3 carseats in a corolla?

[mamajess]

We are expecting our third bubba in march and will have all three kids in carseats. I'm not sure they'll all fit in the back of our corolla ascent wagon. Does anyone know?? I love my car and would rather not sell it...tia

[mim1]

Depends on the carseats I reckon. 3 compaq's might just fit, but I think they are the smallest. I'd talk to a car seat fitting place and see what they recommend.

[mamajess]

Thanks mim1...I might drop in to one in the next couple of days. Be great if we could keep our car!
Anyone else?

[Skittles]

We cave a 2004 model. ANd there is no way we can fit in three car seats. Went and got measured the other day for bub number three......they guy looked at me and said what my hubby feared....need a bigger car to do that. We are compromising because bub wont be happening until next year. DD is going in a safety harness and mini booster seat. DS is going in the maxi rider and bub will be in a capsule untill a bit older and then in a forward facing baby seat. Sorry if it isnt what you wanna hear. Hope it helps though

[mamajess]

Oh ****. We have a 2003 model. My kids will be nearly 3 and nearly four with a newborn...I need to check out the safety requirements for seating my eldest, but I thought they had to be much older till they were safe in a booster seat?? So basically your source said you couldnt fit three seats of any kind in the corolla?

[redMaple]

Don't give up just yet.

We had exactly the same prob.
We just bought 2 Infa vario max's & a SNS compaq deluxe - they fit if compaq is in the middle. ( tried it on the side but no go )
The Varios are really narrow - I haven't seen anything else as narrow, as are the SNS Compaqs. My only concern is that DD won't be heavy enough to use the Vario by the time the new bub comes.
The main prob is doing the belts up on the booster seats ( the carseats fit along the back - just remember you need the room for to do up the seatbelt! ) - my hands fit in - DH has a little trouble fitting his massive hands in between.
You should be able to fit 2 compaqs and a vario & you'll only have to worry about the buckle on one side.
We have a Camry BTW so not sure of the difference in a Corolla, hope you find something that works!

[mamajess]

I hadn't even considered replacing the carseats:o I think I'd rather upgrade the car than replace near new carseats...maybe a bigger boot would be smarter anyway.....looks like I need to re-visit my options!

[mim1]

I will need to get rid of my corolla sedan when we have #3, simply for the lack of boot space I think. I'm not even sure I'd fit a double pram of any description in the boot. Thankfully for now we just have 1 and no more on the horizon just yet. I'm also pretty attached to my car. :)

[FiveInTheBed]

hi, I just wanted to remind you of the new carseat legislation coming in soon (apparently) that all kids under 7 (and certain weight) need to bee in a booster... Will you be able to fit them once they are too big for a comaq? would 3 say, maxi riders fit across the back, time goes so fast and you might end up wasting money on new car seats that could've gone towards a new car?

We tried fitting 3 across our Subaru forester - not a chance.

we now have the Kia carnival, and love it!
Keep in mind if you ever want to chuck another kid (friend or relative) in the car, the more seats the merrier!!!
good luck !

[Kirstlea]

I am in the same predictament. We were going to buy a Tarago but finances just won't meet the demand at the moment so we have got one maxi-rider on one side, one of those little booster seats in the middle with a harness and the capsule will have to squeeze in on the other side. At the moment I have another normal car seat on that side as I often pick up another child from school in the afternoons.

Oh we have a Mazda 6.

I will admit that I am not happy with this arrangement as I can see I am going to have problems getting across to clip the harness seat belt in when I get rather large at the end of this pregnancy but it does all fit and it is only for a short time that I have to suffer the inconvenience.

Incidentally the harness cost $50.00 and the seat was $30.00. My 5yr old is only 16kgs but apparently because we are using the harness it is within the new laws.

Hope this helps

[zenifa]

My friend has the same model and year car as you and she has 2 car seats with a booster seat in the middle for the 3yo, and her nearly 2yr and 8mth old are in the two car seats, yes its a tight squeeze, but they all fit and are safe - now getting them in and out is a bit tough for my friend but manageable (not if you are in a hurry!! :p)

[mamajess]

So is a booster seat a full seat with a backrest? Or is it just a seat to raise them up? I thought a booster seat was just the bottom part and that it wouldn't be safe enough for under 7yo? Is it the harness that makes the difference then?

[Kirstlea]

There are 2 types of booster seats the ones with the high back and the normal seat belt going across it or the little booster that just raises them up which is for a lap seat belt but can also be used with a harness which makes them right for the new laws coming in.

Personally I like the harness system better anyway, I can not see how a seatbelt strapped across a 5yr old is going to stop her from flying out if I had an accident where as the harness holds her in very securely.

[mamajess]

ok so I could just buy a booster seat and harness for my eldest and the newbie and big brother could be in the seats already in place....hmm...
The bootspace is pretty good for a double pram plus a big weekly shop, but I guess these kidlets are only going to get bigger and need more room...and there's no spare seats for anyone else!
If money was no option I'd love an Odyssey....

[mamajess]

Hey everyone, thought an update was needed
Today we picked up a maxi rider type carseat with an H harness for our eldest, 3.
I fits with the two carseats we already had in the back so YES we can fit all three kids in the back!!! Hooray!:yelclap::yelclap:
We don't need to buy a new car!!!

[mim1]

That's good to know for future reference! Good to know my car will also last me until we have 3 kids ...