Land Rover Discovery of Toyota Sienna

Hi. have 2000 Land Rover Discovery. I have the seven seat options. Currently I have the three car seats side by side in the 2nd row. They do fit but very snug. My oldest son 4.5 years old and weighs probably 43 pounds is still in the full belt on the seat. I don't think he will be able to use the car's seatbelt with the seats so tight. I would put one of them in the rear but the seats are so close to the back. I was looking at the Sienna and was wondering if anyone has an opinion if I should spend all that money and buy the Toyota Sienna. Will it be easier for me and more safe? I love the fact that my Discovery can fit so much stuff when I shop. How do you find the Sienna for loading strollers and bikes and groceries all at the same time???? As well is less safe to have my three kids sitting side by side in the second row?Thanks!

Well, there's an 8 seat Sienna option & I think the middle row is 3 captain chairs, so 2 carseats & a booster should fit fine ~ also, a nice feature I thought is that the middle chair can move forward.... That way, you might potentially be able to fit a huge load in the back after folding down the 3rd row, although that last row is further away from the window than most SUVs & older minivans anyway & the trunk area is deep, too {to hold cargo as well as to allow the rear row to lay flat}. I'm not sure how the dimensions compare to the Landrover, but you could always hook up a bike rack to the rear door. You can see photos here > http://www.toyota.com/vehicles/2005/sienna/exterior.html

three side by side

The answer last time I posted about three side by side is that as long as they were in there cars seats and they were installed property it would be safe. I keep thinking of a side impact - where is the give is they are jammed in tight side by side. Is it not more safe to have only two in the second row and one in the third row? Or is there give in a vehicle although they are jammed in on the second row. I know some people don't have options and have to put all three kids in the second row but if there is an option what is the safest position for three kids to sit in a seven seated vehicle? Thanks

The center is usually the safest, so if a child can be in the center position then that would be better than an outboard position. But, it's OK for seats to be installed next to each other so that they touch as long as each seat is installed securely independantly of the others ~ meaning, it doesn't just seem like a tight install because the others are so close! Frontal impacts are much more common than side or rear-end collisions, too.

5-point harness seats are safer in side-impact collisions, though, so if you really needed a large trunk area & decided to put 2 five-point carseats outboard in the middle row with a boostered kid in the middle of the 2nd row of the 8 seat Sienna, I don't believe there's really any added risk per se. But, sure, if you don't really need large trunk space then puting 2 harnessed kids in the middle row with a boostered kid in the middle of the last row would be very safe.

In the 7 seat Sienna, there is a bit more room between the middle row captain chairs & the doors, plus the passenger-side chair can move in towards the very center of the vehicle. I plan on getting the 7 seat option with AWD as soon as I'm able ... my 2 dogs will be outboard in the 3rd row using their Ruff Rider Roadies with big bro in the middle {no booster since he's 10 years & 130+ pounds}, middle child in a Parkway booster behind the driver & youngest in the Wizard or Husky next to her with the seat moved in towards the middle ... groceries, cello, violin, sports gear, hiking/swimming gear in the trunk as needed, along with the emergency gear.

Thank you very much for your response. Well I decided I wasn't going to think about it anymore and we just bought the seven seat AWD Toyota Sienna tonight. Yikes! Talk about impulse buy. We didn't do any research except for read this site. We didn't look at any other vehicle. I think I am going to love it. We will pick it up tomorrow. Your seat positioning is exactly how I though I would do it as well. I will place my baby in the seat behind the driver, my middle child next to her and my oldest child in the centre of the third row.

Well, I'm too late for your other post above, but I don't think you made a bad choice AT ALL...I know you'll love your Sienna!

Unregistered said:

I will place my baby in the seat behind the driver, my middle child next to her and my oldest child in the centre of the third row.

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That's how I would otherwise do it as well, except that my stepkids just don't ride with us that often, so I decided I'd keep my little kiddo in the middle-middle Hope you like your new vehicle ~ I've heard excellent things about it! =)