Mazda CX-9 (© Mazda Motor of America, Inc.)

Mazda CX-9

What started with a romantic table-for-two dinner has evolved into a clan of five or more. Perpetually on the go, this five-headed, 10-legged family monster often devours hundreds of miles a day in its seemingly insatiable quest for takeout food, soccer field supremacy and warehouse-club bargains. Mom's Accord has prematurely aged under the load of the growing brood. And dad's Mustang — once a source of pride and a symbol of his virility — now serves as a mobile depository for errant Cheerios and as a halfway house for wayward toys. Both vehicles bear the scars left behind by years of booster seats, hockey skates and ill-advised landscaping projects. There's also the not-so-small matter that as the kids get older, they get larger. Who knew? Clearly, the time is nigh for updating the family fleet.

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So where does the modern family turn for vehicular fulfillment? Minivan? Full-size SUV? Crossover? Does anyone even make a traditional station wagon anymore? Each family member has priorities, but the whole gang can agree on the following key areas: space, price (initial cost and mileage), safety, entertainment to keep the kids happy and, to help keep up appearances in the ultracompetitive world of the preschool parking lot, a smidgen of style and status.

True, there are big SUVs and luxurious sedans that meet these criteria, but our mission here is to find the sweet spot where price, interior space and individuality intersect. Given the number of family vehicles that are competitive in terms of cost, safety and interior volume, it isn't easy to narrow the field down. Simply compiling a list of current minivans or small crossovers that can fit five in a pinch would be a cop-out. With that in mind, we've come up with a sampling of family-friendly rides with personalities as diverse as the people who drive them.

Decision Guide: See more Family Haulers under $30K

Ford Flex

Ford calls the Flex a crossover, but we think of it as a spiritual descendent of the Ford Country Squire station wagon of the 1970s: big, boxy, functional and kind of funky, but in a good way. Listing for a competitive $29,355, the Flex combines seating for seven and a comparatively low ride height. It has no pretensions of off-road prowess, but all-wheel drive is available for those who can't wait for the plows to clear the roads in winter. Because it has an overall length of 201 inches and a 40-foot turning radius, parents will want to plan before executing any deft parking-lot drop-off maneuvers, lest they embarrass the kids in front of their classmates.

The standard 3.5-liter engine delivers 262 horsepower and returns a middling city/highway combined mileage rating of 19 mpg for the two-wheel-drive trims and 18 mpg for all-wheel drive. Opt for the much-ballyhooed 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 engine and you'll up the horsepower ante by 93 to 355; the kids will never be late for school again. In addition to Ford's AdvanceTrac with roll stability and traction control, the Flex has dual-stage airbags in front and side-curtain airbags throughout the cabin to protect the noggins of all your progeny, even when their helmets are removed. As with most Ford vehicles, potential owners can option their way to a state of infotainment nirvana by upgrading the standard audio system with Ford Sync voice-activated connectivity, a Sony 12-speaker system and headrest video monitors positioned optimally for the lucky kids in the middle row.

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Dodge Durango

Priced within a few dollars of the Ford Explorer and nearly $4,000 less than a GMC Acadia, the $28,995 Durango arguably retains more sport-utility DNA than any other entry in its class. Fully redesigned for 2011, it gives up a few cubic feet of interior space to the Explorer — 141 versus 152 — but even parents of the bulkiest gridiron warriors will find plenty of room for the team and their gear. A standard complement of airbags — even for the third-row passengers — a year of free Sirius radio for the standard 6-speaker audio system and Dodge's 5-year/ 100,000-mile powertrain warranty add to the Durango's value.

Despite having one fewer forward gear than its 6-speed competitors, the Durango manages to post a reasonable combined city/highway mileage rating of 19 mpg. But the key attribute that no other competitor in its class can match is its towing capacity: Rated at 5,000 pounds with the standard 290-horsepower V6 engine, the 2-wheel-drive Durango more than doubles the towing capacity of the base Explorer and Chevrolet Traverse. Need to tow even more? Specify the 5.7-liter Hemi V8 towing package and you can to hitch up to 7,400 pounds of trailer to your family transport. If you have toys to tug but are wary or cash-shy of using a hard-core tow vehicle like a pickup or Suburban-class SUV as your daily driver, the Durango should be at the top of your list.

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Chevrolet Traverse

Click to enlarge pictureChevrolet Traverse (© General Motors)

Chevrolet Traverse

In a field that evolved to bridge the gap between purpose-built SUVs and emasculated minivans, the Chevrolet Traverse crossover has become somewhat indeterminate, nebulous, familiar yet faceless, a simple pod for transporting angst-ridden teens in passable comfort. What it gives up in raw sex appeal, however, this kissing cousin of the GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave makes up for in family-friendly utility. Powered by an all-aluminum direct-injected 3.6-liter 281-horsepower V6 engine, the Traverse comes within spitting distance of its competitors in several key areas: price, mileage and safety.

The Traverse lists for $29,430, and buyers can count on the usual complement of airbags and electronically aided traction and stability features. Mileage is a respectable 17 mpg city/24 mpg highway for front-wheel drive and 16/23 for all-wheel drive. Six months of free OnStar service is included standard, and a plethora of overlapping audio, navigation and communication options clog up the order sheet, so the menu should be closely studied. Standard rear air conditioning helps the kids in the cheap seats keep their cool. Speaking of seats, Chevrolet boldly proclaims true 8-seat capacity for the Traverse, utilizing all of its whopping 153.1 cubic feet of interior space. Fold the seats flat and you'll find 116.4 cubic feet of cargo space, enough to haul recent high-school grads off to college in one easy trip.

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Mazda CX-9

One of the very few people-haulers that can make a legitimate claim of offering even a hint of driver involvement, the Mazda CX-9 is at the top of this list. Like most of its competitors, the CX-9's base price comes in at just under $30K, in this case $29,135. It shares a platform with the Ford Edge, and its 139.4 cubic feet of interior space comes within a few feet of the Durango, a statistic belied by the CX-9's svelte exterior. While dad plays boy-racer in the driver's seat, the kids and their friends can fight over seating assignments, with the victors riding in the relative luxury of the 60/40-split second row and the losers shunned to the 50/50 folding seats in the back.

Regardless of seating position, the whole tribe will benefit from the CX-9's 5-star government frontal and side crash-test rating, standard front and side airbags, side-impact air curtains and dynamic stability control. You'll have to check some option boxes to upgrade the stock 6-speaker AM/FM/CD/MP3 system to the optional Bose audio system and for the rear-passenger LCD screen to keep the rug rats content. On the other hand, this 6-speed 3.7-liter 273-horsepower V6-powered pseudo-sportster is the supposed driver's vehicle on this list. It's the road in front of you that matters most, not the ruckus in the seats behind you. Right?

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Volkswagen Passat

Click to enlarge pictureVolkswagen Passat (© Volkswagen of America, Inc.)

Volkswagen Passat

Some families live their entire automotive lives behind the wheel of a sedan. They'd rather live with the relatively minor inconvenience of cramming three kids across the back seat 10 percent of the time than the guilt of wheeling a virtually empty SUV around 90 percent of the time. Starting at just under $20,000, and now assembled stateside, the Volkswagen Passat sedan is fully engaged in showroom combat with that veteran staple of the suburban driveway, the Toyota Camry, which costs about $2,000 more. VW's 3-year/36,000-mile no-cost maintenance and a respectable 22 mpg city/32 highway mpg help keep the cost of ownership low.

The Passat is powered by a 170-horsepower 5-cylinder engine. Opting for the 6-speed manual transmission — an automatic will set you back an additional $2,700 — lets dad pretend it's an Audi on those increasingly rare date nights with mom.

The Passat offers 102 cubic feet of passenger room and 15.9 cubic feet of cargo space, equal to or better than anything in this class. In addition to six standard airbags to protect your Mini-Mes, Volkswagen is quick to tout its full complement of standard safety features: anti-lock brakes, hydraulic brake assist, tire-pressure monitoring and the Intelligent Crash Response System, which unlocks the doors, shuts off the fuel pump and even turns on the hazard warning lights after a collision.

It's a shame the cultist VW Passat Wagon isn't available in North America for 2012, as it'd make a good family car even better.

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Andrew Wendler is an entrepreneur and journalist based in South Detroit. A former editor of the now-defunct MPH Magazine, his work has appeared in Car and Driver, Edmunds Inside Line and Hot Rod, among others. When not writing, you'll find him wrenching, racing, or on occasion, tour-managing a rock-music combo.

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