Seeing how the front 3-person bench seat is gone (at least in the USA) hauling more than 5 people requires 3 rows of seats.
Sadly, the only smaller three row vehicles sold new in the USA are crossovers. Vehicles like the Prius v never got three rows here. Station wagons are non existent so you can't get those with or without the rows. I did really like the MAZDA5 which sadly never had the 7 seat version here and is no longer sold.
However, when it comes to bigger 3 rowed vehicles I find the mini vans much more roomy than the full sized SUV's.
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