Driving Five

Edmunds.com

Driving Five

Carpooling with five young adults is much different than driving a group of kindergarten babies.

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throwback

Sort of like what happens when you load up an SUV or pickup. I'm sure the fuel mileage is affected too.

legacygt

When you put 600 pounds in a passenger car, you're going to notice a difference. If you're simply noticing a difference that's one thing. If you think the car is incapable carrying this load or unsafe, that's another thing.

miata52

I load our Odyssey with 7 adults and I can't tell any significant difference...not enough to change the way I drive.

kirkhilles1

276 HP V-6 should still feel responsive though and certainly braking should be more than enough to stop with a full load of teenagers. I'd understand maybe having 5 adults that weight 2x as much, plus loaded up with heavy cargo, but otherwise that would be pretty concerning just to have some 125 lb ladies in it.

misterfusion

Kind of cruel to make a 6-footer sit in the third row. Just sayin'...

stever

Well, shotgun and the second row would limit your room with either the firewall or the console. With the aisle available, you can stretch your legs a bit between the second row captain's chairs from the back row.

bc1960

Kia makes it difficult to find curb weight and GVW, but if Edmunds is correct, maximum payload is 1671 lb. With driver and schoolbags you're probably still not breaking half that, but the distribution of weight, and its effect on the suspension geometry, do make a difference which can probably be felt around sharper corners, on rough pavement, and during braking.

allthingshonda

Large SUV's and minivans should come standard with automatic load leveling rear suspension. This is one thing I like about the full size GM SUV. It's no longer standard (except the top of the line trim) but it's included in the tow package which most of them are going to have at the dealer. Ever notice that you rarely see a Yukon or Suburban squatting no matter how loaded they are.