2007 GL450 with captain's chairs???? Advice needed
Hi all, I've had many Mercedes over the years and earlier this year bought both a 2006 CLS500 for myself and a 2007 GL450 for my wife. Come to find out we are now having twins!!! I have a 5 year old and with the twins and taking other kids to school, we really need to have captain's chairs. It is looking like I will have to sell the GL450, but don't really want to because we LOVE it. Is that even an option for the GL450's or is there a way to convert to this?
May be a stupid question and reaching a bit, but wanted to see if there was a way to keep this great SUV. Thanks in advance
Why would you want to take a bench seat(second row) which can hold three people and replace it with two captains chairs that can only hold 2 people. Doesnt make sense. You have 7 seats in the GL. Thats enough for you're 3 kids and 3 more if you're car pooling.(this assumes your wife and yourself are not both in the car) It would seem like enough. MB does not make captains chairs for this model anyway. Not enough? Have fun driving a mini-van because thats about where you're headed if you bail out of the GL. My advice is dont do it live with what you've got. You will not find a better quality or safer vehicle for 7 people, not to mention the beating you'll probably take selling it used.
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Mike Katsoris
1976 BMW 2002
2004 R1150RT
2006 ML500
2010 GL350 BlueTec
Why would you want to take a bench seat(second row) which can hold three people and replace it with two captains chairs that can only hold 2 people. Doesnt make sense. You have 7 seats in the GL. Thats enough for you're 3 kids and 3 more if you're car pooling.(this assumes your wife and yourself are not both in the car) It would seem like enough. MB does not make captains chairs for this model anyway. Not enough? Have fun driving a mini-van because thats about where you're headed if you bail out of the GL. My advice is dont do it live with what you've got. You will not find a better quality or safer vehicle for 7 people, not to mention the beating you'll probably take selling it used.
Kent, Captain's Chairs are just two separate chairs in the middle row so people can get by into the back. Since we will have 2 or possibly 3 5 year olds in the car at the same time as the infant twins, we will need to have a car that can easily fit them in the third row. It would not be easy to put infants in the third row so the kids would have to go back there. Two infant car seats won't fit in the second row and still allow the seat to come forward to allow third row access.
I will not drive a mini van, but there are other SUV's that offer this. Infiniti QX56 is one that has captain's chairs and a third row of three. Escalades do as well. However, you are all right in that it may not be worth it to sell at this point. We could make it work, but it will be harder.
Why would you want to make plans based on something you're only going to be doing a small percentage of the time? You would compromise yourself into a vehicle you really don't like or thats not well suited the other 99% of the time. You cite an example of transporting 2 infants and three kids at the same time. How often does that happen? Also who is going with your wife in the front passenger seat? You? If nobody is there in the front passenger seat, one of the older kids can ride there. You'll have room for the three 5 year olds in the one front and 3rd row seats. Two baby seats will fit in the second row. If none of this works, there's always the Sprinter van(at least its not a mini van).
I have the same situation; the two year old twins have been together from day 1 in the second row in Graco chairs with the base, one in the middle, the other one in the left seat. The 10 year old sits in the right seat and the friends in the 3rd row. No problem access the third row...
The twins are now in bigger chairs in the same place, left+middle second row with free access to the third row...
The minivan option will work just as well but hell, it's a minivan !
I have the same situation; the two year old twins have been together from day 1 in the second row in Graco chairs with the base, one in the middle, the other one in the left seat. The 10 year old sits in the right seat and the friends in the 3rd row. No problem access the third row...
The twins are now in bigger chairs in the same place, left+middle second row with free access to the third row...
The minivan option will work just as well but hell, it's a minivan !
To answer a previous question...how often will we need it...everyday. We carpool kids to school everyday.
That is great that you have used Graco chairs side by side with twins on the second row. However, there are NO LATCHES in the middle and only on either side. Isn't this a safety issue if you put one in the middle?
I believe the latches are only for ISOFIX seats. They are just an alternative to the seat belt fastening of baby seats.
If you will be using the third row this much then the minivan option is probably a better solution. You'll not be spending any time putting up/down the right second row seat to allow access to the third row in a minivan.
I guess it's a question of how much work you are willing to put up with to stay with your GL... practiacal reasons may point to a minivan but, hey, it's a minivan !! :-)
To answer a previous question...how often will we need it...everyday. We carpool kids to school everyday.
That is great that you have used Graco chairs side by side with twins on the second row. However, there are NO LATCHES in the middle and only on either side. Isn't this a safety issue if you put one in the middle?
If you intend on having a lot of children in a car, you need to go Suburban or Japanese minivan. Honda is FWD only, Toyota has a top of the line with awd.
Your concern about safety and ease of use is valid. No children under the age of 12 should ever ride shotgun, I don't care what kind of airbag the car has. The little ones need carseats that latch in properly, no excuses. The slightly older ones need booster seats, also, no excuses.
Unless you live in a snow belt where your streets never get plowed and have a steep driveway, FWD will get you there. And "minivans", other than Chrysler, have come a long way in replacing the station wagon. They have auto sliding doors, climate control, and get decent mpg.
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Somewhat disillusioned...
This is a great driver's car, except for the comand center and lack of gauges.
The little gremlins come and go at will.
I know minivans are practical and all, but never in my life will I ever drive a minivan, no matter what....did I mention never? I just can't do it and would rather have kids climbing over seats than doing that.
Safety is a concern and Mercedes is about as good as it gets. However, I couldn't in good conscience use the second row middle slot for an infant child seat. It doesn't have latches and it simply isn't as safe. So my dilemma is whether or not we can live with kids climbing over the seats or getting in through the gate. I did hear that you could retrofit a RL seat in there but it would be very expensive. The last thing I need to see is if a double stroller will fit in the trunk with the third row up.
I appreciate all your advice, but we are leaning towards selling and getting a QX56 or an Escalade.
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I have a 5 year old and with the twins and taking other kids to school, we really need to have captain's chairs. It is looking like I will have to sell the GL450, but don't really want to because we LOVE it. Is that even an option for the GL450's or is there a way to convert to this?
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