2013 Durango vs. 2013 Acadia

VoodooChile · Apr 18, 2013

Major pros and cons of each? I've already gone and looked at the Durango and hope to peek at the Acadia this afternoon--dh and I hope to spend some kid-free time this weekend doing a more in-depth perusal. My #1 requirement is to be able to get to the 3rd row easily, so I'm only looking at SUV/crossovers that have 2nd row captains' chairs. The first thing I do when I get in is walk to the 3rd row. I only have 1 child left in a harness so I don't need a lot of tethers, and he's almost too heavy for LATCH, so lots of either isn't terribly important. I do give dd's friends rides, so booster-friendliness is far more important.
These are really the 2 vehicles I'm considering. I don't like the looks of the Traverse. I looked at a 2010 Escalade but decided I'd rather buy new. I'm not considering minivans. So if anyone knows anything about either of these 2, or anything comparable, I'd love to know! Thanks!

canadiangie · Apr 18, 2013

I like the 3rd row of the new Durango quite a bit more.

Be sure to try your boosters in the Acadia captains chairs. The stalks are fixed and angled inwards. My brain is telling me that Oobr and Acadia captains chairs don't play super well together. Eta: hey where'd your Oobr go?

Keeks64 · Apr 18, 2013

I don't know if you've looked at it but the Dodge Journeys are booster friendly & even though they don't have captain chairs they have awesome telescopic folding so its really easy to access the 3 rd row

The new 2013 pathfinder has capt'n chairs in the higher up model & the Ford Flex does too!

VoodooChile · Apr 18, 2013

canadiangie said:
I like the 3rd row of the new Durango quite a bit more.
. Eta: hey where'd your Oobr go?

We decided dd could try going ft backless and see how she did. The Oobr is patiently awaiting ds to be booster-ready. I hope it's feeling really patient...

Brianna · Apr 18, 2013

IIRC, the Accadia headrests in the 3rd row (outboard only) aren't adjustable and are pretty short- I think the seat belts are on the shorter side too and I think they would lock when a booster rider pulls them out to thread around the belt guides.

SoCalCarSeatMama · Apr 18, 2013

I have a 2012 Durango (as you probably already saw in your other post) and I have a booster rider in the third row. I've had him in a high back and a backless back there and haven't had any problems with belt fit. I don't ever climb into mine unless I'm riding in the back because my booster rider buckles himself and my harnessed son can now also buckle himself (he sits on the passenger side of the third row and prior to him being able to buckle himself I would just stand outside the car and reach in to buckle him), so i can't help you there. the few times I have climbed back there i didn't feel cramped (I'm 5'5). Not sure how much your harnessed child weighs or what seat they're in but with the Durango you can LATCH up to 65lbs combined weight. I have a Frontier 85 for my 4.5yo and I can still use LATCH for him when he's in the second row, and the belts in the third row are long enough for long belt path. I really love the compartment in the cargo area of the Durango. I keep everything in there when we're driving.

marge234 · Apr 20, 2013

For 2013, Acadia is considered one of the safest cars. The Durango has not been tested. It did not do as well as Acadia in prior years, but it may have been redesigned at some point.

I feel like a spammer for this site, but swear I'm not. Info via informedforlife.org. Compiles IIHS and NHTSA test results.

aeormsby · Apr 20, 2013

With only one in a harness I think you may like the Acadia (we have an '07 Outlook, not sure how much they've changed over the years but they still look pretty similar when I peak in them at the dealerships).

I'm not sure if they've added a headrest in the center seating position at all though, not sure what the Durango would have and if that would make a difference. I wouldn't worry too much about the height of the 3rd row headrests - they're fine for me and I'm 5'10. They aren't adjustable though so I usually stick the kids back there in backless boosters (which I don't feel bad about because there are side airbags back there). Ours is the 8 passenger so I can't comment about getting though to the back. But I have no problem stepping into the space when we have a seat flipped (and I often do to help kids back there buckle if we're using the 3rd row).

Not a ton of space behind the 3rd row for storage but I think it's probably pretty decent compared to other crossovers with the 3rd row up. Loads of space if you're not using the 3rd row.

vermontmoms · Apr 24, 2013

Just throwing this out there but the new 2013 Sante Fe limited is Awesome! Love it better than both the cars you mentioned. We looked at the other two also b/c our 2011 Tuscon was totalled 2 wks ago. The second row buckets in the Sante Fe were so comfy and was easy access for me an adult to 3rd row. The panoramic sunroof was so neat. Our boys loved the extra light for car reading.

Love this car but we went with a Forester instead b/c of gas mileage since our durango is still kicking. Our next car if I were replacing my 3rd row car would either be the new durango or the new Sante Fe. I loved the Sante Fe...

canadiangie · Apr 26, 2013

vermontmoms said:
Just throwing this out there but the new 2013 Sante Fe limited is Awesome! Love it better than both the cars you mentioned. We looked at the other two also b/c our 2011 Tuscon was totalled 2 wks ago. The second row buckets in the Sante Fe were so comfy and was easy access for me an adult to 3rd row. The panoramic sunroof was so neat. Our boys loved the extra light for car reading.

Love this car but we went with a Forester instead b/c of gas mileage since our durango is still kicking. Our next car if I were replacing my 3rd row car would either be the new durango or the new Sante Fe. I loved the Sante Fe...

Great info, thanks for posting.

Mingie · Apr 27, 2013

vermontmoms said:
Just throwing this out there but the new 2013 Sante Fe limited is Awesome! Love it better than both the cars you mentioned. We looked at the other two also b/c our 2011 Tuscon was totalled 2 wks ago. The second row buckets in the Sante Fe were so comfy and was easy access for me an adult to 3rd row. The panoramic sunroof was so neat. Our boys loved the extra light for car reading.

Love this car but we went with a Forester instead b/c of gas mileage since our durango is still kicking. Our next car if I were replacing my 3rd row car would either be the new durango or the new Sante Fe. I loved the Sante Fe...

This is number one on my list also. I drove it last week and was really impressed. I thought I wanted a Toyota Highlander until I drove the new extended Santa Fe.

Keeks64 · Apr 27, 2013

Mingie said:
This is number one on my list also. I drove it last week and was really impressed. I thought I wanted a Toyota Highlander until I drive the new extended Santa Fe.

The Santa Fe has no top tethers in the 3rd row though

I wanted one sooo badly but if we get a brand new vehicle it's gotta be as carseat friendly as possible lol

Mingie · Apr 27, 2013

Keeks64 said:
The Santa Fe has no top tethers in the 3rd row though I wanted one sooo badly but if we get a brand new vehicle it's gotta be as carseat friendly as possible lol

Yes. No tether anchors in the back.

. But my reality is a 7.5 year old and almost 5 year old with a baby on the way. So I'm not far away from two booster riders and a rear facer for the next 4ish years.

Mingie · May 3, 2013

Keeks64 said:
The Santa Fe has no top tethers in the 3rd row though I wanted one sooo badly but if we get a brand new vehicle it's gotta be as carseat friendly as possible lol

So we test drove the 2013 Santa Fe Limited today. So captains chairs second row with two rear seats. 6 seater total. This version has three tether anchors, one on each captain chair and one on the rear passenger side. So I can put my almost 5 year old in the rear with my 7 year old booster rider and then baby in the captain chair leaving one captain chair free. No UAS(Latch anchors) in the rear though. We are very much considering this vehicle now. Just making our final decision.

canadiangie · May 3, 2013

Mingie said:
So we test drove the 2013 Santa Fe Limited today. So captains chairs second row with two rear seats. 6 seater total. This version has three tether anchors, one on each captain chair and one on the rear passenger side. So I can put my almost 5 year old in the rear with my 7 year old booster rider and then baby in the captain chair leaving one captain chair free. No UAS(Latch anchors) in the rear though. We are very much considering this vehicle now. Just making our final decision.

Latch manual has no entry for post 2009 7 pass Sante Fe. Can I just ask if you verified that there is a TA in the 3rd row by looking in the owners manual?

Edit: I think I see the TA in these pics. Is that correct?

http://www.iveho.com/2013-hyundai-santa-fe/

Mingie · May 3, 2013

canadiangie said:
Latch manual has no entry for post 2009 7 pass Sante Fe. Can I just ask if you verified that there is a TA in the 3rd row by looking in the owners manual?

Edit: I think I see the TA in these pics. Is that correct?

http://www.iveho.com/2013-hyundai-santa-fe/

Yes I read the entire child restraint section in the owners manual. The poor salesman was so patient with me installing seats and reading the manual. It stated the three anchors in print and in a diagram, showing three across in the seven seater middle row and one on each captain chair with the third anchor on the back of the rear passenger side on the limited 6 seater, just like the link you posted.

The headrests are very flush in the rear and the Monterey fit really well. I was worried about the angle the seat belts came from the side of the vehicle back there. I am not sure how well a backless booster would fit on a smaller rider though in the rear seats. The Nautilus installed well in the rear seat also with seatbelt.

There was nothing mentioned about the captain chairs having to be all the way back with child restraints installed there which was something I was wanting to be certain about. It did state to buckle the seat belt behind the restraint if you were using UAS to prevent strangulation.

VanIsleMommy · May 29, 2013

I know this is an older thread but I wanted to update that the dodge journey apparently has second row captains chairs now in the 2013 models. I don't know which option package it is.

There is also the Buick enclave.

2013 Durango vs. 2013 Acadia

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