What is the Best SUV to Sleep In?

Going on a camping trip or hitting the road on a cross-country trip doesn’t always mean that a motel or campground is necessary. Some prefer to save money and sleep in their vehicle, but not every make and model is ideal for a good night of rest.

Sports utility vehicles might be one of the best vehicles for car camping. What is the best SUV to sleep in? Here are the models that might offer the most space for a good night of rest.

Sizing Up the Space of SUVs

SUVs are offered in three sizes: small (or compact), midsize and full size (or standard). While most SUVs could accommodate one or two people in the back for a night of rest, not every model will be incredibly comfortable for camping.

Standard or full-size SUVs will be the best options for convenient and comfortable car camping or even for converting into a makeshift bed when car owners can’t make it to a motel. Here are three basic features that car buyers should look for if they want an SUV fit for a good night of sleep:

• Foldover seats or stowaway rear seats

• Foldover and fully adjustable front seats

• Spacious rear cargo room

The Convenience of Foldover Seats

Foldover seats completely flip forward and lie flat. This allows for the entire front and rear cargo space to be used for accommodating a bed area.

Ideally, both the front and rear seats should flip over. Then an inflatable mattress or mattress cushion could be placed over them to create a spacious area for sleeping. However, car owners also could simply push the front seats completely forward and then flip them over as far as they can go.

Some SUVs include stowaway seats that can be removed. This could be a convenient option, too. Car owners could simply remove the seats before embarking on their trip, or just remove them when they are ready to go to bed.

Spacious Rear Cargo Room is Key

The more cargo room that the vehicle has, the more room that there will be for creating a bed space. Car owners will still have to adjust the back seats to flip forward or move up the front seats, but the rear cargo space allows for extra leg room.

Most SUVs Can Be Used for Sleeping

While full-size SUVs offer the most room for car camping, most SUVs can accommodate one or two people in the back for sleeping. Again, seats would need to be removed or completely folded down to accommodate a sleeping area, but even smaller models can make it work.

Before hitting the road, though, car owners might want to experiment with the space to find the best way to create a comfortable sleeping area. Smaller SUVs can get tight—especially with two people.

Arrange the back cargo space to include a mattress or other bedding and then lay on it. Find out if the arrangement feels comfortable or just too crowded.

Many SUVs have a hard plastic backing behind the seats. Car owners might need a thicker mattress or more comfortable bedding. No one wants to sleep on a hard surface.

What are the Best SUVs to Sleep In?

While, theoretically, larger SUVs would be more comfortable to sleep in as they offer more space, actually sleeping in the vehicle is the only way to know the most comfortable options. MotorBiscuit ranked the most comfortable SUVs for sleeping during long trips, and, yes, larger SUVs made up the entire list. Here are the best models according to the site:

• Toyota Sequoia

• Chevy Suburban

• Ford Expedition

• Kia Telluride

• Hyundai Palisade

Toyota Sequoia

The Toyota Sequoia is a full-size SUV that offers the maximum amount of space for sleeping. Drop all the seats down and transform the back into a sleeping den, or opt to sleep in the seat (recline the front seat back a bit). While the Sequoia doesn’t get great fuel efficiency (13 MPG in the city and 17 MPG on the highway), it offers the amount of space that some car campers might demand. It’s priced at $50,000.

Chevy Suburban

The Suburban is massive and has the space to accommodate larger families. Like the Sequoia, it also offers more than enough room for sleeping. Chevy Suburban offers a bit better fuel efficiency (14 MPG in the city and 20 MPG on the highway), and it’s priced a bit higher than the Sequoia ($52,900). However, the Suburban also has more cargo space than the Sequoia, which may give car campers a bit more wiggle room.

Ford Expedition

Another full-size SUV, the Expedition is priced at $50,595. It has decent fuel efficiency for a large SUV (17 MPG in the city and 23 MPG on the highway). Like its competitors, it also offers plenty of cargo space for those who want to stretch out for a good night of sleep. However, the Ford Expedition Max maximizes the cargo space—it offers 172 cu-ft (the standard Expedition only offers 104.6 cu-ft).

Kia Telluride

The Kia Telluride is the most budget friendly large SUV on the list, with a base price of $33,090. While it doesn’t have as much space as the competitors, it’s still spacious enough for car camping. It also offers decent fuel efficiency—20 MPG in the city and 26 MPG on the highway.

Hyundai Palisade

The Palisade is a little more expensive than the Telluride at $33,350, but is still a budget-friendly option for those who want a full-size SUV. While it offers the least amount of cargo space of all the models on the list, those who want to car camp will find it comparable to the Telluride. The Palisade also gets the best gas mileage—26 MPG combined!

Of all the options on the list, the Toyota Sequoia is the best SUV for sleeping in; it offers the most space of all the models. However, it’s also one of the most expensive models. For those who are on a tighter budget, Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride are the least expensive options but still offer enough space to comfortably sleep.

Use Carzing to Find the Best SUV for Sleeping In

For car buyers who want a full-size SUV to take car camping, use Carzing to find the best options. Carzing lets buyers search for vehicles by body type, make/model and price.

Buyers who want a full-size SUV for car camping, search by body type. Once Carzing pulls up the results, buyers can refine their search to include other specs like color, drivetrain or even price. Buyers also can sort their results by price, mileage or other criteria, too.

For buyers who want to find financing for their new car, use Carzing to get prequalified for financing. Choose the financing option with the lowest monthly payment, or buyers can choose the loan with the shortest term. Carzing also helps buyers understand how much money they need for a down payment.

Once buyers decide on their financing, they can print out the details and take it to a participating dealership. With Carzing, buyers can complete all the major details of the car buying process from home and spend their time at the dealership taking a test drive, completing the credit application and, hopefully, finalizing the deal and driving off in their new SUV!