Anyone ever remove the 40% (folding) 2nd row seat section?

[chiplee]

I'm trying to consider all possible car seat arrangements for two rear facing and one front facing and I need to make it possible for the front facer to get in and out on her own. The 40 split section of the second row is hard to get past an infant carrier installed in the center, so I'm considering removing it so she can just have a side "hallway" of sorts to get to the third row.

Related question... What is the weight rating of the cargo tie down behind the 3rd row and is anyone using it to attach a tether?

 

[razzyrazz]

I'm trying to consider all possible car seat arrangements for two rear facing and one front facing and I need to make it possible for the front facer to get in and out on her own. The 40 split section of the second row is hard to get past an infant carrier installed in the center, so I'm considering removing it so she can just have a side "hallway" of sorts to get to the third row.

Related question... What is the weight rating of the cargo tie down behind the 3rd row and is anyone using it to attach a tether?

3rd kid otw for us so I'm very interested. I had planned on using the rear tie down to tether as well. Idk what year or if it makes a difference but our 2011 LX doesnt have latch in the 3rd row so with the seatbelt to secure the base I figured regardless of the weight rating it couldn't hurt to use the tie down too.

 

[chiplee]

3rd kid otw for us so I'm very interested. I had planned on using the rear tie down to tether as well. Idk what year or if it makes a difference but our 2011 LX doesnt have latch in the 3rd row so with the seatbelt to secure the base I figured regardless of the weight rating it couldn't hurt to use the tie down too.

Our's is a 2017 LC and it doesn't have latch in the 3rd row either. I don't think any of them do. I'm not concerned about that because latch is a convenience feature not a safety feature and our daughter is too heavy for latch with her seat now anyway. It has to be installed with the belt.

Tether, on the other hand, is a safety feature that should always be used if possible. My wife will buy a new car if I can't figure out a way to tether our front facer's seat in the 3rd row. There are very few carseats that "require" it to meet safety standards, but they all say it's strongly recommended to minimize head movement in an accident. I personally think the cargo tie would hold with ease, but I wanted to see if anyone had dug into it.

There's actually a program with Toyota where tether anchors can be installed in some older (I think pre 2002) vehicles for free or for a donation. I'd be surprised if that hardware wouldn't work to replace the cargo ring.

 

[chiplee]

Found this via search. Not sure how/if it applies to removing "half/40%" of the second row vice all of it as this person did. 2nd row removal and SRS fix

 

[Jeffwouldgo]

I think the only thing would think is folding down the center and having the child climb in and out. Will the two seats fit on the 60% section? We just went through the same thing but our second was big enough for a booster that can be moved around easily. Let us know what works!

 

[chiplee]

I think the only thing would think is folding down the center and having the child climb in and out. Will the two seats fit on the 60% section? We just went through the same thing but our second was big enough for a booster that can be moved around easily. Let us know what works!

Not sure I’m following. Folding down the center of what? There are seats that are small enough to fit two on the 60% section.

 

[Jeffwouldgo]

If you fold down the back of the middle seat (so it would be like an armrest for the other two seats.) My daughter would climb through there sometimes, still not an ideal situation but it worked until our 2nd kid got into a regular booster. We didn’t realize it folded down until the 3rd week we had the LC because the handle for it is a little hidden.

 

[chiplee]

If you fold down the back of the middle seat (so it would be like an armrest for the other two seats.) My daughter would climb through there sometimes, still not an ideal situation but it worked until our 2nd kid got into a regular booster. We didn’t realize it folded down until the 3rd week we had the LC because the handle for it is a little hidden.

Ah, yeah it's worth a shot, but we're kind of assuming that with two rear facing seats outboard in the second row, there won't be room for her to get by, open the door and get out. No harm in conducting the experiment though. She's small.

 

[Jeffwouldgo]

I hear you, it’s a big headache for a little while. It seems like removing the 40% might be worth the try if you need two rear facing for a decent amount of time.

 

[chiplee]

I hear you, it’s a big headache for a little while. It seems like removing the 40% might be worth the try if you need two rear facing for a decent amount of time.

Yeah it'll be a while. Have a baby due in December and a 20 month old now. The 20 month old is TINY though, like 18 lbs, so she won't front face for a while.

 

[chiplee]

This crisis might be averted for now using Jeff’s advice. I’ll remove a screen on one side to give her more room, but our 8 year old is managing to get under the rear facing seats in the second row and then through the center fold to the third row in about 30 seconds. Should do for school pick up for a while. We lose our backseat assistant but if that becomes a problem we’ll try a Diono between the babies.

 

[studawg]

Man, those non-optional screens on the back of 16+ front seats were possibly Toyota's worst idea EVER!

 

[AnthonyLC]

Nice setup! Hey I think this could easily justify adding a rear steel bumper for added protection wink wink

 

[chiplee]

Nice setup! Hey I think this could easily justify adding a rear steel bumper for added protection wink wink

I like the way you think. Safety first!

 

[RobRed]

@TrekboxX makes a nice little screen hole filler panel... remove the screens now and when they kids grow up put screens back if needed.

200 series Screen Delete Cover — TrekboxX Expedition Systems

www.trekboxx.com

 

[Jeffwouldgo]

Glad to hear that might work for you. I didn't know you had the screens too, man those things are a pain!

 

[chiplee]

Glad to hear that might work for you. I didn't know you had the screens too, man those things are a pain!

We were surprised to see we had enough leg room in the front even without removing the screens, but I'll probably still yank at least the passenger side off for a while.

Oh and I'm too cheap for that trekboxx solution. I'd spend $400 on a DIY solution as an excuse to buy new tools before I'd pay that.

 

[doctorres112]

We have 4 kids, ages 10, 7, 5 and 3. We got the screen deletes for city driving and just plug them back in for long trips and such. That said, the car seat struggle is real though we curse the lack of cup holder/storage space in the cabin the most.

-Chris

 

[fogby]

I removed the 40% seat on my 19 for storage reasons. I'm very satisfied.