Here are five great used SUVs for family hauling on a budget

New SUVs are expensive! You can thank dealer markups and cost of living expenses for that terrible news. However, not all is lost. If you want to get yourself or your family a nice SUV, you just need to look at a good used SUV that can do what you need without robbing you at the dealer. Now presenting our round-up of five great used SUVs that you can get in 2024 year that will help you find and choose the best soccer practice shuttle for yourself. 

Subaru Forester

What’s hot?

• Comes standard with all-wheel drive 
• The Forester comes standard with many EyeSight driver assists 

What’s not?

• Lackluster performance from the engine
• “Meh” CVT

Subaru is often overlooked when it comes to buying cars, but that does mean the price of the Forester is often much lower, and you can get your money’s worth when buying one used. That does not mean the Forester is a bad SUV. In fact, it is beloved by people who like to overland and who love to explore the wilderness. 

The inviting size of the cabin and the features that come standard on the Forester make it an ideal family SUV. With Apple CarPlay and Android Auto being a feature since 2019, the infotainment functionality of the Forester is up with there with other premium cars, even if its appearance is a bit dated.  The engine and transmission of the Subura Forester is what many people complain about as the engine feels lackluster and the CVT introduced in 2014 is, well, a CVT. Even the best ones can make an engine drone and moan like a complaining brat. If you don’t mind the age, older variants with more conventional autos would do nicely, and you may even be able to find a turbocharged XT with a stick! However, the easygoing handling and impressive all-weather and all-terrain capabilities of the Forester make it an easy pick, nonetheless. 

Honda Pilot

What’s hot?

• Tons of cargo space and interior space.
• The Pilot is reasonably fuel-efficient with its V6 engine. 

What’s not?

• The third-row seats are not comfortable for long-distance
• The infotainment system isn’t the most user-friendly in older generations

The Honda Pilot follows in the footsteps of Honda’s reputation of being practical and reliable but still has that premium feel. The Pilot shares the same platform as the Honda Odyssey but loses the interior space due to it being limited to becoming an SUV. This means that the Pilot does have a third row like the Odyssey, but the seats are not as comfortable for long distances. 

The exterior looks of the Honda Pilot are nothing special, and you can easily forget what the Pilot looks like when you compare it to rival cars. Even the driving experience is nothing special. This does not mean it is a bad thing, especially if you want an SUV that can easily tow between 3,500 to 5,000 pounds, is reliable and you do not want a flashy SUV.  The Pilot does come with many driver assists that come standard on all trim levels of the car, making it a very practical SUV to drive.

Ford Explorer

What’s hot?

• The rear-wheel drive improvements help with towing
• Abundance of interior and cargo space 

What’s not?

• Wind noise can be harsh at highway speeds
• The interior material, build quality, and the seats weren’t that great

By owning a Ford Explorer, you can be seen as one of the most hated SUVs on the road, but you can have fun with it. I’m talking about how the Explorer is used by Police, and many people may mistake your SUV for a police Explorer (psst, get one in silver or dark blue for that near-universal Highway Patrol cosplay).

With the 2020 redesign of the Ford Explorer, you can get the SUV either in rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. This is an improvement over previous versions that offered the front-wheel drive version. The interior of the Ford Explorer wasn’t always up to par with rivals such as the Honda Pilot or Santa Fe. The infotainment systems and the safety technology inside the Explorer are very competitive when you compare them to rivals, especially in newer generations. It just the materials of the interior is that bring down this SUV, particularly in generations past. 

Hyundai Santa Fe

What’s hot?

• Some powertrain choices of later years are a hoot
• The infotainment system is top-notch.  

What’s not?

• There are a lot of hard plastic interior bits 
• Some model years don’t have third-row seating

The 2.5-liter turbo inline-four in the Hyundai Santa Fe boasts impressive figures, making it a strong performer. Plus, the dual-clutch eight-speed transmission is just as willing to play along with you as it will happily downshift to get into the torque range of the engine. This means that you can surprise many unsuspecting cars at the stop light when you take off. 

While being a bit playful due to the power figures, you still get a great family SUV that is reliable and has infotainment systems that all modern SUVs and cars need to thrive in today’s modern world. One possible issue with the interior is the abundance of hard plastics that can make the interior feel cheap when you compare it to rival SUVs. Some used Santa Fe options may come with the upgraded premium quilted Nappa leather seats, but they are not as good as full luxury seats in more premium vehicles. 

Toyota RAV4

What’s hot?

• Easy to drive with excellent handling
• Exciting powertrain in the RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid

What’s not?

• Interior can suffer from wind noise gruff engine noise
• Ride quality can be harsh in more adventurous off-road variants

As the world’s first urban SUV (or so Toyota insists), the RAV4 has become a popular choice for people to buy. Due to it being parked in nearly everyone’s driveway for a very long time, it has become the standard on which many other SUVs are judged. And for good reason. RAV4s have always been reasonably efficient. Reasonably spacious. Easy to drive and easy to live with, all backed by that reputation of Toyota reliability.

The RAV4 has excellent features, as some of the later models come with wireless Android Auto and Apple Carplay. You also get great safety systems that include automatic braking and automatic high-beam headlights. Adventure and TRD Off-Road variants, if you can find them used, score standard torque-vectoring all-wheel drive, and hybrids offer an efficient yet lively driving experience, especially the Prime plug-in.