our 2019 Pilot EX-L has the bench in row 2 and it is the whole problem. we have a 7 year old in a high back booster, a 4 year old in a forward facing harness seat, and a 2 year old still rear facing. to get the 7 year old into row 3 i have to uninstall a seat or she climbs over the console like a goat. every morning.
so we are shopping and it is down to Telluride, Palisade or the Grand Highlander. my plan is captain's chairs so the walkway stays open. my wife's plan is bench so we have 8 seats for when the grandparents visit.
who has done captains with three kids? does the walkway actually work, or do kids just end up climbing over anyway because the gap is full of backpacks?
2023 Telluride SX with captains here, 3 kids plus two carpool kids. the walkway works but you have to be strict about it. the rule in our car is nothing on the floor between the captains, ever. backpacks go in the cargo area behind row 3 and the swim bags go under the seats.
the thing nobody told me: on the Telluride the one touch button that tilts and slides the second row seat forward is useless once a car seat is installed in that position. it will not fold with the seat latched in. so if you go bench you are back to your goat problem on the side without the button.
with captains, two kids can each have a car seat in row 2 and the oldest walks straight back. it took our 8 year old about a week to stop complaining about row 3 and now she calls it her apartment.
we went bench on our 2024 Grand Highlander Hybrid XLE because we have 4 kids and needed the 8th seat. i regret it maybe twice a week.
what makes it livable: the third row in the Grand Highlander is an actual adult space, i am 6'1" and i can sit back there for an hour. so we put the two big kids in row 3 and the two car seats in the outboard spots of row 2, leaving the middle of the bench empty most days. the kids step through on the middle seat cushion. not elegant, but it works and the middle seat is there when cousins show up.
if you only have 3 kids, i would do captains. no question.
contrarian note from somebody whose kids are now 15 and 17. the third row in my 2014 MDX was fine for about four years and then they grew. if your oldest is 7, think about what row 3 looks like when that kid is 12 and has legs.
i sat in the back of all three at the Charlotte auto show last fall. Grand Highlander row 3 is the roomiest, then Palisade and Telluride are close to each other. the MDX row 3 is a penalty box, i say that with love.
one more angle since you have a rear facer. before you buy, take the actual rear facing seat to the dealer and install it in the spot it will live in. rear facing convertibles eat front to back space, and the front passenger seat in front of it may need to slide way up. our CX-9 with a rear facer behind the passenger left my husband with his knees on the glovebox for a year.
salespeople will let you do it, they have seen worse. bring a towel or a pool noodle if your seat manual allows one for the recline angle.
grandpa perspective. the Navigator L has captains and power folding row 3, and with four grandkids on a Saturday i still end up kneeling on the floor buckling someone in. whatever you buy, the buckles in row 3 matter more than you think. stand outside the car and try to reach the third row buckle with one hand. some of them sit way down in the cushion.
closing this out. we went with a 2025 Palisade SEL with the captain's chairs from a dealer in Olathe. wife agreed after mod_jenna_w's tip, we took the rear facer to both stores and it fit better behind the passenger in the Palisade. the Grand Highlander was the best car of the three but the one we wanted was $8k more than the Palisade.
the 7 year old walked straight back to row 3 on the test drive and said "this is my room now." first week, no climbing over anything. Kia and Hyundai list the captain's chair trims on their build pages if anyone is comparing, the kia.com builder showed which Telluride trims even offer the bench, which helped us.
