How well do child seats fit into extra cabs?
After a series of cars, I'm in the market for a pickup with an extra cab. The problem is that, despite all of that bed space, I don't see putting my future infant back there while we ride around up in the cab...
My truck isn't likely to be our main family vehicle (our Jetta will be the Beast of Burden), but I'm wondering whether or not anyone has had much (any) success with putting baby seat in the back of a pickup's extendend cab. Right now, it looks like the Toyota Tacoma is the leading contender, but if anyone has any pointers, feedback, advice, or commentary on babies and trucks (how to safely fit the former into the latter), I'd sure like to hear from you.
Thanks,
bigbayou
My truck isn't likely to be our main family vehicle (our Jetta will be the Beast of Burden), but I'm wondering whether or not anyone has had much (any) success with putting baby seat in the back of a pickup's extendend cab. Right now, it looks like the Toyota Tacoma is the leading contender, but if anyone has any pointers, feedback, advice, or commentary on babies and trucks (how to safely fit the former into the latter), I'd sure like to hear from you.
Thanks,
bigbayou
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in the tundra you'll be in for a real tight squeeze. in a tacoma ext. cab, i wouldn't even bother.
It looks like my wife will be riding in the back (of the bed).
Just kidding. There's a goldmine of situations that just beg to be exploited as wife joke fodder. I'm gonna have to figure out the safest way to get my family around for these few situations when we'll all be in my truck and when the little ones are still really little.
Thanks for all the pointers so far,
bigbayou
Wouldnt even try it on the Tacoma!
Tight squeeze on the Tundra.
Again it was the first and last experience... I am single and I have no kids... happen to have to do it when my friend and his baby needed a ride.
1. The truck would fit into my garage.
2. The truck would seat 4 adults and my 2 children (1 year old and a 4 year old) comfortably.
After looking at many models, I bought a 2001 Silverado ext-cab Z-71.
Infant seats, toddler seats, or booster seats fit very well in the rear seat of the truck (lots of room), and an adult can still sit comfortably in between them (usually it's my mother-in-law).
The rear seat belts fit great into the child seats and if you pull the side rear seat belts all of the way out and then retract it, it has this ratcheting effect. And this is great when you want to really cinch down on the child seat to properly secure that child seat to the rear seat.
Also, the "female" part of the seat belt DOES NOT come up too high and cause interference problems when the two seat belts parts are mated together and then interfere with the slots of the child seats where the seat belt normally bends and fits through it.
Anyway, I have no regrets with my purchase, I have no problems with putting infant, toddler, or booster seats in my truck's rear seat, and I have no concerns what-so-ever with the safety of my riders (adults or my children).
-David
Not only is the position cramped in the extreme, it is so far below the windows, it's a pit. Believe me. I've spent more time back there than the child seat.
bigbayou
Thank you.
I'm wondering if any of the after market companies have come up with a device that can be mounted in back of the cab and can have child seats attached to it.
I have a 1 1/2 year old daughter and a 4 1/2 year old son and I just love the way that their seats fit in my 2001 Silverado ext-cab Z-71. They fit great whether it is in the front seat in the center or in the rear seat anywhere.
Good luck with your new truck when you get it. Be sure to thoroughly check it out before you write them a check. I made a new truck check list before I bought mine, and it took me about 2 hours at the dealer to go through everything. I found no problems what-so-ever, and after 9 months and 7,600 miles I still have not had a single problem.
-David
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/childps/
BTW, almost all of the seats that I've seen lately have the center strap.
Did I mention that the Silverado has 29K miles on it after two years. That makes for a lot of circles on an island.....
Thanks for the link.
Shawn
There isn't a tether connection point in my truck and I doubt if yours has it either. You'll have to decide if you are comfortable with how well the seat fits in the truck. The infant seat we had was one where the base could stay in the car and the actual seat part clicked into the base, so getting the wee-one in and out of the truck wasn't too tough. And the middle belt always held the infant seat tightly.
We now have a babyseat (toddler seat) in it (2 year old) Again, in the middle in the rear. If I were you, I'd do some research on car seats, buy a good one from someplace like Wal-Mart, and if it doesn't fit well, take it back. Do this soon, though. I've had three different brands (graco and the like) and they all fit. But the really expensive seats are sometimes really bulky. They might not fit too well.
I would assume my arm rest and your center console between the buckets are the same height when my arm rest is folded down, so it should work the same. My arm rest might protrude into the back seat a little further than the console, but the gap between the seats should be the same. Someone said that I can take my truck to Baby's are Us and they will let me test them in the parking lot.
Thanks again.
Leo
My next truck will probably be a full size extended cab. The Ford and Dodge and Chevy all are big enough in the back for my purposes. Not the Toyota Tundra extended cab, though. That's about the same as my Dakota.
are you sure about the price of those four door compact picks vs full size extended pick-ups? From what I remember when looking at the prices back in May 2000, the full sizes (4x4's) were running 30K+ whereas the four door compact (4x4's) were around 25K. That 5K+ discrepancy might make a difference. I thought the demographics for people who bought compacts were different than those buying full size pick ups. Meaning that most compact truck buyers are not looking at hauling cargo as a priority. But if hauling cargo and kids, then without doubt a full size extend cab pick up is the way to go.
Leo
I had to make the same decision quickly and found the Chevy S10 Crew Cab. It has great space compared to Nissan, Ford, etc....only Toyota compared but I couldn't afford the Toy.
The Chev cost $21,000 new as a leftover 2001.
The ride is great and my wife likes the interior and the space for our toddler, our dog (a large boxer), and plenty of space for the new car seat for the new born.
Toyota has a very nice truck but the price was $3000 more...maybe worth it but.....
New Nissan crew cab 2001 was dissappointing dispite the reports. Less actual space, less engine, etc.
I recommend a little truck as an alternative for those who don't really need the full size (Silverados, Rams, and Tundras are very nice). A friend has a full size Chevy EXt. Cab (97) and the car seat would fit and is legal, but is 1/2 off the seat. I feel more comfortable with the little truck with the full back seat of the crew cab.
Good luck!
No, it's not great, but doable. Her rear facing infant seat fit Ok back there, but you had to push the passenger seat up pretty far. My wife could still sit in the passenger seat, but her knees were touching the dash. When I would ride alone with the infant seat, I'd just push the seat up as far as I needed. Yes, she was in a bit of a "hole" back there, but it was usually just for short trips home from Day-care. She normally rides in my wife's Suzuki XL-7 (plenty of room)
When she reached 20 lbs we switched her to a forward facing seat and it fits great in the rear of my Taco. You can slide the passenger seat back to where it normally engages, which is a bit more forward than all the way back, but leaves plenty of room for the passenger. I leave it installed all the time and I hardly notice it's back there. She sits up nice and high and can see out the side windows fine. It's also easier to turn around and hand her something (like a binky!)
I'd like to point out that Toyota did a good job of preparing the rear for a child seat, (as best they could). There is a heavy plastic tray that flips out from the floor that gives you a larger surface to put the seat on. There are also 3 point belts back there with the auto locking thing when you pull the belts all the way out.
By comparison, I put her seat in her aunt's new Jeep Grand Cherokee and I was afraid for her life. The seat belts did not have the locking mechanism (I though this was standard equip these days!) and it sat horribly uneven on the leather seats. The swing up bar that pulls down over the child couldn't raise up with out hitting the side window. Yuck, I couldn't imagine using that as a daily child carrier, the seat was loose and I couldn't tighten it up enough. The seat is much more secure in my Taco.
To sum it all up, rear facing infant seat, Ok, but not too good for daily use, would be a problem if you also had to have a regular passenger up front. Forward facing seat for larger kids fits fine and I would have no problem using as a daily thing, even with a passenger. Sorry for the long post, but I though some folks were being a bit harsh on the Taco about this.