Combine rear-facing and front-facing car seats and still have space left over?
November 22, 2010 12:53 PM Subscribe
One rear-facing car seat, plus one front-facing car seat, in a Honda, Toyota, or Subaru? What worked for you?
We are looking for a new-to-us vehicle. We'll need to fit a rear-facing car seat (Graco Snugride), along with a front-facing Britax for the older child. We'd prefer a Honda, Toyota, or Subaru, with good side impact safety. (Actually, good safety ratings all-round are key.)
Right now we've got a compact car; using a rear-facing car seat for the first year with our older child was a nightmare. Whatever seat it went behind had to be shoved all the way forward. Thus, impossible to go behind the driver, and equally impossible to go in the center. Driver shouldn't drive with her chest pressed up against the steering wheel. Who knew?
Cars, wagons, vans, and SUVs are okay with us. No pickups. No Element. Bigger is better since we go on lots of long car trips and need room for luggage & baby stuff, however, we can compromise in order to get decent gas mileage.
Please tell me what vehicle you used for a rear-facing and front-facing car seat combo. Were you able to put the infant in the middle, or did the two kids have to go one behind the driver and one behind the passenger? Thanks!
We are looking for a new-to-us vehicle. We'll need to fit a rear-facing car seat (Graco Snugride), along with a front-facing Britax for the older child. We'd prefer a Honda, Toyota, or Subaru, with good side impact safety. (Actually, good safety ratings all-round are key.)
Right now we've got a compact car; using a rear-facing car seat for the first year with our older child was a nightmare. Whatever seat it went behind had to be shoved all the way forward. Thus, impossible to go behind the driver, and equally impossible to go in the center. Driver shouldn't drive with her chest pressed up against the steering wheel. Who knew?
Cars, wagons, vans, and SUVs are okay with us. No pickups. No Element. Bigger is better since we go on lots of long car trips and need room for luggage & baby stuff, however, we can compromise in order to get decent gas mileage.
Please tell me what vehicle you used for a rear-facing and front-facing car seat combo. Were you able to put the infant in the middle, or did the two kids have to go one behind the driver and one behind the passenger? Thanks!
We had two front facing (behind driver and passenger) and one rear facing (middle seat) in a Toyota Matrix. The tall driver in the family (5'10") never complained about being too close to drive comfortably. Our front facing seats were Radian 65s, just about as narrow as they come; but, the rear facing seat was the typical, bulky baby bucket type seat. I skinned many knuckles getting them installed, but they were all snug and safe.
Having recently test driven Foresters and Outbacks, I'm certain the backseats are large enough for the same set up.
posted by wg at 1:10 PM on November 22, 2010
Having recently test driven Foresters and Outbacks, I'm certain the backseats are large enough for the same set up.
posted by wg at 1:10 PM on November 22, 2010
Ah, sorry, forgot my point, which was this: maybe you need new carseats, not a new car. Browse around on Car Seat and maybe you can find seats that will fit in your current car.
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:13 PM on November 22, 2010
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:13 PM on November 22, 2010
We use a front and rear facing pair of seats in a Subaru Impreza Wagon (Outback Sport, if it matters) with the car seats behind the front seats. It worked, although the front passenger seat was a little cramped (still is with booster seats, IMHO).
That said, it worked, but the LATCH tie down in the Impeza is in a truly horrible place: the back of the car near the hatch. I'm told that space is better in a Forester.
Also, I can't say enough good things about Mighty Tite as a tool for racheting in car seats. Worth. Every. Fricking. Penny. If an average-built adult male (me) can't get a car seat safely installed, then there is something seriously wrong with seat design/car design.
posted by plinth at 1:13 PM on November 22, 2010
That said, it worked, but the LATCH tie down in the Impeza is in a truly horrible place: the back of the car near the hatch. I'm told that space is better in a Forester.
Also, I can't say enough good things about Mighty Tite as a tool for racheting in car seats. Worth. Every. Fricking. Penny. If an average-built adult male (me) can't get a car seat safely installed, then there is something seriously wrong with seat design/car design.
posted by plinth at 1:13 PM on November 22, 2010
Mazda5? There is a ton of room, and four seats in back, all of which have top tethers for a front facing seat. Safety Rating.
posted by mkb at 1:14 PM on November 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by mkb at 1:14 PM on November 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
If you're considering minivans, know that both the Odyssey and Sienna have middle rows that can slide back, so you'll have plenty of room for your rear-facing seat. I don't think you'd be able to have one seat in the middle -- one behind each of the front seats would work instead.
For what it's worth, we had a rear-facing seat in the back of our 2002 Taurus and it did not require either front passenger to cram their seat forward.
(We just bought an '11 Sienna, but we've graduated out of the rear-facing seats.)
posted by BurntHombre at 1:16 PM on November 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
For what it's worth, we had a rear-facing seat in the back of our 2002 Taurus and it did not require either front passenger to cram their seat forward.
(We just bought an '11 Sienna, but we've graduated out of the rear-facing seats.)
posted by BurntHombre at 1:16 PM on November 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
We have an '07 Honda Pilot and for a while had a rear-facing Chicco KeyFit (replaced when baby was bigger with a rear-facing Britax Marathon) along with a front-facing Britax Marathon (later replaced with a Graco booster). We had to put one on each side -- no room in the middle. The front-facing seat had to go behind the driver's seat because there was no way the rear-facing seat fit back there (we had to move the front passenger seat up a little to accommodate the rear-facing seat). Now that both are front-facing, both of the front seats can be all the way back, which is much appreciated by my tall husband and myself.
posted by justonegirl at 1:22 PM on November 22, 2010
posted by justonegirl at 1:22 PM on November 22, 2010
We did this in a Honda Accord, one behind each front seat. It was not possible to put either one in the middle, given our car seats (a Graco toddler seat and a Baby Trend bucket seat). You could look into narrower seats, though, to see whether it would work for certain seats. We took some trips in it, and there's enough trunk and cabin space to fit a decent amount of gear (Pack 'n' Play + umbrella stroller + booster seat + luggage, on most trips we took).
We now have a Honda Odyssey, which, unlike the Sienna, permits one of the middle-row captain's chairs to slide to the middle, so that's where we've put our new infant. (We've got three now, hence the Odyssey.)
Are you stopping at two children? If so, the Mazda 5 might work well for you; if not, I've heard nothing but complaints from people with three children who've bought it. They can't even fit groceries in when the third row is set up, let alone gear for overnight trips.
posted by palliser at 2:02 PM on November 22, 2010
We now have a Honda Odyssey, which, unlike the Sienna, permits one of the middle-row captain's chairs to slide to the middle, so that's where we've put our new infant. (We've got three now, hence the Odyssey.)
Are you stopping at two children? If so, the Mazda 5 might work well for you; if not, I've heard nothing but complaints from people with three children who've bought it. They can't even fit groceries in when the third row is set up, let alone gear for overnight trips.
posted by palliser at 2:02 PM on November 22, 2010
(Actually, good safety ratings all-round are key.)
Wanted to mention here that my understanding is that safety ratings are by class, and in a multiple-vehicle crash, weight matters. So if you've been driving a car that's significantly lighter than almost all cars on American roads, shifting to something bigger would be a safety gain in a lot of crash situations.
posted by palliser at 2:10 PM on November 22, 2010
Wanted to mention here that my understanding is that safety ratings are by class, and in a multiple-vehicle crash, weight matters. So if you've been driving a car that's significantly lighter than almost all cars on American roads, shifting to something bigger would be a safety gain in a lot of crash situations.
posted by palliser at 2:10 PM on November 22, 2010
I drive a '99 Subaru wagon, my husband has a '10 Prius. Kid #1 was 3.5 when Kid #2 was born. We installed their seats in the two outboard positions, and the rear-facing seat definitely made things snug in the front for awhile. I had to scoot up the front passenger seat on both our cars to make it fit, which was uncomfortable (I'm 5'10", my husband is 6'+).
In general, I think you have to get something larger than the cars you've listed to avoid crunching the front seat passenger's knees into the dash with a rear-facing seat installed. Modern car seats (with the possible exception of the Radians, I've not been able to use them) seem to get bigger every year. We used a Chicco infant seat and then a Britax Marathon for kid #2. The Evenflo we used for kid #1 (2005) wasn't quite as bulky as seats are now. Of course, we're a bit taller than average, so you might do better. And we survived just fine, knees bent and all.
Best thing you can do is take your seats with you when test-driving a car and install them to see how they fit. I did this during our car shop session last year and it was very helpful. It's not just the size of the car, it's how your car seats fit in the back that makes for a good/safe installation. And remember that the recommendation now is for kids to sit rear-facing until they reach age 2, or until they outgrow the seat's rear-facing limits.
Now that both of my kids are forward facing, we're all more comfortable. Unfortunately, we already need more leg room and room for stuff on trips. I'll probably be replacing my Subie with a crossover or minivan in the spring... :(
posted by hms71 at 3:52 PM on November 22, 2010
In general, I think you have to get something larger than the cars you've listed to avoid crunching the front seat passenger's knees into the dash with a rear-facing seat installed. Modern car seats (with the possible exception of the Radians, I've not been able to use them) seem to get bigger every year. We used a Chicco infant seat and then a Britax Marathon for kid #2. The Evenflo we used for kid #1 (2005) wasn't quite as bulky as seats are now. Of course, we're a bit taller than average, so you might do better. And we survived just fine, knees bent and all.
Best thing you can do is take your seats with you when test-driving a car and install them to see how they fit. I did this during our car shop session last year and it was very helpful. It's not just the size of the car, it's how your car seats fit in the back that makes for a good/safe installation. And remember that the recommendation now is for kids to sit rear-facing until they reach age 2, or until they outgrow the seat's rear-facing limits.
Now that both of my kids are forward facing, we're all more comfortable. Unfortunately, we already need more leg room and room for stuff on trips. I'll probably be replacing my Subie with a crossover or minivan in the spring... :(
posted by hms71 at 3:52 PM on November 22, 2010
My experience is identical to palliser's: Accord for 2 kids, moved up to Odyssey for 3. Much more comfy in the Odyssey, and far, FAR more room for kid gear.
posted by mdiskin at 6:17 PM on November 22, 2010
posted by mdiskin at 6:17 PM on November 22, 2010
I have exactly the same two seats you have, in a Toyota Corolla; one seat on each side (Britax on driver's side for us). The infant seat takes up a lot of room, so it should go behind the shorter person's seat. It works, but I wouldn't do it if I had a choice. If you don't put the handle back all the way on the infant seat, you can back up the front seat a little more.
We're now looking for a van.
posted by Simon Barclay at 6:37 PM on November 22, 2010
We're now looking for a van.
posted by Simon Barclay at 6:37 PM on November 22, 2010
A friend has a Honda CR-V and the seat configuration you describe (not certain of brands) and is happy with it. She has the kids behind the front seats, not in the middle.
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:24 AM on November 23, 2010
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:24 AM on November 23, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks, folks! It sounds like our problem is not an unusual one, and I'm not going to solve it with another car. Maybe a van or a CR-V. My husband is very tall and he won't be able to ride in whichever seat has to be shoved forward. Previously, he had to drive all the time because the rear facing car seat was behind the passenger. If the new recommendation is now to have rf past the age of one, that would be a long time to not be able to trade driving duties. We probably won't just get new carseats - though that is cheaper than a new vehicle - because our current car is just too dang short, narrow, compact, and cramped for 3 people, let alone 4.
posted by Knowyournuts at 2:49 PM on November 23, 2010
posted by Knowyournuts at 2:49 PM on November 23, 2010
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posted by The corpse in the library at 1:09 PM on November 22, 2010 [1 favorite]