swapping 2 seat for a 3 seat?

[christineka]

A neighbor has the same van as me. (Ford aerostar) It broke down and will cost way too much to fix, so they got a new vehicle. The old one is just sitting around. They have a 3 seater bench in the middle where there should be a 2 seater. While I plan to buy a new and much safer vehicle sometime after next year's tax refund and before the next baby, it would be convenient to fit one more kid in the van. (For carpooling.) I was thinking of asking if we could swap benches. How very much less safe is it to do that? My van isn't top on the safety ratings already. Would it make much of a difference?

Christine

[libranbutterfly]

Windstars allowed this, but I am not sure about the aerostar. any chance either of you stil have the manual?

[crunchierthanthou]

is the center seatbelt anchored to the seat and not the frame? if so and the seat anchorage mechanisms are the same and you can move the third row the the middle position (per the manual), then you can convert your van to an 8 seater. It does make 3rd row access a little tricky.

[Judi]

I have to three seaters in my Windstar. I rarely use the two seater.

[libranbutterfly]

I am on the lookout for another threeseater for my 96 Grand Caravan so I can have an 8 seater. The manual gives permission to move the third row seat up :)

[Defrost]

Just keep in mind, since you mentioned using it for carpooling, that any lap-only belts it has can only be used for carseats - no boosters, and not just the lap-only belt.

[christineka]

I'd put a car seat in the middle positions as I do now. I have three kids in car seats and two in boosters that could be in car seats if I wanted (or could find the money.)

I'm concerned about the convenience factor, but I think the neighbor is letting me keep my 2 seater bench. I was thinking of swapping only when needed.

[Defrost]

Cool - I kinda figured you'd thought of that already, but it's always worth mentioning just in case. :thumbsup: