Toyota Highlander 2018

3-Across Recipes

in the

2015-2018 Toyota Highlander

Ever tried to figure out a 3-across scenario by going to Target or buy buy Baby, brought out a dozen car seats, and after several hours ended up sweaty and frustrated, but still unsure of how to fit 3-across. We knew there had to be a better way… so we created our “3-across recipes”. Like a recipe, it will tell you exactly what you need to do to fit 3-across. No guessing which seats may work – we’ll tell you which ones will definitely work and even whether to use the seat belt or lower anchors (because often times only one way will work in a 3-across).

This page shows how to do 3-across in the 2015-2018 Toyota Highlander. There are 2 versions of the Highlander – a 7 seater and an 8 seater. Both versions have the same 3rd row. Our pictures show the 8-seater’s 2nd row (the 7 seater has 2 captain’s chairs in the 2nd row. We also show you which seats to use in the 2nd row to preserve 3rd row access.

Overall thoughts on the Highlander, before we get into the weeds…

While the Highlander has good front crash prevention technology & has the option for a Hybrid model (we like trying to save the planet), the Highlander would not be our 1st choice of a 3-row SUV for families for the following reasons:

The 2nd row is not well laid out. For example, we could find no combination of forward-facing car seats, even the narrowest ones, that would fit 3-across. At a relatively skinny 5’1″ I could just barely squeeze in between two rear-facing Clek convertibles (very narrow convertible seats) – anyone wider, or anyone using wider car seats, won’t fit.

The 2nd row was challenging to achieve a secure installation with many forward-facing car seats due to the seat belt buckles all being anchored forward of the seat crease (bight) and on webbing stalks that were a little too long for many forward-facing car seats. Quite a few of the seats we tried did not install securely with the seat belt in the 2nd row of the Highlander – even when we used the seat back recline trick to help out!

The 3rd row is very shallow. Yes, you can push the 2nd row up (by up to 6 inches) to give more room in the 3rd row, but then the 2nd row won’t have the room it needs… and then you’ll be pushing the front seats up. A shallow 3rd row is also a head injury risk – as the biggest risk of head injury is from hitting your head on something in a crash, and the closer your head is to the seat in front of you, the more likely you are to hit your head on the back of the seat in front of you.

The vehicle seat cushion in the 3rd row is very low and awkwardly sloped such that at 5’1″ the only thing on the seat cushion was a small part of my butt – and my thighs and knees were far off the seat cushion. This was not only supremely uncomfortable, but also worsened the lap belt fit – putting it into my belly, not on my thighs.

The 3rd row has only one tether anchor (in the center seat) which means at most one forward-facing child can go back there.

The trunk space behind the 3rd row is miniscule. It is not safe to have half the 3rd row folded down to fit cargo while the other half is up for a child or adult to ride in – as it makes it such that the person in the 3rd row is riding in the trunk and all the stuff back there can easily fly on top of them in a crash. During a 30mph crash, things will weigh 20-25 times their usual weight – so you don’t want a stroller flying on top of you!

Abbreviations in this article: RF = rear-facing, FF = forward-facing, 2D = 2nd row driver’s side, 2C = 2nd row center, 2P = 2nd row passenger side

With a Clek Fllo RF in 2C, the following will fit in 2P:

The following did NOT work in 2P with a Clek Fllo RF in 2C:

With a Diono Radian RXT forward-facing in 2C (seat belt + locking clip + tether), the following will fit in 2P:

The following did NOT work in 2P with a Diono Radian RXT FF in 2C:

2nd Row

 

 

 

2nd Row – 3-Across

3 Rear-facing:

Scenario #1:

2D:  Clek Foonf or Clek Fllo rear-facing (seat belt)

2C: Clek Fllo rear-facing (seat belt)

2P: Clek Foonf rear-facing (seat belt)

3rd Row Access: None

The Fllo is best rear-facing in 2C as even for the tallest child it does not affect the driver’s visibility out the rear view mirror – whereas Foonf does even for a 1-2 year old rear-facing. Foonf is a better choice for the side seats if you want the car seat to take up 1.5 inches less room into the front seat.

Fllo in 2C overhangs 2D just enough to prevent 2D from sliding for 3rd row access. 2C/2P will not slide as there is not enough room to install the Fllo in 2P with the lower anchors (as the lower anchors pull the car seat more closely to the center of the car) and with the seat belt installation in 2P you can not slide this part of the vehicle seat for 3rd row access.

Scenario #2:

2D:  Graco Extend2Fit rear-facing (lower anchors)

2C:  Clek Fllo rear-facing (seat belt)

2P:  Clek Foonf rear-facing (seat belt) or Clek Fllo rear-facing (seat belt or lower anchors)

3rd Row Access: None

The Graco Extend2Fit can be installed with the lower anchors until a rear-facing child weighs 45 pounds – and will yield a more secure installation with the lower anchors when rear-facing than with a seat belt. Unlike the Graco, the Clek seats have built in seat belt locking devices and work very well rear-facing with a seat belt.

3 Forward-facing:

There was no combination of 3 forward-facing car seats we could figure out that would physically fit and all install securely in the 2nd row of the Highlander.

3 Boosters:

Many boosters we tried in 2C were too wide and sat on the buckle hardware for 2P. We had success with the Maxi Cosi RodiFix and Nuna Aace in 2C – but the Graco Turbo TakeAlong was too wide. The following backless boosters – Harmony Youth, Cosco Rise, and Boostapak – all fit nicely in 2C. Most boosters will fit nicely in 2D as this is the widest seat in the entire 2nd row. With the RodiFix in 2C, the Boostapak, Cosco Rise, and Harmony Youth fit in 2P. From a practical perspective, it would likely be best to put a backless booster in 2C (less of a driver visibility issue) and 2 high back boosters on either side. The RodiFix would be a good choice for a booster for 2P – and you can pick the same or a wider one for 2D.

2 Rear-facing, 1 Forward-facing:

Scenario #1:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

Scenario #2:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

1 Rear-facing, 2 Forward-facing:

Scenario #1:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

Scenario #2:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

2 Forward-facing, 1 Booster:

Scenario #1:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

Scenario #2:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

1 Rear-facing1 Forward-facing, 1 Booster:

Scenario #1:

2D: Clek Foonf forward-facing (rigid LATCH + seat belt + tether)

2C: Harmony Youth, Nuna Aace (backless only), Cosco Rise, Maxi Cosi RodiFix (all with seat belt)

2P: Clek Foonf rear-facing (seat belt)

3rd Row Access: None

The following backless boosters did NOT fit in 2C: Chicco GoFit, Evenflo Spectrum, Graco Turbo TakeAlong.

Scenario #2:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

1 Forward-facing, 2 Boosters:

Scenario #1:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

Scenario #2:

2D:

2C:

2P:

3rd Row Access: None

2nd Row – 2 seats Side-by-Side

1 Rear-facing1 Forward-facing:

2C: Clek Fllo rear-facing (seat belt)

2P: IMMI Go forward-facing (lower anchors + seat belt)

3rd Row Access: 2C/2P slide

With a Fllo rear-facing in 2C we tried to install a Chicco MyFit in 2P but there was not enough room for it to install securely.

Important Notes about 3rd Row Access (8-seater model):

There are 2 ways to access the 3rd row – one is by sliding the vehicle seat forward (2D or 2C/2P), the other is by tilting + sliding the vehicle seat forward.

If a car seat is installed with the seat belt on one of the outside seats (2D or 2P) then that part of the vehicle seat will NOT slide or tilt + slide for 3rd row access – as the seat belt is attached to the wall of the car and prevents the 2nd row seat from moving.

If a car seat is installed with the lower anchors on one of the outside seats (2D or 2P) then that part of the vehicle seat WILL slide for 3rd row access – as the lower anchors are attached to the vehicle seat, and allows the vehicle seat to move. However, there are only 2 car seats we could find that will allow the tilt + slide for 3rd row access – and these are the IMMI Go and the Nuna Pipa.

Many car seats that we tried in 2C overhang just a tiny bit into 2D in a way that prevented 2D from sliding forward (unless you could slide 2C/2P forward first, and then 2D). The Diono Radian RXT when installed forward-facing in 2C was one of the ones that was narrow enough to allow 2D to move.

Miscellaneous Notes for Car Seats in the 2nd Row:

2C was an exceptionally challenging spot to yield a secure installation of a car seat. The following Clek Fllo forward-facing & Chicco MyFit did not install securely in 2C (even with twisting the buckle stalk).

3rd Row

Notes for all 3rd row scenarios:

All installations in the 3rd row used the vehicle’s seat belt as there are no lower anchors in the 3rd row.

Because every forward-facing car seat needs to be tethered, and Toyota only put one tether anchor in the 3rd row (in 3C), you will only see scenarios with a forward-facing car seat in 3C and not in the other seats in the 3rd row. It’s a shame that there aren’t more tether anchors – as forward-facing car seats can affect the visibility out the rear view mirror – and this visibility loss is greatest when the car seat is in the center, and lessened when it is on the side.

All installations used the seat back recline trick. 3-across in the 3rd row of this SUV is basically impossible without using this trick.

All forward-facing car seats also use the tether strap (in addition to the seat belt).

The Toyota’s head restraints were removed for all installations EXCEPT they were left in with the no-back boosters.

The seat belt buckle in 3C is quite long – and we needed to twist the seat belt buckle 2 revolutions to shorten it to allow for a secure installation in 3C for the forward-facing Diono Radian & Clek Fllo. (see picture with Clek Fllo as an example – yes, this shows a different vehicle, but you can see what a twisted buckle stalk looks like).

3 Rear-facing:

Scenario #1:

3D:  (RF)

3C:  (RF)

3P:  (RF)

3 Forward-facing:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

2 Rear-facing, 1 Forward-facing:

Scenario #1:

3D: Clek Foonf (RF)     3C: Diono Radian RXT (FF)    3P: Clek Fllo (RF)

Will need to install the Diono first then Cleks (wait to sit the vehicle seat back upright until after the Cleks are installed).

Scenario #2:

3D: Clek Foonf (RF)     3C: Clek Fllo (RF)    3P: Chicco MyFit (FF)

3D: Chicco MyFit (FF)  3C: Clek Fllo (RF)    3P: Clek Foonf (RF)

With a Clek Fllo in 3C, you can put a Chicco MyFit FF in 3D and/or 3P.

With a Clek Fllo in 3C, you can put a Clek Foonf RF in 3D and/or 3P.

When installing the Clek Foonf, keep it in recline position 2 (not 3) – and the 2nd row seat will go all the way back.

1 Rear-facing, 2 Forward-facing:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

2 Forward-facing, 1 Booster:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

The child would need to climb in/out of a buckled RodiFix booster.

Scenario #2:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

The child would definitely have to climb in and out of a buckled booster.

The Highlander’s flexible seat belt buckle will make it hard for the child to get buckled even though the child can easily reach the buckle – but the pool noodle trick worked well here (watch this video for more info). The pool noodle trick is where you cut a short piece of pool noodle – just a few inches high – and make a vertical slit in it and wrap it around the seat belt material of the buckle so that the buckle will now stand up and not flop down.

1 Rear-facing1 Forward-facing, 1 Booster:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

1 Forward-facing, 2 Boosters:

Scenario #1:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Scenario #2:

3D:

3C:

3P:

Miscellaneous Notes:

 

A big thank you to Toyota for loaning us a 2018 Toyota Highlander for a few days so we could complete this project! Toyota did not reach out to us – rather, we reached out to Toyota and asked them if we could borrow a Highlander. Toyota had no say in any part of this project. This project, like all that we do, is completely independent of manufacturer input. As always, our opinions are our own – based on our experience & expertise.