Fitting 6 carseats - help please!

[laing1007]

Currently we have a 7-seater Honda Odyssey & 5 carseats. We have 3 Sunshine Radians in the back row. Right now, we have a forward facing Britax & a rear-facing Graco in the middle row captain seats. (I have no problem getting new seats for the middle row if need be.)

Here's the situation... I have 2 kids & nanny for 3 - we are hoping to add to our family next year & will need an 8-seater instead of our current 7-seater. Ideally, I'd like the back-row kids to be able to get in/out without having to remove a middle row seat (since we'll be having lots of outings including school drop offs & pick ups.) Also, since the oldest child of the group is only 4 years old, I am hoping to keep them in Sunshine Radians (not boosters) - so putting a removable booster in the middle row to ease the in/out aspect is not really our best option.)

Is there a vehicle you'd recommend? Any help reguarding vehicle, carseat choice, etc would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Mags462]

Nothing will give you the space or convenience in moving seats around as a mini-van IMO. Since you need the 8th seat i would look for a 2004-2010 Sienna 8 seater. The 8th seat is very usable - it's almost the same size as the "regular" captains chairs. If you want something new then your best option is the 2011 Oddy - they redid the middle seat which makes it wider/adjustable.

How many of your riders will be RF? Obviously the newbie will but what about the others. You mentioned 1 will be FF, what about the others?

 

[laing1007]

Only the baby will be rear-facing. And, we are definately looking for a "new" vehicle. With the 2011 Odyssey (8-seater) - can the kids in the back climb in/out without issue when there are 3 in the middle-row? (We are most likely going to end up with Sunshine Radians in the middle row for 2 of the kids... we'll keep the baby in the infant rear-facing seat (it's a Britax infant seat).

 

[SafeDad]

Kids can usually squeeze through to the third row, even just by moving a 2nd row seat forward. Of course, that assumes one of the 2nd row outboard seats is installed with LATCH. If you need to get back there, too, there isn't a lot of room.

One option would be to use something like a Safety 1st Go Hybrid or a travel vest in the outboard 2nd row seat. That would allow you to fully move/fold it forward for access. A booster would accomplish the same thing if your 4-year old is ready for one.

 

[Mags462]

With 5 FF seats and 1 RF seat i would do as Darren said - move that second row outboard seat up a bit (doesn't really matter which side) so the kids can slide through to the back. Then if you personally need to buckle them in, you can reach over the seats. I do this in my Sienna when i have a car load. I would put 3 FF car seats across the back (whatever fits back there - check the 2011 Oddy threads or the 3 across thread in the chat area) then i would put the RF baby outboard on a side and 2 FF seats in the middle and other slightly moved forward outboard seat.

 

[Carrie_R]

What are the ages of all of the children? It concerns me a bit that you have five kids under four, and the only rearfacer is the infant.

Sometimes there are narrower combinations than just forward-facing Radians in a row, if you think that will help any.

 

[mkmama]

I transport 7 kids in my 2008 Sienna somewhat routinely (once a month or so) and 6 even more often than that...and that 8th seat is so awesome, that I can get a MyRide, Nautilus, and TrueFit three across in the middle row!

I'd really recommend that if you're going used at all. I also have 3 RF in the back (RFing is easier I think as all the back kids get in/out from the hatch), Radian/MyRide/Radian

When I have all 7, I have 5 RF'ers and 2 FF'ers...the Nautilus in the center middle row, and my son in his Turbobooster in the front passenger seat. When its just 6, we just don't use the Turbo.

In my back seat I can also do RF Radian/RF Radian/Turbobooster, so I'd imagine you could easily do FF Radian (except there is no top tether on drivers side there)/FF Radian/FF Radian or change the third radian to a MyRide or any other seat that is decently narrow or puzzles well with the Radian.

 

[laing1007]

We're still trying to figure out what to do - what minivan to get (2012?)... Hoping that two of the bigger kids (4, 4) can climb into their Radians in the back row & then I will buckle the 2 year old into his FF Radian in that row (Can I fit past the 2nd row to buckle & unbuckle? Can the kids fit to climb in & out?) Then the middle row can be a 2 year old FF Radian, newborn RF in a Britax (middle seat?) and a 5 yr old in something... will this seat be stationary or will I need to take it in & out each time? HELP, please! Trying to make this work without too much hassle....

 

[todzwife]

We test drove 2 minivans while car shopping and the 2012 Odyssey has a lot better seating configuration than the Sienna. We purchased the sienna for a few reasons, but in your case I'd try an odyssey.

Your best bet will be to get seats that puzzle well. Radians puzzle with several seats, hopefully someone else will be able to tell you which ones. The Combi Coccoro is a nice, tiny seat.

Can I ask why your 2 year old(s) are forward facing instead of rear facing?

 

[luckyclov]

Either a 2011-2012 Odyssey or 2004/5-2010 Sienna. For 6 child seat friendly rear seats, those are pretty much your options. There are 8 seater SUVs, but minivans are generally more convienent, offer better seating options, and give you more cargo space (unless you're going Suburban-type route). Not to mention they're lower to the ground and have better MPG.

If you're open to adding some more rear-facers to your bunch, it may even make combinations a bit easier to achieve. Not to mention they'd be 5 times safer. That's a significant increase in safety. Rear-facing, for as long as possible (within seat limits), is good stuff.