Rear Facing Car Seat

[JKLivin833]

Hi everyone. My wife and I have decided to get a new truck for me to drive. She drives a small car and we have a 16 month in a rear facing car seat. My wife wants me to get an F-150, but I’d rather get a Gladiator as I’ve had Jeeps before. I want her to be comfortable in the passenger seat when we do road trips, etc. My Gladiator would be our family hauler. Any thoughts or experience with rear facing car seats and the leg room it leaves for a front passenger? Thanks in advance.

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[ACAD_Cowboy]

Speaking from a JKU which has less rear seat room than a JLU/JT, no issues with rear facing seats leaving enough room for front seat passengers. Accessing the seats through the door is also not a problem BUT be very mindful of noggins and sport bars. I've bumped more than a few crowns on the speaker.

Depending on how tall you are the reach over height is very reasonable and beats the pants off reaching down to get kids in and out of a car. Do what I did and take the wife and the kid and the seat to the dealer and see the fit for yourself. It can go a long way to making the point.

 

[Gren71]

Ive had zero issues with my son’s booster seat and my other son’s rear facing car seat. No issues getting it in or out, no issues reported by my wife in the passenger seat. Shes 5’9” and average build and fits easily with excess leg room. When i went looking at the jt i put two rear facing car seats in (figured it met worst case scenario level of assessment) before every test drive. No problems on either side of truck and it actually ended up being a huge selling point for the jt IMO.

 

[gladeiator]

We've got an 8 month old in a rear facing car seat and it fits great with plenty of leg room in the front for the wife. It's also nice not having to bend over putting him in and out so the height is a bonus.

 

[Jollydude101]

My older son is forward facing behind me, and when my younger son was rear facing, he went behind her on the passenger side. They fit fine back there no worries. The front passenger has plenty of foot room all day, the only spot that gets tight is cracking your knees on the grab bar, but as long as she’s paying attention, she “should” be fine. Middle son is now forward facing and my daughter is now rear facing in the middle ... I actually planned on doing a post on this in a little bit but there’s a good way of getting all three to fit. Only one seat can be hooked to the lower anchors at a time, so both outside seats need to be forward facing so they can use the back hitch point. Then the middle seat can snipe the inner lower anchors from both sides. I spent several hrs on Target and Amazon researching different models of car seats that are shaped just right to make it work. Like I said I plan on doing a post later with links and stuff but depending on your family plan, the gladiator should work for three kids. Sounds sketchy, but as a cop I’ve seen several vehicle accidents where they had this set up and the kids came out injury free. Hope this helps.

 

[capercrew02]

I’m 6’2” and got my gladiator when my first child was only 2 months old. Let’s be clear, the gladiator IS NOT a full size truck. But I find I can be very comfortable with a car seat behind me. Behind the passenger or center works also. When my daughter was 4 months old we switched from an infant seat to a full size diono convertible seat, and went on a 3k mile road trip. At times on the trip it would have been nice for the passenger to be able to “stretch out” a bit more, but I wouldn’t trade the leg room for loss of Jeep capability or fun factor at all. We’ve been very happy with the gladiator as our family hauler, but it isn’t without a level of compromise if your very tall. Also know you’ll have limited width compared to a full size, so if your planning on more than 2 children, you will be limited to narrow convertible seats, but if you only plan to have 2, more options might get you more leg room. I will say of all midsize trucks the gladiator seems to have the most room front and back seat, and was the most comfortable for us.

 

[Moe_Fugga]

I traded up to a Gladiator from an Altima at the first of the year. Our daughter is in a front facing car seat behind the passenger seat and my wife (@ 5’8) has ample leg room. I am 6’5 and sit comfortable enough in the passenger seat. It’s no full size truck, but it’s good for our family. MUCH easier getting our daughter in and out versus the Altima!

 

[JKLivin833]

Everyone, thanks for your input. My last truck was full sized and my wife tries to compare everything to it. I’ve told her it’s not a fair comparison. She doesn’t understand the fun factor and capability of a Jeep......she also wears Crocs......I wonder if those are related? She’s only 5’4 and slim to average build. I believe she’d be plenty comfortable.

 

[capercrew02]

You do you, but I don’t think I’d base my car purchases based on someone who wears crocks......... but I also don’t have to live with one. But in all seriousness, at 5’4” she’ll have loads of space.

 

[Jeepnoob34]

Everyone, thanks for your input. My last truck was full sized and my wife tries to compare everything to it. I’ve told her it’s not a fair comparison. She doesn’t understand the fun factor and capability of a Jeep......she also wears Crocs......I wonder if those are related? She’s only 5’4 and slim to average build. I believe she’d be plenty comfortable.

i Did see a pop up cap for the truck bed. Bolt some plywood down in the bed and secure the rear facing seat to that.

does a sheet of plywood fit in the gladiator bed?

 

[Jollydude101]

i Did see a pop up cap for the truck bed. Bolt some plywood down in the bed and secure the rear facing seat to that.

does a sheet of plywood fit in the gladiator bed?

At an angle, ha, so you’d have to adjust the car seat to make sure they’re not too reclined...

 

[blau iii]

Are there two or three sets of latch points in the backseat? I’d prefer my dugtt guy er be in the middle. She’s the only one with a car seat. My truck won’t be built for another few weeks.

 

[Gren71]

Are there two or three sets of latch points in the backseat? I’d prefer my dugtt guy er be in the middle. She’s the only one with a car seat. My truck won’t be built for another few weeks.

Id have to double check but I'm pretty dang sure there are three sets

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