Baby hauling wisdom needed

In reply to Pinchvalve:

Thanks for the seat pics/ reviews. My car does have the LATCH system. There are 3 back there. But again, 2 door.

Maybe I should at least wait further down the road for the ultrasound to make sure how many first?

bastomatic wrote: Congrats! If you do have back problems, loading and unloading the rear-facing seat will certainly make them worse over time. Another thing to think of is that coupes have longer doors, and getting the kid in and out in a crowded parking lot is an exercise in frustration.

While this is true, those longer doors also afford additional access to the rear seat. If you pick a car with a mechanism that makes folding and sliding the front seat forward, it can actually be easier on your back because the child isn't cantilevered as far out in front of you as needed to get them in from the side in a 4 door car. It all depends on the specific vehicles in question.

Fletch1 wrote: In reply to Klayfish: I was planning on borrowing my brother's seat/base and try it out a few times to see. That's a good idea.

Borrow his kid also. Take the kid and seat to test drives.
Congrats!

Yeah, you really need a kid to put in and out of the seat. It's not the same as a weight.

My twins are 3. The oldest is 12

With my oldest we got by with our cars just fine. Some two doors are much easier to load in a front facing seat than many four doors. You need to try it remembering that sweet little two year old may not always want to be in that seat. And you want keep the kid asleep while trying to get it out.

With the twins. The wife and I both want to get rid of the kid hauler van. We just can't. It is way to handy. Heck right now we have the twins oversized car seats shoved in the rear most seat (have you seen the size of these things lately. You need as much space for a 30lb kid as a 400lb man would require) In the middle we have one of the captains chairs removed for access to the rear while the big kid rides in the other. This also makes room for groceries, camping stuff. Whatever.

Enjoy every minute of the childbirth and your kids. They grow up fast. Don't for a minute think about how much better it will be when they can do this or that on their own. Enjoy it all.

Now. I gota get back to sesame street. Snow day! Everyone is here!

I don't know if this helps the OP, but last year I talked a buddy of mine into buying a P71 for baby hauling duties. He couldn't stand the thought of driving a minivan or SUV.

We "tested" the car during a cookout, and we able to put two kids in the back seat with their car seats and all their assorted junk, then tossed a few strollers and bags in the trunk.

A few nice things about the P71 for kid duty: the rear doors swing open farther than a standard Vic to allow cops to put perps in there a bit easier... which works out great for loading kids too. Plus, most of the Interceptors came from the factory with the rear door handles and window switches deactivated, kinda like non-defeatable child locks.

Just another data point if you decide to look at other cars, OP.

Fletch1 wrote: Maybe I should at least wait further down the road for the ultrasound to make sure how many first?

Don't laugh. You just might be one of the lucky. My wife and I were of the same mindset..."Great, you're pregnant! Now we'll have two kids" (we already had a 3 year old when she got pregnant). I'll never forget being at her first ultrasound. The technician was asian, spoke very little English. She turned on the monitor (my wife was laying down of course, and the monitor was behind her head). On the screen was a big open black area with squiggly white line across the middle. One white blob above the line, one below it. The tech turned off the machine and turned it back on, I suppose to make sure the screen wasn't malfunctioning. Same picture. The techs' exact words...in a very heavy asian accent "Uh ohhhh...."

As for trying it with a baby seat and weights. No, it's not exactly the same as having a baby, but it'll give you a very good feel for it.

Fletch1 wrote: Maybe I should at least wait further down the road for the ultrasound to make sure how many first?

Wise beyond your years! I think this is the "Hey guys, I've been wanting to swap the Civic for a TSX. Convince my wife this is a good idea" thread, in which case, I'm totally going to be an enabler Go for it! Again, though, rear seat looked tight in the TSX to me. Those rear-facing seats are bigger than they look once you get the base in and fold the handle down. TL is a lot more car for the same money. Granted, it's not a "fun to toss around car," but it might suit baby hauling duties more effectively.

Oh, and you really don't have any idea just how much E36 M3 you'll be hauling. For a one week vacation with me, mama, and baby, the Fit is packed to the freaking gills, and that thing can swallow some cargo.

I really seriously regret not getting the Mazda5 instead of the Fit. The logic at the time was that we'd be hauling baby back and forth to work 80 miles a day and needed the better gas mileage. Didn't work out that way.

Our '94 Integra 4 door sucked for putting the kids in, because of small rear doors and a sloped roof. I'm thinking a TSX may be only slightly better, but try it out and see for yourself. But I also agree that maybe waiting is the best bet.
Here's a short story that's related - We bought that Integra (GS-R baby!) new shortly after finding out my wife was pregnant. We had been both driving turbo'd CRX's at that point. A couple months later we found out we were having twins! We struggled with that car for a year or two, and then had to sell it and get something bigger. Better to wait until you know what you're dealing with, IMO.

In reply to bravenrace:

Yeah, I should wait because I want to get it right the first time. So, your wife was driving a turbo'd Crx? You still have her around right?

In reply to poopshovel:

Yeah, I've been looking for a reason for something different. I think this qualifies I hear ya on the TL. The MPG though is what, about 5 lower? For going on trips, we have the Escape that should be fine. I just need something to and from work that's easy to load and unload. But then again, some of you guy's know more than I do. And yes, I've thought about the Mazda5.

Wanna buy a clean '11 Fit?

In reply to poopshovel:

I've always liked those and they're still on my list. But man, can the engine take hauling the extra weight of a baby? I drove an auto once and a week later I finally made it to 60 mph. Whatever I get, I'll get an auto just in case the wifey needs to drive it. I'd have a better chance of running into Elvis than getting her to drive a stick.

I can vouch for the awesomeness of the rotary triangle handles. That is all.

Don't forget that it won't always be a case of putting Junior in the seat / extracting Junior from the seat calmly and on a relaxed schedule. Apart from doing it in lousy weather (wet, cold, windy, all of the above) there will also be times when Junior just threw up / choked on something / is screaming and nobody knows why / really, really needs a clean diaper, and those are NOT times when you want to be screwing around with a coupe, IMHO. You'll want to get back there, throw the back door open, and make things right IMMEDIATELY. Personally, I would say tall sedan (never tried a P71 for baby duty, but I like the idea!) or – yes – a minivan. They are awesome, just a someone said earlier. And they can double as a change table when needed.

I have only owned mazda 323's since my son was born... They have worked out really well for hauling around my kid... It was better then my dad's 4 door kia and my moms 4 door cavalier..

As most people have mentioned being able to tilt the front seat forward and pretty much sit in the car while you do up junior is what makes a 2 door work nicely, over a 4 door..

How about a 04-09 Mazda3 hatch? I LOVE hatchbacks and they have always been on my list.

Fletch1 wrote: How about a 04-09 Mazda3 hatch? I LOVE hatchbacks and they have always been on my list.

I doubt you'll find any neighsayers here! MP5 with a stick is a fun car too. Don't know how they compare for baby room.

so when we found out my wife was pregnant i had a work van and a regular cab truck.

i convinced her i needed a daddy car so i bought my 95 impala SS with no engine and wrecked so i could put my LSx driveline in it. then i told her i needed a winter ride that was the same so i bought a 94 LT1 caprice wagon. then i killed my van and got rid of the wagon so i told her i needed a 4x4 suburban for winter and to cart tools and child around in safely and pull trailers with. it was perfect because it looked like i was replacing two vehicles with one, while in reality i had actually gone from truck and van to truck and suburban and impala. net gain +1 impala SS and i'm a responsible dad for buying a big safe cool car for summer kid hauling (and ass hauling) duty.

next up i'm working on letting her know i want a 4x4 2500HD crew cab short bed to replace the burb. like every time i see one i go "thats the truck i want except black"

i suggest you find something you want now and make it happen.

baby in 2 door with rear facing seat is suck. forward facing(when they get a little bigger) is not so bad, we routinely stick the baby seat in the back of the chevelle.

oh yeah we went and got her the buick rendezvous and gave the cavalier to my sister. the buick is the best baby hauler ever, the rear passenger doors are huge and there is a ton of cargo area for baby crap

If I could swing a 94-96 Impala, that would certainly top my list of best baby haulers.

I haul my mini-mndsm in either a Cooper S or a Mazdaspeed 3. It can be done in small cars. What we've found is that the Graco Snugride 30 (the 35 is too stinkin big) works great for the back of small cars. When he graduated to his own personal Recaro (yes, we have Recaro baby seats. Damn things are almost as expensive as the real thing, but we got a smokin deal on em both) we discovered that they fit a lot better than comparable models of baby seat, and it will fit him till he's big enough for a booster. One bit of fun is the MINI, as anyone knows, you can legitimately reach the back seat from the hatch. So, we put his car seat on the passenger side, leave the driver's side folded down, and we load him through the hatch in that car. Gets us a LOT of looks, but damn if it isn't easier than going in through the door. We test fit about a dozen seats before we decided on the Graco carrier, and it was the only one that was able to load in and out in all situations. Nice big release latch on it too, so it's super easy to pop in and out of the base.

In the end a different car is a convenience item. It's easier to struggle putting a car seat in then it is to struggle with car payments. You've got 9 months to get your E36 M3 together. Save money. Hang out with your wife. Take care of her. If the car thing proves to be a problem after the baby is born then it's a pretty easy fix.
The hardest part of having a baby is the emotional stress from having to care for a brand new human being while mom heals from a significant ordeal all while sleeping about two hours a day. The nursery color is trivial. The car choice is trivial. You need a car seat, a dozen changes of clothes, diapers, wipes and somewhere for the little beast to sleep. You can pick that up in a single store in 25 minutes. Pretty much everything that will make you successful parent is about you, and not about stuff.

In reply to mazdeuce:

I would have to agree. Making sure the wife is taken care of during all this and hoping for the best for the little one is my #1 priority...and enjoying the last of the peace and quite,etc I've had my time. Now it's someone else's turn to be a kid without a care in the world.

I know I've posted a similar answer to this before... but I couldn't locate it so here goes:

Babies don't need a bigger car. For about a year you need to be able to fit a stroller, rear facing car seat and a big duffel bag of E36 M3 into something. After they get to the point where they can walk - the stroller gets to be a tiny fold-up unit you hardly use and you don't need more than a bag of diapers and some cleaning supplies. And there you are you are stuck driving around in a big boring POS van due to irrational nesting thoughts a year ago when you had no idea what you were doing.

I fit a wife, 2 kids with car seats and supplies into an E36 M3 and, really, it was all fine. I wasted a lot of money on a brand new wagon I didn't need learning this.