Three kids - can it be done safely?

Hi, this is an odd question for the family-faring folks out there....

 

Most other cars I've seen have a front passenger airbag disabling capability if you have a situation where you would like to turn it off - but I can't find any such device on the Legacy (I have an 06 LGT sedan).

 

I have twins on the way, and a four-year old daughter, and I'm trying to figure out if I can keep the LGT (which I love) or if I'm going to have to ditch it for something else.

 

It looks like there is an automatic disabling of the airbag unless there is the weight of an adult in front, and I understand that you can't put a rear-facing child seat in the front, but I can't find any information about things like booster seats.

 

I'd VERY RARELY have the need to have all three kids in the car at once, but in those extreme cases, could I have the two infant seats in back, with my 4-year old (who is in a booster seat now, she's about 43" tall and 41 lbs) in the front? Under ordinary circumstances, I'd only have either the twins in back (which as I understand it is a tight enough fit in and of itself, so three accross ain't gonna work) OR my daughter in back with the booster.

 

I realize that statistics show that it's safer in back, but is it within sensible safety guidelines to have a kid in a booster seat in front with the airbag off? Is the Subaru auto-airbag feature even reliable enough to use like this? How about if I had the airbag disabled at the dealer? I did a quick test, and with her in her booster seat in the front (at least in our driveway) the airbag indicator showed "off", FWIW, but could a bump or some other event cause it to come on mid-drive?

 

I'd really hate to have to give the Subie up, but I won't risk my kids... heck, one of the reasons I got a subaru in the first place was the safety!

 

Man, how things have changed since we were kids... I remember napping at my mother's feet in the front footwell as a toddler! Heck, my other car (a '67 Satellite convertible) only has lap belts and drum brakes... THAT gets driven like I'm a grandma! (Before you freak out, I have a full-harness seat for my daughter that goes in the back seat of that one on the rare occasions I giver her a ride in it...)

 

Cheers,

 

Pete

1. The auto disable should work fine for your 4 y.o.. My aunt is 80 lbs. and sits directly in the seat, and it is disabled for her.

 

2. Can't you get three car seats in the back? We can. It would be less expensive to find car seats that fit the LGT than find a car to fit the car seats.

I don't think the airbag sensor is reliable enough. People talk about bookbags being enough weight to turn the airbags on. Hate to see another kid killed because of a government mandated safety feature.

 

Besides, wouldn't it be illegal to put the kid in the front seat anyway? Most laws are 6 years old/60 pounds and some are 8 years/80 pounds.

 

What about putting all three in the back seat? It would be a pain - but seems like it should be possible.

Properly restraining your child in a safety seat reduces the risk of injury or death by about 80%.

 

Some states may have laws about the age of children riding in the front seat. As far as I can tell, MA does not, don't know about CA.

 

I let my 7yo daughter ride in the front seat if necessary, the indicator for airbag off shows, but I put the seat back all the way just the same.

 

Most brands of safety seat will just fit three across in a Legacy/Outback. But it's a tight fit and often requires moving them side-to-side to get them buckled in. And it is hard on the back to place a child in the middle. Which is why we bought a minivan when #3 was on the way....

Thanks for the responses... If it was three boosters, I think it would fit, but two rear-facing seats (or two full-harness seats) plus one booster seems unlikely... still, it's worth measuring as you say...

 

BTW, we do have a minivan already, which is a company car for my wife (she's a drug rep). It's when she does overnight trips to Reno or similar that I'd need to get them all in the LGT... She has to take the company car on those trips as they won't expense mileage if we do the switcheroo and she takes the LGT. Otherwise, if she's in town and I need to take the kids, they all go in the minivan.

 

But really, ONE minivan per household is one more than any car-guy should have to endure. I can't make it two....

 

Pete

You can disable the passenger side airbag by disconnecting the white weight sensor connection under the passenger seat. In a "have to" situation; I would reather see you turn it off safely than to have it open fire on your child in case of a collision. This is what I would do for my kids.

I do not condone breaking the law or endangering childrens lives, but what about people who drive short cab pickups; don't the kids ride in the front seat of those? All of my newer Ford pickups had a switch on the dash where you could put the ignition key in and turn the passenger airbag off. Again, don't do it unless you have to; but if you have to, do it right.

Great tip, I'll check that out...

 

By the way, I dont *think* its illegal to have kids in the front seat if the airbag has been disabled. I think it's just *safer* to have them in the rear. I'd have a reasonable suspicion as well that my daughter in the *front* seat of my LGT is safer than her in the *back* seat of our minivan. In the subaru, I can avoid a ton of accidents that the minivan couldn't.

 

Pete

The real question is how long will your 4 year old be in a booster seat. I think you could fit a booster and 2 car seats in the back and I am pretty sure I did that at some point. My kids are older now and are out of car seats altogether. My oldest will sit in the front seat occasionally and the sensor seems to work just fine.

 

It is SAFER to stay at home, so you really shouldn't have a car at all

I think you should wait and see given the rarity. You can fit smaller infant seats (I used Combi Connection) and a petite adult (sister in law) between narrower infant seats.

 

I take my 5 year old niece between our Combi Connection(narrow infant seat) and our Britax(monster) car seat on occasion without issue in our LGT wagon.

 

Unless you bought used your likely going to take a financial bath likely selling or trading the LGT given its a 2006.

roof rack?

I'm in the same boat witrh my 05 LGT wagon, putting our 43lb 6 year old back in a 5 point harness (good up to 65lbs), 3 year old in a 5 point and the rear facing new baby seat in the middle. much easier to buckle them.

I don't think the airbag sensor is reliable enough. People talk about bookbags being enough weight to turn the airbags on. Hate to see another kid killed because of a government mandated safety feature.

 

Besides, wouldn't it be illegal to put the kid in the front seat anyway? Most laws are 6 years old/60 pounds and some are 8 years/80 pounds.

 

What about putting all three in the back seat? It would be a pain - but seems like it should be possible.

 

Agree, my laptop bag can set off the passenger's seatbelt chime. You might be able to alternate back/front/back facing seats in the back?

Bottom line here is your childrens safety. Without a doubt, if they can't fit in the back seat and be restrained properly in their own individual ways i think you know what needs to be done. Do what you gotta do to keep them safe.....sell the children

I don't think the airbag sensor is reliable enough. People talk about bookbags being enough weight to turn the airbags on. Hate to see another kid killed because of a government mandated safety feature.

 

Besides, wouldn't it be illegal to put the kid in the front seat anyway? Most laws are 6 years old/60 pounds and some are 8 years/80 pounds.

 

What about putting all three in the back seat? It would be a pain - but seems like it should be possible.

When I would drive to classes, my backpack with my laptop and books would be heavy enough to activate the passenger airbag.

 

OP: as far as airbag disabling, I've only seen this in pickups (our F250 regular cab and Silverado 1500 extended cab each had the keyhole in the dash to disable the passenger airbag) and roadsters/vehicles with a useless backseat.

it's possible to put 3 across the back; two five pt seats and a belt positioning booster. it's not terrifically fun, but it's possible. It's not safe to put a 4yo up front.