Question 3 Across in a Prius

Unregistered · Apr 9, 2012

I need to fit 2 FF and 1 RF in the back of my Prius for a road trip. The possible car seats in play are: 2 Britax Marathons, 1 Boulevard, 1 Frontier, 1 Advocate. I know i could buy 2 Radians and use the Frontier, but i'm trying to save the money if possible! Thanks!

creideamh · Apr 9, 2012

Unfortunately, 3 Britax seats just won't work in a Prius. I know some people have said Britax and Radian puzzle together when going the same direction, but that just hasn't been true for me in the Prius (although I have a headwing Radian, so it very well could be possible with a non-headwing version.)

I would put a Radian RF, Radian FF (non-headwing), and a Marathon/Boulevard FF. There's no way a Radian will fit next to a Frontier in the Prius- they hit each other in all the wrong places and there's just no extra space.

Good luck!!

Unregistered · Apr 9, 2012

Thank you for your response! I thought i read here that someone did 2 Radians and a Frontier, but that isn't a big deal because it seems we still require the 2 Radians :-( I was really hoping we could make something work because of only having one RF!

Unregistered · Apr 9, 2012

Would the Ride Safer Travel Vest be an option in the middle? The oldest FF is 4, ~35lbs.

aept · Apr 9, 2012

I'm not even sure two radians and a frontier would fit. I have a Prius and I own that combo of seats. I just can't imagine it working. 3 radians should. That makes for a pretty expensive road trip, though.
How about two ride safer travel vests and a seat you already own rf? Still pricey at around $200 but it sure beats buying 2-3 radians. Plus the vests store so compactly they might come in handy for other traveling adventures?

creideamh · Apr 9, 2012

I thought about mentioning the vests, but "road trip" sounds long... none of my kids thought they were exceptionally comfy. A good option, though, depending on your kids

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aept · Apr 9, 2012

creideamh said:
I thought about mentioning the vests, but "road trip" sounds long... none of my kids thought they were exceptionally comfy. A good option, though, depending on your kids

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Good point.
OP, how long is your trip and is it really just a one-time thing? Can you rent a bigger vehicle and use your existing seats? That might be money well spent. Depending on the kids' temperaments you might want more space! I know mine get a bit "physical" in our Prius in a 3-across, (to put it nicely.)

JamieD · Apr 10, 2012

We are driving NY to FL round trip! Renting a van is 4 x what a normal car would cost (about $100 / day vs. $25), flights are outrageous right now (plus we'd need to rent a car and worry about car seats once there). Not sure what to do! At least we'd have the Radians for awhile.

Are the Cosco Sceneras as skinny as the Radian?

JamieD · Apr 11, 2012

I also called Britax today but they were really no help :-( I didn't realize the Frontier had a wider base than the Boulevard and Marathon, though. I thought it was skinnier!

aept · Apr 11, 2012

JamieD said:
I also called Britax today but they were really no help :-( I didn't realize the Frontier had a wider base than the Boulevard and Marathon, though. I thought it was skinnier!

Yeah, I would describe the frontier as being "boxy" in shape. It is wide from top to base. The marathon (and similar-shaped seats) are also about as wide at their widest flared out area of the shell, but sit atop a more narrow base.

There is a great resource right on this forum. Find the heading "carseat features and data" and there are threads for each type of seat and it's basic measurements.

I know in my Prius 3-across, I have a ff radian drivers side, rf radian middle, and then I tried to fit a evenflo secure kid on the passenger side (a combination seat similar to, but more narrow than the frontier) and the door of the car wouldn't even close.
I think a third radian would fit, or a high back booster (our parkway SGL fits but has to be buckled by an adult), but I am assuming you need a harnessed seat.

A scenera is not more narrow than a radian, but might work as one of the seats. Maybe the complete air is narrow enough?

Also, how old/big is the rf child or the smaller ff child? If they are little enough, a Combi Cocorro might work for one or both of those children and it's really narrow.

creideamh · Apr 12, 2012

^ I have gotten a Complete Air FF driver's outboard next to a RF Radian... I think... I have a picture somewhere but can't seem to find it now. It took a lot of cursing and hard work. 3 Radians (FF, RF, FF) would fit and is really the easiest solution.

It's less about the stated width than it is with how well seats puzzle. Example: the Turbobooster is narrow on paper, but I could never get it to fit- however, I can fit a Probooster, which is technically wider.

Echoing PP, what are the stats & ages of each kid? Also what year is your Prius?

Question 3 Across in a Prius

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