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my husband had a little hatchback 2014 Ford Focus for a commuter for a while. We only had one rear facing seat in the middle, so I don't know for sure how the 2 FF seats would work, but shouldn't be bad.

How long is the commute?

Would a hybrid or fully electric be an option?

I think you could do something like a Prius. With the regenerative braking, the mileage goes up to 50 mpg.

I used to drive a Nissan Leaf, but there’s not enough range for that kind of commute.

Our car right now is a Tesla Model s and while it’s expensive, it could handle that commute round trip on a single charge no problem.

We're probably going to get a Prius or Prius C as our next car...looking at buying a used one from 2013, 2014, or 2015.

If you want a non-hybrid, I'd recommend the Mazda3. It is peppy and pretty fun to drive while also getting 40 mpg for me on my commute.

I've got a Prius gas/electric hybrid. Pretty good - gets 35-40 mpg depending where I'm driving, very reliable, can easily fit five people and a ton of stuff. I'm going to need two car seats + a booster in the back this fall, and I'm pretty sure the car is up to the challenge and we won't need to upgrade.

@gotkimchi: we have a Prius v and love it. 43-45 mpg, great car.

FYI the difference with the Prius models is size. The c is the little one (least trunk space), the Prius is the classic that has been around the longest and the v (for versatile?) is the biggest with a bigger hatchback.

We got ours new last summer but I am happy to answer any questions.

The other difference between Prius models is price. The C is generally the least expensive, but pricing is more variable with used.

We have a 2011 Nissan Versa hatchback that is super roomy inside but is also great on gas. We have a 1 hour commute and I think we get around 30 mpg. I drive a CRV and average about 25 mpg.

We have a 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid and it has been THE BEST. At its best (summer time, highway), we can get up to 42mpg. It’s still going strong at 110,000 miles. From what I gather from other Civic Hybrid and Prius owners that they’re both equally great!

Another vote for Honda fit. I've had mine for almost 10 years and absolutely love it. It fits an incredible amount of stuff and unless you're well over 6' tall, would be comfy for ff or rf car seats. I have the manual transmission and averaged around 40-42 mpg.

i drive a plug-in hybrid van (crystler pacifica) but they just came out in 2017 so there probably aren't a lot of used ones.

My husband drives the fully electric leaf and used ones are very well priced, but the range might not be enough for you.

the Chevy Volt is a plug-in hybrid and can go 50 miles all electric then switches to gas. There are a lot of used ones at great prices - two of my friends own these.

----remember that with a hybrid you get a $7,500 tax credit (straight cash back on your tax return) if it's NEW but not if it's used (the original owner already got the credit), so keep that in mind with your pricing. This is why a lot of used hybrids are priced lower since they know you don't get the credit used
----we also have a car charger in our garage. You can plug in with a "normal" outlet, but it takes a lot longer to charge. We ordered a charger on amazon, I think it was around $500. We can fully charge our cars in 2.5 or 3 hours vs more than 12 hours without it (on a "normal" charger). Neither of my friends with Chevy Volts have the upgraded charger and they do fine without it though.

@gotkimchi: the chystler pacifica I have is plug in hybrid which isn't fully electric, it uses gas too. I love it! If you got it from chystler new you'd get your dad's discount AND the $7,500 tax credit

We have a charger in our house as well and it's about $3 more a month in the electric bill. My husband ran the numbers, I was shocked, as this was with charging one of our fully electric cars overnight.

@gotkimchi: Yeah i was going to guess $5 a month.... it might be even less because my husband usually charges his fully electric car at work (they have chargers in his parking lot which also means he gets the best parking spaces right by the entrance). I charge mine overnight when electric rates are lower. I also try to do dishes overnight because of the lower rates. Sometimes laundry but that's a little harder to schedule.

Since mine is hybrid I do still get gas sometimes... about ever other month or so, maybe every 2 months.

And don't forget the $7,500 tax credit if you buy new. That brings the cost of a hybrid sometimes lower than the cost of the same gas vehicle (my hybrid van was less than the same model non-hybrid van after the tax credit). The tax credit plus the lower operating expenses makes it very economical as well as being green.