The Jeep Grand Cherokee is a highly popular SUV in the United States, and it’s frequently chosen by parents looking for a sporty way to transport their children. I got a hold of a Jeep Grand Cherokee and made it my mission for the weekend to see which car seats would and wouldn’t fit in it, particularly in 3 across configurations. Here’s what I found. But before going into that, let’s review some basic principles of car safety.
You know the basics of best practices in car seat safety: rear-face as long as possible (ideally until 4!), and then forward-face as long as possible (ideally until 8!), and then booster until a regular belt fits your child (which typically happens between 10 and 12).
However, if you’re going to be able to use this information, you need to know which car seats are going to work in your Grand Cherokee, or whichever vehicle you’re driving. Some car seats make 3 across installations more feasible than others, and it’s been my goal for a while to set up a comprehensive list of which seats will and won’t work in particular vehicles. Here are my experiences to date of fitting infant, convertible, and booster seats in the Jeep Grand Cherokee.
You can access the complete 3 across guide for every vehicle here and the complete list of recommended seats here. 3 across car seat images are courtesy of Wikipedia.
2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee (WK2)
Guaranteed 3 across installations:
Clek Fllo (x3).
Clek Foonf (x3).
Combi Coccoro (x3).
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Size4Me 65, Diono Radian / RXT.
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Contender, Diono Radian / RXT.
Tips and Tricks:
This generation of the Jeep Grand Cherokee is 190 inches long and 76 inches wide, which should make most 3 across installations a rather straightforward affair in its generous back row. Keep in mind that the general advice I give about using seat belt installations when attempting 3 across setups will still hold here; it gives you much more room than what you’ll get in a LATCH installation.
2
005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee (WK)
Guaranteed 3 across installations:
Clek Fllo (x3).
Clek Foonf (x3).
Combi Coccoro (x3).
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Size4Me 65, Diono Radian / RXT.
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Contender, Diono Radian / RXT.
Tips and Tricks:
This generation of the Jeep Grand Cherokee is 186 inches long and 73 inches wide, which again means it’s both narrower and shorter than the succeeding generation but still at least as wide as a mid-sized sedan. Keep in mind that the general advice I give about using seat belt installations when attempting 3 across setups will still hold here; it gives you much more room than what you’ll get in a LATCH installation.
1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee (WK)2
Guaranteed 3 across installations:
Clek Fllo (x3).
Clek Foonf (x3).
Combi Coccoro (x3).
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Size4Me 65, Diono Radian / RXT.
Evenflo Maestro, Graco Contender, Diono Radian / RXT.
Tips and Tricks:
This generation of the Jeep Grand Cherokee is 181 inches long and just under 73 inches wide, which means it’s both narrower and shorter than the succeeding generation but still at least as wide as a mid-sized sedan.
The Grand Cherokee in this generation may not come with lap and shoulder belts in the center seat of the back row, and you’ll also be dealing with a lack of LATCH in some cases. However, given that you don’t need LATCH for a safe installation, don’t let this deter you. Similarly, you can install most car seats with just a lap belt, although this won’t work for booster seats.
Keep in mind that the general advice I give about using seat belt installations when attempting 3 across setups will still hold here; it gives you much more room than what you’ll get in a LATCH installation even if you’re lucky enough to have LATCH in this GC generation.
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.