Eddie Bauer 3 in 1 install in Acura RDX help!!

[reecespeeces]

We have a Eddie Bauer 3 in 1, we use as a second carseat. We are needing to put it into the grandparents Acura RDX. It is needing to be ff. When in and latched and teathered the seat moves side to side quite a bit. The car manual said movement side to side was ok in small amounts. Not ok to me. We use a Britax Marathon in our van and its perfect. When we out the Britax in the Acura it is stationary and not moving at all. We have tried in the middle and outside seats still there is too much movement in the 3 in 1. Has anyone had an issue like this or know where I can go? Thanks:):)

[ThreeBeans]

Welcome to car-seat.org!

I'm glad you found it and you are asking good questions.

Can you tell us the year the Acura was made and also the height, weight and age of the child riding in the seat?

[reecespeeces]

It's a 2007. My son is 23lbs height I have not measured recently. He is a year old. I hope someone has experience with this car. BCAA just called they suggested to take the base off. I would not buy this car seat again. It was a gift and we are only using it as a secondary seat, but I find the Britax Marathon we have in our caravan the best, it goes into any vehicle and does very well in the RDX. Thanks!!:)

[CDNTech]

At only one year old and 23lbs, your son *needs* to be rearfacing. He's much too little to be forward facing.

Definitely remove the base, that makes it much easier to install this seat. You will also need a pool noodle OR a rolled up towel to help adjust the recline when installing it.

At one year old, you do not have to be concerned with getting a 45 degree angle any longer. Anywhere between 30 - 45 degrees is appropriate for a child of his age. A more upright install is both safer and provides more leg room for front seat passengers.

The Acura's seatbelt locks by pulling it all the way out and then slowly letting it ratchet back in... very different than the Caravan's lightweight locking latchplates (which are generally easy to install carseats in). Are you locking the seatbelts in the Acura?

ETA: The Alpha Omega should have come with LATCH... I would use that to install the seat instead of the seatbelt. It should be easier for you to get a more secure install. You will have to use LATCH in one of the outboard positions. If you pull the cover away and route the tail end of the LATCH strap through the belt path, you will be able to pull straight up and in toward the center of the seat which will give you better leverage for getting a tighter install.

[reecespeeces]

I meant to explain that he is FF in the RDX bc when he is RF the seat digs into the front seats and the front seats have to sit forward more to allow the angle of the seat. It just doesn't work.

[reecespeeces]

We are using the latching UAS not the seat belt.

[CDNTech]

Use the trick I edited in for the install when using UAS/LATCH. You do not need a 45 degree angle any more for him... but he *needs* to be rearfacing.

Make the seat more upright to install it and you will be perfectly fine. I've done this install in this vehicle and you should have adequate front seat leg room when the AO is rear facing. Taking the base off the seat will make all the difference in the world. :)

[reecespeeces]

When I was looking at the governmnet site that at 22lbs they can be FF and the manual for the seat said the same. We have a wedge that we bought for the RF to get the angle. Can I ask you jen what is a CRS TECH? Thanks for your help!

[reecespeeces]

What is AO? Why might I be told from BCAA that FF was ok? Thank you very much!

[CDNTech]

When I was looking at the governmnet site that at 22lbs they can be FF and the manual for the seat said the same. We have a wedge that we bought for the RF to get the angle. Can I ask you jen what is a CRS TECH? Thanks for your help!

A CRS Tech is the Canadian equivalent to the USA's CPS Tech. I teach parents how to install their carseats correctly and make sure they have the right carseat for their child and vehicle. I also verify and instruct parents/caregivers on how to install their seats properly.

22lbs is a bare minimum... we *strongly* encourage parents to keep their children rear facing to the limits of their seats. Children that are forward facing before the age of 2 years old are 4 - 5 times more likely to be injured in a collision. They are not strong enough to withstand crash forces when forward facing.

[reecespeeces]

You are quite a wealth of knowledge do you know how much weight the latch system in the Acura can hold. As I was reading that the CRV only goes to 40lbs. Thank you!!!!:)

[reecespeeces]

Great thank you very much for the hints!!

[CDNTech]

What is AO? Why might I be told from BCAA that FF was ok? Thank you very much!

Sorry, AO is short for Alpha Omega and is the seat you are trying to install. It is also marketed as the Eddie Bauer 3 in 1... same seat, different names. ;)

BCAA is giving you bare minimums. Legally you are allowed to forward face him, but physically he is not ready to... see the above post. :)

[CDNTech]

You are quite a wealth of knowledge do you know how much weight the latch system in the Acura can hold. As I was reading that the CRV only goes to 40lbs. Thank you!!!!:)

All Honda vehicles only go to 40lbs, so that is your lower anchor limit in the RDX as well. After 40lbs, you will switch to a seatbelt install and continue to use the top tether.

[scatterbunny]

Forward-facing at 22 pounds at at least 34 inches is the minimum for the seat you are using, but rear-facing to the limits of the seat is what's safest. We can put our kids forward-facing legally at 12 months and 20 or 22 pounds (depending on what the carseat says), but that's just the bare minimum, and who wants to only do the minimum for safety when it comes to our children? ;) The seat you have rear-faces to 35 pounds. Like the others mentioned, it can be installed more upright now that your son is older and has better head control. Removing the base on the AO (Alpha Omega, 3-in-1) will automatically make it a bit more upright.

[CDNTech]

Forward-facing at 22 pounds at at least 34 inches is the minimum for the seat you are using, but rear-facing to the limits of the seat is what's safest. We can put our kids forward-facing legally at 12 months and 20 or 22 pounds (depending on what the carseat says), but that's just the bare minimum, and who wants to only do the minimum for safety when it comes to our children? ;) The seat you have rear-faces to 35 pounds. Like the others mentioned, it can be installed more upright now that your son is older and has better head control. Removing the base on the AO (Alpha Omega, 3-in-1) will automatically make it a bit more upright.

OP is in Canada, so the seat only goes to 30lbs rearfacing here, but all other info is correct and applies. :)

[scatterbunny]

Oops! I didn't realize the OP is in Canada (did I skim this thread too fast?). It isn't in the Canadian forum, so I just assumed...and we all know what happens then. :p

[CDNTech]

Oops! I didn't realize the OP is in Canada (did I skim this thread too fast?). It isn't in the Canadian forum, so I just assumed...and we all know what happens then. :p

No, it's not mentioned in there. My tip off was the mention of BCAA... the insurance company in BC, Canada. :)

[reecespeeces]

If you pull the cover away and route the tail end of the LATCH strap through the belt path, you will be able to pull straight up and in toward the center of the seat which will give you better leverage for getting a tighter install.

My hubby and I are confused what is meant by belt path? Do you mean where you would put a seat belt through?

[scatterbunny]

I just moved it to the Canadian forum. :)

[CDNTech]

If you pull the cover away and route the tail end of the LATCH strap through the belt path, you will be able to pull straight up and in toward the center of the seat which will give you better leverage for getting a tighter install.

My hubby and I are confused what is meant by belt path? Do you mean where you would put a seat belt through?

Yes... the easiest way to see what I mean is to pull the cover off the bottom half of the carseat. The UAS strap will go from one side of the carseat, up through the rear facing belt path, across the carseat and down through the opposite side's rear facing belt path. The belt path is the opening that the UAS strap goes through in order to keep the carseat secured to the vehicle.

The UAS originally comes routed for rear facing use, you need to be very careful when re-routing the strap that it stays flat and in a nice straight line... it tends to get twisted and caught up on the hip portion of the harness straps when re-routing it from rear facing to forward facing and back again.

When the UAS is correctly routed, the tail end can be pulled from the outside of the carseat, up through the rear facing belt path and from there you can pull straight up and in towards the center of the seat to get good leverage for a nice tight install. Once the carseat is installed tightly feed the tail end excess back through the opening in the belt path and leave it on the outside of the carseat... then replace the cover back into position.

[reecespeeces]

Thank you so much!! I am glad to have found this site!! The caravan do they have the same restrictions with the latch as the honda? There are so many people me included that install the seat wrong. Thank you!!!!

Another question about the teather system, my car is a Saturn 97 SL2 so we would use the EB in there for the odd use, but there is no teather there is it less safe? We found the outbound was the best fit as the middle we could not get the seatbelt tight enough. This is with no base.

[CDNTech]

Thank you so much!! I am glad to have found this site!! The caravan do they have the same restrictions with the latch as the honda? There are so many people me included that install the seat wrong. Thank you!!!!

Another question about the teather system, my car is a Saturn 97 SL2 so we would use the EB in there for the odd use, but there is no teather there is it less safe? We found the outbound was the best fit as the middle we could not get the seatbelt tight enough. This is with no base.

The Caravan has a 48lb limit on their lower anchors.

If you are using the seat forward facing, it *MUST* be tethered in Canada. You can get a tether anchor added by calling the Saturn dealership. All vehicles newer than 1996 come with pre-welded anchor bolts. It is simply a matter of getting the part and screwing it in. Most dealerships will do your first one free... although as stated before, your baby really needs to remain rear facing at this point. :o

The Saturn S Series vehicle has top tether anchor points in both outboard positions. The part number is 21048101. The tether anchor points are covered by plastic plugs in both outboard positions.

[snowbird25ca]

My hubby and I are confused what is meant by belt path? Do you mean where you would put a seat belt through?

Yes, that's exactly right. :)

The belt path is wherever the UAS/LATCH belt or the seatbelt goes through the car seat.

Pulling the tail up through it makes tightening the latch belt infinitely easier.

I find removing the base creates a minimum of 2 to 3" extra room in the front seat. When you factor in being able to install the seat more upright due to your little one being older, you should have enough room back there. At 1yr old you don't want to be using the "level to ground" line on the belt guides as that is required only for a newborn recline.. I find most parents end up with the seat over-reclined when trying to follow those lines too...

If the seat leveler reclines the seat too much, you can use a tightly rolled towel. The 3in1 seats rarely install well with the lower anchors when the base is in use. At seat checks here we usually remove the base right from the start because it's just so much easier to get a good installation that way. :thumbsup:

(A hint for tightening the harness - pull the straps tight from the back of the shell, and then pull the adjuster strap. It seems to work better that way if you find the adjuster strap hard to tighten.)

And just to reiterate, ICBC and BCAA just give minimums. I met a mom in the city back before I became a tech who had been told by ICBC that it was fine to turn her 9mo old ff'ing because she was having troubles getting her seat to stay properly installed rf'ing - she had it checked by them twice, and they said it was installed correctly, but the same problem kept happening. Her dd was heavy enough so they said to just turn her ff'ing. :rolleyes:

Minimums are just that - they don't represent the maximum protection available for a child. Transport Canada's 1-2-3-4 cartime brochure does state in it's stage 1 to not be in a hurry to move to the next stage: http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/childsafety/1234/stage1/menu.htm

Don’t be in a hurry to start using a forward-facing child seat. The longer you use a rear-facing infant-only seat, infant /child seat, or infant/child/booster seat that fits correctly, even past your baby’s first birthday, the safer your baby will be in a crash. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for use and check the label for the weight and height that are allow

[snowbird25ca]

The UAS originally comes routed for rear facing use, you need to be very careful when re-routing the strap that it stays flat and in a nice straight line... it tends to get twisted and caught up on the hip portion of the harness straps when re-routing it from rear facing to forward facing and back again.


Did you mean ff'ing?

The older 3in1's came with it routed ff'ing, but all the new ones I've been seeing at checks have it coming in a little plastic bag attached to the seat and not routed at all, so parents have to first route it into the ff'ing belt path, then transfer it to the rf'ing belt path. Dumb dumb design. :rolleyes:

[CDNTech]

Did you mean ff'ing?

The older 3in1's came with it routed ff'ing, but all the new ones I've been seeing at checks have it coming in a little plastic bag attached to the seat and not routed at all, so parents have to first route it into the ff'ing belt path, then transfer it to the rf'ing belt path. Dumb dumb design. :rolleyes:

The new ones I saw at checks this summer were all routed for rear facing... however, that's not to say they didn't get an older DOM and Dorel has once again changed their design/procedures. :rolleyes:

[reecespeeces]

I know he needs to be RF I was just asking while I have you hear. Thank you very much!! I get the point that I am told bare minimums, he is RF in our van but we will increase so he is not at such an decline.

[CDNTech]

I know he needs to be RF I was just asking while I have you hear. Thank you very much!! I get the point that I am told bare minimums, he is RF in our van but we will increase so he is not at such an decline.

Your welcome! Sorry if I shoved the RFing thing down your throat. :o

The tether info is good to have as you'll want to get that done before you need to turn him foward facing. :)

[reecespeeces]

No that is ok, it was everyone saying it that was all. I am reading everything you all told me it was great!! Where would I find a tech like your self in my area? That's just it as the Saturn dealership is a hour away so I would need to make arrangements so I wanted to be prepared and now I know as my mom has a Cavalier and I am not sure she has the anchor. I will be telling all mommy friends about this group!!!!

[CDNTech]

I know there is at least one tech on this board that lives in the lower mainland area. You could start a new thread asking for techs in your area of B.C. in the Canadian Forum.

Otherwise I know that ICBC/BCAA (can't remember which one) does seat checks, but I hesitate to recommend them because it really is hit or miss with who you get. They are not always up to date on current standards or even best practice. :o

Any vehicle newer than 1999 should have the anchor installed already... if it is older, then a tether anchor can be added. The dealerships are pretty good about that in Canada as it is a frequent thing they do for us Canadians. If you want to post the year/make/model of your mom's car I can look up the tether anchor part number for her vehicle as well.

[reecespeeces]

Ok so not to worry my mom's car has the teather so that is cool!! Ok where should I post about the tech? Yeah I am iffy about the BCAA after talking to yourself!!:)

[CDNTech]

Start a thread in the Canadian and International Issues forum... which is where this thread got moved to. ;)

You can come here for the majority of your questions and we'll be able to answer them fairly easily. As long as the seatbelt is locked and the carseat is moving less than one inch at the belt path, it is a good install... the techs at BCAA shouldn't be able to screw up that part. :)

ETA: You can also post pics of your install and we can generally tell if it's a decent install or not. The only part we can't check is for movement.

[reecespeeces]

Thank you!!!!!!:whistle:

[CanuckDad]

Found this forum (& subsequently this thread) after searching about installing the EB Elite 3-in-1 car seat.

I have a related question to the ones that were described above:

We just bought this car seat as a 2nd (occasional) one for daughter (20lbs, 1yr old). I have installed it in my 2008 Altima, rear facing. I am using the LATCH system, and have re-routed it so that it fits through the lower exit points (it came "pre-wired" for front-facing). The LATCH belt isn't twisted at all. The base is attached. We're in Canada if that matters.

I have tightened the LATCH belt as much as possible, but there seems to be a lot of lateral movement still. Is there any way to eliminate/minimize this? Do I have to use LATCH and the seat belt? Will removing the base help?

I think the issue is that the LATCH clips are tied to the same belt - on our Britrax Marathon (primary car seat), there are 2 LATCH belts, which allow for independent, and seemingly more secure, tightening.

Help is appreciated.

Thanks.

[snowbird25ca]

Found this forum (& subsequently this thread) after searching about installing the EB Elite 3-in-1 car seat.

I have a related question to the ones that were described above:

We just bought this car seat as a 2nd (occasional) one for daughter (20lbs, 1yr old). I have installed it in my 2008 Altima, rear facing. I am using the LATCH system, and have re-routed it so that it fits through the lower exit points (it came "pre-wired" for front-facing). The LATCH belt isn't twisted at all. The base is attached. We're in Canada if that matters.

I have tightened the LATCH belt as much as possible, but there seems to be a lot of lateral movement still. Is there any way to eliminate/minimize this? Do I have to use LATCH and the seat belt? Will removing the base help?

I think the issue is that the LATCH clips are tied to the same belt - on our Britrax Marathon (primary car seat), there are 2 LATCH belts, which allow for independent, and seemingly more secure, tightening.

Help is appreciated.

Thanks.

Hi and welcome to the forums at Car-Seat.org. :)

I moved your question to it's own thread in the installation forum where it will get some more direct answers. :thumbsup: Here's the link: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=96508