tethers too long

[acheyne]

I recently purchased the Cosco High Back Booster seat for use in our '98 Corolla. The clips are installed above the back seat, but I'm running into a problem with the tether - there is way too much slack in it and I can't get it tight. Is there some way to shorten the tether strap so it works properly?

Thanks!
Andrew

[LuvBug03]

I have this same problem with certain seats in my corolla... and sadly I havent found a solution to it aside from getting another seat.

Can you take that one back? How old is the child and how much does s/he weigh?

[UlrikeDG]

You could call Cosco and see if they offer a replacement tether that has a shorter distance between the adjuster and the seat. I'm not sure whether that's a part they have available or not.

However, you should also be aware that the Cosco/Safety 1st/Eddie Bauer high backed boosters have the shortest top harness slots of any HBB on the market. Chances are you'll get a lot less use out of that seat than its competitors (Graco, Evenflo, etc), because the seat is outgrown when the child's shoulders are over the top slots. You may be better off simply exchanging it.

[acheyne]

You could call Cosco and see if they offer a replacement tether that has a shorter distance between the adjuster and the seat. I'm not sure whether that's a part they have available or not.

However, you should also be aware that the Cosco/Safety 1st/Eddie Bauer high backed boosters have the shortest top harness slots of any HBB on the market. Chances are you'll get a lot less use out of that seat than its competitors (Graco, Evenflo, etc), because the seat is outgrown when the child's shoulders are over the top slots. You may be better off simply exchanging it.

I'm not sure I understand this statement. The chair converts to a booster once they've outgrown the top slots?

I'm calling Cosco today. I've already used the seats and thrown out the boxes (premature, but I was actually being productive for once instead of procrastinating), so I don't really have the choice of returning them.

[acheyne]

I recently purchased the Cosco High Back Booster seat for use in our '98 Corolla. The clips are installed above the back seat, but I'm running into a problem with the tether - there is way too much slack in it and I can't get it tight. Is there some way to shorten the tether strap so it works properly?

Thanks!
Andrew

I managed to solve the problem. After futzing around with the tether for about 20 minutes, I found that you can make the tether shorter by tugging on one end of it so that the amount of slack changes. The car seats are installed properly now. Thanks for the responses.

(the car seats for our primary car are Britax Marathons. I wish Britax would lower their prices so they were affordable for the second car as well!)

[LuvBug03]

(the car seats for our primary car are Britax Marathons. I wish Britax would lower their prices so they were affordable for the second car as well!)

there is another seat made by britax that is a clone to the marathon. It is sold under the fisher price name. It is the Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe. It has been discontinued so you can find them even cheaper. I believe some Baby Depot's had them for $100 and one website online has them for like $130. It goes to 55lbs forward facing instead of 65lbs, but most children will outgrow it before then in height anyway.

A forward facing seat is outgrown when one of these happens:
the child hits the weight limit for forward facing
the child's shoulders go over the top slots
the tip's of the ears go over the top of the shell

[joolsplus3]

Yeah, the cosco top slots are the lowest on the market in a combo seat (under 15, the graco and evenflo combos are over 16), and they make really unsafe boosters later (no EPS foam, cause the lapbelt to ride too high, rarely position the shoulderbelt properly)... Evenflo and Graco Combos are considerably better in those respects as well. I'm not saying coscos are UNsafe when used properly, just an incredible waste of money considering their shortfalls :whistle:

[UlrikeDG]

Many children outgrow the harness on the Cosco seats before they are mature enough to sit safely in a booster. While theoretically, they can use the harness until 40 lb, most are too tall long before they reach 40 lb, and for some kids, that's only age 2-3 years. If your child is one of those who get too tall before he/she is mature enough to sit in a booster properly, you will need to buy a seat that will allow him/her to utilize the 5-point harness until he/she gets a little older.

[acheyne]

Many children outgrow the harness on the Cosco seats before they are mature enough to sit safely in a booster. While theoretically, they can use the harness until 40 lb, most are too tall long before they reach 40 lb, and for some kids, that's only age 2-3 years. If your child is one of those who get too tall before he/she is mature enough to sit in a booster properly, you will need to buy a seat that will allow him/her to utilize the 5-point harness until he/she gets a little older.

Thanks for the info. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we have to. I based my choice on this website, which has served me well in the past for choosing pretty much anything:

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/family/booster-seats/index.html

What age is appropriate for the move to a booster? My son is almost 3 and still fits in the harness.

[MomToEliEm]

Thanks for the info. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we have to. I based my choice on this website, which has served me well in the past for choosing pretty much anything:

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/family/booster-seats/index.html

What age is appropriate for the move to a booster? My son is almost 3 and still fits in the harness.

At the earliest I would move a child to a booster is 4 years old, though I would feel much more comfortale at 5 or above. 3 and 4 year olds are pretty squirmy and they often don't stay seated correctly in a booster seat using a seatbelt.

Since you already have Marathon and the Cosco seats and cannot return the cosco seat, just keep using them until your child outrows the harness. The seats are outgrown when one of these conditions is met - child's shoulders all above the top harness slot, ears over the top of the shell, or over 40 pounds for the Cosco seat and 65 pounds for the britax seat. The cosco seat doesn't make a good booster so you will probably want to decide your options at that time.

[UlrikeDG]

Ugh! I totally disagree with the Cosco HBB as a "top choice" in that catagory! There are so many other choices which have better safety features and which will last kids longer.

A child should remain in a harness until age 4 and 40 lb minimum if at all possible, and some children really aren't ready to sit in a booster until they are 5-7 years old. They need to be able to sit with the belt properly positioned without leaning or wiggling too much for the entire trip.

The Cosco seat is fine for now, but when your child outgrows the harness, you'll definitely need to reevaluate whether he's ready for a booster.