Does anyone have issues putting a front facing car seat behind the drivers seat?

Hahahaha. Well, if it is a mod, then you have the ultimate footing for presenting it to momma bear.... maximum kid safety.

 

This might work! The front seat isn't the safest place for a child, but compared with a car from 20 years ago, you're still way better off!

What research are you basing your answer on? Starting in 2009, (the Access cab anyway,) had RSCA airbags, seat side impact airbags, and front and passenger airbags. It got 5/5 stars in the NHTSA side impact and front impact scores, and a 4/5 for rollover. The same year 4 Runner was less safe.
https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2009/TOYOTA/TACOMA/4%2520DR/RWD%252FAWD#safety-ratings-rollover
It has the correct anchors and tether points for a child seat behind the driver, and on the front passenger seat (less safe than behind the driver, and only with the airbag off).

I had to get rid of a regular cab Mazda B2300 because the car seat and two adults was too much for the front bench with a manual transmission. I drove a car for 2 years before the son was large enough to fit in the forward facing seat, and then bought an access cab after exhaustive research. I wanted the 2009 MY and up for the safety features just mentioned.
I don't like that the anchors and tether for the child seat are behind the driver on this truck. This means the child or toddler is getting out of the vehicle into traffic; dumb move Toyota.

Anyway, in order for my son and I to have enough leg room, I took the interior plastic off the rear wall that separates the cab from the box. I cut the folding headrest off its mount (the two 1/2" vertical steel black bars) and bolted the mount back on. The mount contains the tether that runs from the car seat and clips into a d ring on the rear wall.
This allowed the car seat back to rest *just* off the rear window. Using the tether and the seat anchors, the car seat is so tight up to the car that even my safety conscious wife was impressed. The seat is at the correct angle and there is ample room for myself (5'11" and my son 3'4" My avatar shows this. We have driven 12 hours and he is just as comfortable as in the car.

In a year or two when my son is in a booster seat, he will be fine behind the passenger seat.

What I did notice with the rear interior plastic off the truck was that although there are not removable plastic covers over the car seat anchors like there are on the drivers side, the actual welded on steel anchors are on the passenger side, but not a top tether mount as is on the drivers side rear wall.
If you cut a discrete hole in the rear plastic with a 2" hole saw, you can use these anchors.

Now, you might say, what about a top tether? Look, if you really muscle it, and stick your knee in the car seat and tighten the bottom anchors, that car seat is going nowhere.

Long story short, yes, it is possible, depends on your comfort level with having the rear facing in the front seat, and possibly having to mod the rear interior (depending on what MY your truck is).
I think 2005-8 had anchors on both sides.

Why oh why Toyota didn't make the rear bench with a middle seatbelt and anchors for car seats is beyond me; you could have fit a car seat in the center, especially forward facing, and have the kids legs go between the front seats. This is also the safest place for an infant in the case of a collision.

Personally, I was scratching my eyes out because I couldn't wait to get another truck and get back to some sort of "normal" in my life; going camping with the family and such, and getting another truck camper, etc! However, the 2 years did pas, and now it's back to the truckin' life! So in a few years, you can get back to having the family all in a truck.

 

From what I understand, the reason for it being behind the driver's seat is because you are statistically more likely to be t-boned from the passenger side.
In particular, there are 3 primary modes of being t-boned;
1) driving straight through the intersection, hit from driver's side.
2) driving straight through the intersection, hit from passenger side.
** The above 2 modes probably can be considered statistically equal or fairly similar.
3) While making a LEFT HAND TURN -- always t-boned from the PASSENGER side by oncoming traffic.

You might ask what about a right-hand-turn? But the reality is that a right hand turn is more likely to get you hit from the rear or sideswiped than to get you a direct hit to the side.

This means that having the child behind the driver's side means that they are protected by a larger space in the event of the statistically more likely passenger side collision. And besides, even if the kid is on the driver's side of the vehicle, you can still exit them through the passenger side.

Now if you want to think about a vehicle designed to maximize danger, look at those 3-door GM's with back suicide door ONLY on the driver's side, and back seat ONLY on the passenger side. Get to suffer the t-bone *AND* exiting into traffic.

 

I was thinking the same thing re. accident frequency and being t-boned. Safest place for a car seat is in the center rear seat, which is where Toyota should have put anchors.
I know, everyone is going to say "Buy a crew cab". I don't want a crew cab.
Getting the kid out from the passenger side is possible, but not very feasible.
Not too much longer now before we are in booster seat territory, anyway.
What gen are those GM's? Sounds like poor design.

 

Relax, I would NEVER say "buy a crew cab". Too hard to reach the kids when you need to swat them.

Certainly MY00 were like that. To be honest though, I haven't paid any thought to GM since then so I couldn't say if they ever changed that.
Doesn't the kid climb over/through everything anyway? I know my boys are like a pair of monkeys.
My daughter doesn't walk yet though, so I keep her in the.... CENTER seat of my access cab

 

I drove my twins in my 99 taco AC as infants until buying my 09 taco. Put them both in passenger side rear facing. Just fit with Graco seats.

 

Come to mention it, yeah, I think it's time he starts to let himself in and out... I'll start that soon. Now, by center rear seat...what am I missing...

 

And from THAT point of view (and I sat in the back seat of a Nissan, with a SIBLING when we were TEENAGERS), these 05+ AC's are downright luxurious!

 

Yup, as teenagers we were carted around in a 1990 ford ranger extended cab. No real complaints.

 

- A piece of 1.5 inch angle iron about 14 inches long. Drill 2 holes in it aligned with the "inside" seatbelt bolts, weld 2 chain links to either end of it, bolt it in.
- A piece of 2x10 lumber about 2 feet long
- A piece of 2x4 lumber, mitered lengthwise and screwed to one end of the 2x10 such that the long side of the 2x4 hooks BEHIND the angle iron you previously bolted into the seatbelt mounts, and where the angle that you mitered the 2x4 at holds the 2x10 at the correct angle for the rear-facing child seat.
- A piece of 2x6 lumber about 2 feet long, cut square, from the "floating" end of the 2x10 down to the floor. Screw the 2x6 to the 2x10.
- Paint it all black so it doesn't draw funny looks.

Optional:
- A couple of strips of stick on velcro on both the 2x10 and the bottom of the baby seat base to hold it from sliding. Remember that normally, baby seats sit on a fabric seat, which isn't slippery like the painted surface of a 2x10.
or
- Carpeting. Preferably GREY to match the truck's fabric.

You hook the LATCH clips onto the chain links you welded to the angle.

 

I was thinking that was what you were getting at. Pics? What year is your truck?

 

Did you try the middle seat for the newborn?

 

^^^

Nvm, access cab. I had to get rid of my XRunner for the very same reason.

 

Mine's '11.

First, the overall side shot. Obviously, the actual carrier isn't there, since I don't take the baby to work with me.

Then, best shot I could get of the mount. Note that mine's with a 2x6 across the back, and the 2x10 butted up against it from the side. For structures similar to this, I'd normally have put a 2x4 under it to sit the 2x10 on, but I didn't have a 2x4 at the time.

For my next trick, I'm going to have to rip out the compartment and build an actual seat in that spot. That happens when the smallest one switches direction.

 

Looks Great! I get the idea. What did your S.O. say about it?

 

I explained the physics of it to her and she understands that it can be no less safe than factory installed.
In fact, this is actually *stronger* than the factory mounts.

 

Where there's a will there's a way. Impressive.

 

Thank you!