Bench vs captains chairs for car seats

[Ivoba]

Been keeping my eye out for an S trim because I figured the captains chairs would make it easier for my oldest to get into the 3rd row seat to buckle herself in. LX definitely more in our price range so wondering if anyone out there has any experience so far with car seats in the second row bench of the LX or EX trim, and if it severely limits your ease of access to the 3rd row seat? Bench should still slide forward with a car seat in it, but I image because it can’t fold at the same time that access to the third row will be narrowed.

 

[Jensfam7]

We have two forward facing in the far right. I LOVE it!!! Super easy to still access the third row!

 

[Buckeye-TRide]

I personally prefer the captains chairs for situations like yours. My kids are now old enough that there is only one booster between the 3 of them so if needed we can leave the back seats down for cargo and make them all sit in the third row for shorter trips. However when you add car seats into the mix it makes the sliding seat a pain to deal with. If you’re trying to decide between the LX and S, go for the S. The LX is missing the painted front vents and rear exhaust tips which would be a deal breaker for me. I have an EX but imo the S is the best deal in the lineup.

 

[CAsuKiHy]

This is what I don’t understand with this car since the beginning and how people with kids prefer captains instead of bench. I don’t know how does it make sense to have three kids and prefer captains. Let’s say you go on vacation or day to day. You can just roll down 3rd row and fit all your luggage and stuff. If you have captains and three kids, realistically you can fit one more person in third row for a long trip. If you have 2 more adults you can fit them in the 3rd row or just put 2 kids in the back for that occasion.

I understand that ease of third child going in the back between captains, but...I used pilot a lot and it’s not a big deal to flip the seat and go in the back.

And I love when I hear explanation how it’s nice to keep kids separated and away from each other. I don’t know but I really hope my kids are nice enough to each other when I take them on a nice trip or Disney world..

______________________________

 

[CAsuKiHy]

We have two forward facing in the far right. I LOVE it!!! Super easy to still access the third row!

Beautiful set up still can fit 3 kids (or 2 kids 1 adult) in the car. If you had captains it would be 2 more.

 

[Ivoba]

Thank you so much for the pics. I’ve considered doing that type of setup with them side by side to leave the other side of the bench free to slide forward. My wife insisted on car seats that could withstand a a mortar so whether they will fit as nicely side by side is still an unknown. In theory, if the bench is wide enough, I would be able to place by 3rd child in a booster seat between the two car seats in the second row and have the option for lots of cargo space in the back as mentioned above. Decisions decisions. May just need to take my car seats to the dealer to confirm everything will fit as planned.

 

[Buckeye-TRide]

This is what I don’t understand with this car since the beginning and how people with kids prefer captains instead of bench. I don’t know how does it make sense to have three kids and prefer captains. Let’s say you go on vacation or day to day. You can just roll down 3rd row and fit all your luggage and stuff. If you have captains and three kids, realistically you can fit one more person in third row for a long trip. If you have 2 more adults you can fit them in the 3rd row or just put 2 kids in the back for that occasion.

I understand that ease of third child going in the back between captains, but...I used pilot a lot and it’s not a big deal to flip the seat and go in the back.

And I love when I hear explanation how it’s nice to keep kids separated and away from each other. I don’t know but I really hope my kids are nice enough to each other when I take them on a nice trip or Disney world..

My kids are 6, 8, and 12 and we you put them next to each other for a longer drive they fight and mess with each other. They’re kids and that’s what kids do. Me and my siblings did the same stuff. Weirdly when they’re not touching shoulder to shoulder they all get along flawlessly.

 

[kjh8sfk23r8]

We have two forward facing in the far right. I LOVE it!!! Super easy to still access the third row!

Just an FYI, the owner's manual states that LATCH seat systems should not be used in the middle seat and are only provided for the left and right seats of the second row. This is the one place where the atlas really shines because they have the ability to lean forward and provide easier access to the third row in the event that you have two car seats in the left and right seats. The telluride is a tighter squeeze as you can only slide the seats forward.

Here's an excerpt from page 47.

______________________________

 

[Karam.31]

We have two forward facing in the far right. I LOVE it!!! Super easy to still access the third row!

What mats are those?

 

[Buckeye-TRide]

Just an FYI, the owner's manual states that LATCH seat systems should not be used in the middle seat and are only provided for the left and right seats of the second row. This is the one place where the atlas really shines because they have the ability to lean forward and provide easier access to the third row in the event that you have two car seats in the left and right seats. The telluride is a tighter squeeze as you can only slide the seats forward.

Here's an excerpt from page 47.

My seats electronically tilt forward and slide when I push the button.

 

[kjh8sfk23r8]

My seats electronically tilt forward and slide when I push the button.

Right, but they won't tilt if there is a car seat? They will just slide forward. This is what I'm talking about that is unique to the Atlas.
https://agirlsguidetocars.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/IMG_0619.jpg

It also looks actually like @Jensfam7 is not using the LATCH system in that middle seat, but the provided actual seat restraint, I couldn't see it at first but now I see it looks like that one is buckled in which should be ok.

 

[Jensfam7]

What mats are those?

Just found them at Walmart

______________________________

 

[Jensfam7]

My seats electronically tilt forward and slide when I push the button.

These peticular seats are belt installed and are not tested for third row use. I actually prefer a lock belt install on these seats.

 

[rwmedia]

We have an SX but opted for the full bench seat in the middle because we wanted the ability to carry 8 people, since our kids are adults but we have grandkids. Moving the middle row to access the third row has not been a problem at all even with car or booster seats. We just put the latched car seat right behind the driver. Seats slide with the push of a button and adults can access the back with no problems other that watching your head as you enter the vehicle.

As for seating kids away from each other, isn't that just a matter of where you tell them to sit? Do you really need to physically separate the seats to accomplish this? We have had station wagons, minivans, SUVs and sedans over the years always managed to seat the kids wherever we needed to so I guess I am having a hard time understanding the value of having fewer seats. If the captains chairs offer more comfort, I could see that, but after examining them and the bench we did not find it that much easier to access the back and therefore passed on the tradeoff of losing one more seating space for hauling the clan around.

So far no complains from the passengers. My 9 year old grandson loves the reclining ability of the outboard bench seat and the fact he can plug his iPhone into the USB port on the back of the front passenger seat. Overall, I find it a well-engineered cabin with lots of room, and I drive a Chevy Avalanche most of the time.

 

[2020Telly]

I can tell you my S has been ideal for this situation. I have two in elementary school and had a minivan with captains chairs and was driving a Sorento with a middle bench while waiting for the Telluride to arrive. We also test drove an LX and found the middle bench more friendly than the Sorento. But the captains chairs for my family make the 3rd row more everyday use ready especially in carpool. I hear from this forum that they are so popular that Kia may be adding the option officially to the EX. One more plug for the S over the LX is the roof rails. If you have a family and intend to ever make use of the roof for extra cargo having the rails option is a help.

 

[Ivoba]

I tried to stop by the dealer to measure the bench space that two side by side car seats could take up while still allowing the unoccupied portion of the bench to slide forward. Unfortunately, it was spur of the moment and neither I nor the dealer had a measuring tape. Anyone out there happen to have measured this in the their telluride

______________________________

 

[Kirkaiya]

I really hope my kids are nice enough to each other when I take them on a nice trip or Disney world.

Haha, what species of kid are you raising? ;-)
In all seriousness, though, my kids are generally pretty good on road trips, if we let them have their tablets, but sometimes arguments happen, and it doesn't matter if you're headed to Disney or not.

 

[Bptse]

I tried to stop by the dealer to measure the bench space that two side by side car seats could take up while still allowing the unoccupied portion of the bench to slide forward. Unfortunately, it was spur of the moment and neither I nor the dealer had a measuring tape. Anyone out there happen to have measured this in the their telluride

The above photos that jensfam posted show two diono 3r series car seats. They are the narrowest convertable car seats you can buy at 17 inches each. It looks like they just fit on that wider bench seat with maybe an inch to spare.

 

[CAsuKiHy]

Haha, what species of kid are you raising? ;-)
In all seriousness, though, my kids are generally pretty good on road trips, if we let them have their tablets, but sometimes arguments happen, and it doesn't matter if you're headed to Disney or not.

They’re still young passing snacks to each other and playing with toys. I don’t allow iPads, and most we went by car was 6h. When we go to Europe we bring iPads for the plane but that can save you 2-3h of time.

 

[popcrnchicken]

We have an SX but opted for the full bench seat in the middle because we wanted the ability to carry 8 people, since our kids are adults but we have grandkids. Moving the middle row to access the third row has not been a problem at all even with car or booster seats. We just put the latched car seat right behind the driver. Seats slide with the push of a button and adults can access the back with no problems other that watching your head as you enter the vehicle.

As for seating kids away from each other, isn't that just a matter of where you tell them to sit? Do you really need to physically separate the seats to accomplish this? We have had station wagons, minivans, SUVs and sedans over the years always managed to seat the kids wherever we needed to so I guess I am having a hard time understanding the value of having fewer seats. If the captains chairs offer more comfort, I could see that, but after examining them and the bench we did not find it that much easier to access the back and therefore passed on the tradeoff of losing one more seating space for hauling the clan around.

So far no complains from the passengers. My 9 year old grandson loves the reclining ability of the outboard bench seat and the fact he can plug his iPhone into the USB port on the back of the front passenger seat. Overall, I find it a well-engineered cabin with lots of room, and I drive a Chevy Avalanche most of the time.

Wait... doesn't the SX only come with captain's chairs?