the results have been nothing short of extraordinary.

Known for its sleek design and refined interior, the CX-50 walks the tightrope between practical family vehicles and luxurious methods of transportation that so many have been looking for. Offering standard AWD, which allows it to compete with similar offerings from Subaru, the CX-50 is a pleasure to drive by all accounts and maximizes comfort for drivers and passengers alike. Mazda incorporates a standard array of safety features to match its type and performance, with adaptive cruise control and lane departure and keeping assistance among the preferred offerings.

The Chevy Traverse

The Honda CR-V and Mazda CX-50 offer comfortable seating for five, which is certainly the standard offering for many popular SUVs in recent years. However, there are those families who are not only growing but growing at a much quicker rate than usual, and more seating is required to facilitate their travels. Situations such as these call for a vehicle like the Chevy Traverse. With three rows of seating and the capacity to be just as formidable off the pavement as it is on it, the Traverse offers the space growing families need, with an economical powertrain and tech-savvy features that make any journey more enjoyable.

While larger SUVs in its class are still utilizing six-cylinder engines to deliver promising results, the Traverse makes use of a 2.5L four-cylinder engine that propels the vehicle forward and offers a towing capacity of 5,000 lbs. For the modern family whose lives are rather tech-savvy, items such as a 17.7-inch infotainment screen and an available hands-free driving mode will please parents and children alike and make those family road trips much more enjoyable.

The Kia Telluride

We go from one three-row SUV to another, and one that’s ideally situated for families who are expanding beyond the point where seating for five is accommodating. What makes the Kia Telluride such a great choice for families is the fact that it offers something that many drivers, family-oriented and otherwise, look for—peace of mind. Kia vehicles are backed by the best warranty coverage to be found in the entire industry, and most of their vehicles come packed with a wide array of standard safety features, both of which are of great concern to parents looking to provide for their children.

And despite its size, which allows for up to seven passengers, the Telluride is still economical enough with its fuel consumption to not drain the college fund. 20 MPG in the city and 26 on the highway are both impressive for an SUV of its size powered by a V6. There’s also plenty of technology to enhance the time behind the wheel, such as an infotainment screen that stretches out past a foot in size and offers compatibility with Apple and Android products and navigation for those times that warrant some assistance in getting to your destination.

The Toyota Highlander

When it comes to finding a vehicle that will sustain itself for many years and miles, provide plenty of room for storage and seating, and save you some much-needed money at the pump, we can’t help but be impressed at the dependability of the Toyota Highlander. In an age where hybrid and electric technology are now being acclimated with the SUV, the Highlander has been one of the best choices. The hybrid variation of the Highlander offers an impressive 36 MPG in the city and 35 MPG on the highway, making it efficient at getting around town while being fairly conservative with its fuel consumption.

With standard features that include Amazon Alexa integration and a Wi-Fi hotspot, the family will be comfortable and have access to all of the technology that they choose to utilize daily. Like the rest of Toyota’s fleet, a wide array of safety features are standard, such as pedestrian detection and road sign assist, allowing more oversight when it comes to the unpredictable road of life.

The Perfect Family-Oriented SUV Is Waiting for You at One of Our Many Locations

As the SUV continues on its upward trajectory in popularity, it also remains the most ideal vehicle for families, those located in Charlotte, NC, and everywhere else. As we’ve seen today, many of the best offerings are not just spacious enough to accommodate passengers, but they also have the ability to provide a level of safety that allows for peace of mind. And this is something that many parents agree is priceless. Beyond that, many are fuel efficient and have the technological attributes that make any trip easy and enjoyable. All these and more can be located at one of our many dealership locations throughout North Carolina. Stop by one today, and our fantastic team will help you discover some great options for you and your loved ones.