How to put 3 child car seats in a car with only 2 seat belt anchors?

Question

My 2002 Corolla only has seat belt anchors for 2 passengers. I have a 2 year old and twins on the way. How to cary them all without buying a new car? It is against the law to carry one in front.

Answer 1

Not much choice, I'm afraid. Get another car, or don't carry your kids in the car. Besides being illegal, you put your babies at risk by not having them all in properly mounted carseats.

Answer 2

Rope.

Answer 3

A 2002 Corolla DOES have 3 seatbelts in the back. I assume you're saying it only has 2 sets of LATCH anchors in the back? That's correct. You can only use LATCH in the outboard (side) positions in most vehicles, so there's only 2 sets. But you CAN safely use the seatbelts to install 3 seats across the backseat.

LATCH is not safer than seatbelts, it was invented to make it more convenienient, though in many situations it has failed on that count b/c of variances between vehicle manufacturers.

Anyway, use the seatbelts to install 3 car seats across the back. It can be done - but it completely depends upon the age and size of your children. In 3 across its almost always easiest if you keep them in 5 point harnesses if possible. Its easier to put a child in a seat and buckle the belts of the seat rather than having to dig in between tightly packed in seats to find the buckles every time!

What seat does the 2 year old already have? You may have to consider replacing it to get 3 seats across to work. If you're set on having infant carrier seats for the twins (its not a required stage in car seats) check out Chicco Keyfit22 or Keyfit30, both among the narrower infant seats. Consider a Sunshine Kids Radian65 for the 2 year old - harnesses rear facing to 33lbs, forward facing to 65lbs, 18" top slots, keeps the average sized kid harnessed to 6-7 years old. Its the absolute narrowest car seat you can buy. It can be a pain to install though, so try before you buy or purchase from Walmart.com so you can return it in store without any fees if there's a problem installing it. Check out http://www.car-seat.org for install tips on the Radian.

Generally its best to puzzle seats - so, have the twins rear facing seats one on each side and the 2 year old's forward facing seat in the middle. Depending upon the 2 year old's size, a Britax Marathon could be a good option, especially since you'll be able to pass it down to one of the twins (remembering that car seats expire 6 years after date of manufacture) when she outgrows it. The Marathon fits most kids to 5 years. A Graco Nautilus is another option, though not especially narrow. Cosco Sceneras make GREAT convertible seats for newborns, and buying them means not having to run out and get another seat when they're 5-7 months old like you will if you purchase infant carriers. $45, lightweight, fairly easy to install, not extremely wide. Just realize the average child will outgrow it at 2-3 years old and need another harnessed seat before they're ready for a booster. But for $45, its a steal. I'm not a big infant carrier fan - check my other answers for why, but having twins is unique, so you may decide you just can't live without them. In that case - steer clear of Evenflo carriers! Try Graco SnugRide or Chicco Keyfit and see if you can get the 3 across to fit. You can also post this question at the forum I mentioned, car-seat.org, and have techs chime in on what they think will work!

And its generally not illegal to carry a child of any age in the front seat - but its not safe, either. Especially b/c in an '02 there's an airbag.

When shopping Remember these rules:

1)the BEST seat is the one that fits your child, fits your car, and will be used correctly 100% of the time. (This is why convenience features DO make a difference and ARE worth the money! If its easy to use, you're more likely to use it correctly.

2)children need to stay rear facing as long as possible.

Turning kids forward at 20lbs/1year is an outdated practice that could cost you your child's life!

  A)A forward-facing child under 2 years old is 5 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured in a crash than a rear-facing child of the same age.

  B)A child's vertabrae do not fully fuse until 3-6 years old, before then, she is at great risk for internal decapitation. The spinal column can stretch up to 2 inches in a crash BUT the spinal cord can only stretch up to 1/4 inch before it snaps and baby is gone.

  C)Current research suggests that children under the age of two years are 75 percent less likely to die or be seriously injured when they are riding rear facing.

  D)In a recent article from Injury Prevention, it was found that the odds of severe injury to forward facing children age 12-23 months old was 5.32 times higher than a rear facing child. (Car Safety Seats For Children: Rear Facing For Best Protection; Injury Prevention 2007; 13:398-402.)

3)Once you do turn them forward facing, they need to stay in a 5 point harness as long as possible. 4 years/40lbs is the minimum for riding in a booster, and most 4 year olds have no business using one yet. If they can't sit upright for an entire trip, they need the harness of a car seat still. And, even if they do sit properly, a 5 point harness is safer, so you want to keep them in one as long as possible. This is important to consider b/c most car seats only forward face to 40lbs. My son just turned 3, and is in the 95th% for height and weight - 40" tall and weighs 41lbs. He outgrew the 40lbs seats shortly after his 2nd birthday. It was a total waste of money. He now has a Britax Marathon, which goes to 65lbs, and will be able to fit it for some time yet. If I'd have bought it when he was born, I could have had one car seat this whole time instead of the 3 I wasted money on. They are more expensive for many reasons, this is one.

Answer 4

You are a frikin idiot of course it is illeagle you need to get another car

Answer 5

Plain and simple, you cannot do this........

Answer 6

Legally you can't.  You need a vehicle that seats 3 in the back.  One seatbelt... one person.  Or in your case... one seatbelt... one properly secured carseat.  And the cops will notice, don't kid yourself.  Had one follow my aunt right to her driveway and give her a ticket a few years back.

Answer 7

There is no safe way to do that. You could disable the air bag. If there is no airbag a child can ride in the front. Still, the back seat is safer.We had to sell our car and buy a used one that could accomodate our family of five. We bought a  '98 Mitsubishi Montero. That was in '06. We haven't had any problems with it. It has third row seats which is nice! It's a little more stylish than a mini van :-)

Answer 8

Are there really only 2 belts in the back of a Corolla?

If a new car isn't an option, one would have to ride up front if the backseat only seats two. You can't install two seats with one belt.

You absolutely CANNOT use a rear-facing seat in front of an airbag. There is no safe way to do that unless you have your airbag disabled.

You could put your 2 year old up front, but he/she would HAVE to be in a harnessed seat. If you do have a passenger side airbag, you would need to scoot the front seat back as far back as possible, as he/she can be injured by a deploying airbag.

EDIT: And this is NOT against the law. It's not ideal (as the back seat is the safest place for passengers 12 & under), but can be done if all back seating positions are occupied by other child restraints.

Answer 9

Yeah well love dont do it..It is a bloody stupid idea,it's illegal to have a kid under the age of 8 years of age in the front..get another car,you'd kill ya self if anything happened to ya babies..

Use your common sence you know it wrong...