Seat placement in a minivan with older kids

pennykandy

New member
Hi everyone! I have an almost 4 month old baby, and we are just starting to shop around for a convertible car seat, although she'll likely stay in her infant seat for a while still. As part of that search I've been thinking about car seat placement, and how that will play into which seat I wind up buying.

I also have a 14 year old and an 11 year old who are both out of boosters now. We have a 2008 Town & Country with middle row captains chairs (not a bench seat). Currently baby sits behind the driver, and the older kids get in and out of the passenger side, 11 year old sits in the 3rd row and 14 year old sits in the middle row. This arrangement works great. However, we are thinking of having another baby when current baby is probably 2 years old, so she would likely still be rear facing. Do you think we'll just have to put current baby in the 3rd row? I'm thinking there is no way that the older kids will be able to climb around any rear facing seats in the middle row. BUT the 3rd row is pretty cramped, does anyone know if a rear facing seat would even fit back there???

Thanks,
Penny (who is completely overwhelmed by the process of picking out a convertible car seat)
 
ADS

luckyclov

New member
You could always stuff one of the captain's chairs in the floor and use the 3rd row for the two older kids and the 2-year old. It'd be cramped, but it would give more legroom to the older kids if they sat outboard and center. Plus, they could possibly help with getting the toddler in and out. I was able to install a RF'ing Britax Marathon 70, Sunshine Kids Radian (the shell is tall, though, so the captain's chair needs to be moved forward), and a Combi Coccoro (needed pool noodles due to the vehicle seat slope) in the 3rd row (I used to have an '09 Grand Caravan, which basically the same thing as a T&C).

Another thing to keep in mind is that the 3rd row only has one full set of LATCH, which is off-center (meaning, if you wanted to install with the lower anchors, you'd lose the whole driver's side outboard spot). But you can still use the seatbelt to install (sometimes complicated due to the connector box thingie) and use the top tether, when you have a forward-facer.
 

eyeslkethesky5391

Senior Community Member
Well if you decide to have another baby I would put the convertible in the back seat with the 11 year old...but the Newbie where you have the baby now and leave the 14 year old in the middle that way you can get in and out easier without having to maneuver around carseats plus the 14 year old can help buckle in. I would get something narrow maybe a complete air so you don't have to buy something again in two years if you decide to have another one
 

pennykandy

New member
Another thing to keep in mind is that the 3rd row only has one full set of LATCH, which is off-center (meaning, if you wanted to install with the lower anchors, you'd lose the whole driver's side outboard spot). But you can still use the seatbelt to install (sometimes complicated due to the connector box thingie) and use the top tether, when you have a forward-facer.


I didn't know this. I assumed that it would have 2 full sets of LATCH, one on each side.
 

pennykandy

New member
Well if you decide to have another baby I would put the convertible in the back seat with the 11 year old...but the Newbie where you have the baby now and leave the 14 year old in the middle that way you can get in and out easier without having to maneuver around carseats plus the 14 year old can help buckle in. I would get something narrow maybe a complete air so you don't have to buy something again in two years if you decide to have another one

This was my thought, and likely what we'll wind up doing, by then the 11 year old will be 13 so hopefully he'll be competent enough to make sure the buckle is secure. So, yes I am trying to find a seat now that will fit in the back down the road, should we need it.
 

Chris

New member
I have a 2005 grand Caravan. While yours is the newer body style, I suspect the front to back measurements/seat placement are fairly similar. I was able to fit a RFing radian in the 3rd row, drivers side.

We are in a similar position with 3 kids now, looking at 4 in the near future, two of whom would be RFing. I think I will do the toddler RFing, 3rd row, drivers side, tethered to the captains chair in front of it (I think this is allowed, someone correct me if not). Then I will RF the newbie in the Driver's captain chair (if that one stays there long enough to need a tethered seat, I would tether to Driver's seat rail). This allows me either do a three across in the 3rd row, and drop my stowable passenger side captains chair for easy loading, or do two in back and a booster in the the captains chair. HTH
 

jourdysmom

CPST Instructor
I have an "08 as well. Our setup is:

Driver------------------------------------Passenger

RF TrueFit--------------------------------RF/FF Complete Air

FF Radian----- 10y.o. (seatbelt)-----------High Back Booster

They HATE when the Complete Air is RF, too hard to get around it. BUT as the 2 in the captain chairs are with me 24/7 and the back row 3 spend 90% of their time in school, it is easier for me not to have to climb over to the 3rd row.
 

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