Hyundai Santa Fe
With the third generation of the crossover, Hyundai split the Santa Fe in two. There’s the two-row Santa Fe Sport, and the one we’re talking about here, which is now just called the Hyundai Santa Fe.
It offers handsome styling and a 290-horsepower V6 engine. It’s on the smaller side of the segment, but still offers a competitive rear cargo area of 144 cubic feet. That comes at the expense of rear passenger room, which is a little tight.
Lexus LX
There are few options for a three-row off-roading SUV better than the Lexus LX. The luxury version of the Toyota Land Cruiser is famous for being able to go just about anywhere. It’s also one of the most luxurious SUVs around, so it’s definitely one of the best family SUVs.
It’s loaded with safety features, but also offers an electro-hydraulic suspension that is adjustable for ride height and different driving conditions. It has low-speed crawl control and hill start assist, but it also offers a variable ratio steering rack for less sawing at the wheel off-road. And if you can’t quite turn sharply enough, it can brake the inside rear wheel, tightening the cornering circle even more.
Mazda CX-9
The Mazda CX-9 is the three-row crossover if you put driving ahead of everything else. It’s got the space, but it is tight in the third row and the load floor is high. But it has excellent steering, that is better weighted than anything else in the class.
The suspension is very compliant over bumps but is stiff enough that the CX-9 doesn’t float like most big SUVs. You won’t expect a crossover this big to be this agile. The 2.5L turbocharged four-cylinder doesn’t offer the biggest power figures, but it is reasonably quick and is fuel efficient, and one of the best family SUVs.
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