Help me think through 3 across in an Accord

[KnittingTigers]

Hi all,

We recently discovered that we are having twins this spring(), and I need some help thinking through our carseat situation. In addition to the babies arriving this spring, we have a 4 year old DD who weights 41 lbs and is VERY tall for her age (43 or 44"). She'll turn 5 this summer.

We recently bought a used Honda Accord (you know, about a month before getting pregnant with twins), and while I'd love to trade up for a minivan, it's just not going to happen right now. To go with our Accord, we also bought a Britax Frontier SICT, thinking that it could go on one side, and the baby (we really were just planning on one baby!), could go on the other, in DD's old Marathon, which still has a couple years left on it.

Now we need to figure out to get all three of them across in the backseat, and sadly, it doesn't sound like the Marathon OR the Frontier are going to be part of that equation. Thoughts on how to make this work? What kind of seats do we need? Where does everyone go? Realistically, how long will DD stay harnessed in a Radian? Should I just plan on a booster for her once the babies are here? One other thing to add to the equation is that DD gets dropped off at school in the drop-off line every morning, so she'll somehow need to get in and out of the car.

Any thoughts welcome. Or a spare minivan if you've got one hanging around.:)

[chickabiddy]

The Frontier SICT will absolutely not play well in a three-across, and the classic Marathons (65# limit) won't fit newborns, so yeah, you're going to need new seats.

I prefer to see 4yos in harnessed seats, but preferences aside, harnessed seats are easier to use in a tight three-across because while it may take blood and sweat,and tears to get them in there, once they are in all buckling is up front and you don't have to scrape up your hands sticking them between the seats.

I know you don't have a crystal ball, but do you expect the twins to go to 40 weeks?  Many twins are born earlier and are smaller than singleton full-term babies, which means they will need seats that fit them.

What is your budget for new seats?  My initial thought is an Evenflo Maestro for the 4yo and two Combi Coccoros (which fit tiny babies nicely) for the twins, but that's likely to run at least $450 total.

[KnittingTigers]

Yeah, no crystal ball, but also no risk factors (aside from the twins themselves) for early labor. I'm healthy and DD went to 41 weeks.

I guess my preference would be to buy something that will last as long as possible for them (ie. Radians), and just borrow infant seats from friends for the first few months if necessary. Even DD's Marathon left me frustrated because I felt like the 65 lb. weight limit was total BS (she outgrew it by height long before coming close to the weight limit). And of course, ideally they'll be RF-ing as long as possible, which again points to the Radians.

My budget is not limitless, but I'd rather spend more money upfront for seats that will last a long time and be super safe than buy something new two years down the road.
 

[chickabiddy]

In all my years of being a CPST in real life as well as on the Internets, I've only seen one kid who made it to 65# in a Marathon before outgrowing it by height, so I tend to agree with you there!

Radians are a fine choice for the twins -- you could certainly get two Radians RFing and one FFing in an Accord.  The Maestro (and its SecureKid cousins) has straps at least an inch taller than the Radian, though.

Not all infant seats fit preemies/teeny babies, though, so that's something you'd need to be careful about.

[mama2soren]

Consider trying a Radian in your car before you decide (Buy Buy Baby carries them and lets you try them out in your car).  While 2 RF Radians and a narrow FF seat would almost certainly fit, you might have trouble with the amount of room you'll have in the front seat.  A newborn needs to be reclined at a 45 degree angle.  Since the Radian is so long, this might force you to put the front seats much closer to the dash than is comfortable.  

Although I would never buy a used car seat, I have no qualms about selling my own seats on Craigslist, since I know they were well cared for.  Could you swing the money to buy the Coccoros for the twins, then sell them after a year or two to help finance two larger RF seats? The Coccoro is super compact, so it could be at the 45 degree angle and still leave you with lots of room up front.  When the babies are older, it is safe to install their seats more upright, leaving you and your partner with more legroom, so Radians might work well at that point.

[CelloMomCars]

Congratulations!  what an adventure.

Here is a list of car seats (sorted by age) with all their measurements!  https://sites.google.com/site/carseatmeasurements/

There are a number that are 17 inches wide - or less - that I could fit three across even in my VW Golf, and your Accord is quite a bit wider than that.

Also, just for kicks, I found a UK company that makes an integrated three-seater (and even a four-seater) for the back seat, see my recent post http://www.cellomomcars.com/2012/10/fitting-three-children-on-your-cars.html.  It won't come to the US anytime soon, but the slenderest 3-child seat fits in the back of a Fiat 500 !!  We need more ideas like that - it's silly that we end up driving minivans just because child seats are way too wide.

[Maedze]

As I mentioned earlier, overall width and number of inches is pretty irrelevant in whether or not car seats will fit three across.    That integrated seat has been around theoretically for years, but it's just not going to be available here.   


Because it would be very difficult to get two Radians rear facing at a full 45 degree angle without impinging on front seat room, I'd pick a forward facing Radian for your big girl only.  Are you interested in infant seats for the babies?  With two infants, I think you'll find that the 'convenience' of an infant bucket becomes a lot more compelling.   I'd get two Graco Snugride 30s or Chicco Keyfit 30s, both of which fit small newborns well, and then plan to trade up to rear facing Radians with angle adjusters later on. 

[brigala]

I think it may be possible to fit the Frontier in with two Combi Coccoros. I am pretty sure I've squeezed a Coccoro in the back of an Accord next to a FR85 before. Granted, it wasn't the SICT, but because of the shapes of the seats I'm not sure it would matter much as long as the Coccoros are rear-facing. 

I could be mistaken, however. It's possible that I put the Coccoro outboard and I was the one that squeezed in the middle. All I know for certain is that I had to squeeze into the back of an Accord with a Coccoro and a FR85 once. And I'm not a small gal, but I did it. 

So... I think it's possible you may find two seats that will fit the babies with the FR85. I would try Coccoros or Combi Shuttles, or maybe one of each. 

I agree that Radians aren't going to work until the babies are older. You won't be able to fit two of them at a 45 degree recline. However... possibly one Radian in the center at a 45 degree recline and one Coccoro or Shuttle outboard and either the FRSICT outboard or perhaps a Radian FF for the older child would do the trick. 

The point, however, is that you're really going to have to play with car seats until you find something that works.

And congratulations! May you have an uneventful full term twin pregnancy and two healthy squishies in 9 months!!

[KnittingTigers]

Thanks, everyone! I REALLY appreciate all of this advice.

Do you guys know if there's anywhere that sells the Cocorro in the store, so that I can try it out next to our Frontier? If we have to replace the Frontier, it's not the end of the world- my mother will be coming down to help out, and I can put the Frontier in her car for when she and DD are doing things on their own.

I do also see the virtue of having infant seats that snap out though. Yikes. A lot to think about. For infant seats, you all would recommend the Graco or Chicco over the Britax infant seat? I have a friend who does car seat safety research who is pretty adamant about choosing Britax over other brands whenever possible, but I don't know much about their infant seats (they didn't exist when DD was born).
 

[Maedze]

Ahh yes, the Britax Brand Bubble.....trust me, not based in reality.  Britax is not safer than any other company.   They just have parents convinced they are through price and advertising ;-)   

Yes, I would choose the Keyfit and the Snugride30 (NOT the 22 or 35) over the Britax infant seats for the simple reason that they will fit better. 

[sere234]

Ma

[liberal_chick]

I have 3 across in my 2001 Honda Accord, although I never had two infants at once.  For us, that meant buying a new Radian for ds2.  So we had a Graco bucket seat, the Radian, and then a Nautilus.  Ds1 was 5 when ds3 was born, so when we moved ds3 into a RF convertible we switched him to a booster (no funds to buy a new harnessed seat that would fit and we already had the booster).  So now we have a HB Booster, a Nautilus, and a Radian.  It is a super tight fit, but my car is paid off so it is what we're going to do!

[brigala]

I would call around to some snobby baby boutiques in your area to see if anybody carries the Coccoro.

It wouldn't surprise me to find one at Buy Buy Baby, but I don't know.

[whitneyg]

I have a RF Radian (outboard) next to a RF Coccoro (center) in my Honda Fit, which has a smaller back seat than your Accord. I can fit in the empty seat back there and I bet another RN or CCO would fit just fine.

[JudiAU]

You do three radians in a row with two rear facing. Or two radians and the smaller britax frontier. (yes, all new)