Fitting 3 Car Seats in a Corolla?

[aept]

Yes, Radians are convertible from rear facing to forward facing.
I used to have a 2003 corolla and I used our Radians in it.
I would probably try two year old RF in a Radian behind the driver (with angle adjuster)
4 year old FF center in a Radian
Baby on passenger side in the infant seat.

I personally like having the ff child center (for their enhanced safety) and I also found it easy for them to load from the side where the infant seat is (before you pop it into place.) Or they can crawl under or over the rf radian. My boys never seemed to mind doing that.
In a smaller car like the corolla I can twist around in my seat (driver or front passenger) and help the child in the ff seat in the center get buckled up.

Another bonus of this arrangement is the presumably more trustworthy oldest child is the only one close to the baby. Big sibling can help put the pacifier back in the baby's mouth, sing songs to the baby, etc. The two year old will be safely apart from the baby.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org

 

[Olga]

I feel like my 2 year old is getting uncomfortable rear facing as her feet touch the back seat causing her to bend her knees? Is it best to keep her rear facing until she reaches a certain height?

I'm not a tech but I was planning to turn my (tall-ish) 3 year old forward facing when the new baby came. But after watching some crash test videos of what happens in a collision for both rear and forward facing kids I'm working on getting a setup that keeps her rear facing. It's a dramatic difference.

Also, the few times we've put her forward facing (when travelling) she doesn't know what to do with her feet. She ended up kicking stuff in front of her a lot and most of the time would settle with her feet squashed onto the carseat beside her bum anyway. I think it's like when you sit on a bar stool - if there's nowhere for you to rest your feet it gets uncomfortable really fast.

 

[safeinthecar]

I feel like my 2 year old is getting uncomfortable rear facing as her feet touch the back seat causing her to bend her knees? Is it best to keep her rear facing until she reaches a certain height?
Also if we keep the 2 year old rear facing, who should sit where in the back seat?

I'm 37. My knees bend because my feet touch the floor, even when I'm driving. I'm perfectly comfortable. I can't actually think of a single scenario where, as an adult, I don't sit with my knees bent. (in fact, I'm currantly sitting at my computer desk with my knee folded in suich a way that I'm siting on one foot) Even in my Lazy E boy recliner at home watching TV, my knees are bent.

 

[Ryan Pep]

Thanks for all the info everyone. Just ordered 2 Radian RXT seats. Good price on Wayfair.com right now by the way ($230 ea)

 

[kay_sera2]

Hi All,
I've read through these Corolla hacks and I'm just too sleep-deprived to put the pieces together independently. Could someone help me fit three across in an '06 Corolla? I've got long-torsoed kids ages 1 - 24lbs, 5 - 50lbs and 7 - 70lbs. I currently own lots of backless boosters, a Diono Solana 2, a Britax Allegiance, and a Graco Nautilus. This is just a spare, so it doesn't have to be pretty.
Thanks so much!

 

[ketchupqueen]

Hi All,
I've read through these Corolla hacks and I'm just too sleep-deprived to put the pieces together independently. Could someone help me fit three across in an '06 Corolla? I've got long-torsoed kids ages 1 - 24lbs, 5 - 50lbs and 7 - 70lbs. I currently own lots of backless boosters, a Diono Solana 2, a Britax Allegiance, and a Graco Nautilus. This is just a spare, so it doesn't have to be pretty.
Thanks so much!

Hi! The thread you are posting on is really old and seats have changed since then.
Do you have any budget for new seats? Is the 5 year old ready for a booster in the secondary vehicle? What boosters do you have?
It's not going to work with the Solana, Nautilus, and Allegiance, but depending on your answers to the above questions you should be able to make something work.

 

[Sarah B]

Hey, KetchupQueen, sorry I dropped the ball on this reply, I must’ve missed it somehow. I’d still love your help. Seatbelt still looks like it’s in the 5y/o’s neck in a booster. I have Solanas and harmonys. Two of each. Kids are all still roughly the same size. I have the budget to get what will make the configuration work, but it’s only the backup seat. Didn’t think I’d need a spare, but I do

 

[ketchupqueen]

And what is the one year old in?

 

[kay_sera2]

My carseat total tally... two solanas, two harmonies, one allegiance, one nautilus. I just checked again and the 5y/o does fit a booster in the Corolla, just not in the Sienna. Weird?

 

[ketchupqueen]

Ok, I guess the 1 year old needs to be in the Allegiance then? Put the rear facing seat in the center will probably work best.
Boosters are tough to buckle in a tight 3 across, but if it's only occasional use, you might try the 2 Harmony boosters on either side. I don't know that you can get a Nautilus next to another seat but it might be worth a try; seatbelt install, of course. I would try that on the side where the belts' buckles are next to each other, to prevent accidental unbuckling of the center seat. If it works, that would be a good bonus, plus the easier buckling.