Question Will these SUVs fit these 2 seats side-by-side?

Hi,
My 99 Subaru is on its last legs and I'm looking at getting a mid-size SUV, specificially:

A. Honda Pilot
B. Acura MDX
C. Toyota Sequoia
They would all be the previous design (roughly 2004-2006), not the current designs.

My daughter is now 2 yrs 9 mo and I am due with a baby in May. My biggest concern with car seats is being able to get a center install and an outboard install. I know this is a problem with many cars, namely my Subaru (the rear seat is very cramped- drives me crazy). I want to be able to fit an adult in the other outboard seat and be able to access the third row seat. I don't think I'll have another so I'm not worried about ever fitting three-across.

The future car seat configurations are:
1. Snugride and FF Marathon
2. RF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ? (will be buying this seat when DD#1 outgrows the Marathon or when the baby outgrows the snugride).
3. FF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ?

THANKS!

B. Acura MDX
2002
The future car seat configurations are:
1. Snugride and FF Marathon- I did a RF Boulevard and a safeseat (safeseat had to be in the middle)
2. RF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ? (will be buying this seat when DD#1 outgrows the Marathon or when the baby outgrows the snugride).- I did a RF Boulevard and a Nautilus- Boulevard in middle
3. FF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ?- Sorry never tried it.

I can't speak for those particular seats, but the Pilot has a very large backseat that is conducive to getting three-across. I've done it with a Nautilus (or SafeGuard--I don't remember), Regent, and Roundabout.

I would think that any of those combinations would work. The center seatbelt in the Pilot can sometimes be problematic, but I've never had issues with it, and I've had many different seats installed there (Snugride, Wizard/BV, SafeGuard, Nautilus, Regent).

How often will you need to access the third row? The 2nd row passenger outboard seat is larger than the driver's outboard, so you might find it easier to install a seat on that side. But that would mean that you wouldn't be able to fold it down to access the third row. You could always climb in the hatch, though, if it's something you're not doing often. You might have luck installing side-by-side center and driver's outboard, too, though.

BayAreaMom said:

Hi,
A. Honda Pilot
B. Acura MDX
C. Toyota Sequoia
They would all be the previous design (roughly 2004-2006), not the current designs.

My biggest concern with car seats is being able to get a center install and an outboard install. I don't think I'll have another so I'm not worried about ever fitting three-across.

The future car seat configurations are:
1. Snugride and FF Marathon
2. RF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ? (will be buying this seat when DD#1 outgrows the Marathon or when the baby outgrows the snugride).
3. FF Marathon and FF Nautilus or Frontier or ?

THANKS!

Click to expand...

I have a 2003 Pilot. I love it! There are some problems that are consistent with them. Check out www.hondapilot.org to check them out. So far the issues we've had have been easily fixed by DH, but if you don't have someone mechanically inclined, it may be frustrating. Our year has issues with the door handles flaking, idle air control and rodents. Yes, rodents.
You can fit two across no problem. I have fit three across also. The center second row install can be tricky, but it is very doable. There is no LATCH in the center.
I currently have a rf MA and a passenger outboard SR installed. I have also had a ff Radian, and two rf MAs installed. If the snow ever melts enough that UPS delivers my True-Fit, I will have a rf Radian center and a rf TF passenger outboard. The Radian is a PITA to install ff in any seating position and only fits rf in the center 2nd row.

Love my sequoia!! We have two captain chairs in the second row so I am not a huge help, but I would think it wouldn't be a problem. I have fit three seats across the third row and the third row isn't as long. If you have any questions please just ask!

I'd be happy to help you with installs once you do pick a vehicle. I imagine that you will be able to get two seats side by side in any of those cars if you are open to the idea of a Radian and to playing around a bit to see what works. I have a Radian, Frontier, and Snugride, if you would like to try a few things out.

we have an 04 pilot and you can easily fit 3 carseats in the second row. currently we have 1 regent FF (middle, seatbelt), 1 MA FF (driver side, LATCH) and one SS1 (rear passenger side LATCH) installed in the second row. the reason i put regent in the middle is my son is old enough to get in and out of the regent and buckle/unbuckle himself. we can probably fit 2 regents and a RN in the middle tho i haven't tried. with a regent and a MA, an average person can sit in the 2nd row comfortably for short trips (on the side next to MA/regent) or a bit cramped in the middle (sandwiched between 2 MA's). when we had had the 2 carseats, they were on the side b/c putting a 25+lbs kiddo or kiddo with infant carrier in the middle is hard/back breaking work. when i was trying to do all the different configurations b/c we were expecting a third, i found that SS1 and snugride and MA (and probably RA) all occupy pretty much the same amount of space. i haven't tried the frontier but i would imagine it's as big or even a bit smaller than the regent. i don't own other brands of carseats besides graco infant carriers and britax and radian so i can't comment on them.

the 3rd row seating is ok for me (i'm petite, 5'2" and thin) and comfortable for kids, not for an average sized adult (really cramped). if you want to put a kid in the 3rd row, they can probably crawl in through the back. it's tricky to install carseats in the 3rd row.

the trunk space is really roomy with 3rd row down.

they totally redesigned the MDX so are you looking for a new one or the old one that looks like a pilot with 7 seats?

Thanks for all your input. Right now I'm leaning towards the Pilot, as it seems to have the biggest cargo area with third row seats that fold completely flat. In addition to the carseats, I need to fit a 36" deep dog kennel in the rear- for this reason it would be rare that we ever use the third row, but I still want it for when we have visitors or are carpooling years from now. The MDX (older model-not the current one- just don't have the $$ in this economy) looks like it has a smaller rear seat depth, but it might be wider than the Pilot? I think the Sequoia is out of the running because I don’t think the third row seats fold completely flat.

I've come across other posts stating that people weren't able to install the Radian or Frontier in the middle seat using the long or short belt path (there is no latch for the middle seat) and it also sounds like the middle seat can be difficult with many other seats because of how the shoulder strap comes out of the ceiling. Someone got a decent center install with the Nautilus so maybe that's the seat for me. I'm completely open and my friend has both a Frontier and a Radian that I can try them out first. But I really want my older daughters seat in the middle, and the infant/convertible seat outboard. I guess the only way is to try it out!

Darcy

If you don't already have the dog crate, I would recommend the Midwest Homes For Pets Double Door crate. I had a 36" one in sideways in the back of my CR-V, so I know it would fit in one of the larger SUVs. The door on the long side as well as the short side gives you another option for orientation. Being wire, it's less likely to shatter if you are in an accident.

I have 06 Pilot. The regent fits well for me 2ed row both out ward positions, and third row outboard driver side. I have installed lbp and sbp and get rock solid install. I have not tired the regent in the middle position.
I also have the Natuilus and get a rock solid install in any position in the 2ed row bench and in the third row, center and driver out board. All installed using seatbelt.
I also have a RF wizard. it installs rock solid 2ed row out board positions using LATCH. I can not get a good install rf middle seat in the 2ed row. When the wizard is ff, it can be installed any position rock solid using seatbelt. I have had rf wizard passenger side and nautilus middle seat in the 2ed row work for me. Both were rock solid. I love my pilot and I have not had any issus with it.

olivia 4.26.04 45in 40lb regent/gn
makayla 9.16.06 30in 26lb rf wizard