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What's the best vehicle? I'm looking at an Expedition now. Not the biggest fan of vans. 
) I would love your opinions. Thanks!
) I would love your opinions. Thanks!
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I have a Dodge Grand Caravan that seats 8 (two full bench seats in the back) and it works pretty well for us. I frequently (like, several times a week and every day during the school year) transport 7 kids (one in front - fully harnessed).
My only recommendation is that you try out car seat combinations in whatever vehicle you choose. Some vehicles have such a small 3rd row seat that you will not be able to get three car seats across - a huge problem if you need that space!
Good luck! -
One that we have talked about is the Ford Flex. It's a cross-over SUV. A little boxy/toaster looking, but it seats up to 8 people (if you get the second and third row as opposed to the captain's chairs in the second row).Give a little love to a child, and you get a great deal back.Comment
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How do you do the child in the front seat? My van does not seat 8 (only 7 total) but I need to transport 6 kids this fall & I will be driving. I am always concerned about putting a child in the front b/c of the air bag. The child sitting in front would be my 9 year old son. I'm very squeamish about putting him in danger. IS there a way to deactivate the front airbag on his side or make him safer if I put him up there?Comment
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We have a Kia Sedona & it only seats 7. It does not have captain's seats in the second row but only 2 seatbelts on that bench. It's a great van but I wish it seated 8.
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I would post your question at the forums at car-seat.org My guess would be you would not want to deactivate the air bag because he should be old enough and the damage from NOT using the airbag would prob. be worse than using the airbag. Now if he was 4 my opinion would be different. I am VERY anal about carseat safety, so when I don't know an answer I always refer people to car-seat.org
hth!Comment
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I use to own an Expedition Eddie Bauer. Loved that car. There is a lot of protection that surrounds you. I now have a Hummer H2 which is likewise a comfortable and safe car for my family. A drunk driver driving a pickup truck hit me crossing my front end on the freeway and he was the one that got totaled. If I were in my smaller car I think I would have been hospitalized. I would recommend the Expedition anyday.Last edited by Michael; 07-26-2010, 03:25 PM.Comment
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I'm actually a CPST (Child Passenger Safety Technician) and I transport a child in the front with extreme caution - and out of necessity, not just for fun outings. I cannot deactivate the air bags in my van without taking it to the dealership and having them turn it off permanently (there's no off switch in my van and no sensors in the seat like some vehicles) - that's not a safe option for when my family drives together because then I would be an adult with no airbag - scary. Instead, the safest option for putting a child in the front seat is to move the seat ALL the way back (I even recline it a little) and put the oldest HARNESSED child there in a fully harnessed AND tethered car seat. I usually have a 4.5 yo DCB there in a car seat that harnesses to 80lbs - a Britax Regent (my FAVORITE car seat of all the ones I own). The idea behind that is that a fully harnessed child in a pushed back seat will hopefully have no contact with the airbag (which is not designed for children under 13).
Hope that helps!!Comment
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I had a dodge 12 passenger that I LOVED, drove it until is wasn't good for kiddos anymore. Now I have an 8 passenger Suburban, an older model- 1999. It's pretty good, but a tight fit for 3 carseats in the back row. And it's MUCH harder getting kids in and out of carseats in a vehicle like that than a van. I would buy another van in a heartbeat if I could find a good one in my price range.Comment
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I have a Dodge caravan, and when my 9 yr. old daughter has to sit up there, it only has happened twice now, since we bought the van 4 yrs. ago- it deactiviates the air bag on it own, because of her wgt. on the seat. YOu will see a light go on, where the air bags are on the console- dash part of it.Comment
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Expedition has a good track record of customer satisfaction, but unless you're tall, they're a long reach to get an child in a carrier into the center of the 2nd row.
Whatever vehicle you choose, don't be rash if buying used. Get a thorough, in depth used vehicle inspection performed by a mechanic you trust, and if there is anything that needs correction, demand it be done before you sign ANYTHING. I can't stress this enough.Spouse of a daycare provider....which I guess makes me one too!
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