4 under 4 in a Suburban, bench or captains. :)

[LillyPie]

I have the new ones home from Ethiopia, and we now have 4 full sized carseats.

 

I have now been without a car for almost 8 weeks and we have all been at home...

 

shopping for OLD suburbans, like in the 3k range...think 2001?

 

bench in the middle or captains for 4 full sized carseats? none of them can buckle/unbuckle, so i was almost thinking bench with the flip up left up permanently near the door. i cringe thinking about having to climb in and around the captains to buckle.

 

don't tell me to get an odyssey. i'll freak out.

[KirstenH]

I know this will make you freak out, but .... get the minivan. I really hate them, too, but if I had that many littles at once, I would change my tune quickly. When it's raining/snowing/freezing/windy, you are not going to want to climb up and down into the Suburban to get everyone fastened.

 

Minivans are easier. They just are.

[LillyPie]

seriously.

 

i cant get a minivan, there is not enough cargo space for what we do around here. we tried.

 

we need the burb and its all we can afford and still get some safety on the road.

 

ALSO, we literally have nothing to spend since we just did the double adoption, so a minivan for 3K is not going to get me ANY safety. i would be in a 1990 caravan or previa for that price. :)

 

i would rather drive the clunker and have a little safety.

 

so, for all you minivan people, pretend you are shopping for your new odyssey and deciding between a bench with flip up or captains for four britax boulevard seats. pretend you are not talking suburban.

[vonfirmath]

I would get a bench 3rd seat and captains for the 2nd row. Take one of the captains out. Get a good 3-across in the 3rd row. And you can get into the car to buckle all the seats. AS well as all the kids being inside the car and not out in traffic, etc.

[curlylocks]

Get the 'Burb. :) I had one before getting a minivan...HATED the minivan. Now we're back in a 'Burb.

 

I prefer the bench w/ the flip up. The captains chairs are too hard to climb up and through the middle to the back seat.

 

I can stand on the running board, lean over the flip up, and to the back seat to buckle a child in the back. No problem...and I'm only 5'4".

[Guest]

We have an older suburban with the bench. I think ours was $3500 and is a '91. (And we got it 5 years ago.) That being said, I love it. We pick up my SIL and her kids a lot and put them in the backseat. It's not the funnest thing to climb back there, but it works. If I were you, I'd just leave the folding part of the bench down, I don't know that would be that different than climbing back with the captain's chairs. Either way, with a car that old, I'd probably be more concerned with the state of the car, and take whatever we found, whether it be a bench of captain's chairs.

 

I will say that recently I was contemplating downsizing our car when I was rear ended. The other car was totally messed up. Mine? Not a scratch. Good cars.

[melissad2]

seriously.

 

i cant get a minivan, there is not enough cargo space for what we do around here. we tried.

 

we need the burb and its all we can afford and still get some safety on the road.

 

ALSO, we literally have nothing to spend since we just did the double adoption, so a minivan for 3K is not going to get me ANY safety. i would be in a 1990 caravan or previa for that price. :)

 

i would rather drive the clunker and have a little safety.

 

so, for all you minivan people, pretend you are shopping for your new odyssey and deciding between a bench with flip up or captains for four britax boulevard seats. pretend you are not talking suburban.

I got a 2002 ford windstar for $2450 :) I have a 2002 Tahoe also that I rarely drive because it is so much trouble to get the kids in and out of.

 

But to answer your question...get the captains seats.

[katnorman]

I have 4 in full size carseats also and we have all benches. We have 2 in each row. In the 2nd row we have 1 in the middle rear facing and 1 on the left behind the driver. I just flip the right hand seat down and buckle the 2 in back up. You get use to it and it now only takes a minute to get everyone in :001_smile:

[LillyPie]

Get the 'Burb. :) I had one before getting a minivan...HATED the minivan. Now we're back in a 'Burb.

 

I prefer the bench w/ the flip up. The captains chairs are too hard to climb up and through the middle to the back seat.

 

I can stand on the running board, lean over the flip up, and to the back seat to buckle a child in the back. No problem...and I'm only 5'4".

 

 

 

Sometimes when you post, you know what you WANT to hear. And then someone says it. :)

 

Thanks everyone. Keep em coming. I was really hoping to see more blood drawn between the burbs vs the minis...but hey.

[2squared]

I would get a bench 3rd seat and captains for the 2nd row. Take one of the captains out. Get a good 3-across in the 3rd row. And you can get into the car to buckle all the seats. AS well as all the kids being inside the car and not out in traffic, etc.

 

:iagree::iagree: This is what I did when I had four in car seats. Worked wonderfully. Now I have five, so I have to crawl into the backseat to buckle my littlest. It's a pain.

 

I hate to say it, but I would try for a longer-term plan to get a minivan. I can't imagine trying to get everyone buckled in the middle of snowstorms and rainstorms in a suburban. :eek:

[vonfirmath]

Thanks everyone. Keep em coming. I was really hoping to see more blood drawn between the burbs vs the minis...but hey.

 

You made it clear you didn't want to hear about minis so I didn't. period.

[StaceyinLA]

5 minivans over the last 22 years. Honestly, I really don't see that either is easy to get kids in and out of in a rain or snowstorm.

 

If you NEED a Suburban, get a Suburban. I think you'll need to look at models in the 90's to get in that price range, but my '95 was in excellent condition when I sold it a few years ago for $3,500.

 

I had 3 bench seats in my '95, and it was my favorite of all 3 (I had a '93 model and an '01 model - sold the '01 and bought the '95 because I liked the roominess).

 

Honestly, if you get an older model without dual airbags (or if you can disable the passenger side airbag), you could put a child up front and 3 on the middle bench for days when only one adult will be out with them all.

[Lisa in the UP of MI]

We have two bench seats in our minivan with 5 kids. The baby and 4yo are in the middle seat and the 2yo, 6yo and 7yo are in the back, with the 2yo in the middle and the older kids in boosters on either side of him. One other thing to consider is where to put everyone to minimize fighting!

 

I know you said you don't want a minivan, but ours has storage between the front and middle seats. We are able to travel with our Saint Bernard in the trunk and all of our stuff in the rest of the van, usually with room to spare.

[melissad2]

Wow...I only wish we could sell our used cars for the prices talked about on here! Maybe it's regional:confused: The used car market around here is in the toilet.

[LaxMom]

I have the new ones home from Ethiopia, and we now have 4 full sized carseats.

 

I have now been without a car for almost 8 weeks and we have all been at home...

 

shopping for OLD suburbans, like in the 3k range...think 2001?

 

bench in the middle or captains for 4 full sized carseats? none of them can buckle/unbuckle, so i was almost thinking bench with the flip up left up permanently near the door. i cringe thinking about having to climb in and around the captains to buckle.

 

don't tell me to get an odyssey. i'll freak out.

I had 3 in carseats in a Suburban with the flip-down bench. It.was.awful. We got the Odyssey. Love it still, 6 years later, as my husband is probably rolling over 100k while I type. Seriously. And I'm a car girl.

 

If you must buy a Suburban, do NOT get a 97. It was the only year that I know that it had substandard marks in every category. Ghastly, insane things went wrong in 97.

[Devan]

We have 4 in car seats (OK, one's in a high back booster) and I would definitely go for Captain's seats. (To clarify, ours is captain's seats in the middle and bench in the back)

I don't think I would like a bench in the middle at all. I just think it would be a pain for climbing over and such. I feel like there's more leg room too. (Although we do have a minivan, so I'm not sure about in a Suburban.)

Edited June 6, 2012 by Devan
clarification

[JudoMom]

seriously.

 

i cant get a minivan, there is not enough cargo space for what we do around here. we tried.

 

we need the burb and its all we can afford and still get some safety on the road.

 

ALSO, we literally have nothing to spend since we just did the double adoption, so a minivan for 3K is not going to get me ANY safety. i would be in a 1990 caravan or previa for that price. :)

 

i would rather drive the clunker and have a little safety.

 

so, for all you minivan people, pretend you are shopping for your new odyssey and deciding between a bench with flip up or captains for four britax boulevard seats. pretend you are not talking suburban.

 

I drive a 1993 Previa. We've had it for 10 years. It has 230,000+ miles on it. We've never had any major repairs. I live in a place where it snows and gets slick, and it 10 years I've only slid twice (I was envious of my friends' Siennas, but they slide all over the place). At one point I had 2 boosters and 3 car seats in it. It's ugly, but it's safe and reliable, and the inside is bigger than other minivans because of the way the engine is placed.

[Mandylubug]

i had four babes 3 and under in our minivan. I had captain middle and bench rear and it was great. My van now has way more storage space than my previous.. so just know that not all mini's are created equally. But I do prefer the look of a burb.. just can't afford the gas.

[Mo_Babee]

I know...I know you don't want to hear about minis so I'll just say those sliding doors are a lifesaver when you are trying to get those little ones are out of carseats without denting up the car parked next to you...lol...I just had to say that and I only had 3 in carseats and was 100% against minivans. (when my friends were trying to talk me into a minivan I, oh so kindly, explained to them that I was entirely too young and cute for a minivan...lol) just had to share that little slice of my mind...don't hate me :-D

[craftyerin]

:iagree::iagree: This is what I did when I had four in car seats. Worked wonderfully. Now I have five, so I have to crawl into the backseat to buckle my littlest. It's a pain.

 

I hate to say it, but I would try for a longer-term plan to get a minivan. I can't imagine trying to get everyone buckled in the middle of snowstorms and rainstorms in a suburban. :eek:

 

:iagree:

that is what I do in my minivan. remove the captain's chair by the sliding door and make room to get in and buckle everyone. I don't know if you'll be able to get 3 Boulevards across, though. I'd pay to switch one or two (whatever it takes) seats to Radians, which are narrow, to be able to accomplish this arrangement, though. Worth it.

[brett_ashley]

:iagree:

I don't know if you'll be able to get 3 Boulevards across, though.

 

You will not. A Boulevard is 20 inches wide.

[zimom]

I only have one that uses a car seat but I do have a Suburban with captains chairs in the second row and I love that set up. My youngest has a lot of equipment and no other vehicle comes close to a Suburban, so I certainly understand your wanting to stay away from a minivan.

 

Are your older two able to climb into the back and buckle themselves? Will certainly make your life easier.

[besroma]

I know...I know you don't want to hear about minis so I'll just say those sliding doors are a lifesaver when you are trying to get those little ones are out of carseats without denting up the car parked next to you...lol...I just had to say that and I only had 3 in carseats and was 100% against minivans. (when my friends were trying to talk me into a minivan I, oh so kindly, explained to them that I was entirely too young and cute for a minivan...lol) just had to share that little slice of my mind...don't hate me :-D

 

Exactly! I completely get where you are coming from about the Suburban, but in a few years when the kiddos are jumping in and out of the vehicle, I would *highly* recommend a minivan with sliding doors. I love that as we are approaching the van (Odyssey ;)), I can hit the button and the doors slide open and my kids safely pile in. It is so much safer *and * less stressful.

 

That being said, I really enjoyed starting out with our Expedition. I loved the way it sat up high like a truck and drove like a truck, but the interior felt more like a car. We had plenty of room, and I liked it so much, I didn't mind climbing into the back to buckle and unbuckle the little ones when needed. We always put the older ones in the rear because even a 4yo can do a lot of the buckling in the Britax seats.

 

We had the bench with the tumbling seat.....I would go for two bench seats in the 'burb! :001_smile:

[gardenmom5]

I'd get the captains. they won't always require you to be buckling them, but getting their seats in and out will be MUCH easier with a captain vs a bench.

[AdventureMoms]

Can the captain's chairs be scooted over next to each other? That's how I have mine. 4yo FF in the 3rd row, two RF toddlers in the 2nd row and I can reach them all from the passenger side door. It's nice because I can bring the double stroller around and park it next to the front passenger door so I'm between the kids and the parking lot, then load them in one at a time as I unbuckle them, so no one is ever loose. I could easily reach a 4th seat if it was FF (or an infant seat), though I'd have to step into the van to unbuckle.

 

I have an Odyssey though. :-P Sliding doors alone are worth the uncoolness of it all.