Might be one of the few times another forum is right. Adults in the third row or you needing to buckle one or two children in the third row: Minivan will save your sanity and your back.
IMHO the cramped 3 row category like EV9/Ioniq 9 or Vistiq/Gravity feels pretty awesome for small family that sometimes needs to seat 6. Good space for a family of 4 on a road trip and enough room for in town 6 people cruising when you have family/visitors.
Gas wise the Palisade/Telluride feel hard to beat - The Highlander feels like a solid long term vehicle to own but the most boring of the options.
I’ve been curious about the Ascent a few times, they’re often super cheap used compared to similarly equipped vehicles but haven’t looked into it deeply enough.
I’m searching for an EV9/Ioniq 9 when our Lyriq lease expires in July. OR a Vistiq/Gravity if I can find a good enough deal at the time. Think my wife is fully out on gas cars after not having to visit a gas station since we got the Lyriq.
Friends of mine love their Telluride.