Question for the Mini Van Owners

So, my DH decided today was the day to put in the carseats in our minivan (we just got a Honda Odsessy).

First my DH is 6'5 and has to have the driver seat pushed all the way to the end to fit in to drive and we realized today that the second row captain seats when pushed all the way back does not give him enough room to drive comfortablly with the car seats in facing the rear.

BTW: We bought the Graco Snugride car seats

Long story - shortened: We both got fustrated and basically gave up putting in the seats and made an appointment with the Reston Police Dept (my local PD) to put the seats in. We read the instructions and for the life of us we could not get the seats in properly. We figureed out the seatbelt part but it doesn't seem that stable and we know we did something wrong.

So my vent/question is: Did anyone else have this problem in installing their two car seats? And does any who has a Honda have any ideas about a configuration in the car that will make everyone happy? (It'll just be me, DH and the twins) we'd prefer not to put one in the 3rd row.

 

QUOTE(first time mom at 34 @ Oct 11 2007, 07:53 PM) [snapback]446427[/snapback]
So, my DH decided today was the day to put in the carseats in our minivan (we just got a Honda Odsessy).

First my DH is 6'5 and has to have the driver seat pushed all the way to the end to fit in to drive and we realized today that the second row captain seats when pushed all the way back does not give him enough room to drive comfortablly with the car seats in facing the rear.

BTW: We bought the Graco Snugride car seats

Long story - shortened: We both got fustrated and basically gave up putting in the seats and made an appointment with the Reston Police Dept (my local PD) to put the seats in. We read the instructions and for the life of us we could not get the seats in properly. We figureed out the seatbelt part but it doesn't seem that stable and we know we did something wrong.

So my vent/question is: Did anyone else have this problem in installing their two car seats? And does any who has a Honda have any ideas about a configuration in the car that will make everyone happy? (It'll just be me, DH and the twins) we'd prefer not to put one in the 3rd row.


We just purchased the new Nissan Quest mini-van. We have a 7 & 9 year old as well who can sit in our 3rd row. We have also purchased the Graco Snug Ride Car Seats and are having the same problem. So our car seats aren't in and I'm scheduled to deliver on Tuesday pending an amnio Monday LOL! We just gave up as well, feeling they just were not secure enough and flopping around. Another issue we are having is there is no room for anyone to get out of the van with the car seats in. I'm just going to love seeing how this works out. I gave up my Tahoe very reluctantly thinking a van would solve the problem, I guess not! Let me know if they work it out I'd love to know how. I may need to call and make a appt here with our PD.

 

Do you use the lock off clips? That can usually help. Or post your question at the Babycenter Car Safety Board or the board of www.car-safety.org. Just make sure that your car seat is installed by a CPST. A policeman is not necessarily certified in fitting car seats. Check http://www.usa.safekids.org/ for address in your area.

 

Your Honda should have the Latch system, which is better/safer than just the seat belt. If so, check out the instructions on your carseats for how to do that. I don't know exactly what problems you were having, but a suggestion is that When you put the carseat base in, have DH lean into the base pushing down as hard as he can, so that you can get the Latch straps pulled realllly tight. I know that one car that we had, I could never get the carseat to feel really secure and we had to roll a towel up or something to put under the base. I think that going to the police dept is a great idea to make sure your seats are secure.
I am clueless about the seating arrangement if your husband needs all that room - - my husband and I are both shorties with not much leg span!! It would definitely be more convenient to have them in the capt seats, maybe the Police Dept will have some good advice on that too!

 

We have the Grand Caravan with Stow and Go. Since we have a 1 yr old as well (we have him rear facing still as he is not even 20lbs yet and they suggest to turn him at 30lbs instead), we have him in a captain's seat and we stowed the other captain's seat and have the twins going in the 3rd row.

 

Hi there. We have a Honda Odyssey. I had the police station do it right from the beginning. I had heard that they went through a weks worth of training and that a huge amount of carseats are installed incorrectly so I went there and they did it really fast and I felt good about it!

He have them right behind each of the front seats. We have our third row down so it is super easy to put the stroller in with all that space. WHen the carseats are rearfacing, it was a little pain for dh because he had to move the seat up when he drove.

 

First off, I have always had all of our carseats installed by the Fire Dept. or someone certified to do them. It just makes me feel better.

Second, I have a Toyota Sienna and my twins have always been in the 2nd row captain's chairs.

Don't your snugrides have LATCH? If they are new, they will and if your van is new it will too. If so, you don't need to use the seatbelts, you just used the LATCH, which is supposed to be easier to install.

 

QUOTE(SoBlessed @ Oct 12 2007, 12:10 AM) [snapback]446456[/snapback]
Your Honda should have the Latch system, which is better/safer than just the seat belt.


LATCH and the seatbelt are equally safe if installed correctly. There is no safer way, though some seats / positions install better on LATCH, others on a seatbelt. Most vehicles / seats also have a LATCH limit (usually 48lbs; check your manual).

 

My husband is 6'3" and never had a problem putting the seat back far enough in our Odyssey (2006) even when we had the snugrides (although he says he hates driving my car because he can never get the seat adjusted comfortably, it's not a legroom issue.) It's entirely possible that those extra 2" make all the difference in the world. Or you could be installing the seats wrong, sure. Why are you using the seatbelt and not the Latch system? They are equally safe but Latch is much simpler. I know the Odyssey has Latch in both captains seats, and at least 2 of the places in the 3rd row.

If he really cannot stand to drive once the seats are properly installed, here's my suggestion:
- Buy a 3rd carseat base.
- Install one base in each captains seat, and one base in one of the 3rd row seats.
- Take out the middle console/seat in the 2nd row and slide the captain's chairs together, so you can access the 3rd row more easily.
- When you drive, use the 2 captains seats
- When he drives, use the captain's seat behind the passenger for one and the 3rd row seat for the other. It's the carseat itself that gets in the way - the empty base won't cause any problems with the seatback.

Not the prettiest solution, but a workable one.

 

We too use the Latch system to install the seats. We have a Dodge Grand Caravan. But with the seats rear facing (and with the infant seats) we did have to pull the seats forward to fit them in properly. You may have to put one in the third row to accomodate your DH's height.

 

I have the dodge caravan with stow n' go. My dh is 6' 3" also, and he couldn't stand driving with the infant seat behind him. Here's what we did-we took out the second row and just used the third row to install the seats. We also used the LATCH-that made it easier. I am a certified car seat techincian so it was easy for me to install the seats.