HELP - RF & FF Radian in 02 Legacy + 95 Corolla

[Unregistered]

We are going on holidays soon, and the Inlaws will be loaning us their cars. I want to do a little research ahead of time, and figure out the best way to install our children's car seat, so i can avoid a melt down at 7am after a long red eye flight.

At some point we will also need to have room for one skinny passenger (ME) in the back seat as well.

If there are any special tricks i need to know, please tell me. I plan to print off instructions/photos and carry them with me as reference

[tiggercat]

I have a '94 Corolla, and was unable to achieve a succesful install of the Radian in the forward facing position in either of the outboard seating positions. I did get a passable install in the middle, with the female buckle stalk twisted 3 full turns, so you might be able to put the FF one there if you can fit the RFing one outboard. I did not try RFing since my daughter is over the RF weight limit.

Suggestions: Try with and without the FF recline adjustor when installing the FF seat. Try twisting the female buckle stalk (3 full turns max), or feeding the entire buckle into the belt path. For the RF one, you will find that there is a little bump in the seat bight, try placing the foot on top of it and pushing into the seat bight or alternatively, place it in front of the bump. This will give you different recline angles, and sometimes one works better than the other. If you do try the FF one outboard, you might have more luck with a locking clip instead of locking the seatbelt at the retractor. That's the one thing I forgot to try before returning it, and I wonder if I'd have been able to get it in tighter that way.

[Unregistered]

bumping up for more suggestions
thanks for the advice on the the corolla - i have read that the only spot i should but the RF seat is in the center, can anyone comment on that?

and re the locking plate, i have never had to use one yet, how do you determine where to put it?

and for the 2002 Subaru Legacy (wagon), where is the upper anchor, and are there Latch anchors

I am going to be stressed enough after a long red eye flight, and arriving at a frantically busy airport, i want to be as prepared as possible for quick installation of these seats.

[Unregistered]

Thank you for your suggestions

I had read on one of the threads that the only location for a RF radian in a Corolla was in the middle, wondering if anyone can confirm this. and 3 twist of the female end. Will i need to use the locking clip? and if so, boy i need some instruction on that, as i have never needed to use it before.

As for the Subaru legacy (wagon), i have read that outboard is best, and i am assuming there are LATCH anchors in it, since it's an 2002. But i am wondering where the upper anchor is, for my FF Radian.

I know i am going to be tired and stressed when we arrive at 7am at a busy airport, so any advance planning i can do will be helpful.

[Jeanum]

Hi, I just approved both of your posts since they contain somewhat complementary content. They were in the moderation queue for a while due to it being quieter here on the weekend.

There's a good primer on seatbelt types and how they lock, as well as when and how to use a locking clip at:
http://www.carseatsite.com/lockingclips.htm Note that you would only use the locking clip on a lap-shoulder belt if necessary, and not on a lap-only belt.

According to the LATCH manual, the '02 Subaru Legacy wagon has three top tether anchors, located in the rear top ceiling trim (over the cargo area), and a set of lower LATCH anchors for each outboard rear seating position.

[singingpond]

We are going on holidays soon, and the Inlaws will be loaning us their cars. I want to do a little research ahead of time, and figure out the best way to install our children's car seat, so i can avoid a melt down at 7am after a long red eye flight.

At some point we will also need to have room for one skinny passenger (ME) in the back seat as well.

If there are any special tricks i need to know, please tell me. I plan to print off instructions/photos and carry them with me as reference

I have a '96 Corolla, and would have to say that a RF Radian just doesn't work outboard (front seats don't move far enough forward to clear the reclined Radian with its required RF boot on, even if you shove the front vehicle seat to the front of the track). Our Radian is installed RF in the center, and it is a difficult (i.e. time-consuming, especially when you are trying it for the first time) install -- I believe I ended up with 3 full twists of the buckle stalk, and also had to flip the male end of the seatbelt 180 degrees to keep the latch plate from slipping. As for FF in the outboard spots, I didn't need the seat there, so I only experimented, but my recollection is that I was not able to get the seat tight enough. I didn't try it with the recline foot down (not the RF boot, but the attached recline foot), and that may help. More persistence may also help, but I'm not sure.

As another poster said, FF in the center does work, but that leaves you with (probably) no place to install your RF seat.

I don't know anything about the other vehicle you will have available. The Corolla, though, is likely to be quite difficult if you need to put in two Radians as you describe.

Katrin

[musicmaj]

I have a 1990 corolla and I have had a good ff radian install both outboard passenger and center as well as a great rf install in the center. The outboard ff install was difficult due to having to use a locking clip. It took two people to get it installed and buckled in.

[BCsymmes]

I finally got my account set up (just lazy i guess). thank you all for your suggestions and advice. Hopefully i can make this work in both cars and also have some room myself to sit back there!!!