3 kids in back seat of a small car?

[ABC123]

We currently have 2 cars - a Toyota Camry hybrid, and a Hyundai Elantra.  I have 2 kids in booster seats, they will be 6 and 8 when the new baby comes along.  So it will be several years before the older one can sit in the front seat.  Have any of you made it work with 3 seats in a small car?  The newbie will be rear facing for at least 2 years.

[tobitonic]

You can make it work in just about any car. The keys are to use a.) narrow seats and b.) seat belts instead of LATCH.

www.thecarcrashdetective.com/3-across-car-seat-guide-html/

Good for you for RF for at least 2 years...if possible, do it for at least 4.

http://www.thecarcrashdetective.com/2015/07/3-out-of-4-parents-forward-face-too-early.html/

[SisterX]

We've only got the one kid, but I chose the Combi Coccorro (http://www.combiusa.com/Coccoro-p/8220.htm) specifically because it's not super expensive, it's lightweight (for traveling), it's got a narrow profile (they market it for fitting 3 in a small car), it's convertible so it's good from birth-the end of the weight limit, and it's backwards-facing until 30 lbs. My daughter is almost 2 1/2 and she's still comfortably backwards, although she's also on the smaller end of things. She'll be backwards until about age 3, if not a little bit beyond, I think.

[mm1970]

We currently have 2 cars - a Toyota Camry hybrid, and a Hyundai Elantra.  I have 2 kids in booster seats, they will be 6 and 8 when the new baby comes along.  So it will be several years before the older one can sit in the front seat.  Have any of you made it work with 3 seats in a small car?  The newbie will be rear facing for at least 2 years.

Yes, well the 8 year old will need a booster for a bit longer (till 9 in my state).

So what we did is use a backless booster.  Note: we only have two kids, so this was daily carpooling to school.

What worked best for our car (Toyota Matrix, though we also have a Civic) - We put the baby seat in the middle facing rear, and the boosters on the side.  In our experience, the Britax Roundabout both was easiest to install AND fit best - the base itself was narrow enough that we could fit boosters on the side.

However, since my older kid (who was 6) is short, we did have to us a special extender and clip thing so that the shoulder strap did not cut across his neck.

I recommend that you look at the seats that you have and start experimenting.  Borrow seats from friends also.  Some of the boosters with backs are also narrow enough to fit on the side, like the Diono Radian.

[mm1970]

You can make it work in just about any car. The keys are to use a.) narrow seats and b.) seat belts instead of LATCH.

www.thecarcrashdetective.com/3-across-car-seat-guide-html/

Good for you for RF for at least 2 years...if possible, do it for at least 4.

http://www.thecarcrashdetective.com/2015/07/3-out-of-4-parents-forward-face-too-early.html/

We made it 2 years with #2.  But then he kept kicking his brother in the face.

[tobitonic]

You can make it work in just about any car. The keys are to use a.) narrow seats and b.) seat belts instead of LATCH.

www.thecarcrashdetective.com/3-across-car-seat-guide-html/

Good for you for RF for at least 2 years...if possible, do it for at least 4.

http://www.thecarcrashdetective.com/2015/07/3-out-of-4-parents-forward-face-too-early.html/

We made it 2 years with #2.  But then he kept kicking his brother in the face.

I shouldn't laugh, I shouldn't laugh...

Our 2yo currently enjoys telling her 8mo brother he's not allowed in the kitchen.