Trucks and Toddlers... how'd it work for you?

[TX_92_Notch]

Get an F150 with the automatic folding side steps - that make it a breeze!

My baby-mama has an Acura TL. I have an F150 Supercrew. Her car (and most others) sucks in comparison. Like everyone else said - more room is better. The side steps on the F150 help solve the height issue, plus the interior is so roomy that you can 'stand' (albeit bent over) in the back and wrestle with the kiddo/seat if need be (raining, cold out, etc).

[2000 vert]

My wife and I switched vehicles about a mouth after our first girl was born. She took my 98 dodge quad cab and gave me her 96 avenger. She loved the extra space in the truck and the fact that it sat up higher. she is only 5-2 and never had issues getting the baby in and out.

[KBScobravert]

My wife drives a 2002 Explorer and the kiddo fits just fine. We have a F150 Supercrew and she really fits fine in there. Then we have the econo cruiser, Mazda 3 hatchback and the car seat doesn't fit well unless you have a very short person sitting infront of her. The Cobra convertible.......no review yet.

[2165 Turbo Rail]

My wife has an Infiniti FX35 and plenty of room. Of course on my avalanche there is plenty of room. In my beetle it's a squeeze

[SSMAN]

I have to say getting them in and out of a truck is much easier than a car. But please don't get a mini van. People who drive them are always mad for some reason.

[ceyko]

Okay, so I did not read all the posts.

The wife and I had pick-ups for a couple of years. We have twins though and her biggest problem was finding a place for groceries/etc. Basically, she packed all the groceries around the kids/etc. We did not want to get a bed cover or anything, since for our purposes it defeated the purpose of the truck.

With that said, a single kid should be fine for a truck. We just put on running boards and it made life easier for her.

In the end though, an SUV is probably overall best - but if she prefers a truck it is certainly doable assuming the cab is large enough for the seats. Just be ready for it to be more or less trashed with the kid in there for awhile.

[Treybiz]

Lifted crew cab silverado... Was my wife's primary car for the first year of juniors life. Says loading and unloading him was way easier in it than her new Altima, she just hated parking my truck. Height wasn't a big issue since she is an amazon

[8mpg]

do you NEED a new vehicle? New baby expenses + new vehicle expenses can really add up.

[Treasure Chest]

A lot of seats now simply click out of the car, and click onto a stroller. Saves you from having to wake up the kid to transfer them. I can't believe I'm learning this shit

Yes, but she'll need that car seat in the middle seat, preferably. Also, where is she putting that stroller? Those bad boys are huge.

I would say that she needs to hold off on a truck until the kid is a bit older. If it were a secondary vehicle, things would be different, but it's going to be a PITA as your primary.

[Baron Von Crowder]

I bought a used grandpa style camper top cheap for my truck after we had to go out of town for a funeral with an 8 month old. With the stroller and luggage in the back, we hit a rain storm, and when we stopped to eat and change the kiddo we had to transfer the bags up front so they didnt get stolen. I found the topper to be quite usefull when we load up to go to the track, and in general for hauling around crap. I take it off when there are going to be a few weeks between expected uses.

[aggie97]

Can I interest you in a 2010 Dodge Laramie Crew Cab with 44k miles, extended bumper to bumper warranty to 100k? Truck is loaded except for nav and ram boxes. Has 7" touch screen radio with Uconnect, sirius, leather, heated front and rear seats, carpet bed liner/rug and nice vinyl tonneau cover...etc. Wife picked this truck over the Toyota and has just driven it back and forth to school mostly.

Austin Tan pearl coat over silver two tone (cover truck from brochure). Fresh Bridgestones, recent battery and meticulously maintained by me!

Looking for $24k

We are upgrading and need a 1 ton.

Yes, this was a cheap and advantageous plug to sell our truck!

[UserX]

do you NEED a new vehicle? New baby expenses + new vehicle expenses can really add up.

It won't be new/new, just new to us. We knew this day way coming and have been saving, we'll be paying cash for whatever we geet.

[UserX]

Can I interest you in a 2010 Dodge Laramie Crew Cab with 44k miles, extended bumper to bumper warranty to 100k? Truck is loaded except for nav and ram boxes. Has 7" touch screen radio with Uconnect, sirius, leather, heated front and rear seats, carpet bed liner/rug and nice vinyl tonneau cover...etc. Wife picked this truck over the Toyota and has just driven it back and forth to school mostly.

Austin Tan pearl coat over silver two tone (cover truck from brochure). Fresh Bridgestones, recent battery and meticulously maintained by me!

Looking for $24k

We are upgrading and need a 1 ton.

Yes, this was a cheap and advantageous plug to sell our truck!

You lost me at Dodge

[aggie97]

You lost me at Dodge

Had to give it a try! At least you aren't looking at Cheby's!

[Hmbre97]

This is very true, but at the same time they are going by a government crash safety guide and not their own actual opinion. They just parrot what the government says because they would open themselves to a liability to say something else. Our son is fairly tall for a one year old and having him backwards just isn't practical any longer.

That is the silliest shit I've ever heard. That's about the equivalent of saying a doctor only tells you to stop smoking because they're just being a parrot to what the govt says. Let's disregard tons of studies that show higher injury rates for forward facing infants/toddlers and go with the doctor/govt conspiracy.

OP, talk to your pediatrician. Any doctor worth a shit isn't going to recommend forward facing at a year, regardless of height or weight. My 20 month old is 33 lbs and almost 3 feet tall and still rides rear facing because we bought the proper car seat and installed it properly. I'm not willing to chance it with my kid.