Good luck with the sale, but the 'practical dad thing' threw me for a loop. - You have a very reliable very safe 4 door vehicle with a ton of space. Along with that it's cheap to work on, parts are reasonable / general maintenance. Anything you replace it with will arguably be worse in every category and will depreciate faster as well.
I think you have the coolest most practical dad vehicle you could possibly want to have - good luck with your search but you're thinking about this all wrong if you think - have a kid = get a mini-van.
You have it all right now - utility + fun + safety - why give any of that up unless you have to?
P.S. You would also be the coolest parent when dropping off or picking up the kid to him and his peers lol - that's worth keeping right there!
@Napalm - you’re a good guy. thanks for this perspective, and a large part of me really agrees with you. definitely am
exploring a sale with mixed emotions.
Man that perfectly shined car showing your love and dedication tells the story right there.
Stop this madness and remember one final piece here - Imagine turning this thing over to your son when he turns 18 - and in the meantime using it as leverage to make sure he makes good decisions and does well in school - if you get great grades and stay out of trouble you can have dad's Type R! (muuuuch better ring to it than 'You get to have your dad's dried milk smelling Mini Van with a falling apart interior and oil leak!)
Then you can retire when your kid is a surgeon with a minor in golf and tennis on your yaht called Type Arrrr