There's plenty of dancing room in the middle of the DGC ever since the Mikes removed the second-row Swivel 'n' Go captain's chairs for couch-hauling duty. I took this as an opportunity to see what it's like to have a child safety seat in the third row.
Installation was easy enough. My placement choice was limited to the center seating position because that's the only one with a top tether anchor in the cargo area (see photo below). Seating an adult in the remaining seating position on the passenger side of the bench seat was possible, but I don't recommend it. It's pretty squishy back there (though there's TONS of legroom), but maybe if your car seat is a slim one, it wouldn't be as tight a squeeze. Cinching the kid in was a breeze; being able to kneel right in front of her and tighten the harness strap (rather than leaning in from the outside and tugging at back-wrenching angle) was fantastic.
Once the captain's chairs are back in there, I'll try this again and report back on how much harder it is to accomplish.
Bryn MacKinnon, Senior Editor, Edmunds.com @ 24,781 miles
briancam says:
01:26 PM, 01/21/09
My kids ALWAYS want to ride in the third row of any vehicle that has one.
benson2175 says:
01:44 PM, 01/21/09
Just don't get rear ended. Not much between your kids and the rearender this way.
carfreak8394 says:
01:47 PM, 01/21/09
One thing that's cool about this car is the way it has a power outlet right on the side of the right seat. I think it's really handy to have actual AC power in your car, even if it's just to charge a cell phone or power a PS3. Also, when I was younger, I always wanted to ride in the 3rd row. It's fun :D.
shaddai says:
02:20 PM, 01/21/09
Seriously? No Tether anchors for the outer third row seats? That's rubbish. Do they at least have Latch?
altimadude00 says:
02:32 PM, 01/21/09
You didn't trip over the table socket? Fancy footwork.
misterfusion says:
03:11 PM, 01/21/09
Do the missing middle seats have those built-in child seats, or is that an extra-cost option? I think they're a great idea -- pity only Chrysler & Volvo offer them (IIRC).
If forced at gunpoint to buy a Mopar minivan, it'd be Stow-n-Go all the way. Swivel-n-Go seems like a gimmick with extremely limited utility.
MS3lvr92 says:
05:13 PM, 01/21/09
Why are the seats still out of it? Is that allowed by the rules of insideline fleet usage? Where are they anyways?
firstwagon says:
05:54 PM, 01/21/09
"Just don't get rear ended. Not much between your kids and the rearender this way"
More then your average small sedan.
altimadude00 says:
02:44 AM, 01/22/09
"Just don't get rear ended. Not much between your kids and the rearender this way"
More then your average small sedan.
The trunk acts like a crumple zone between the car behind and the passenger cabin. In a minivan, and particular, any occupants in the rear-most seat, they are sitting in the crumple zone.
Insert any of your own imagery there.
firstwagon says:
09:33 AM, 01/22/09
They are not at the very back. Look at the van from the side. There is 2 to 3 feet of structure between the rear bumper and the rear seat.
Larger and stronger structure then your average small sedan.
r4r says:
09:45 AM, 01/22/09
After seeing Fifth Gear rear end crash of a lorry and a MVP type vehicle, it would be worrisome to have children in the third row. However it appears that the caravan has a couple of feet of space between the third row and the back of the vehicle, making it a bit safer.
hondacura4 says:
07:32 PM, 01/22/09
As a minivan owner 2005 Honda Odyssey Toruing) I really want to like the Caravan but the OBVIOUS cost cutting is embarrasingly evident.
firstwagon says:
08:33 PM, 01/22/09
I like the Odyssey over the Grand Caravan too but the price is an issue.
The Touring model you have starts at $48,890 here in Canada. Even the base DX (below your base LX)starts at $31,480.
The Grand Caravan starts at $23,600 and you can get thousands off that.
For such huge savings, you can over look a little cheap trim.
carswapper says:
10:14 AM, 01/23/09
Just to piggyback off of carfreak --the AC outlet is a cool feature- I use it to charge my cell so i dont have to buy a car charger. The best thing is that on our 10 hour drives to Oak Island NC an xbox 360 plugs right in without issue to the outlet and the 3rd seat TV.