Testimony from KM of Lessons From Ivy:
When we announced that I was expecting our third child, my car was a 98’ Camry sedan and my husband drove an 02’ two-door Cavalier. Inevitably, the first question everyone started asking us was, “When are you going to get a minivan?”
Our response was, “Oh we don’t need one right away, we’ll buy one when we have the money.” Raised eyebrows always followed. Apparently no one could picture three carseats in my Camry!
Could we have gotten financed for a vehicle? Sure, many car salesmen are more than happy to find a finance company for just about anyone. But we weren’t going to let the excuse of an extra child cause us to finance a larger vehicle.
And I’m here to tell you that three kids doesn’t automatically mean you need a minivan. As we discovered, it is possible to fit three carseats (and properly install them) in the back of a 98’ Camry.
We used two Cosco carseats and an infant Graco carseat with a base. Getting the kids in and out of the car was a choreographed dance each time, but we managed until the right minivan came along and we could afford it.
We kept our eyes open and saved for a minivan for a year. It wasn’t until our son was three months old that we found that perfect minivan (a 2000 Sienna) at our perfect price tag.
It would have certainly been more convenient to have had a minivan right when our baby was born, but doing the crammed in a Camry shuffle was definitely worth it. I’ll take the financial stability of debt freedom over a spacious interior any day.
But I won’t lie; we all love the spacious interior!
KM Logan has a blog of Christian encouragement for women at Lessons From Ivy and has written several books that can be purchased through Amazon.
We have 3 kids and one on the way. Personal choice but, I do not like mini vans. Thankfully, my husband is in the same camp. 3 kids worked in my 06 impala until we could afford my jeep commander which seats 7 quite comfortably although,there isn’t much room for extra stuff when at full capacity. With #4 on the way we willbe keeping the jeep for short trips but, we will save up for a suburban or expedition for more space on long trips. I keep teasing my hubby that we may need to get a stretch limo one of these days 🙂
I was just saying to my mom the other day how funny it is that in North America we believe we need giant cars to survive. My host family in Finland had 3 kids and drove 2 sedans. My host family in Brazil had 4 kids and 2 sedans. There’s usually very little need to be driving an apartment on wheels, but that is one of the reasons everyone in the world sees North Americans as so wasteful.
Well done on holding off until you could buy out-right! My husband and I are going through this right now and hoping his car holds on until there is enough money in the savings account!
We have four children and have yet to get a van. We had just one car for a while until we were given a very old car about 3 years ago. It has lasted this long and is officially being laid to rest. We’re still in the process of making a decision on buying another vehicle. We don’t have the money right now, but we really need another car! Should we just buy one on credit?
Hi Marissa I completely understand. If there was any way you could do some extra work to make a 1,000 or 2, or if there was anything you can sell I would definitely do that before buying a car on credit. You’ll come out ahead in the long run.
I suppose we would have been able to fit 3 Radians in our tiny car, but since we knew we were going to be in the market for a new vehicle at some point anyways (and already had the cash for it), we decided to just get the minivan instead of dropping hundreds on three new carseats.
Also, talking about safety, now that they recommend rear facing until 2 years, it would have been impossible to have 2 rear facing seats in that car…my husband is very tall and has to have the seat all the way back to drive, something he couldn’t have done with 2 rear facing carseats in the back.
LOL ! I had 3 kids in car seats in the back of a Camry too. I had to put the kids in and out in a certain order. Did this for about 15 mos. Then found a Ford Crown Victoria that is a much better size. It had 43k miles on it. We paid cash. $5,000. I have been driving that for 6 years.
We’ve had 3 in our Chevy Impala for the past 2 years and it has been great. This decision has allowed us to have no car payment, pay off credit cards, and begin saving for the next vehicle. We decided we would wait for baby #4 to upgrade to the van and we are so happy that we’ve made it all work!
We had a 96 2 door Dodge Neon and managed to fit 2 Cosco carseats (still have those) and 1 Graco carseat. I always tell people its possible!
We just bought a new to us van yesterday! Our third is 6 months, and while three car seats in the back was tricky, it is so good not to have debt or regrets! Thanks for your uplifting post!
We also are a one car family and have three car seats in our ’99 Corolla…several people said it’s not possible, but like others I would have to say it depends on your car seats. We have a booster, an infant, and a convertible seat. It’s tricky getting the booster buckled, but totally do-able and safe. We get lots of crazy looks when we’re out, so it’s good to know we’re not the only ones! 🙂
Something that has made our life with 3 carseats in our 2000 Camry A LOT easier has been a seatbelt extender for our booster seat. It cost around $25 and can be ordered online. You attach it to the buckle (the short side), extending it by about 10-15 inches, which means makes it very easy for my daughter to buckle herself up. Seriously, it has been a life and sanity saver!
Yeah, those are not safe…at all!
Belt extenders are not safe. I don’t care what they advertise.
Agreed, you’re giving one more piece to possibly break or malfunction while the child is in the car. I have to say, I had a smaller car, had baby number two and moved up to a larger vehicle. Yes we’re finishing paying it off in six more months, but there’s plenty of space for everything, including the relatives we often have with us. I hate the idea of having that payment and it’s been a bane on our lives for sure, but I love the idea that my kids are truly safe.
We’ve had 3 kids in our car for 2 years, but it’s a ’96 Buick LaSabre, which is a wider car. We just had our 4th, and finally needed a minivan, but by watching and saving we were able to find an older one in nice condition on Craigslist, for a great price, and paid cash. We absolutely were not willing to go one cent into debt for it, and it feels very good to have filled that need and made a major purchase with cash. We’ve also got cash saved up for the medical bills when they show up, the best part of which is that our hospital will knock 20% off our bill for paying in full the first billing cycle. Another way that not having debt saves more money.
I’m loving the spacious interior, too, but I agree, I’m loving the lack of debt even more.
When baby #3 was born, I had a 36 mo & 20 mo old besides. We had one car: a ’96 Honda Civic. Hatchback. The two door. I’m really good at putting car seats into just about anywhere! I wouldn’t recommend the tight squeeze for safety’s sake, but we had no choice. We did finally get a second car which was bigger and we did the car seat dance for several years. I now have an ’02 Windstar and it’s a gas hog (no worse than the car was though) but it’s awesome. Oh, and paid cash, so more awesome. I leave out the driver’s side middle seat, and I can climb right in and get them buckled. The kids are now 6, 5, & 3 and all in full-on 5-point harness seats (Graco Nautilus for the older 2) and they won’t be outgrowing them anytime soon. So much safer! Also: if I ever meet the man who invented the power sliding door, I will kiss him. That is all.
This is such a great post! When we were expecting our third child in 2011 we made the decision to keep our two cars and not get a minivan. We purchased Sunshine Kids car seats and I very happily, and comfortably, had all three children in the back seat of my Toyota Corolla! Not only did the decision save thousands of dollars in purchasing a different vehicle, but the gas difference is significant as well!
Exact same boat here! Our littlest one is 3 weeks old and we’ve got 3 kids in the back of our 2001 Camry. I have to admit I’m looking forward to the spacious interior too 😉 but minivans and SUVs are the newest 21st century “necessity.”
Yay! We’re not the only ones! We have 3 in our 96 Camry (ages 5,3,1)! 2 regular seats and one baby. It’s TIGHT but it works! We’re expecting our 4th in just a few months so we’ll officially HAVE to get a bigger vehicle. But YES, it’s been well worth not digging into debt to pull it off!
Thanks for sharing! We have a 3 year old and a 1 year old, and we just announced that we are 16 weeks pregnant with our third! We are a one-vehicle family with a double-cab pick up truck. So I am wondering the same thing your friends were asking. “When are we going to get a larger vehicle?” We know there are a lot of puzzles to solve in the next year, but we’re trying not to rush into any of them until we have the money to pay for them in cash. 🙂
Good for you! After having our third, I still drove our full-sized truck, fitting all three kids in the back seat until we found our ’02 Sienna. It’s wonderful, and very convenient, but we like you, weren’t willing to go into debt.
Three kids in a car is totally do-able! I’m a nanny and fit an infant seat (w. base), a carseat, and a booster in my ’05 Sable. Now, there’s a carseat and 2 boosters. Does is take a minute or two for the older 2 to get themselved buckled? Yep. Can my big hand fit down there to help? Not really! But they fit safely and securely and it works. There’s a 4th due soon though, so my employers will be having to get a minivan for me to use.
When we were doing foster care I was shocked to see how many foster families bought a minivan the week they took in a sibling group. Sometimes, those children go to a relative a few weeks later…or back with the parents. We did three car seats in a Corolla (a Corolla!), safely installed, and like you said, it was a dance, but it was do-able. And the children were with us for a very short time….
Agreeing that Radians seem to be the answer to fitting three seats across, but if you’re curious if seats you already have will fit in your car, carseat.org’s forum members can usually tell you, or suggest ways to make it work.
Another option is to stop at a fire station – at least here. They will check your car seat/car seats to make sure they are current, safe, properly installed. When we had the foster children in our care, we were re-assured to know we could check and be sure everything was safe!
I wouldn’t trust just any fire station. You need to make sure there is a *current* CPST.
Ditto to carseat.org! That is where I found all my useful info about radians and which infant seat would fit with them when we found out we were having our third child and didn’t want to have to buy a new vehicle.
Many years ago I was in the position of having three children and a car that could not fit three car seats safely. There are ways to work around it, mainly by scheduling outings. For example, I waited until my husband was home to do my shopping (sans children). When we wanted to go on play dates, another mother always volunteered to come and pick up one of my children. Our biggest problem was getting to church as a family, but it worked out quite well: my husband caught a ride with another man who lived nearby and liked to arrive at church early.
Thanks for the encouragement. I am guessing we will have a third child by the time we are done with school, and while we have nearly enough money saved up to buy a minivan it would pretty much deplete our savings, and we don’t want to lose that security. I’m hoping we’ll be able to fit three car seats into our ’98 Honda Accord. My parents actually didn’t get a van until there had been four children in our family for a while–our car had a middle seat in front. But when they did get one they paid cash.
I CAN NOT get 3 car seats (1 rear facing,2 forward facing) in a Ford Focus , Chrysler Seabring, or a Chevy Trailblazer.
Not sure how you did it.
If pushed, I could almost fit the three car seats in but one of the car seats would be off set always. Also, keep in mind, if you are shoving 3 car seats into a cramped space, then the outside children would be pushed up against the doors farther than they should be. What if you were in a wreck? I’d like a little more space between my baby and the door.
Just a thought for those thinking of #3, it may be possible but consider the risks as well.
You’re right! 3 seats shouldn’t be crammed in. The general rule is after you have all 3 installed, take 2 out and see if the 3rd is independently tight(less than 1 inch movement at belt path). Then put all back in and take out 2 others and check the 3rd. Continue process for the remaining seat. So basically this process will help you figure out if they are independently properly installed or if they just seem tight b/c they are crammed. Oh, and when you close the door, the carseat shouldn’t move. 🙂
3 Diono Radians are a great 3-across solution for most vehicles
Absolutely! Thanks so much for sharing this — and for chiming in. Safety is always the number one priority!
For those who can’t fit three car seats but can’t afford to upgrade in vehicle, consider upgrading to different car seats that will fit three across. This will be a much less expensive option than purchasing a new vehicle while still keeping safety as the priority.
We also have three children and our vehicle is a VW GOlf TDI. We also used Radians carseats. They were expensive to purchase but like Crystal said it was FAR cheaper then upgrading our vehicle. For us it also wasn’t just the cost of a larger vehicle but the increase in fuel as well that we had to consider.
We have used our Golf to go camping (tents and all) and have had enough space. People are always amazed at what we can do with our vehicle. It works for us and we would rather spend our money on the things we value. A larger vehicle not being on of them 🙂
So glad to know about the Radians. We are having number 3 in November and have a 00 Camry. We are planning on fitting 3 in the backseat; good to know if our carseats don’t fit, there are other options.
Absolutely! The three seats definitely fit properly in the back of the vehicle. It would be better to buy smaller carseats or even an older minivan with what you could sell your current car for than improperly install the seats.
When in doubt, you can have your seats checked (usually free of charge) by a certified technician. Use this locator to find one near you:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/cps/cpsfitting/index.cfm
I definitely agree with Crystal–it is cheaper to upgrade seats than buy a new car. Even a pricey $200 seat is cheap compared to a vehicle.
Also, check your owner’s manual. Even though three might fit, your owner’s manual might specifically state *not* to do it.
You absolutely can fit three across the back of a ford focus. We have three radians back there, each independently secure, there’s even room between each seat. It took me a long time to figure out, but we are so thankful it works.
I guess it depends on the carseat that you have. When I tried getting 3 in my mother’s Focus, they were so jam packed that when I shut the car door, all 3 seats moved….YIKES. I said no way, just not worth it.
Thanks for the post, we have a OLD green van we the monster, I wanted to get a car…still debating, I love NO CAR PAYMENT but enjoyed the post 🙂
We also have three kids in our Camry. Now at two and a half years after our third child arrived, I am grateful we are not making payments, as we have gone through two bouts of unemployment. It is certainly squeezy, but well-worth waiting and living on what we earn.
when we bought our Pontiac Aztek 4 years ago with our 1st child we borrowed some car seats from friends to measure how many car seats we could fit till we need to upgrade to a bigger vehicle.. we were totally excited that it fits 3 car seats with ease and that we wont outgrow it for awhile.
This is exactly what we did too! 😉 Only…It was a year and a half of “doing the dance” with three carseats in our 4-door Dodge Neon, haha. But it was SOOOO worth it when we “wrote one check” and purchased our 2003 Honda Odyssey PAID IN FULL this Spring. 🙂
With love,
Rebecca
From My Mountain View [dot] com
I have to agree. We have had 3 puzzle-pieced into the back seat of a Xterra for 18 months. It’s not always convenient, but it’s much better than a car payment. I’m not going to lie either, we can’t wait to upgrade to more interior space.
We invested in two Radian carseats to use with a Graco infant seat, then a Britax Roundabout that we used with our three children in a Honda Civic for two years before getting pregnant with our ‘tip the scales’ fourth child. The two car seats were much cheaper than our fancy ‘space shuttle’ minivan.
Cute kiddos… at least the camry was 4 doors!
I’m glad it worked for this family, but it’s true that not everyone can fit 3 across in their car. We had a Corolla, so slightly smaller than a Camry and the 3 seats just WOULD NOT FIT. Thankfully we had the cash saved up to buy the minivan before the Lord blessed us with our 3rd child.
We had the same car and the same issue. Our 3rd little bundle made a surprise arrival six weeks earlier than expected, since we HAD to deal with it for awhile we just kept dealing with it a little longer. If we had to go somewhere all together, like church, we just took the second car as well. It ended up being better for us to wait because we ended up finding a newer model car with nicer features than what we could afford had we bought right away.
It did help that the baby arrive late fall, so it was snowy and cold and we didn’t really have places to be and things to do. It was just a nice cozy winter for us!
Not every car is the same that’s for sure. We could have bought an older less reliable van just from selling our Camry if we needed to, but luckily the 3 seats fit, so we were able to hold out for our “budget-dream” van
When we decided to try for a third baby my husband went out and traded in our Subaru Outback (not even close to being paid off) for a VW minivan (hello negative equity). Then he thought the minivan was dorky and traded that in for an Acura MDX and then another MDX because he didn’t like the first one due to some issues it had. We don’t even use the third row due to it being dangerous with the stroller back there so all three kids are in the second row.
Lets just say I drive around in my *nice* car with the weight of a huge car payment hanging over me wishing that I could go back and slap some sense into my husband and myself before we got into tis mess. To get rid of it we would need to come up with $10000 to erase the negative equity so we will just keep paying. My husband has since realized due to unforseen events that he was not wise in the car buying department so this *nice* car will be ours until the wheels fall off- hopefuly we will be done paying for it before then!
Great job waiting to buy your minivan and for not giving into pressure form others! YOu are an inspiration to me! I hope to someday know what it feels like to drive a vehicle that I own outright.
Kim, I really like this post. Although our family is raised now it encourages me to try a little harder, hang on a little longer and keep saving. No more going into debt for purchases.
We have 3 Radian car seats in our Mazda Protege. They’re made to fit 3 across in a car.
We have two Radians and a Recaro ProSport harnessed booster three across and they fit great in our car.
It has been 5 years that my husband and I have managed with one vehicle and three kids still in seats. It can work! Not fun ,but we still do not have a car payment.
One note: We had a ’99 Camry when our third came along. We COULD NOT fit our three children in it! The difference, though, was that we had one in a booster, one in a regular carseat and one in an infant carseat. It was impossible to reach down far enough to buckle the child with the booster in! Kudos to this family for making it work, but I just have to point out that it is does depend upon the size/ages of your children! 🙂
We were, however, through lots of prayer able to pay cash for our van just before our third was born–it all worked out!
It does also depend on your carseats. Some brands are a lot narrower than others. It’s cheaper to buy a new carseat than a new car 🙂
Glad you were able to get a van with cash, Ryanne!
We have an 03 malibu with 3 properly installed carseats (currently 2 graco turboboosters and an evenflo titan carseat.) We left off the inner armrests of the boosters and our kids can reach the buckles. We have had 3 carseats in our car for 3 years. We measured carseats until we found the right combo to fit (we even had an infant carseat, a forward facing seat and a booster at one point). It CAN work, if you want it to!
Yes, we have 3 in the back of our vehicle too (a 2001 chevy tracker with a super small backseat btw). One in a booster, one in a forward facing carseat and one in a rear facing carseat. It’s definitely doable, but you absolutely must be committed to buying the carseats that will fit in your car or it won’t. Our carseats are Radians which, as far as I know, are still the most narrow carseats on the market, but things are changing daily in the carseat/baby world. It was MUCH easier when all 3 were in harnessed carseats as it is a pain to buckle my oldest in his booster, but his sister needed his radian and he is 6 so I felt ok with it. It’s definitely not the norm to have 3 carseats in the back of a small suv or car, but I feel it’s a luxury to even have a vehicle so this works well for us and has for the past almost 2 years.
Very nice post. WE rode around in my 05 altima until we got pregnant with our 4th. Then it wasn’t a choice!
Yes I suppose, most people frown on strapping a kid to the top of a car : ) I’m glad to know we weren’t the only ones cramming 3 in the back of a small car.