Where do you like to put the car seat?

jsaffer01 · January 2014

I'm a FTM, and I've been thinking about where I would put my car seat. Behind the driver, behind the passenger, or in the middle? I have a honda pilot, and I'm thinking for reaching purposes and being able to see the baby maybe the middle. But I wanted to see where other moms put the car seat to get an idea.

sweetky_06 · January 2014

In our old car, it was behind the passenger seat because DH couldn't get the driver's seat back far enough.

In our Odyssey our toddler is currently behind the driver's seat because it's easiest. We'll move him over to the passenger side and put the infant seat on the driver's side.

RedInLove · January 2014

I'm pretty sure it is recommended that when installing just one car seat, that it be in the center of the back seat, rear facing. This is what we will be doing.

ETA: We just got a Ford Edge for a family car, which is not quite as big as the Pilot. I'm 5ft3in, it's not too wide that I feel I can't reach in to the middle to get the infant carrier in, and it's not so high that I can't easily climb in if needed to be able to get a toddler into a convertible seat.

daizijayne · January 2014

DS has always been behind the passenger. We will most likely keep him there and put the new baby behind the driver. We live in the city and do a lot of parallel parking. It takes a lot longer to put DS into his curbside convertible seat than it will to snap the baby's infant carrier into the base from the street side.

CiaoBabyOH · January 2014

I am planning to put our car seat in the middle backseat because it's the farthest away from any potential impact.

buggywhips · January 2014

Baby will be in the middle and M will stay on the passenger side, both rear facing. Statistically the passenger side is safer than the drivers side so that's why we put him there.

meli1025 · January 2014

DS is currently behind the driver's seat and I will keep him there. The rear facing infant seat takes up more room so when DH is driving he wouldn't be able to put the seat back. We will set it up that way in both cars since we share both.

We've had DS in the middle up untill now.

Miles2Go · January 2014

Statistically, it is safest in the middle. However, the difference between center and outboard is very small.

In my car, there is a strange slope that prevents the seat from being level. I will have the infant seat on the drivers side and DD's convertible (foonf! I love it!) on the passenger side.

Also, FYI, many cars do not allow latch borrowing. Your car is likely set up with latch anchors for the two outboard positions. Unless there are dedicated anchors for the center seat, installation in the center must be done with the seatbelt. It varies by car (and by seat) so make sure to double check BOTH manuals before installing in the center with latch.

asparagus95 · January 2014

Not the middle that's for sure. Then nobody else can sit in the backseat. Plus you're not going to want to reach any further when buckling them in. We do passenger side, but the new baby will go on drivers side. We don't have LATCH anchors in the middle, in factory cars don't so it's not even an option.

Allibob · January 2014

Behind the passenger seat. I can't drive with the infant seat behind the driver, because I'd have to have the seat too far forward. We're looking for a new car that will fit car seats better. I don't have latch in the middle.

ksyknelvr73 · January 2014

DS has been behind the passenger seat the whole time, but when this LO comes, DS will be behind the driver's seat (he is FF in a convertible), and the infant seat will be behind the passenger seat. The infant seat takes up more space, especially RFing, so it needs to be behind the passenger.

jsaffer01 · January 2014

I'm too lazy right now to go out and double check, but I checked online and my pilot has the LATCH system in all the seats in the 2nd row, and on passenger side in the 3rd row. Not that I am planning on putting my baby in the 3rd. As of right now my husband and I share my car until he trades in his motorcycle for a car. And he puts the seats back, whether it's the driver or passenger. So I'm still thinking middle is the best option for us

Themetastic · January 2014

Middle is always safest, if possible.

We have a convertible car seat in our cars already, behind the passenger seat, though.. so I am trying to figure out if we should put the infant seat behind driver or passenger side.

sweetky_06 · January 2014

jsaffer01 said:

I'm too lazy right now to go out and double check, but I checked online and my pilot has the LATCH system in all the seats in the 2nd row, and on passenger side in the 3rd row. Not that I am planning on putting my baby in the 3rd. As of right now my husband and I share my car until he trades in his motorcycle for a car. And he puts the seats back, whether it's the driver or passenger. So I'm still thinking middle is the best option for us

Honda does an awesome job with putting LATCH in as many places as possible. My Odyssey has it in the middle of the 2nd row as well, but we take that middle seat out because of our dog - oy.

Junebug060609 · January 2014

kitchencolors said:

RedInLove said:

I'm pretty sure it is recommended that when installing just one car seat, that it be in the center of the back seat, rear facing. This is what we will be doing.

ETA: We just got a Ford Edge for a family car, which is not quite as big as the Pilot. I'm 5ft3in, it's not too wide that I feel I can't reach in to the middle to get the infant carrier in, and it's not so high that I can't easily climb in if needed to be able to get a toddler into a convertible seat.

Depends on the car... Not all car manufacturers recommend the middle seat over the other ones.

This. Read your car manuals and the car seat manuals to find the best fit for your car.

We will have a convertible and a bucket seat for our two kids. They will likely go one on each side.

typeset · January 2014

Depends on the seat and the car. We had our Britax convertible RFing in the middle in our CR-V with the first kid. Will have to put one behind the driver and one behind the passenger with two. Probably putting the infant behind the driver since he'll be in the car with me on his own more and you're more likely to protect your own side in a crash.

MrsT2008 · January 2014

Middle seats are not always recommended, definitely check your cars manual.

DD was in the middle of my ford escape until I moved her to a convertible seat, then she went behind the passenger. This time around, I have a pilot and I need to see if I can fit the infant seat behind the driver. If not, I will move DD behind me and put the infant seat behind the passenger.

mirdamae03 · January 2014

Jeep Grand Cherokee has two sets of latch, so no middle seat latch. DS1's seat is on the passenger side and DS2's infant seat will go on the driver side. I'm hoping to get a car with 3rd row seats in the near-ish future, so we could haul other people around too.

danabsd · January 2014

Have you read your cars manual? In my CX-9 the middle is not ideal for a carseat so it is behind the passengers seat. In our Corolla it is in the middle.

When 2.0 gets here we will move Beb behind the driver and 2.0 behind the passenger in both cars.

ETA: Main reasons we have the infant behind the passenger:

Easier for the driver to reach back if we need to.

When getting the baby in/out of the car I want her to be up against the curb on out in the street.

usernewname · January 2014

While it's rear facing it will be in the middle and when we turn it around we will be putting it on the side.

spinsoffresonance · January 2014

Middle is considered the safest,then behind the driver, then behind the passenger BUT it also depends on the car. You have to check your car manual. Some cars can't have it in the middle.

kalette · January 2014

We had DD in the middle in my impala because it is the safest spot (as long as the car has middle anchors), now that we got a van DD is behind the driver and number 2 will go behind the passenger. No real reason, just where they worked out.

MrsT2008 · January 2014

kalette said:

We had DD in the middle in my impala because it is the safest spot (as long as the car has middle anchors), now that we got a van DD is behind the driver and number 2 will go behind the passenger. No real reason, just where they worked out.

LATCH anchors actually have nothing to do with it. There is no statistical difference between the safety of LATCH vs seatbelt installations - it just depends on what you personally can get a better install with.

The middle is statistically safer because it is not as close to the sides of the car so a side impact collision wouldn't be as damaging to a carseat in the middle of the back.

However, some cars cannot accommodate carseats in the middle due to the design of the back seat itself - if the middle seat is more molded/has a significant bump/hump, then you likely can't install a seat there.

sthomas1222 · January 2014

Safest spot is in the middle if your car allows for it. A lot of cars have a little hump in the middle which makes for a not so great install and most seats recommend not putting it there in that case. That being said, it's not unsafe by any means to put them outboard. DD was originally behind me, when I went up harness slots we moved her to the other side. Her seat (Clek Foonf) is ridiculously huge so having her on the other side I could more easily reach her and hand her toys and stuff if she's crying. New baby will go behind me.

Miles2Go · January 2014

It's higher but I don't think it takes up any more room front to back. Dh and I actually sometimes argue over who gets it and who has to take the next fit. I'm currently winning.

I heard that too. I'm good with the full recline for now, though, so I don't plan to change it. It's nice that it's a option, though.

ho11yday · January 2014

We will be putting the infant car seat behind the passenger and the forward-facing convertible behind the driver.

NorthernGal248 · January 2014

We have a little Mazda RX8, in our car it is going behind passenger because we want to make sure that the driver can have easier access to the baby and be comfortable in the seat. We are planning on buying a small suv or crossover, I'm going to be fallowing this post to see where people put their seats in bigger cars.

danabsd · January 2014

NorthernGal248 said:

We have a little Mazda RX8, in our car it is going behind passenger because we want to make sure that the driver can have easier access to the baby and be comfortable in the seat. We are planning on buying a small suv or crossover, I'm going to be fallowing this post to see where people put their seats in bigger cars.

Where did you come to these conclusions? From personal experiance it is easier to access the baby from the drivers seat if the baby is in the middle and or behind the passenger seat. Also, a RFing seat takes up a lot of room in a small backseat. Can both of you drive making sure the drivers seat doesn't brace the car seat when behind the driver?

MrsT2008 · January 2014

danabsd said:

NorthernGal248 said:

We have a little Mazda RX8, in our car it is going behind passenger because we want to make sure that the driver can have easier access to the baby and be comfortable in the seat. We are planning on buying a small suv or crossover, I'm going to be fallowing this post to see where people put their seats in bigger cars.

Where did you come to these conclusions? From personal experiance it is easier to access the baby from the drivers seat if the baby is in the middle and or behind the passenger seat. Also, a RFing seat takes up a lot of room in a small backseat. Can both of you drive making sure the drivers seat doesn't brace the car seat when behind the driver?

She said it's going behind the passenger

danabsd · January 2014

MrsT2008 said:

danabsd said:

NorthernGal248 said:

We have a little Mazda RX8, in our car it is going behind passenger because we want to make sure that the driver can have easier access to the baby and be comfortable in the seat. We are planning on buying a small suv or crossover, I'm going to be fallowing this post to see where people put their seats in bigger cars.

Where did you come to these conclusions? From personal experiance it is easier to access the baby from the drivers seat if the baby is in the middle and or behind the passenger seat. Also, a RFing seat takes up a lot of room in a small backseat. Can both of you drive making sure the drivers seat doesn't brace the car seat when behind the driver?

She said it's going behind the passenger

Jesus, I can't read. I swore it said driver. Pregnancy gives me the dumbs.

Xath · January 2014

I think the idea of seats being safer in the middle was more true before rear airbags became standard in most newer cars. Now, in many cars, the seat is much more insulated on one of the side seats because airbag deployment absorbs more of the impact.

In my car, the bucket will go behind the driver's seat, and DS1's rear-facing convertible will stay behind the passenger seat. I'm 5'5, so the bucket fits easily behind the seat when I'm driving. In DH's car, we'll probably switch DS1's seat to forward facing and put it behind the driver, and then put the bucket behind the passenger seat. He's 6'5 and needs all of the room he can possibly get.

ThereBeDragons · January 2014

Assuming it fits with DH putting the drivers seat back- I'll put it in on the drivers side. We have a 1/3-2/3 fold down backseat & hatchback and its proven very useful in the past- so I'd ideally like to keep the 2/3 clear to fold down for ease of bringing big stuff home. We are a one car family (and have no local family/friends with a truck) so even of we have to leave baby home for safety- we still need the option to fit big purchases in.

If it doesn't fit though, it doesn't fit and we will stick it behind the passenger or in the middle. I really hope it fits though. One of the reasons I haven't picked out a carseat yet.

sthomas1222 · January 2014

@kitchencolors, definitely just much taller. It's the narrowest at 14in at the base. I have it full recline, didn't know they'd changed it! But that doesn't matter since we're both 5'3" lol.

Fitpreggo · January 2014

This is really interesting. I'm a FTM and I didn't even think of this!! I wonder if it makes a huge difference safety wise or if it's mostly just a convenience thing??

Lild09 · January 2014

Ditto to pp! What a great thread! It's got me thinking about the cars we have and where we should put the car seat. I think our 2013 jetta has a middle option but I'm not sure if that's the case with the 2010 jeep. I'm kinda short though so reach ability is important I guess when choosing. Seems like lots of you do behind drivers seat

sthomas1222 · January 2014

https://www.thecarseatlady.com/car_seats/rear-facing_seats_7.html

danabsd · January 2014

ThereBeDragons said:

Assuming it fits with DH putting the drivers seat back- I'll put it in on the drivers side. We have a 1/3-2/3 fold down backseat & hatchback and its proven very useful in the past- so I'd ideally like to keep the 2/3 clear to fold down for ease of bringing big stuff home. We are a one car family (and have no local family/friends with a truck) so even of we have to leave baby home for safety- we still need the option to fit big purchases in.

If it doesn't fit though, it doesn't fit and we will stick it behind the passenger or in the middle. I really hope it fits though. One of the reasons I haven't picked out a carseat yet.

I think you'll find it more convent to move the car seat for a big purchase (unless you make them that often) rather than configuring the car seat to fit that particular issue. See above post where I gots the dumbs. Keep in mind "fitting" means it does not brace the seat. So if YH can put the seat back but it hits the car seat you do not have a good install.

In the past when we've had to lay down our middle seat to bring something home I stay with the baby and H goes back to get it.

ThereBeDragons · January 2014

Ya, and I'm a FTM, so who knows how I'll actually wind up putting things in when the time comes. That was just my thought process for the moment. Absolutely will put it where it fits though, and given how tall DH is, that'll probably be behind me. I like to think of the ideals though until reality intrudes

jenniferroshto · January 2014

I will have her in the middle. DD and DS are both in boosters now so I don't think it will be too much of an inconvenience and its much safer. DS only lacks 7 pounds now before he can be out of his booster as well.

BAUMGC39 · January 2014

Good topic...I will have to wait to give input...I need to get a new(er) vehicle before baby comes.

Storrmys · January 2014

Our's will go on the passenger side.. He drives most of the time even in my car which is a small Saturn so there will be more room behind me ... Also I don't think there is a latch in the middle seat of our car ..

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