The Ford Expedition is the largest SUV sold by Ford, which makes sense since its T platform is based on a modified F-150 platform. Built for markets around the world in Ford’s Louisville, Kentucky factory, it competes with other mega-SUVs locally like the Chevrolet Tahoe, Dodge Durango, GMC Yukon, Toyota Sequoia, Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia, and Nissan Armada, as well as with some extra-large variants like the Chevy Suburban. It even comes in extra-large versions like the Expedition EL, which replaces the now-discontinued Ford Excursion. While it’s not the most comfortable SUV on the road, it definitely has one of the largest cargo and hauling capacities you can buy while transporting up to eight passengers. Its luxury equivalent is the Lincoln Navigator.

As a result, it’s no surprise that many turn to the Expedition for its hauling ability and passenger-seating capability.  Prior to 2007, you could seat up to 9 passengers in certain trim levels (those with front bench seats), although you’re limited to “only” 8 passengers from 2007 onward. With that in mind, I wanted to figure out just how well it did when it came to fitting car seats across the 2nd and 3rd rows.

Before going into which seats worked (a lot of them) and which ones didn’t (very few), let’s take a quick look at which kinds of seats you’ll want to use with your children, when you’ll want to use them, how you’ll want to face them, and why.

For me, the most basic and essential part of car seat safety involves rear-facing. It’s the safest position we know of, and the longer our kids rear-face, the safer they’ll be, regardless of what kind of vehicle they travel in. I recommend keeping children in rear-facing infant or convertible seats as long as possible (ideally until 4!), then keeping them harnessed in forward-facing seats for several years more (ideally until 8!), and then only switching them out of booster seats when they pass the 5 step test (which typically happens between 10 and 12). The goal is to keep kids in the safest kinds of seats for as long as possible to increase their odds of surviving serious car crashes.

With that all in mind, I got to work with my seats to create what I believe to be the most detailed 3 across guide for the Ford Expedition on the Internet. If you find the list helpful when shopping for car seats, you can shop through my Amazon link below. I’ll add more seats as I test them over time.

You can access the complete 3 across guide for every vehicle here and the complete list of recommended seats here. The Canadian car seat guide is here. 3 across car seat images are taken by yours truly or are courtesy of Wikipedia.

2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 Ford Expedition (U324)

The 3rd generation Expedition is just over 206 inches long and just under 79 inches wide, which means it’s ever so slightly longer and no wider than the second gen. Once again, you’ll be able to fit pretty much any combination of car seats in the 2nd or 3rd rows as long as you’re willing to use seat belts instead of LATCH. The 3rd row isn’t as wide as the 2nd row, so I’d start with the 2nd row for installations and move on back unless you need to keep the 2nd row clear for adults or to make 3rd row access easier.

A notable change in this gen compared to the previous 2 gens is that the 9-passenger option for the Expedition has disappeared due to the 1st row only coming with bucket seats instead of with a bench option.

2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Ford Expedition (U222)

The 2nd gen Expedition is just under 206 inches long and just under 79 inches wide, which means you’ll be able to fit pretty much anything you try to in the 2nd and 3rd rows as long as you stick with seat belts. You’ll be able to fit a lot of seats with LATCH anchors too, but to get extra flexibility in 3 across setups, I usually just go with seat belts from the get go to save me time and frustration.

This is the last generation of the Expedition that comes with the optional 9th seat via a 1st row bench. It’s also the first gen to feature manual stow-away seats in the 3rd row, a feature common on minivans.

1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 Ford Expedition (UN93)

The 1st gen Expedition is just under 205 inches long and just under 79 inches wide. The width remains essentially the same through all three generations, which means you have about the same amount of room to work with no matter which Expedition you’re driving with. It also means that the seats that will fit in one will fit in pretty much any other Expedition.

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If you find the information on car safety, recommended car seats, and car seat reviews on this car seat blog helpful, you can shop through this Amazon link for any purchases, car seat-related or not. Canadians can shop through this link for Canadian purchases.