![]() 10/27/2020 at 09:16 • Filed to: third row review | ![]() | ![]() |
Doesn’t look too bad, right? Especially for someone who is 6 feet on the nose (no, not 5'10").
Except this was the only position where I was comfortable. It is fine for 6 footers as long as you don’t have a fellow passenger sitting next to you and you are pretty narrowly built. Not exactly comfortable but perfectly serviceable. I’m sure two kids could fit back here just fine. Seats were more comfortable than average though.
Ingress and egress were average. Not great but not terrible. Much like the car. This was a third generation model circa 2014. Not much to say about it really other than it felt pretty modern still except for the fact that you can see out of it.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 09:19 |
|
How was headroom? I’m leggy as well but there are some cars (i.e. Camaros and Mustangs) where headroom is my limiting backseat dimension rather than legroom.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 09:25 |
|
I forgot to mention that so thank you. Headroom was adequate. I was sitting pretty straight up and I was just barely missing hitting the headliner but there was a lot of give in it and it was cloth not plastic. Might be a problem for people with more hair than me but hitting your head was cushioned nicely.
And headroom during egress wasn’t so much a problem as the physical space to twist my legs out the opening.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:15 |
|
I find this to be the case with most 3rd row CUVs.
And those that you can move the 2nd row to gain more room in the 3rd end up making everyone uncomfortable in an attempt to make the 3rd row useful.
This is why I buy a proper minivan instead of a minivan parading as an SUV. ;)
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:17 |
|
Coach on American...
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:21 |
|
I’ve been in three row CUVs before and it wasn’t the best by a long shot but it also wasn’t the worst. Definitely worlds worse than a minivan though. And you can’t really move the second row forward much without making everyone uncomfortable as you said.
Though some SUVs have decent third rows. Mainly the Toyota Sequoia, which has almost the same legroom as the second row. Not as good as a minivan though.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:22 |
|
It was like riding coach but much worse.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:34 |
|
I think the toyota highlander is worse. That 3rd row is a joke.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 10:38 |
|
Fortunately never sat in one but there isn’t really anything impressive about them at all.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 11:59 |
|
Sequoia, Tahoe/Suburban, Expedition are about the only ones that come to mind. Then again they are of the few true SUVs left on the market.
I don’t have an issue with 3rd row CUVs in general, I just can’t justify giving up practicality for an image.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 14:05 |
|
To be fair, the Outlander is considered a compact-midsize crossover which would be about Grand Scenic size in terms of MPV’s, about a foot and a half shorter than a Grand Caravan.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 15:33 |
|
But you could take a foot out of the rear legroom in a Grand Caravan and be more comfortable.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 15:43 |
|
You’d be surprised—they try to maintain a bit of trunk space, so the third row is accordingly cramped. Still, the MPV beats the CUV any day packaging wise .
![]() 10/27/2020 at 16:03 |
|
How would you know? You claim to be so wealthy that you would always fly business or first class.
![]() 10/27/2020 at 16:04 |
|
It’s 7" longer, 1" wider, and 1" taller than my 94 Voyager. Said Voyager can seat 7 adults comfortably .....
![]() 10/27/2020 at 19:18 |
|
When I was 3 row 7 passenger shopping in 2015 we ended up buying a pathfinder since it had a spacious second row, better than average 3 rd row and still had some place in the rear for bagages with the 3rd row up. I went to look at a sorento, but with the 3rd row up, there was barely enough room for a box a cereal in the rear
![]() 10/27/2020 at 19:36 |
|
Well, was it an unusually large box of cereal? Third rows do take up a lot of room even when folded.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 00:55 |
|
Third rows in anything less than a minivan are not meant for human habitation. They’re just there so automaker s can say they’re there and charge a premium.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 00:59 |
|
$ 100 says the passengers fare better in an accident in a Grand Senic
![]() 10/28/2020 at 06:46 |
|
After seeing these 2nd gens in wrecks first hand, I’ll gladly take that bet.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 06:47 |
|
This!
![]() 10/28/2020 at 08:30 |
|
And they also reduce cargo volume quite a bit. Though many are indeed fine for smaller kids.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 09:56 |
|
Yes and no. If I’m not comfortable back there, chances are my kids won’t be either.
No way in hell am I taking a trip with uncomfortable kids!
![]() 10/28/2020 at 10:03 |
|
Haha, smart man.
My family of 5 once had our 7 seater break down (because duh, Ford era Volvo) the day before a beach vacation so we had to take my dad’s truck. So I was sitting behind a six footer and one of us only had a lap belt. Not ideal at all but I like to think we were very nice about it.
There is a place for uncomfortable seats that aren’t terribly functional. Sometimes you do need to shove someone in that cramped back row for practical reasons and in those cases it is nice to have.
But also rear seats are often more cramped for the sake of luggage space. For instance, the rear seat of a two door Golf is actually a great place to be even on long drives because they decided to make it rear seats or trunk, not both. Fun fact: a two door Golf is the exact perfect size to transport four people and 12 basketballs without a single wasted inch.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 10:22 |
|
This is the problem we have with modern sedans.
My 95 Acclaim carries the 5 of us comfortably and can seat 6 in a pinch, despite being a small midsize car. It also has a huge trunk that swallows whatever we need to cram in there ( 2 doors, a rear bumper cover, and another trunklid on one occasion ).
Try finding a modern sedan that can do all those things, even modern full sizers like the Charger are a tight squeeze for 5, and due to the designs, trunks are pretty much useless. Then they wonder why people quit buying sedans....
![]() 10/28/2020 at 10:41 |
|
The fastback rear glass and pillars make getting in difficult, something I’ve found even more true in larger sedans. No idea why they always decide to start tapering the roof starting at the windshield so that by the time the roof gets to the rear doors it’s several inches lower. CUVs often do the same thing but they’re taller to begin with so it’s not so bad. “Coupe” styling on four doors has to stop, even if they are good looking.
I’m always surprised just how pitiful interior room gains seem to be with larger cars over smaller cars. And then you get to trying to put things into the trunk via an unnecessarily small trunk opening with big hinges that get in the way.
Holy crap, how could the VW CC pictured have so little luggage space? That appears to be less than my Cruze in addition to having less practical back seats!
Surely there is a way to make a virtual cam tail with a Ford Anglia/Citroen Ami style roof. Surely. Or just make everything a wagon.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 11:58 |
|
After all the curvy/angled styling on modern vehicles, I much prefer a simple square design. It ages well, makes better use of size, and has got to be far cheaper/easier to produce.
![]() 10/28/2020 at 12:36 |
|
The boxes are good!