Triplets and a 2 year old, do I need a new vehicle?

So we just found out we are pregnant with triplets and we have a 2.5 year old. I have a GMC Acadia with the captains chairs (with LATCH) and the third row seat (only tether LATCH in middle seat). How would I safety fit three convertible car seats RF and a convertible car seat FF? And still be able to reach all of them to get them in and out?

Do we need a new vehicle? If so, what should we get? What are our safest options with three RF and one FF? It would have to be used, we have to keep our payments low especially with three more on the way.

A lot of people put rear facing car seats in the third row and load kids through the hatch. I've done it and it's not as bad as you'd think. I don't think you need a new vehicle, but you can't beat the convenience of a minivan. I'd want the most convenient vehicle I could afford with 4 children.

You could do the FF seat in a captain chair and then the three babies in the third row or two babies in the third row and one on the other captain chair.

You could remove a captains chair for more access and put 3 in the back. Possibly even the forward facer.

Another thought, consider that your triplets may be smaller at birth. I just wanted to recommend getting infant seats to accommodate that when the time comes. Many of the infant seats don't fit smaller babies well. The bottoms slots may not be low enough or possibly the harness may not tighten enough. The Chicco Keyfit and the Safety First On Board or On Board Air would be my first picks.

Hope that helps and congrats on your babies!

What's the cargo area of the Acadia like with the 3rd row in use? Would you be able to put the stroller back there that you need?

I have an Acura MDX (similar to the Acadia) and we'll be keeping it once our 3rd babe arrives late summer. I can do 3 across though. If I had to use the 3rd row everyday, I'd be more likely to upsize.

I have a Saturn Outlook (twin to the Acadia) and unfortunately the 3rd row is not RF seat friendly AT ALL. I can fit a very upright convertible back there. Back when DS was a newborn and we had family visiting I couldn't even get his Snugride to fit baseless with anything close to an acceptable recline.

Your best option would probably be to put the RF babies in the captains chairs & the center of the 3rd row. But that would leave your 2yo FF without being top tethered (and a tight fit widthwise to get 2 seats side by side in that 3rd row).

Honestly, I'd probably go for a used minivan.

I can't comment on your current vehicle but if you're going to look for a new vechicle my suggestion would be to find one that will easily accommodate two in the back but have a wide enough access area to the 3rd row to get back there without too much hassle.

Previous generation Honda Odyssey models had the outboard captain's chairs that could slide over towards the center. That set-up allows for better access to the 3rd row. It would be pretty tight to fit an adult back there in the 3rd row *between* the infant seats but if you could find infant seats that fit side-by-side in the 3rd row (driver's side and center) and have enough room for an adult to sit *next* to them in the 3rd row - that might be ideal. You would then have the older child and one of the triplets in the middle row.

I have 2 different friends who have triplets and for them it was really preferable to have an adult sitting in the 3rd row with a view of all the babies for the first few months.

One friend has a 2003 (I think) 7-passenger Ody. The other friend has a Grand Caravan with the stow and go seats in the middle row. She stowed one captain's chair most of the time to have easier access to the 3rd row. She has 2 in the back and one in the captain's chair. However, that set-up isn't going to work with 4 kids since there's no reasonable way to get 3 across in the 3rd row of that vehicle. And leaving the other captain's chair in place makes it a pain for an adult to get in and out of the 3rd row.

Truthfully, it's not going to be practical to get 3 across in the 3rd row of most vehicles. You're much better off if you focus on getting 2 in the middle row and 2 in the 3rd row but try to look for vehicles that give you decent access to the 3rd row. Minivans with a 2 person bench seat in the middle row might work well for you. So may 8-passenger models if one outboard seats can be removed and the center seat is carseat friendly.

The other thing to consider is how many tether anchors the vehicle has. You don't really need lower LATCH anchors but you're going to need a lot of top tether anchors and most vehicles won't have them in the positions that you're going to need them in.

Here are a few options that you may want to consider if you determine that your current vehicle just isn't going to work.

Honda Odyssey 2006-2010 MY (model years)

Ford Windstar 2000-2003 MY with *bench seat* in the middle row (avoid later "Freestar" models - that's what I drive and it isn't going to work for you).

Dodge Grand Caravan 2001 MY only. This is the one and only model year that this vehicle came with 5 factory-installed top tether anchors. Again, models with a bench seat in the middle row would be preferable.

Hope that helps, good luck and best wishes for a healthy and trouble-free pregnancy! For what it's worth - one of my friends went the full 36 weeks and all 3 babies came home from the hospital when she did!

Since any rear facing child is safer than a FFer I would put the FFer in the 3rd row middle with two babies rfing on each side, and the last baby on the captain's chair farthest from the door. Then remove the captain's chair that is infront of the door so you can easily climb in and out to load the little ones in the back. (Or you could load them through the hatch like was suggested earlier.) Good luck

There is so little front to back space in your 3rd row I doubt you'll get a rear facing seat back there unless it's in the middle.

I would, without hesitation, start looking for something different.

A van with 2nd row captains chairs that allow one to be slid to the middle would be my first choice. 2010 or older sienna or oddy.


And whatever you do, count tether anchors. It's shocking to see how few some vehicles offer and how silly the placement is sometimes. Just because it's big, or a van, doesn't mean it's kid friendly. :thumbsdown: