3 child seats in 2nd row?

R

rfkuehn

Member
Twins coming, will also have an almost-4 year old then.

CX-9 or Acadia? I prefer the former, but worried about the lack of LATCH in the 3rd row. Anyone tried to fit 3 child seats across the 2nd row? Did it work?

Otherwise will likely be an Acadia with the captain's chairs... Sigh.
 
rfkuehn said:
Twins coming, will also have an almost-4 year old then.

CX-9 or Acadia? I prefer the former, but worried about the lack of LATCH in the 3rd row. Anyone tried to fit 3 child seats across the 2nd row? Did it work?

Otherwise will likely be an Acadia with the captain's chairs... Sigh.
Click to expand...

I have installed 3 child seats in my BMW E39, tight fit, but doable. The CX9 second row is much roomier and don't think you will have trouble fitting three.
 
I think it depends on what kind of car seats you're trying to fit. With two infant car seats, trying to fit the toddler one in the middle will be difficult I think. I have had people sit comfortably between my toddler's booster seat and a bigger infant seat though, so it might be doable. I don't know how comfortable your four year old will be being stuck between two crying infants.

So is your worry having your oldest far away from the driver, or just the fact there's no latch system in the 3rd row? If it's the latter, you should be just about getting ready to move the 4 year old into a booster seat w/ back here soon and then they just use the regular seatbelt anyway. At least that's what my 5 year old is using and I think we got it for her right around 4.

I wouldn't let the lack of a latch system in the 3rd row dissuade you from getting the CX-9 if you like everything else about it. There are those on this board who say using a properly installed car seat w/ a regular seatbelt is just as safe as using the latch system, just a little more inconvenient.
 
hello,

I have twins (11 month) and a child (3 year old).

no probleme with the cx-9 or Acura MDX, old picture because since the last week the seats are front facing, i will do new pictures today.










see you
olivier
 
I'm surprised as well...that must have been fun getting them all secure! I guess using the third row is put on hold until they get older because I imagine getting back there with all those seats will be near impossible, or at least very inconvenient. It's a pain enough with just a car seat and a full booster.
 
thank you,

3 pictures without childrens.

img0736os.jpg


img0737a.jpg


img0738p.jpg


see you
olivier
 
That's amazing to see 3 seats in the second row. I think the trick is that they need to be a little staggered. It helps that the middle one appears lower and narrower. If it had bolsters with the same width and height this might not work.
I wouldn't worry about using the belts in the third row. LATCH is there to make installation idiot proof. If you install properly with a seat belt you'll be fine.
Also note that the Acadia 2nd row seats don't slide when there's a child's seat installed so you lose 3rd row access. The Mazda's slide (but don't fold) with a car seat installed so you have limited 3rd row access.
 
Do you take requests? How about a couple shots taken from in between the front buckets?

Would this arrangement work if your middle child seat was a Britax Frontier? Looks like you have something narrower...

Great photos, thanks.
 
We bought a CX9 last month and took our 3 car seats to the dealer to see how they fit first. Its not ideal, but we weren't about to go the mini-van route. And the Chevy Traverse just seemed such the inferior car overall (for more money even).
The downside to the CX9 is that the middle seat in the 2nd row really doesn't get to use the latch system. So you have to use the regular seatbelt. We also have 2 infants and a 6 year old who we prefer to keep as tightly bound as possible to keep him out of trouble.
Occasionally, we'll put the 6 yr old in the 3rd row, put one baby in the 2nd row left seat and one in the middle without latch. Then we can more easily pull out the middle baby seat to fold down the right side 2nd row for 3rd row access. Is this confusing enough? Its a bit cumbersome but it then allows an adult to sit next to the 2 babies.
Without latch, the carseats are a bit looser, but I think they are still safe.
 
Rear Facing Car Seats

For your children's safety I'd go as follows:

- 2 rear facing car seats in 2nd row (left & center). Most countries recommend that children up to 4 years of age face the rear. Their heads are disproportionately heavier to their body and whiplash (well I don't want to go there...)

- Keep the 3rd seat in the 2nd row for for Mamma or Pappa should their need to nurse with a bottle.

- Put the four year old in the back (the right seat is the 1/3 split).

We have 4 in our Cx-9 but that was the preferred configuration when we had 3.

I don't want to come off as preachy but Google "Rear Facing Car Seats" if you're still unsure.
 
Thanks for the new info. I'll need to visit a dealer with my collection of car seats and test out the next 10 years worth of configurations!
 
For anything more than a short in town trip, I think you'll find that adults are not comfortable in the center seat. That is the only seating position I get consistent complaints about from adults.
 
Sorry - meant for the child in the center child's seat, with rear-facers on either side. How did the kid even get in there?
 
I agree with leaving them rear facing as long as possible but in my case, my son at 14 months could no longer fit comfortably facing rear because his legs were too long.
 
So if you have two rear-facers on the outboard seats, how does the kid in the center (front facing, oldest) access that seat? Climb under (or over)?
 
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