Cars - For Car Enthusiasts

As much Accord as you can afford.

It's a saying for a reason. It's a great car for a great price. My Dad was in the automobile business (service side) since I was born until he retired and this was always his advice and that of most of the people he worked with. There were a few that hated imports and would recommend American vehicles, none have lasted the test of time.

Mazda 3. Just because it comes with a normal transmission

Anything besides a piece of shit Nissan

You are asking for "family car" suggestions, yet give zero details on the family in question. But since you're looking at a Versa as a realistic option, you should know that Nissan's CVTs (made by Jatco) have a horrendous track record. Stay far away from them.

I'd go with whatever equivalent Toyota is available instead.

I would buy another Toyota Camry. Had a 2005 model for almost two decades and in that time I had to replace the alternator and then the radiator got a hole in it right before we traded it out for a different type of vehicle.

Would have kept it if we had enough room to park it, as it was still in great condition and everything still worked including the A/C.

Volvo V90

Suzuki X-90

Ever since we got rid of our more-or-less family cars and got a "real" van I'm not going back. We're driving a Mercedes eVito (which is an electric Metris in the US, iirc) but just any will do. Family travels need space. I got so tired of having to prioritise beach shovels and frisbees against each other; being able to simply throw anything we want to take into the trunk is godsent. Driving around whole birthday parties is just so much better than asking neighbours for a taxi service. And yeah, I wouldn't ever go back to combustion engines, but I guess that's a matter of preference.

Toyota Sienna

Not a Nissan.

Fun comfy for a long trips with the family? BMW I7. If you live in a country where EVs are great

Going shopping at the local mall? Something cheap that you can scratch without breaking the bank.

That is really dependent on a lot of factors more than just "for a family." What do you intend to do with your family in the car? How big is your family, and do you have room for "unplanned" additions? What region do you live in, are there a lot of good quality paved roads or is it only dirt and grass? What is your budget? Do you want a brand-new vehicle or a used one? How long do you plan on keeping the vehicle? What will its re-sale value be at that time? How expensive is the maintenance? When the oldest members in the family get older, will it be hard/painful to enter or exit the vehicle? There are a lot of factors one should consider before picking a vehicle for their family.

Depending on the number of people you have to carry - Toyota. Pretty much anything Toyota.

Practical can mean a lot of things. If I could only have one car it'd be something at least somewhat offroad capable, as vehicles that can leave the pavement can go more anywhere than a vehicle that can't. Probably a Subaru. That said, I'd also consider a $2000 car more practical than a $50,000 car, so I'd actually go for an old Subaru, or, as it worked out irl, a 2007 Volvo XC70 that I've lifted 4 inches.

and while the fact it has a CVT is kind of crummy

CVT was invented for Formula 1 racing, literally the pinnacle of auto racing and extreme performance...

It's was banned because it was too efficient. It allowed the engine to operate at peak efficiency at any rpm and any speed. If it wasn't outlawed it would have been the end of shifting and manual transmissions at the highest level of racing

The problem average people have with it, is they first experienced it in the Prius where it was programmed to maximize fuel efficiency no matter what.

So don't write a car off just because it has a CVT, lots of performance cars have them. And it should be relatively easy to get the programming changed to make it feel sportier or be more fuel efficient. Lots just have a button these days that do it on the fly.