15 passenger van config

dd9736

New member
Ok, a lady in my church is taking a bunch of us to another city for a children's play in a couple weeks, we're going in the church van which is a 15 passenger chev

here are the confirmed mom's seats:

1 - 9y/o in adult belt
1 - hbbooster (turbo?) 5y/o needs to be watched (IMO)
1 - ffing/booster combo (3y/o)
1 - AOE ffing (18months)
1 - Radian Rfing
1 - Peg perego carrier
and 3 adults

now I know that leaves 6 seats open (lots of room) but there are a few who we don't know about yet, most likely includes
1 mom with 1- OHS seat (friend I've vented about in past)
1 mom with a 3y/o and 3month old, unknown seats, though one is a carrier
1 mom with a hbb (5y/o too) and a ffing/booster (another 3y/o)
 
ADS

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
You need to know which seats have lap-only belts and which ones have lap/shoulder belts, first off. Any idea what year the vehicle is?
 

dd9736

New member
it's brand new, the church bought it this last year, so 2006/2007

unfortunately i've never been in it, as it'sused primarily to pick up and drop off kids who's parents don't go to church, and youth functions
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
So you've got three adults and two children confirmed who need lap/shoulder belts, and another possible three adults and two children who need lap/shoulder belts?

I'm really not sure of the configuration of this vehicle, but that's going to be your main concern I think. It's possible since it's newer that you'll get enough or even all of the seating positions with lap/shoulder belts, but you need to work things so that any lap-only belts are taken by harnessed seats.
 

dd9736

New member
darn, so sorry, i should have put that the 3y/o's are harnessed, but i don't know which ffing/booster seats they're in
i know there are shoulder belts all down the drivers side, and i'm not sure of the passenger side, though you're right, with the van being so new there is a good chance most of the seats will have shoulder belts.
 

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
The other thing to check is TA's to make sure there's enough for all the ff'ing harnessed kids, otherwise you may need to plan empty seating locations in order to use the seat belts to make temporary TA's.
 

dd9736

New member
i hope they didn't change it from 2006 to 2008, because according to the 2008 specs all seats have shoulder belts, and all outboard positions have latch. that would make things much easier than i thought.
does anyone on here have a 15passenger van?
 

CDNTech

Senior Community Member
Just from a quick google search it looks like it would be the chevy Express Van. The 2008's have lap/shoulder belts in all positions... not sure what the 06/07's have.

According to the LATCH manual the 06 and 07 have the following tether anchor locations...

Second Row has 2 LATCH locations with the top tether anchor being located on the back of the seat. The Side outboard tether anchor may be used for a center seat installation.

There is an additional tether anchor at the bight line of the seat on the back in the 3 passenger seat.

The front seat also has one tether anchor on the base of the seat frame.

So that's a total of 4 tether anchors only.

I would not want to put one of the harnessed seats in the front, so that means only 3 available tether anchors.

The number of people you have listed is 17 and the van only seats 15... what are the others going in?
 

CDNTech

Senior Community Member
i hope they didn't change it from 2006 to 2008, because according to the 2008 specs all seats have shoulder belts, and all outboard positions have latch. that would make things much easier than i thought.
does anyone on here have a 15passenger van?

Only the second row outboard positions have LATCH.
Tether anchor's are listed as a standard, but it does not say how many... my guess is only one additional one in the back.

This is where I got my info from...
http://www.gmcanada.com/gm/english/vehicles/chevrolet/express/options
Click on Safety and Security
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
Well, if the lap/shoulder belts are covered, then all I can think is that the 18mo in the AOE could RF for this trip and save one of the TA's for another seat.
 

dd9736

New member
Just from a quick google search it looks like it would be the chevy Express Van. The 2008's have lap/shoulder belts in all positions... not sure what the 06/07's have.

According to the LATCH manual the 06 and 07 have the following tether anchor locations...

Second Row has 2 LATCH locations with the top tether anchor being located on the back of the seat. The Side outboard tether anchor may be used for a center seat installation.

There is an additional tether anchor at the bight line of the seat on the back in the 3 passenger seat.

The front seat also has one tether anchor on the base of the seat frame.

So that's a total of 4 tether anchors only.

I would not want to put one of the harnessed seats in the front, so that means only 3 available tether anchors.

The number of people you have listed is 17 and the van only seats 15... what are the others going in?

some ppl aren't confirmed, only 2 of the 3 moms in the second group would be able to come, i just don't know which 2
 

daycaremom2002

Active member
I have a Chevy 15 passenger van. Mine is an 02 though. I don't know when they changed to include LATCH and a few more shoulder belts. Mine has shoulder belts in all outside positions and lapbelts in the middle of the bench seats. So total in the rear there is 8 lap/shoulder belts and 5 lap belts. Mine has 2 tether anchors on each of the 3 seater benches(3) and none on the 4 seater. I know they did change this with the new ones though. The old ones are different than most vehicles so when you go to look, look in the seat bight(sometimes they are pulled through to the front) behind the bench for a piece of seatbelt webbing with a metal piece attatched to it.

Hard to tell, but here is a pic of what to look for(assuming they have one that wasn't changed yet)

PICT3685.jpg


If this is the case, I would put a rearfacing(Radian?) child behind the driver, and booster/harnesed kids next to windows and in the middle. This way adults don't have to climb over carseats. You should have no problem getting everyone safely into this van.

If possible, I wouldn't use the back bench until necessary. This puts more weight in the rear behind the axle. The Chevy vans are much more stable than some of the other vans with shorter wheel bases, but I am still very cautious with how I load my van.
 

katiesmommy

Active member
Okay, here's my configuration:

Adult Adult

9 yo peg Adult

5 yo 3yo Adult

radia aoe Adult

empty back bench

Okay, so the peg would be easy enough to take in and out, so it's not going to restict access for the 9yo. You'd have adults at each bench so as to watch the kiddos on their bench, and your back bench is totally free, unless others come along. This just seems to make sense to me.
 

daycaremom2002

Active member
I would agree with that except to switch the Radian and the 9yo. The Radian was for a RF child and I prefer to put a RF seat behind the passenger. I'm not sure why, but I think it goes back to when I was rearended when I was younger and the seatback collapsed onto the seat behind me. So just personal preference I guess. Besides, it would be easier to put the RF child in the Radian in the first bench than in the third bench. After that child is in, pop the Peg into the base and ready to go.
 

TXAggieTech

Active member
Just thought I would throw this in. It has been adapted for a church's use. The vans scare me....

NHTSA references regarding vans:

1. Create policies for van use and maintenance. Proper tire inflation level is the easiest factor to control!

2. Make sure every use of vans is approved by policy and noted as an approved church activity on the general church calendar.

3. SC tip: Reduce 15-passenger van capacity to no more than a total of 7-9 persons on board. Remove seats at the rear of the vehicles – making seating only towards the front area, regenerating the center of gravity lower in the vehicle. NHTSA issued the following rollover ratio percent – less than five passengers 12.3%; five to nine – 20.8%; ten to fifteen – 29.1%; fifteen plus – 70.0%.

4. SC tip: Tape or paint a line around the cargo area of the rear of each vehicle no higher than the top of the wheel well. This line will assure that all baggage is at its lowest point in the vehicle. Stacking of luggage/cargo should not be above the taped line. No roof top cargo of any kind.

5. Equip seats with seat belts for all passengers.

6. Van drivers should be well rested, trained on the use of the vehicle, and have a safe driving record, never drive over 60 mph, or after 12 p.m. or while using a cellular phone.

7. Never tow heavy or multiple axle trailers.

8. Keep the gas tanks full as much as possible.
 

dd9736

New member
however, the latch manual says the first bench has 2 of 3 usable tether anchor spots, so i actually have to put ffing harnessed seats in those front positions (to be legal)
a thought, if we have 1 to many ffing seats, and the mom of the 18month old won't go rfing, who would you leave untethered, the largest harnessed child, or smallest ffing one.
(i'd be willing to trade my radian with the aoe, for the trip, as i know the radian performs best of all the seats without the tether)
 

daycaremom2002

Active member
I agree. Sorry, I didn't know you were in Canada...missed that. Do you know for sure the year of the van? People are always assuming that mine is new and it is 5 years old. It may not have the tether anchors yet either.

I agree with the information posted about overloading vans. However, the Chevy vans have a wheelbase that is almost 18inches longer than the fords most commonly used. This balances out the weight better. And you have to remember that many of the passengers are kids who weigh much less.

Please do make sure that they check the tire pressure though. That is a major contributor to accidents in these vans. The rear tire is the most common to blow out. That is when the weight comes into play. With too much weight and/or too much in the rear, the van will probably roll. Add to this, most church drivers are inexperienced in driving these big vans, and a lot of people treat these like buses and do not buckle up, and you have the high statistics that we see associated with these vans.

Good luck. You will be able to find a suitable spot for everyone, I am sure.

ETA: If you do end up needing to put two ff kids in the first bench, try to get the two rf kids in the second bench. It is much easier to access a rf child in the second bench than in the third.
 

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
If you had to leave a child untethered, I'd be inclined for it to be an older child - younger kids still have such a fragile spinal column that top tethering greatly reduces the risk of neck injury.

But all you need is one empty seating location behind the untethered seat and you can use the seatbelt from that seating location to make a temporary tether anchor. As long as you plan for it, you'll be fine...

I really wouldn't be comfortable transporting a child without a tether anchor - not to mention it being illegal, but I just wouldn't be comfortable. Ultimately it would also have to be the driver's decision because it is the driver who would get the ticket if you guys were pulled over at a seat check. :thumbsup:
 

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