Cool!! A Truck with a 3rd row installed for cheap.

[anw7405]

Maybe this is old news to some but it's new to me. For those out there looking for towing heavy and needing 3 rows of seats this is a very cool option. So this company out of Ft. Worth makes custom fiberglass sleepers that also has seating options. From what I understand they run about $2,500. So you can take any truck out there and add an additional row of seats. This is good to know for future TV hunting. Other than loosing a little bed space does anyone see a downside to this?

http://cowtownsleepers.com/sleepers.html

[mkirsch]

4x4ord wrote:
I think some states still allow passengers to ride in a fifth wheel trailer. When our kids were young we had a truck with a bench seat in front, so, 4 in the back and three up front worked well. At that time so long as you used the seat belts that you had you were legal. It might still be that way?

I think everyone has to have their own individual seat belt, no sharing. I know of no trucks with 4 belts in the rear bench seat.

That said, we used to stack up old couch cushions in the back of the old 1979 Chevy Blazer and use that as 3rd row seating and head into the city. We used to pile into the back of an open pickup and ride up the lake to go boating. We used to ride in the back of the truck under the cattle racks to go garage saleing with Mom, the neighbor, and her five kids. 8 kids total.

But it was also a different time and place. Mostly out in the country. The biggest distraction was an AM-FM radio. Prescription drugs consisted of amoxicillin. People drove 25MPH on back roads. You didn't have drivers staring at their smartphones, sleep-deprived and on seventeen different prescription drugs all interacting with each other.

[trossiv]

There is a truck similar to this I see driving around in my area. Not sure who did the conversion but it looks factory

Not sure what the pic size specs are. I just linked to an image I found. Update: Tried resizing to 640x480. Update 2: Well that was a squatty looking truck. Here's the link instead.

6 Door Super Duty

[4x4ord]

I think some states still allow passengers to ride in a fifth wheel trailer. When our kids were young we had a truck with a bench seat in front, so, 4 in the back and three up front worked well. At that time so long as you used the seat belts that you had you were legal. It might still be that way?

[romore]

It's no different than the sleeper on an otr tractor but riding back there gets old after a while especially for kids. Then there is the lack of restraints, I came off the upper bunk in a sudden stop while riding with a trucker buddy. It wasn't pleasant.

[burningman]

Those are nothing new, they’re been around for decades.
If you need an affordable three row pickup truck just watch the truck trader for a used late model custom conversion and buy it. But beware, they’re loooooong....

[Old-Biscuit]

Bed space......turns a long bed into a short bed so you end up crushing it with 5th wheel front cap when making turns or maneuvers when backing in

Then the issues of comfort/safety/restraints


PASS

[IdaD]

No way I'd put my kids back there and get on the road. It isn't just occupant restraint, either - what about a rollover or if you get t-boned? That part of the truck isn't designed to protect occupants. That's a risk I'll take with the family dog but not the kids.

[anw7405]

Hmm. That's a good point. I found this about DOT approved sleepers. I wonder how this stacks up to standard crash regulations.

Occupant restraint. A motor vehicle manufactured on
>or after
>July 1, 1971, and equipped with a sleeper berth must be
>equipped with a
>means of preventing ejection of the occupant of the sleeper
>berth during
>deceleration of the vehicle. The restraint system must be
>designed,
>installed, and maintained to withstand a minimum total force
>of 6,000
>pounds applied toward the front of the vehicle and parallel
>to the
>longitudinal axis of the vehicle.

[Nunyadamn]

My guess is people will regret having their kids in there after a wreak. Please don't put anyone in there. You might as well have them on the hood - just as safe in a wreak.

[gbopp]

CLICKY

Interesting. I don't think I would want to travel very far on one of those seats. But, it may be good for kids.