Car That Fits 3 Across!

I have a ford explorer that worked well with 3 car seats, it was a tight fit but it worked. It is not so big that I could not drive it. I want a mini van next so I can fit my children friends in it. When they have company or a sleep over we cannot go anywhere becasue their is no room. 7 to 8 seater is next. If you have 3 children now in car seats, in another couple of years or less you will be having sleep overs and trips to the park or swimming, you cannot take any friend or family with you, so think long term if you can.

you can also try swapping the car seats. i know that probably isnt practical, but someone told me you can use the radian car seats in a 3 across set up. they are somewhat slim line....check them out online

I have a Mercury Mountaineer and I've fit three car seats in the middle bench seat. It also has a fold down third row of seats which makes logistics pretty easy if we have extras to cart around. I also love that when the third row of seating is folded down, I have tons of cargo space. All in all, it's been a great family car. However it is a mid-size SUV (think Ford Explorer since they're basically the same thing) which it sounds like you're not thrilled about.

I'm not sure why you think a mini-van is going to be so big. Honestly, they drive like sedans. I think you should test-drive one. You may be surprised at how much you like it. I only have two kids and one step-kid, but if we were to have another, I would trade in my Mountaineer (much as I love it) and get a mini-van.

I can give you an idea of what doesn't work..the 4 door Honda Civic. Our main family car is a Toyota Sienna mini-van and we fit all 3 across but when it had to go into the body shop for repairs we were stuck in my husbands commuter car and it was the most miserable few weeks ever! We stopped going out as a family unless we absolutely had to because it was just horrible and our 3 kids just kept fighting and hitting each other because there was no room for them. My kids are 9,6 & 1 year.

Hey I am also looking for something similar! We looked at just about everything there is too look at and I like the ford explorer or chevy blazer. What is your price range?

It all has to do with the latch system and the kinds of car seats you have.

Our neighbor has been able to both with their Ford Explorer and their Honda Pilot. My husband could with his Chevy Lumina, I could not with my 08 Ford Taurus despite being a very large back seat because of the latch system.

Minivan hater here... For someone that's not very tall, minivans are extremely uncomfortable to drive. Most don't think about that.

I'd say an Expedition would be the most vehicle (without being too big or too small), would fit the seats mentioned comfortably, and not overly pricey.

I know a ton of people love their crossovers too. I have a small crossover that is extremely comfortable to drive and it wasn't over the top expensive. I bought a used Saturn Vue, but I only have a booster and a convertible car seat in my back seat. Would it work with an infant seat too? Probably, but I'd say either a mid-size SUV or a larger crossover would be adequate.

Ford Expedition
Chevy Traverse (Saturn Outlook is the same) - Every Saturn owner I know has had luck with them... Only reason I went that route. I miss my Jeep Wrangler (but it's not practical with the family).
Dodge Durango (with 3rd row)
Dodge Nitro (with 3rd row)
Ford Flex
Jeep Commander (my ex's new wife loves hers - 3 kids fit well (my daughter 7, her older son 7, and her younger son 4))
Volvo XC90 (loved driving that on the high speed track while working at Ford) (yes, Volvo is 51% Ford owned)

It all depends on whether you want new, used, and your budget! If you need any info, I'm a mechanic by trade! I know a lot about the above mentioned!

I have a Pontiac Bonneville and it can fit three. It really depends on the car seats that you have because different manufactures have different dimensions. Your best bet is to measure the dimensions of your car seats and then the dimensions of the back seat of the car you are thinking about purchasing. I too do not like big vehicles and refuse to ever own a minivan. I feel that the Bonneville is big but not too big and everyone has enough room. Oh, lest I forget, in my car the middle belt has no shoulder harness so it would not be suitable for a booster that did not have a harness but would work just fine for the convertible (unless you use the LATCH system).

I have a Chevy Trailblazer with twin 10 month old daughters. I definitely would NOT recommend the Trailblazer with needing 3 car seats in the back, unless you get one with a 3rd row. We have one with just the two rows and it's really not working out for us anymore! It's very cramped in the back, and I had a very hard time putting my 2 year old nephews car seat in the back with my daughters for a day trip. We are shopping around right now for a new vehicle. We are looking at the Yukon and the Expedition as well as the Explorer, with the 3rd row of course. We definitely want to avoid the whole mini-van situation as well!! Good luck and keep us posted!!

We have an Acura MDX and it looks like three would fit (we only have 1 right now). We purposely chose the Recaro car seat because it only takes up 1 seat instead of spilling over onto the next seat. When we were buying our carseat we did lots of research online (thanks google) about which seats fit best in our car and which had the best safety ratings. This is the one that works best for us. We love our MDX (2005, ours for 2 years) and would not trade it for anything else. We had 6 adults and the baby in it the other day with no problems. Good luck!

In my 03 Mazda Protege (aka 4door sedan), in the back seat, I have fit:

- 3 infant carriers
- 2 infant carriers and 1 convertible booster.
- 2 convertible boosters and 1 infant carrier
- 3 convertible boosters
- 3 no-back boosters

NOT without hand scraping from time to time, but all 3 fit. The tightest fit was the 3 convertible seats... because of the schtupid cup holders and arm rests. The cup holders went bye-bye :) The arm rests we were stuck with. 5 point w/ latch they were fine, but when I actually had to start doing seatbelts, that's when the hand scraping came into play.

I STRONGLY suggest taking the carseats with you to dealerships to test out the fit with the seats you have in the cars/trucks/suvs/stationwagons that you're trying out.

I have the answer for you. We have a Honda Pilot Touring and it easily holds 3 large Britax car seats and it has a third row as well. It is not a humongouse SUV but very luxurious and spacious inside. The gas mileage is pretty good compared to other SUV's and the safety ratings are really good. I love the car.

I have the Hyundia Veracruz. It has 3 row seating, with a 2 in front, 3 in the middle, and 2 in the back seating configuration. It also has the 60/40 split for the 3rd row when laying the seats down.

It drives like a sporty car, yet high up enough to feel safe (and excellent crash rating!). The price point is great and the warranty is fab (this is my 3rd Hyundai and have always been super pleased with the warranty). Easier than a regular SUV to get in and out of for the kids (Veracruz is a little lower to the ground. You "could" get 3 car seats in the middle row if you needed the space to lay the entire back down, but you may find that you would put 2 in the middle, 1 in the back on the 40 and lay the 60 down for extra space (or kind of a flat spot for that back row kid to set stuff on).

Check it out and see what you think - better yet, test drive one. Go for the drop down entertainment system . . . you won't be sorry :)

We are expecting baby # 3 in November and have been looking at the Durango. My only concern is the gas mileage.

Good luck!