Help! Child Seat Anchors - Where Do They Go? [wagon]

[rp850]

I didn't know that about Britax making race seats. That's pretty impressive. Britax makes a top quality seat no question about it. When I was shopping around and doing the research there was an Evenflo seat that was ranked right up there with the Britax at about 1/3 the cost. I just couldn't see spending $240 more for a seat with the same crash ratings but that's just my opinion. You sure can't go wrong with the Britax but for people on a budget there are other excellent choices out there.

(Not so) funny story....A friend of mine went out and bought two Britax seats to the tune of about $600 and then proceeded to install them in his car so loosely that I could move them back and forth about a foot in either direction. After telling him it doesn't matter how good the seat is if it's not installed properly, we tightened them down. No way I would have put my kid in that seat the way they were installed!

+1 for Britax.

They started off as a racing and parachute harness manufacturer in the UK in the '60s. What better a pedigree for car seats than supplying for race cars? Bloody expensive, but their seats fit into Volvos like hand in glove. Worth the $$.

[crazykn]

I've seen the Evenflo and Britax seats in person and all I have to say is that the Britax feels much more comfortable (using my hand to feel around) than the Evenflo Titan (which is second best in safety). Safety-wise, they seemed about the same, so i guess the main 'dividing' factor is comfort. On the plus side of the Britax, its not so bulky as the Evenflo titan.

Why do I know so much of this, when I don't even have kids???? :P

[AkitaWagon]

I've seen the Evenflo and Britax seats in person and all I have to say is that the Britax feels much more comfortable (using my hand to feel around) than the Evenflo Titan (which is second best in safety). Safety-wise, they seemed about the same, so i guess the main 'dividing' factor is comfort. On the plus side of the Britax, its not so bulky as the Evenflo titan.

Why do I know so much of this, when I don't even have kids????

Well, it will be good if you eventually have some kids or need to drive someone elses. And then you can spend your free time reading about other baby/kid stuff that you need to know.

We researched seats also and went with the Britax Roundabouts. The foam and bolstering seemed to be better with Britax. Target online had a sale so the cost wasn't so bad.

[rp850]

Hey it's better to know about this stuff before you actually need it. I think the Britax seems a little easier to use than other seats. Definitely a factor considering you take your kid in and out of it about a gazillion times before they out grow it!

I've seen the Evenflo and Britax seats in person and all I have to say is that the Britax feels much more comfortable (using my hand to feel around) than the Evenflo Titan (which is second best in safety). Safety-wise, they seemed about the same, so i guess the main 'dividing' factor is comfort. On the plus side of the Britax, its not so bulky as the Evenflo titan.

Why do I know so much of this, when I don't even have kids????

[rp850]

The frame on the Britax definitely looks stout. Too bad I couldn't find them on sale when I was looking. I might have bought them if the price difference wasn't so big. Hard to believe but one of my kids is already in a booster seat and the other one isn't too far behind. Time flies...now if I can only keep my wagon running for another 10 years it can be his first car!

Well, it will be good if you eventually have some kids or need to drive someone elses. And then you can spend your free time reading about other baby/kid stuff that you need to know.

We researched seats also and went with the Britax Roundabouts. The foam and bolstering seemed to be better with Britax. Target online had a sale so the cost wasn't so bad.

[Fake Name]

The LATCH systems don't really make it any safer, it's just harder to install the seat incorrectly. The key for that type of seat- where the seat is belted into the vehicle and the child is belted in using the straps that are part of the seat- is to put your knee into the bottom of the seat and cinch the seat down HARD, "preloading" it with the car's belt.

Does that make sense?

When my son was that small, I bought enough Britax's for each car, and installed them. I then contacted an organization (who's name escapes me) that trains child seat inspectors- in our area, it was the pediatric tramua nurs at a local hospital. These folks have been trained for car seat installation and she was great double-checking my installation.

One thing to watch- the angle of the seat's bottom. Some folks use swim noodles to change the angle as required.

I now have two Recaro Start booster seats for my kid, but fight with the decision- sit him in the back, or in the front where the airbags are? At his age/weight he's legal in the front passenger seat...

fn

[rp850]

I found the LATCH system to be much easier to get a good install with less swearing and bruises on my knee from shoving it into the car seat.

I read something on the Britax site where supposedly the LATCH is slightly safer than the conventional belts. They showed a graph but I didn't see any data to go along with it. I think it has to do with a more direct connection to the chassis or so they claim. I agree with you that LATCH makes it harder to screw up and that it's the main benefit of it.

I think I read something on the OZBrick site about Volvo claiming the center rear position is statistically the safest seating position in their cars. Don't know if that was for airbag or non airbag models though. I'll try to find the link...

EDIT: Here it is: http://au.geocities.com/ozbrick850/crash-rear.html

The LATCH systems don't really make it any safer, it's just harder to install the seat incorrectly. The key for that type of seat- where the seat is belted into the vehicle and the child is belted in using the straps that are part of the seat- is to put your knee into the bottom of the seat and cinch the seat down HARD, "preloading" it with the car's belt.

Does that make sense?

When my son was that small, I bought enough Britax's for each car, and installed them. I then contacted an organization (who's name escapes me) that trains child seat inspectors- in our area, it was the pediatric tramua nurs at a local hospital. These folks have been trained for car seat installation and she was great double-checking my installation.

One thing to watch- the angle of the seat's bottom. Some folks use swim noodles to change the angle as required.

I now have two Recaro Start booster seats for my kid, but fight with the decision- sit him in the back, or in the front where the airbags are? At his age/weight he's legal in the front passenger seat...

fn

[850_olaf_nz]

update: I collected the car, enquired about p/n 9475766 from the volvo dealer. 'not in stock, will be wait time from Australia or Sweden, and about 50 south pacific pesos each. given a) I can't wait for parts, and I can get the same safety from the Safe-n-sound/Britax generic anchor (albiet without the neat cover) at around 7 south pacific pesos each, sadly I'll not be waiting for the volvo part.

Actually, I'm still recovering from the shock of price quote 65.52 south pacific pesos for headlight wiper blades! I'm off to hunt around for the tip I saw here on the honda part.

I loved the delivery/collection trip yesterday, the T5 is a barrel of laughs and rewarding to drive. That outweighs the raped-on-parts feeling I'm getting each time I call the Volvo dealer. Off to the independants!

cheers

'olaf'

[rp850]

I"m not familiar with the exchange rate but I'd go for the Britax part if it's a lot cheaper.

Too bad you can't get parts from the US.

update: I collected the car, enquired about p/n 9475766 from the volvo dealer. 'not in stock, will be wait time from Australia or Sweden, and about 50 south pacific pesos each. given a) I can't wait for parts, and I can get the same safety from the Safe-n-sound/Britax generic anchor (albiet without the neat cover) at around 7 south pacific pesos each, sadly I'll not be waiting for the volvo part.

Actually, I'm still recovering from the shock of price quote 65.52 south pacific pesos for headlight wiper blades! I'm off to hunt around for the tip I saw here on the honda part.

I loved the delivery/collection trip yesterday, the T5 is a barrel of laughs and rewarding to drive. That outweighs the raped-on-parts feeling I'm getting each time I call the Volvo dealer. Off to the independants!

cheers

'olaf'

[Guest Guest]

Thought this thread was kindof interesting, and wondered - what is the built-in seat/booster good for?

no one seems to mention it as a viable option, but it's already built into the car!

opinions?

[drlava]

that was me. I hate how we don't stay logged in anymore! grrrr.

[850_olaf_nz]

the built-in restraint in the centre armrest (an option), seems well designed and is rated for certain weights. I view it as a 'third set in a fix' - it doesn't look like the kind of seat my kids can sleep in on a journey, for example.

[rp850]

The integrated booster seat is great but only suitable for kids between 50 and 80 lbs and 46 to 54 inches.

The rear-facing third row seat in the wagons is for kids 50-88 lbs and up to 59"

Thought this thread was kindof interesting, and wondered - what is the built-in seat/booster good for?

no one seems to mention it as a viable option, but it's already built into the car!

opinions?

[rp850]

Having used both the regular car seat and integrated booster seat there are pros and cons to both. Not having the arms on the booster seat does make it harder for the kid to sleep. The good thing about it is in the center position they get a nice clear view of the road and my son seems to like that. The bad thing is that I have to keep asking him to not use the center console as a footrest

the built-in restraint in the centre armrest (an option), seems well designed and is rated for certain weights. I view it as a 'third set in a fix' - it doesn't look like the kind of seat my kids can sleep in on a journey, for example.

[850_olaf_nz]

Closure: here's a trap for new players. The plastic blanking plugs that you'd find in the rear seat-backs, should you embark on this journey, will have become very brittle over the past 10-odd years. I found the flanges of mine broke very easily. On one side, I had just enough flange left to wiggle it out. On the other side, all of the cover/flange broke away, leaving the plastic plug still deep in the threaded steel, with no way to extract it.

Solution? I used a number 8 pozi-drive screw (about 1.5", I think). Screwed it down into the hollow body of the plastic blanking plate as far as it would go. Then used my trusty claw-hammer to pull it out like a nail. Worked a treat!

You need 13mm socket for the Safe-n-sound/Britax anchor bolt. it's 13/16 UNF Thread.

I've installed the child seats in the car with some EVA foam under them, today. First ride this morning - my 3 year old climbed in to his familiar seat (new environment), and as I strapped him in he looked around the T5. "Cooool" he said. You just can't buy moments like that.

Hope that helps.

'olaf'

PS - thanks to all for your input and assistance. Gained some really useful pointers.