I have two small children (4 and 18 months) and another on the way. Our main car for the kids is a minivan. Decided on an xB for 2nd car because of its roominess, gas mileage, standard features, and price. My 4 year old also loved the interior lights and changing colors on the 6-CD. I am confident that I can fit two car seats plus a booster if needed. I'm still waiting for the RS1 to be delivered in the next week or so.
What do other parents with an xB think about the car? Any positives, negatives, concerns, etc.
Thanks,
Mike
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Mike
Hot Lava RS1 (auto) #335
you think you can get two seats and a booster in the back seat? I don't think so.
I have to kid seats in the rear and there's no way the booster will fit between them... unless it's one small booster.
remind me, I'll take a pic tonight for you and post it.
I have a almost 3 year old and a kid seat with a base. I never used the base in the sarfari, but needed to put it in the xB so that he could see out. The door sills on the scion is very high, so he was unable to see much until I put in the base. This detail almost made the wife go back to the safari.
My only concern is what could happen in a crash. I have yet to see any crash photos, other than minor fender benders. I cant imagine a good hit to the side would not be gnarly. If anyone has any crahed xB photos please post. I too have two small children. I rarely let them ride in the car for that reason. This was posted a while back, http://www.nasva.go.jp/assess/html2002e/as115.html
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KRKRBOx
"Give me a woman who likes beer and I will conquer the world."
Kaiser Wilhelm.
The Xa got such good ratings because it is available with side curtain airbags.
I have two daughters and just plopped down a deposit for a Lava Box. We also looked at the Honda Element and the Suzuki Aerio sx. Aerio too small and sedan like. The Element was a strong competitor, EXCEPT that you must open the front door to open the rear clamshell style door. In a parking lot with a car beside you, you end up between to doors with a carseat in your hands (infant). Or you end up between two doors with a small child, or worse an adult doing the "let me close that back door" dance. We took our car seats to the dealer and put them in and noticed two things. The shape and size of the door makes it REAL easy to put in or take out a car seat. And we are able to get two in and still have a LOT of room. How? We bought a Recaro child seat when we were in Germany three years ago. After our second daughter was born we went to Germany again and bought another. As you can imagine they are AWESOME. Aluminum frames, completely adjustable, all parts come off and are machine washable and replaceable. And they are narrow because they are not these plastic, i own a suburban, child easy chair center. Almost all european cars are VERY small. Their seats fit accordingly. I dont know if another booster could be added to the mix but I will do my best to find out.
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Stock Lava Box, 5 Speed! Got it # 1529
Stock Lava Box, 5 Speed! Got it # 1600
i have a 6 yr and 1 yr, and the 1yr old uses a stroller. when you put the stroller in the cargo/trunk area...YOUR DONE...ITS FULL. my infinity basslink is back there too, but dosent take up that much room. i went and got a yakima rack and a SportRack Cargo box and had it painted to match the car. now, its extemely useful and it just looks cool. i went from a '01 vw gti, to the xB...basically a 2 door to a 4 door.
my wife drives a vw passat wagon, and thats great too for the kids.
I have two toddler boys with another boy on the way. So far, this is an amazing car for those with kids. (Of course, I had been using two car seats in my old Toyota Tercel for a while and didn't find that to be too inconvenient. It was actually easier to get them out from that 2-door car than from other 4-door cars I've rented.)
Anyhow, I've found a site that has measurements for some of the more common car seats (see link below). This may help some of you. FYI: The width of the rear interior of the xB is 50.6 inches.
It looks like two Graco CarGo combo booster seats (each 16 inches wide) would leave enough room for about a 16-18 inch wide infant car seat (at least that's what I'm hoping). If anyone else has tried fitting three car seats in, let us know.
Some of the things I like about having kids in my xB:
+ They are so far back that they can't kick the back of your seat
+ They sit high up so they can see outside
+ Getting them in and out of the car is a breeze. You can even get inside with them when it's raining or snowing to buckle them in or take them out.
+ In a few years, when they go to school, the other kids will tell them how much they wish their parents had a cool car instead of a lame minivan
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Dylan
Proud owner of a Polar White xB
5-SP, CAI System, TRD Front Strut Tie Bar,
Hotchkis Sport Sway Bars, Kosei K-1 Racing Wheels,
Yokohama AVS ES100 205/55VR15
I have a 5 year old and one due in may. We traded in a Metro 4 door for the xB 2 days ago. It seems to be great for 2 kids but im not sure about 3. Let us know when you find our if it will work!
I have a 97 rav4L and my bf has a 03 vw gti and we both have a 89 240sx
my rav4 was going to be the family car once we started to grow a family (years down the road)
but i been turning the rav into a race car.... so i been checkin out the bB for 2 years now and now that it is out on the market i got a HOT LAVA on order...
i think its great for kids. sure it fills up in cargo area, but so did my rav4! its great for shopping space, great room for friends, and family. much roomier than my old rav4! i got back in my rav after test drving the xB and i felt liek a sardine!
i kept my rav4 though. i love it soooooooo much. I am not abotu to get rid of it.
so so far we have one great roomy family car -the xB and a pretty damn nice car that kids can easily fit in- the gti!
Thanks everyone for the info, especially Dylan for the measurement link! Once I get my xB I am going to try the three seats. I think that with an infant seat rear facing, a convertible seat front facing, and backless booster, they can fit - it would be very tight, but they should fit. Friends of mine fit 3 across the back of a Ford Escape, which does not seem to be much bigger in the back.
Anyway, the good news for me is that this would in emergency situation only if our minivan is in the shop. Over the past 2 years, I've only had to have both kids in my car (1998 Passat) about 2 or 3 times, so I don't expect to use the xB many more times. If so, it will probably be with the two older boys to give my wife a break.
Mike
Hot Lava RS1(auto) - hopefully arriving soon!
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Mike
Hot Lava RS1 (auto) #335
Friends of mine fit 3 across the back of a Ford Escape, which does not seem to be much bigger in the back.
I just looked it up on Edmunds.com and the rear hip room of a 2004 Ford Escape is an inch and a half shorter than the xB's (49 inches for the Escape compared to 50.6 inches for the xB).
If you can find out what kind of car seats your friends have that fit three across, let us know. At some point I'm going to need to move the two older boys into booster seats. From what I've researched, though, the safest thing is to keep kids in the five-point harnesses for as long as possible (at least until they weigh 40 pounds).
Good luck with your RS1.0! Post some pics when you get it. I'll post some pics soon of my car seat setup (only two right now though)
i have a 6 yr and 1 yr, and the 1yr old uses a stroller. when you put the stroller in the cargo/trunk area...YOUR DONE...ITS FULL. my infinity basslink is back there too, but dosent take up that much room.
:D
I too have an infinity basslink I want to load up into the rear area, but am concerned about room. What type of stroller are you using??? Mines evenflo, and I'll be using the Evenflo something 5 car seat in the xb
Did you rig up a strap or something to keep the stroller stable? I'm gonna have to set mine on it's side to get it to fit., and don't want it banging against the hatch or falling out when i open the door.
BTW about the carseat:
Got it at Target b/c the fabric is a close match (black vs blue or gray). It's the one with the Yellow knobs that stick out for the belt adjustment. The inner fabric has the same Texture as the xb except with a green accent versus gray or orange.
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cancelled my Hot LAVA RS 5spd!
will wait until they are used cars to buy a scion
Rather play with my TSi AWD!!!
Two children, 10 and 12, both of whom love the xB. They grew up in a VW bug and bus, and car seats have to be a lot easier to deal with in the xB than with the bug!
As far as storage space goes, if you have to carry a stroller you are about done. Otherwise, you are in great shape.
My wife received a very nice stroller at a baby shower, but found it to be more trouble than it was worth. We used slings and backpack carriers until they were big enough to walk on their own.
The large distance between the front and rear seats is a bonus. When the children are small there is a lot of room in the footwells for storage, and when the children get bigger, they won't bump and kick the front seatbacks as much as they do in a conventional small car.
I'm considering a Scion xB, and one of my concerns is children riding and I found this thread. We have two boys, ages 5 and 3 1/2, with a third child on the way in August. The boys are both in car seats, but my oldest is about ready to switch to a booster.
I'd love to hear more from parents with three kids in the back seats, and how it works out for you. If anyone can point me to pics with this kind of setup I'd appreciate it to show my wife.
i got a 17 month old. hes the reason we got the xb. it fits him so much better and he can see out the huge windows much easier even with the tint. the car my wife had before was a lexus es300, the sb easily has way more room. we love it. now if i could only get rid of the lexus and its payments lol
Shout out to xB Owners with Children
If anyone else has tried fitting three car seats in, let us know.
