3 in my Corolla

Hi there!
So this weekend, I'm going to be babysitting my three cousins and I have to pick them up in my 99 Corolla. They are:
10 years, 85 ish pounds, short for his age but not sure of his height
7 years, about 65 pounds I think, also short
& 6 weeks

I have 2 no back turbos in my car for the 2 kids I babysit regularly (4&6...theyd still be harnessed if they were mine but they arent lol)

The 10 year old has been out of a booster since his 8th birthday (literally...and he had been In a no back turbo since he was 2 eek!) and the 7 year old is normally in a no back turbo with his mom. The 6 week old is in a safety 1st bucket.

My question: is it worth the fight to get the 10 year old to ride in a booster? I feel more comfortable with him boostered but he probably won't want to... And if I get him to sit in it, will 2 turbo boosters and a bucket fit comfortably in the backseat? Anyone have a similar experience?

I'm not totally sure about the turbos but if you need narrower backless boosters, Wal-Mart has the Harmony boosters for about $14 and they are a lot narrower than the backless turbos. I was going to get a turbo for DD1 (for carpools this year) but we went w/ a harmony because I didn't want any incompatibility issues.

I'd have the 10 YO do a quick 5 step test, if he passes, great. If not, ask him to ride in the booster. If he protests, explain that in YOUR car, he doesn't fit correctly without one and you want to keep him safe. Period. I'd put the infant bucket outboard passenger, the 6 YO center and the 10 YO behind you.

It may be worth it to pick up a Harmony JIC the 2 turbo's don't fit.

Maybe someone has a corolla who would be more help.

Yikes I don't know. I can't imagine 2 turbos & a infant bucket fitting in my DH's car, which I think is the same (mines a 2000). Hopefully the 10 yo 5steps. Do you have a center shoulder belt? Mine does. If so, I think putting the 10 yo in the center (if they 5step...) would work. If you need two boosters, I'd try the harmony ones. The shape of them might make it work.

I would only put the 10 yr old in the center if there was a head rest or they have ample head support.

update:

I realized that there was no way to fit 2 turbos and a bucket back there Not sure that the 10yo would have sat in one anyway...but he almost wanted to when he saw the red seat belt positioner on his brother's and realized how much more comfortable it made it. It was a bit of a fight to get them to put the shoulder belt actually on their shoulders...they've never been made to before (The first thing the 7yo did was say "what's this red thing? I don't like it" and took it off...that didn't fly with me )

So the other issue I had was installing the base for the bucket....absolutely impossible! I got it in there and as tight as I could and it moved around at least 6 inches...the belt stalk was in the belt path...that might have been why (I've seen people talking about twisting the belt stalk to tighten it...is that okay?)
I just decided to not use the base and install it with the seatbelt and I got a really solid install that I was happy with.

I had the baby behind me, the 10yo in the middle, and the 7yo passenger side outboard. I didn't love putting the 10yo in the middle because I don't have a headrest there but I figured not being in a seat, he'd be safest in the middle. Also, not being able to use the baby's base, it was way easier to put him outboard.

So there it is, in case anyone cares lol (or ever find themslves in a similar position )

You can twist the belt stalk up to three times.

I would have installed the bucket baseless and done a high-back turbo for the younger, a Harmony for the older if he needed it (easier to buckle.) If he 5-stepped, I'd have put him outboard so he had a headrest.

Did the 10 yo even need the headrest w/o a booster? Just wondering if that was even an issue. Sounds like you did the best you could!

ketchupqueen said:

I would have installed the bucket baseless and done a high-back turbo for the younger, a Harmony for the older if he needed it (easier to buckle.) If he 5-stepped, I'd have put him outboard so he had a headrest.

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I wish I could have done that... I didn't have the $$ to buy 2 new boosters and I don't take them often enough anymore to justify buying them seats for my car (They used to be with me every weekend, but I just moved out of state)

oh well, next time I think I'll just have 2 of the 3 anyway...much easier (and comfortable...I heard more than once "why do you have such a small car? You should get a bigger car" haha)

mamakc said:

Did the 10 yo even need the headrest w/o a booster? Just wondering if that was even an issue. Sounds like you did the best you could!

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Not really..like I said, he's very short. His head was pretty much flush with the seat back. The biggest problem with that was that he was not comfortable with the shoulder belt but after being reminded a couple times, he did a good job with keeping it on. (and I think that has less to do with his height and way more to do with the fact that their mother doesn't make them wear the shoulder belt properly. ever. sigh..)