Re: Car Seats. Bought my dream truck, now i'm pregnant. Send Help.

We need a poll option

 

She better get used to it, life is about to get pretty shitty in general!

I have 2 kids, 8 and 2. Wouldn't even think about access cab, 4doors is a minimum requirement unfortunately

 

Buncha baby haters around here..

 

U know, shitty, baby shit ... Yuk yuk

 

Lots of realists and parents lol

 

Maybe he’s just pointing out that babies shit A LOT

 

I’m both...

 

Forget the Camry, you now have a family. You need a practical Family type vehicle like the Sienna, RAV4 or Fourunner previously mentioned, or something similar. Looking forward, a SUV type vehicle will come in handy for transporting your youngsters friends in the future, If you are limited to one vehicle, get a Family Van first, your dream Truck second.

 

Just one thing to watch out for: the airbag sensor is supposed to change when it measures around 100 pounds. My dog, at 55-ish pounds will sometimes jump to the front if we're stopped, and I notice the airbag status does sometimes change to "on". Now my dog may be on the fluffy side of 55 on some days, but she isn't anywhere near the 100 pound mark.

If you do decide on the front seat option, I'd recommend unplugging the seat sensor, just to be on the safe side.

 

Congrats! So...kids are really expensive. A vehicle swap might be one of the cheapest things you do.

Also, echoing others, I’ve had a truck where I could turn off the front passenger airbag with my ignition key; on that truck I bolted a loop into the floor to tie down the anchor strap which would keep the rearward-facing car seat better planted in a collision. It’s not a great solution, and you’ll be hard pressed to fit anyone else in the truck even if you can make it work. Swap it for a double cabin you want a truck for the long haul.

Or consider the brand new Rav 4 Hybrid. I have a family member that just got one. And I’ve got two kids under 8 that ride in it. It’s a great car. The mileage is awesome, there is added extra insulation over the normal Ravs to make it even quieter, and it has AWD and can go LoTs of places. If my truck we’re totaled tomorrow, that’s probably what I would get.

Seeing a child to birth and then watching it develop into a little human will be surreal, beautiful, lonely, amazing, exhausting, and a thousand other things you aren’t quite prepared for. Enjoy the ride.

 

Access cab SUCKS for rear facing car seats. There are very few models that work and the passenger front seat has to be all the way forward. Which sucks for the adult sitting in it.

You can make it work but it's a real pain especially monkeying with the suicide doors in tight parking lots with armloads of groceries and angry infants shrieking.

Once you can turn the seat around it's a lot more doable but still annoying. I didn't use my truck for kid stuff until my son was old enough for a booster in the back seat, around 4-5 years old IIRC.

Now he's 9 and taller than my wife and he's complaining about being cramped back there.

Access cab tacoma is for work and play! Almost anything else is better for kids.

I had a dodge minivan! I'm not ashamed to admit it! That's the family machine.

They don't hold their value for shit so you can get a clean used one for peanuts. And you won't care when your child pukes half digested formula all down the back of the seat.

 

The car seat thing for little ones started when we started seeing our g-kids arrive - I think. When we early baby-boomers were growing up -we were free to roam around anywhere we wanted inside of say a 59 Chevy wagon (we had one of these). If you were not part of a "station wagon family" then one could feel free to sleep in the back window of the family sedan -just behind the rear seat which was as big as your living room sofa. Seat belts and car seats for young-uns -what the hell were those?
PS -- you would be happier with a bigger vehicle of some type -- good luck and congrats on your addition -- your lifestyle is about to do a DRASTIC change.

 

Thankfully I have the 98 extended cab caged Tacoma for me and I bought my lady a 2001 sequoia a year ago. But i need a toy that'll fit us all

 

When my wife and I were expecting our first, I had a Mazda regular cab truck and she had a 80 something camaro. Obviously neither one of those were going to be practical, so we traded both in for a mini van. I am glad we had that van because when our second child was born, it was nice to have all that space for taking the kids around. Now they are 18 and 21, and I have my truck and a nice motorcycle and lots of good memories.
A truck that makes your life harder than it needs to be is going to leave bad memories, but a vehicle that is easy to get the kids in and makes things less stressful will leave you more time to focus on the baby and the little things you would otherwise miss because you are stressing over getting the car seat to fit right or packing all the stuff in.

 

Don’t let them talk you of your dream OP. These folks gonna have you in a minivan and hating life. But I do agree with maybe getting a DC taco. Or have your ole man get the van/Subaru/rav4/4Runner/Camry. I’m sure he’d love it..

 

Used 4runner slap a supercharger on it and have fun

 

Since when did a family vehicle have to be an SUV? A Camry is a great family vehicle.

 

This except the husband part, he wants to have fun too

 

I sometimes wonder what I said since no notification is given when cleaned up.

I love the Sienna, like a large Matrix....and I loved them too.