3 car seats safely across in Mazda Protege5?

[hoskins5]

Hi,

We have two daughters (ages 3 and 15 months) and currently own a Mazda Protege5. We are planning to have another baby in the near future and are trying to decide if we should purchase a larger vehicle in advance (since we know of some for sale at reasonable prices in the current market), or if we can safely fit 3 across in the Protege and keep our car (which I would prefer). My husband has already installed all three car seats we own (Cosco Scenera, Chicco Keyfit, and an Evenflo? Summit) in the Protege, and he's satisfied with the fit. I think they may be too tight--the two outside seats touch the doors and even cause the doors to not shut as easily (i.e. I've shut the rear door and turned on the car to discover the "open door" indicator on). We thought perhaps we could get some smaller seats to make the fit safer? We've looked at the Radian car seats a bit as well as just getting another Cosco Scenera which seems fairly small. Does anyone know if this would be safe? Any thoughts on 2 Cosco Sceneras vs. 2 Radians? Our girls are definately on the small size (average height and 10-15% weight on the growth chart), so smaller car seats should not be a problem for them. What I would really like to do is install our final car seat picks 3 across and then take our Protege to one of the car seat installation "checkpoints" to have the safe installation verified before we decide on whether or not to purchase a larger vehicle, but of course I would hate to go out and spend $400+ on 2 Radians and then discover it doesn't work! Thanks so much for any advice you can offer !

	Chicco - Click for more info Chicco makes car seats that are tested for safety and comfort. Italian-made Chicco is sold the world over to discerning parents everywhere, mainly because they are thorough with their design but each children’s product they sell is simple to use and stylish. All of Chicco’s car seats have certain universal elements: they’re lightweight, they are easy to install or use, each have the extra perks like canopies or liquid levelers for added convenience. Take a look and you’ll find an up-and-coming competitor for some of the best car seats on the market.

	Chicco Key Fit - Click for more info The new and improved Chicco KeyFit infant car seat (dubbed the Chicco KeyFit 30 thanks to its enhanced-to-30 lbs harness) has the same great features of the original KeyFit, but with a higher harness weight capacity. It is recommended that a child stay in a rear facing car seat for at least the first year of his or her life, and this infant seat from Chicco assures that your child will.

	Sunshine Kids Radian 80 or 65 - Click for more info If "the Sunshine Kid's Radian 80 convertible car seat is (probably) the only car seat you will ever need," the "probably" part of this statement comes into play when you directly compare the Radian 80 with the Britax Regent. While the Radian 80 has a very high weight capacity, the seat width is only 10" vs. the Regent's 14" seat. The Britax Regent may be a bit wider, but it is very bulky, is only forward facing, and does not fold like the Radian 80. Because the Radian 80 is so narrow, you can potentially put three of them side by side in the back seat. Three Regents side by side? Impossible.