Our 2002 Suburban is starting to show its age a bit. Little things keep popping up and it’s developed a few quirks. It still runs great but we would like to replace it before Rick retires so we can get that cost out of the way before a steady income goes away. We looked last year but were not happy with any of the choices.

Yesterday Rick called me excitedly to tell me that the Chevy dealership had finally gotten in a 2015 Tahoe for us to look at. We’ve been waiting for them to change up the inside of the Tahoe and Suburban back to a flat cargo bed in the back. Right now our Suburban’s seats fold down completely flat and make one continuously flat surface (with third back seat taken out). It’s the only way to go with dog crates. For several years now they had changed the inside to attract the “soccer mom” crowd and the seats did not fold completely down, nor did they form a single surface. We weren’t buying one. They told us that the 2015 models would go back to the original cargo space with flat-folding seats. Hence, our excitement.

I drove down to meet Rick over his lunch hour and we went to the dealership. The first thing we asked to see where how the seats folded down before anything else. The salesperson thought this was odd. Well, guess what? They’ve really screwed them up — again! The third row seat is not removable, nor can you order one without the seat unless you are a policeman or you’re a municipality. It does not fold flat, but at an angle that would make it next to impossible for a dog crate. The dog would be all bunched up on the lower end of its crate. To make matters even worse the third row seat is only inches off the floor of the vehicle making it impossible to sit in unless you’re a child whose legs stick straight out. For an adult they would be sitting with their knees in their faces. Totally useless! There is a tiny space behind the seats for a few bags of groceries but that’s it. We were bummed. We are assuming that the Suburban will be much the same, so we’re looking in different directions now toward the Toyota Sequoia or the Ford Expedition. 

Rick stopped by the Toyota dealership yesterday on his way home from work and said we need to both go and look at it. The seats don’t fold completely flat but he thinks they could work. The Expedition we have not looked at yet but the downside of that vehicle is that the reviews hate the GPS/radio/navigation system saying it’s really hard to use. If we are going to pay that much for a vehicle we want to be happy with important parts of it, you know? They’re pricey!

This weekend we’ll visit both of them. Stay tuned …