2008 Can you swap 3rd row bench with 2nd captain seat in Dodge Grand Caravan or Town & Country?

chucksusanb · Jun 1, 2011

We really want to have a middle seat position in a mini van. All I am seeing is captain seats in 2nd row.

Honda Odyssey seems really out of our price limit plus I would like to buy American if possible.

Does anyone know how I can get a middle seat in a mini van in the year 2007, 2008, or 2009? I just can't seem to find anything.

Also ratings are a HUGE thing for me and Honda Odyssey, Dodge Grand Caravan and Town & Country are all rated highly.

Thank you.

Thank you

Vdavis · Jun 1, 2011

Yes you can. If it is in your price range you can order new from a dealership or you can get a used one from a salvage yard. At a salvage yard they run abot 75-100

chucksusanb · Jun 1, 2011

So the seatbelt mechanism is built into the seat??

That would be wonderful. We are looking for 2008, but could definitely afford to order a bench seat from the dealership too!!

Thank you so much.

Do you know if you can do this with both Grand Caravan and Town & Country?

Thanks.

Sue

luckyclov · Jun 2, 2011

Are you asking if you can stick a 3rd row bench of a T&C/GC in the captain's chair's 2nd row? No, you can't. Atleast not on an '08-'10 and most likely the '11 as well. Even if the seat/floor were compatible for the switch, there'd be no shoulder belt in that new "center" position, as the center spot in the 3rd row has the shoulder belt coming from the ceiling and clipping into a box on the lap belt. I wouldn't do any switching around of seats unless it was approved by the manufacturer and the work was done at a dealership.

I really don't think you're going to find what you're looking for in an American minivan unless you stumble across an older body style Chrysler/Dodge (pre-2008) with the 2nd row 2 seater bench, where one side is a little more in (but not quite center). And even then, I'm still not sure you can swap the 2 benches. I also had an '05/'06, and while both benches could be removed from the vehicle entirely, I don't remember being able to put the 3rd row bench in the 2nd row. Even so, there'd only be a lap belt and likely no headrest (mine didn't have a headrest or shoulder belt in the center of the 3rd row).

The 2004-2010 Toyota Siennas have what you're looking for. I drive an '11 Sienna now and that's a feature it no longer has.

Something to also be thoughtful of, especially with looking at 2008-newer Chryslers is that there is a fairly dramatic slope on the vehicle seat bottoms, which can make *some* carseat/booster difficult to use. And the gas mileage sucks. I was getting around 14 MPG city on my '09 Grand Caravan.

jourdysmom · Jun 21, 2011

clov878 said:
Are you asking if you can stick a 3rd row bench of a T&C/GC in the captain's chair's 2nd row? No, you can't. Atleast not on an '08-'10 and most likely the '11 as well. Even if the seat/floor were compatible for the switch, there'd be no shoulder belt in that new "center" position, as the center spot in the 3rd row has the shoulder belt coming from the ceiling and clipping into a box on the lap belt. I wouldn't do any switching around of seats unless it was approved by the manufacturer and the work was done at a dealership.

I really don't think you're going to find what you're looking for in an American minivan unless you stumble across an older body style Chrysler/Dodge (pre-2008) with the 2nd row 2 seater bench, where one side is a little more in (but not quite center). And even then, I'm still not sure you can swap the 2 benches. I also had an '05/'06, and while both benches could be removed from the vehicle entirely, I don't remember being able to put the 3rd row bench in the 2nd row. Even so, there'd only be a lap belt and likely no headrest (mine didn't have a headrest or shoulder belt in the center of the 3rd row).

The 2004-2010 Toyota Siennas have what you're looking for. I drive an '11 Sienna now and that's a feature it no longer has.

Something to also be thoughtful of, especially with looking at 2008-newer Chryslers is that there is a fairly dramatic slope on the vehicle seat bottoms, which can make *some* carseat/booster difficult to use. And the gas mileage sucks. I was getting around 14 MPG city on my '09 Grand Caravan.

:yeahthatsad: You cannot move 3rd to second

You will need to go quite a bit older, or Sienna or Odyssey

Guest · Jun 29, 2011

Look into where a car is built when trying to "buy American". This is especially true for minivans. You can blame NAFTA for the results.

2008 Can you swap 3rd row bench with 2nd captain seat in Dodge Grand Caravan or Town & Country?

chucksusanb

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