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The Minivan? The MINI? The Powerful SUV? Help Patch Writer Make Her Decision

She's taken six different vehicles for test drives. Now it's time for van-driving-mom-of-4 Angela Youngblood to get serious about her next ride.

By now, you've probably fallen in love with Angela Youngblood and her endearing family as they've taken us along on their car-shopping adventure. 

As you recall in , Angela is in search of a replacement for her full-size van that's on the fritz. She is looking for something roomy yet stylish; practical yet talked-about. 

Here's a recap of her test drives:

  • , Angela felt edgy. 
  • , she felt safe but, well, boring.
  • , she and her family felt crowded. 
  • , Angela felt powerful and wondered if she was falling in love.
  • she was alive and singing along to Blondie — but living in a day-without-kids fantasyland.
  • , Angela may have found "the one."

Now it's time to hear from you.

Which vehicle do you think best fits Angela and her family? Are there any other she should try? Any she should try for a second time? What do you think of her reviews? Should she make a purchase?

leslie masters June 14, 2012 at 11:32 am
Just got a town and country and i love it! Had a boring odyssey. Would love the mini but the room would compare to my focus with 3 kids. Most people probably don't WANT a minivan, but the space is heaven! Plus stow & go :-)
Mike M. June 14, 2012 at 12:26 pm
When you choose the Town & Country, you are
A.). Going with the original minivan B.) helping our friends in Auburn Hills C.) getting the most "bang for the buck"... In terms of utility Vs fuel mileage Vs creature comforts Enjoy!
R Gibson June 14, 2012 at 01:07 pm
We are on our 4th T and C now and love it. This generation is the best yet. Father in Law has the Odyssey, BORING!!!!!!!!! Hate It!!!!!. Stow and Go is the best option. If anyone from Chrylser reads this, Sergio is making a huge mistake only selling Dodges going forward. There are way many more T and Cs out there then Caravans.
Tiffany McGinnis June 14, 2012 at 02:51 pm
I love our Jeep Commander with its sporty feel, 4 wd, and 7 seats! Only problem--they stopped making it! For her particular situation, I would suggest the suburban.
Stephen Frye June 14, 2012 at 03:27 pm
The Town and Country, for sure, we've had 3 and loved them all. In fact, we may try to turn in lease early to get next year's as it may be last year they make 'em. We have 3 kids and it's only way to travel. Note, I drive a Journey, and I like, and it's great for two kids, or picking up big items, or lots of shopping with one kid, but it couldn't be the family vehicle.
JC Shetterley June 14, 2012 at 03:39 pm
I've had Town & Country and Grand Caravans once I started having kids. Now that they are grown, I have an SUV. Although I like the SUV, the T&C had much better gas mileage.
Philip June 14, 2012 at 04:30 pm
We started with Dodge Grand Caravans, then "graduated" to T&Cs. Tell Sergio from me that we want to stay graduated!
Jessica Story June 14, 2012 at 05:04 pm
My vote is the Ford Flex, with the optional second row bucket seats!
Monica June 14, 2012 at 09:12 pm
I love the Dodge Caravan instead of the T and C. Same general architecture, but a little sportier styling accents. ( sportier minivan? Can I say that?) For a 5 person family it's perfect for trips, sporting events and carpooling. And stow and go is one of my most used features. Less than 5 minutes and minimal effort to change the seats, plus an extra storage compartment.

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Barbara Barnes June 14, 2013 at 03:01 pm
The date is June 20th. Call Barbara Barnes LMSW at 248 651-9097 to reserve you place at the FirstRead More Congregational Church, 1315 N. Pine St, Rochester.
Scot Beaton June 12, 2013 at 11:31 pm
Hugo... the road, bridge, road right of way: The Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC)... theRead More aesthetic black fence... Rochester Hills... let's assume there waiting for an insurance claim to go through or debating who pays. Thanks for your post. You could call the Mayor, but he is in Istanbul Turkey... looking over some plans for a new shopping mall they want to build in an historic park. Makes perfectly good sense this is the same Mayor who supported tearing down a historic house on Rochester Road to build a new strip mall... and turning Office Research Technology zoning into a Wal-Mart.
Beverly June 13, 2013 at 12:02 pm
Yes I have been wondering too...I am going to use the RCOC website and see if they will respond
Clara T June 12, 2013 at 10:05 pm
Yes, the Oakland Press had this list.
Clara T June 12, 2013 at 10:07 pm
Can you please provide the names of the individuals representing Lawrence Tech, Rochester College,Read More RCS school board, Crittenton?
Jmamo June 14, 2013 at 09:12 am
It's just a con job on the tax payers. Non productive for Rochester Hills but Barnett will smileRead More with a political knife in the residents back. This really should be brought up by the citizens and not an absent mayor.
Scot Beaton June 9, 2013 at 09:43 pm
Scot, I just picked up on your piece in the Patch because I monitor articles about the GulenRead More Movement's activities in the US, something I started doing three years ago after becoming aware of the GM's massive involvement in charter schools. Here's my piece about that situation published by The Washington Post last year. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/largest-charter-network-in-us-schools-tied-to-turkey/2012/03/23/gIQAoaFzcS_blog.html Concerning me nearly as much as the GM's stealth charter school expansion are the propaganda trips to Turkey given out to our public officials and other influential VIPs. I've been collecting accounts of these trips for the past few years and the number of Americans who have been on these trips is absolutely shocking. You are right to be alarmed by your mayor being convinced to go on one of these Turkey trips. I present some information about the trips here: http://perimeterprimate.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-gulen-movements-subsidized-guided.html The purpose of the trips is to recruit sympathizers. Making "friends" with VIPs over the course of a 10-day trip is a way to instill Gulenist ideology and misinformation about Turkey into the travelers' minds. It's also a way to set things up so the GM can tap them for favors later on. Some of the travelers might be approached to support a new charter school in their community, perhaps even serve as a token American on its board. This has happened a number of times. The Gulenists' ability to convince people that the only thing they want is to be their "friend" is tremendous and a lot of the people definitely return "Turkey-tripped." The Gulen Movement is a very smart, wealthy, and well-coordinated group. They are on a mission to create their vision of Turkey's future and to make it less and less secular. American targets are way too naive. BTW, here's info about the Gulen charter school operator that already runs one charter school in your state. http://www.scribd.com/doc/133456790/Concept-Schools-Illinois-and-the-Gulen-Movement Tomorrow morning (6/10, 8 AM show) I'll be a guest on a local radio show here in the Bay Area to talk about the Gulen movement's charter schools and the GM's connection to the massive protests in Turkey. Tune into the live feed if you want to learn more. I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have. Regards, Sharon Higgins Oakland, CA KPFA The Morning Mix - WorkWeek
Scot Beaton June 10, 2013 at 03:45 pm
Clara T, Very sad we can't get an Answer... :( I also think the foundation should post theirRead More expenses. Clara T, the good news the Patch is a good source for reading press releases. LOL