You don’t have to go the minivan route just because you have children. Plenty of families opt for an SUV as a more versatile—and some say stylish—alternative.

True, safety records from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that high-riding SUVs get in more accidents than stout minivans, but self-driving technology is changing that equation with stabilizing features that are appearing in more recent models. And for backcountry vacations, muddy ball fields and areas with heavy weather, four-wheel drive makes an SUV a solid choice.

For those who want to buy a family friendly SUV, a good start is to explore auto financing options. You can get pre-qualified with Credit Acceptance simply by filling out our form. The next step is to get familiar with the ever-growing SUV market.

The best SUV for a family combines safety, fuel-efficiency, capacity and flexibility as your family, and all the friends that come with them, expands. Thankfully, the auto market is full of SUVs that are designed for families. Let’s look at some of the features that make an SUV especially good for family transportation.

Large-Capacity Options

If you’ve got a big family or carpool crowd, the SUV market offers an array of behemoths that can seat up to nine people (the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban and the GMC Yukon are examples). That’s the entire starting baseball team. Or all the relatives who come to town for graduation.

The key to the large SUV category is the third row. They all have it, and various configurations—like the second-row captain’s chairs in the Chevy Suburban or a car seat tilt feature in the Chevy Tahoe and Ford Expedition—make that row feel less like a crawl space.

Nearly all of the best SUVs for a family have the kind of in-flight features to minimize conflict and chaos for the passengers in the back, from top-notch infotainment systems to independent ceiling vents, climate controls and charging stations.

The trunk space on some models is huge, even behind the third row, with enough room for beach chairs and sand wagons. The caveat is that the extended wheelbase that widens the cargo space doesn’t always fit in a standard home garage. So do some measuring before you go that big.

But here’s the real fun in the supersize SUV class: there’s some serious luxury to be had. How about massaging or ventilating seats to make those road trips easier on the driver? That is available in some Cadillac Escalades, Lincoln Navigators and Jeep Grand Wagoneers. Need to keep juice boxes cold? That Grand Wagoneer has a refrigerated middle console.

The Disappearing Third Row

Families that want a smaller footprint and need less passenger space should take a detour into the “third row optional” class of mid-size SUVs. Having a third row that folds down for cargo space but pops up for passengers makes car pools, grandparent visits and sleepover shuttling more realistic.

The Volkswagen Atlas has a third-row that’s truly adult-friendly while the Mazda CX-90, which rates high for performance and handling, has a third row that is smaller.

True, none of the monster-class SUVs are green choices. But once you get into the mid-size SUV class, choices for electric and hybrid vehicles expand.

Smaller Family SUVs

If you’re looking for a vibe that’s more compact, sporty and rugged, the compact SUV class may be appealing.

They have child seat latches, safety features and cargo space for strollers and sports gear. But choices like the Ford Bronco Sport or the Mazda CX-5 are also long on style and performance.

As the federal government and car manufacturers creep toward a majority electric world, the compact and crossover SUV class is bursting with variety and selection, making it increasingly practical as a family choice. These too have some impressive features. The Chevy Bolt EV, for example, boasts some of the most cutting-edge self-driving features on the market today. The car’s computer contains roughly 200,000 miles of American roads and it can help with lane-centering and hands-free driving.

If you think one of these is the best SUV for your family, you can begin looking at your budget and which models might be a good fit. One thing you can do immediately—even before you hit the dealerships—is to explore auto financing options. Filling out an application to get pre-qualified with Credit Acceptance will help you create your budget and what kind of family SUV may be right for you.