Need to fit two child seats in rear with front seats all the way back

Just had twins!
Already planning to get something like Honda Oddysey, however need a second car as well. Of course something reliable and reasonably powerful would be great too. I have not been in the market for a new/used car for many years and am next to completely clueless.
I realized that my trusty/rusty Mazda 626 can fit Graco child seats in rear but cannot do so with seats all the way back. I am nearly 6`3" and one of the main reasons I got the Mazda was its spaciousness. Supposedly there`s a "6" wagon coming out but I don`t think I can afford to buy two new cars at once so I`m looking for something perhaps 2 or 3 years old.
Any ideas?

Congrats on the twins. The Mazda6 wagon isn`t coming out for another year unfortunately.
Are you looking for a wagon? Would you consider a small SUV like an Escape/Tribute, RAV4, etc?

The wife fits (she`s not too big).
Both kids fit (i.e. two kid seats in back).
There`s some leftover room for a stroller/etc.
It has a reasonable reputation for reliability. I don`t think anything will ever be as reliable as my Mazda 626, 1988 model, almost 250k miles, original clutch, the only things I`ve ever replaced are the radiator, alternator, power steering pump, probably the water pump along the way, brake pads. Still gets 35 MPG and is burning a bit more oil, I think the oil seals are shot and it`s not worth replacing them.
I can get one under $15K.

the camshaft and crank at the front eventually leak. on the `86 I replaced the cam shaft seal years ago, the crank one is leaking pretty good now. I`ll get to it when I replace the timing belt.

room, 200,000 miles and still in great shape, super-reliable, great gas mileage (drove from Portland to Victoria BC on one tank of gas!) and fits 3 kid seats in the back plus plenty of cargo space AND room for a dog! Caveat: if you don`t live in an area where these things are common as dirt, they can be expensive to maintain. In Portland, they`re one of the most common cars so parts are cheap and plentiful. You can also pick one up in good shape for under $4k. I got mine for $500, but that was a random lucky fluke!

tomorrow (hopefully, fingers crossed) and I can`t imagine that 2 rear-facing carseats couldn`t fit in there -- and one could be in the center if the passenger seat doesn`t need to be as far back as the drivers`. I`m currently driving a Volvo 240 (sedan), and with the rear facing/convertible carseat, it did compromise the positions in which you could put the front seat (one of them). One carseat might fit in the middle on a sedan, though (with the other behind the passenger seat). Oh, and we usually kept at least one stroller in the trunk (sometimes a regular stroller and an umbrella stroller) and still had room for groceries, etc...
A double stroller does fit, too. We tried it at the store, but didn`t buy it because it seemed too heavy to lift in and out of the trunk, which I think is high. I`m 5` 7". Once your wife feels up to it, maybe you should get a sitter and have whoever the main driver of the kids/kid stuff will be go to a general used car dealer and try getting stuff in and out of the trunks, and pretend putting the kids in and out of the back seats of various types of cars -- there`ve been maybe ten times in four years that my husband hasn`t hit his head putting a kid into my car, but I never have (knock on wood), and getting the stroller in and out of the trunk is of a different level of difficulty (I say, judiciously) for him on my car, too.
Congrats to the OP with the twins, and good luck car shopping!

overhang in front of the rear seat cushion? As I said in my previous post, my winter car and now all-around-beater car is an `86 626. So it`s essentially the same car. (but it is a 4 door, if your`s is a 2 door than that may explain it) I am about 6`4" and I keep the seat all the way back. This car has never been confortable for me, but it serves it`s purpose. But there still appears to be enough room in the back seat for a baby seat. Anyway if you have a four door and can explain how the front seat and baby seat are interfering with each other I`ll take a look and see if there is a work around that you can try.

car seat, but the rear facing car seats (which are required until the child is at least a year old and perhaps longer) tend to overhang the seat cushion by a significant margin-- not down at seat level, but up at the top of the carseat as it angles toward the front of the car. If you keep the front seatback very upright, you can get a little extra space, but unless you have a relatively spacious amount of legroom in the backseat, it`s not uncommon to have trouble with rear-facing carseats. When checking things out, it`s also important not to limit your check just to the infant "baby carrier" style carseat (the kind that can *only* go rear-facing, have a handle, and can be taken out of the base to carry the baby around). Many kids will outgrow those carriers before they`re old enough to go forward-facing, at which point you need to get a convertible carseat (goes either forward- or rear-facing). These tend to take up even *more* room while in the rear-facing position. Honestly, I don`t think there`s much of a workaround unless you can live with the front seats pulled forward enough to give sufficient room in the back--and with two rear-facing carseats in back, you can`t even compromise as we did by putting the carseat behind the passenger seat under the theory that the front seat passenger can live with less legroom You cannot mess with the angle of the rear-facing infant carseat without compromising its safety. You can look for a carseat that doesn`t take up as much room front-to-back, but I suspect if you get one that`s shorter than usual, you might just put yourself in a position where your child outgrows the carseat before he or she can go forward-facing, at which point you`ve only delayed your problem.

I don`t have any advice for you about a vehicle but I wanted to let you know there is a ng called alt.parenting.twins-triplets that might be able to help you.
I hope to see you there.

Why thank you! Heading right over now.

Lincoln makes a "stretch" (6 inches longer) town car that may work out for you. A quick look in a couple of areas show around 10K for a car that is around 5 years old or so. I don't know if you can get one cheaper or not as I don't really keep track of those cars.

Do you have your heart set on a certain type of vehicle? What are your deciding factors in getting a vehicle?

Older review of the L series: http://www.thebiglot.com/reviews/2001_LINCOLN_TOWN% 20CAR%20CARTIER%20L_REVIEW.asp

Couple of price checks: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2003-Lincoln-Town-Car-L- Series-Executive- Towncar_W0QQitemZ270089621299QQihZ017QQcategoryZ31851QQ cmdZViewItem
http://www.limoforsale.com/soldDetail.aspx?aid=31423

<edit> Gratz on your Little Ones!!

Post edited by: PureHybrid, at: 2007/02/18 21:24