Need Dad Mods

Killer tunes.......

 

Rear facing combi coccoro is smallest, nuna pipa close second.

combi coccoro has some bad reviews because those reviewers don’t want to take the time to loop the top tether anchor around one of the front seat rails, which the manual says you do to keep it in proper place.

Diono seats are or used to be narrowest on the market.

Actually it looks like Nuna AACE is narrowest.

I have had all these brands. And I will keep on driving loud and fast cars with my 3 kids.

 

There are a lot fellow dad’s on here so without a doubt we have you covered man! You might need a second job if you take all of our advice lol. I have no idea how much I’ve invested in the safety and comfort of my two boys, but it has all been worth it.

 

I have the Graco 4Ever 4-in-1, and while it is big, it isn't so massive that it removes usability of the front seat. I assume you've adjusted the recline to be more upright?

 

Also, a 12v fridge. Definitely a luxury, but depending on where you live, it can be a life saver. I used my wife as the excuse to buy a ARB 37L fridge.

She was pumping at work with our first kid and the way her office building was setup, she could get to her car in the garage relatively easily. So I put the fridge in the back of the 4Runner so she could put the milk that she "expressed" during the workday without having to put it in the shared break room fridge. It also was awesome to carry a couple of those apple sauce pouches and drinks and keep them cold.

It wasn't uncommon to have 110* days in TX, so having the cold refreshments was awesome!

Harder to do in the Tacoma without having a camper top.

 

I am all for any mod on the truck but you may be right on the second job part!

 

Oh yeah. Just looking for a better option since my girl is getting bigger now. She's actually in the range of one of the toddler seats now, so I'll keep looking around. I actually think I have the same one you have.

 

My oldest is 4.5 and her feet do touch the back of the seat. She's in an actual booster seat in my wife's car. That car seat is a good "in-between" for my truck. I have 3 kids all different ages ranging from 1-4. I don't really have to do any adjusting and can take 2 of the 3 with my middle child being able to sit in the slightly smaller or slightly larger seat depending on if I'm taking the oldest or youngest.

It's a great seat, and one that I would highly recommend, but you are right about it being a bit bulky.

 

REI, some Bass Pro and Dicks carry climbing gear. Amazon. These are made by DMM. Black Diamond, Petzl, lots of others make climbing gear. You can probably buy them in a color you like. Climbing gear is usually described in metric figures. These are typically 12 mm wide. Lots of them come with carabiners, but are more expensive because they are actual carabiners, rated for climbing. You can use a typical Home Depot carabiner for a pack. If you ever think you might use it for a load, a real carabiner or other device rated for load is needed. These straps are rated at 23kn which is about 5000 lbs of static force. Carabiners have their ratings on the side. One rated at 7 kn can handle about 1500 lbs of static force with the gate closed. All climbing gear has its static load rating on the tag and always in kilo newtons. Climbing gear is high quality because the climber’s life depends on it. In a fall, it has to handle the dynamic stress and shock load.
If you use any of this for other than a pack or grab handle, just make sure you understand the load limitations.

 

yep! I did the same MESO mod for this reason.

 

Do you just turn on certain lights to get the red? I haven't looked much into the meso lights but like the ability to change colors.

Went back to look at your pics, is that the product you have listed in #1 that is securing the blankets, etc? Great ideas all around

 

Depending on age, the one in back is a Nuna for my 2yr old, and the other is a Diono for my 5 yr old. When i get a chance ill post a pic of my wifes setup with a Clek rear face and a Mifold Highfold for a travel/booster. My oldest 2 have rides of their own so they dont travel with us much. But usually i have 3 kids in tow with the Tween in the middle.

Weve had over a dozen carseats in the past 2 decades and ultimately this is where were at.

Key features required was safety, small form factor, adjustability, and ease of install.

 

I gotta look into that top storage. At first i couldn’t figure out how you mounted that till i looked behind me. Theres hooks up there! Thanks for the idea!

 

I have the Britax Marathon Clicktight for our 2 year old. It's currently in the rear facing behind the driver's seat. I am able to push the drivers seat all the way back without issue. Our 5 year old has the Evenflo Chase seat and it fits well behind the passenger seat (we put a seatback protector to prevent him from scuffing up the back of the seat with his shoes) - disclaimer on this, my wife is the only person that rides shotgun and she's 5'3, so YMMV.

The Diono posted previously is supposed to be a great seat and I probably should have gotten that instead of the Evenflo

 

LOL I bought a van for my wife (Sienna) when our first was born....You'll learn A van is sooooo much easier with kids. Easier to get them in and out, haul all of their stuff etc etc. Trust me vans are awesome for kids.

As far as truck mods, lock the doors to keep them from getting in your truck If you don't do that wrap the interior in plastic.

 

Got 3 kids, 6,3,2. Convinced my wife that a minivan was the way to go when we were expecting our second child. Got a 2015 Sienna and after a few months of bitching, she finally told me I was right. So convenient for kids since they can get in/out of the van themselves, just gotta help buckle them in. Don't have to spaz out if the interior gets dirty.
There isn't much leg space in the back of a Tacoma. So if you and your wife are tall, it may be a little tight to squeeze a car seat in the back.

Ain't no shame to the game!! Welcome to fatherhood!!

 

Again, don’t buy the most gigantic plasticky car seats then say that there’s no room.

We had a Challenger hellcat slick top from 2017 to 2020, kids were under 2, 5, and 7 at the time. I am 6’2” and it was never a problem.

Rear facing Combi Coccoro and front facing Radians and no problems. Kids loved the backfires from first, second, and third gears.

We turned in the car at the end of last year and are getting another one, again in manual. It’s one of my wife’s favorite cars.

 

Yep, and another radian will fit too in the middle.

It’s great that you didn’t allow gigantic plasticky car seats to limit your vehicle choices.

 

cant haul sheet goods in the tacoma but you can in a minivan

 

You can't? That sucks. I can, no problem. It's almost like they made the bed with provisions for exactly that!