Graco snugride install

[jacks1]

I have a few questions for a friend about installing their Graco Snugride. They have latch and have used that to install the base but the base is very loose and can move quite a bit despite it being in tight with LATCH. Also they have the seat (snugride) buckled with the seatbelt along with using the base ( installed with LATCH) Is that okay to do?

TIA

[bbartlettnfld]

When installing any carseat you use either LATCH or Seatbelt not a combination of both. If your friends cannot get a tight install with LATCH they should try using just the vehicle seatbelt and not latch.
I installed a snugride in a Subaru Outback and I could not get it tight with Latch so I used just the seat belt and it worked great!

Hope that helps.
BethAnn

[canadiangie]

Hi,

The style of LATCH connectors on Graco seats sometimes makes getting a good install quite difficult. It has to do with the angle the connectors sit at.

I almost always find I get a better install with the seatbelt rather than LATCH when it comes to Snugrides (and SafeSeats for that matter).

If they have seatbelts that lock manually (by pulling the shoulder belt all the way out and letting it retract back in) have them leave the seatbelt UNlocked and instead use a locking clip to keep the seatbelt tight. Using a locking clip to keep the belt tight will help to prevent tilting that sometimes happens with the Snugride and a seatbelt install.

If they have seatbelts that lock at the retractor (buckle the belt and it stays tight) they may find it either holds snug, or, they may find that flipping the male end of the buckle over once and then buckling helps to keep the belt tight.

Without first knowing the make of the vehicle it's sort of a toughy, so if you're able to post back with that it would be helpful.


As for using LATCH on the base, and then routing the seatbelt over the Snugride's belt guides, NO, this is not okay. The seat has not been crash tested this way and/or approved for use, so we have no idea what could happen in the event of a collision.

If they are that concerned about the seat separating from the base (they need not be) they may want to consider using the seat without the base (not my preference to be honest), or transitioning baby to a rear facing convertible.


Again, if you can post back with their make and year of vehicle that would be best.

[snowbird25ca]

I have a few questions for a friend about installing their Graco Snugride. They have latch and have used that to install the base but the base is very loose and can move quite a bit despite it being in tight with LATCH. Also they have the seat (snugride) buckled with the seatbelt along with using the base ( installed with LATCH) Is that okay to do?

TIA

Can you get more information in regards to how the base is moving? Sometimes parents are checking for movement at the back of the base, and are concerned by how the base can lift up. If that's the case, explaining that you only check for movement at the belt path could be all it takes.

And just to echo Angie, no, they cannot buckle the seat itself in with the seatbelt after attaching it to the base.

If they want to buckle the seat in, then they can't use the base. If they can get a good install with the base though, it would be preferable from an ease of use/higher likelihood of proper use standpoint to use the base. :thumbsup:

[jacks1]

The car is a Saturn Vue 2002 or 2003 if that helps :)

[snowbird25ca]

A LATCH install in a Saturn Vue of that year should be easy. The anchors are easy to get at, there is a dedicated set in every seating position, and the back seat is pretty level compared to many vehicles.

So I'd talk to her about how she's checking for movement first. If she's checking correctly and there's still too much movement, then she needs to make sure that she's pulling on the tail of the UAS belt so that it's parallel to the main strap itself. Sometimes what happens is that the strap starts to turn in the latchplate and then it doesn't tighten far enough. When it gets down to that last little bit, she may need to take her fingers and pull right above the plate so that she can still keep them parallel. If it gets stuck and there's still too much movement, then have her loosen it and try again.

Just make sure she knows that the only place she cares about movement is where the belt is passing through the base.

One other tip with a LATCH install, is that before pulling the tail, if she pulls on the belt itself to get all the slack across to the side of the base where she's tightening the UAS belt, it will be easier to get all the slack out.

[canadiangie]

I think in most cases it has more to do with the style of LATCH connectors on Graco seats, and not so much whether a vehicle has easy to access anchors, multiple sets, and what have you. The angle at which the connectors sit in relation to the LATCH strap is the culprit IME. Pulling the tail parallel to the main strap doesn't always solve the issue. Sometimes there is still more than 1 inch of side to side movement at the belt path, which means a proper intall has not been achieved.

Please make sure your friend knows her goal in life isn't to achieve an acceptable install with LATCH, if using the seatbelt provides a better install.

LATCH is not safer, it's just supposed to be easier, and isn't always (funny enough the "isn't always" part usually makes me think of Graco's choice of LATCH connectors on their infant seats).


HTH's

[snowbird25ca]

I think in most cases it has more to do with the style of LATCH connectors on Graco seats, and not so much whether a vehicle has easy to access anchors, multiple sets, and what have you. The angle at which the connectors sit in relation to the LATCH strap is the culprit IME. Pulling the tail parallel to the main strap doesn't always solve the issue. Sometimes there is still more than 1 inch of side to side movement at the belt path, which means a proper intall has not been achieved.

Please make sure your friend knows her goal in life isn't to achieve an acceptable install with LATCH, if using the seatbelt provides a better install.

LATCH is not safer, it's just supposed to be easier, and isn't always (funny enough the "isn't always" part usually makes me think of Graco's choice of LATCH connectors on their infant seats).



In some cases, yes. Though knowing the vue and knowing the snugride, I'm positive it fits fine. As to if the person can get the UAS belt to tighten enough for them is another story.. As we know just because we know it can be done doesn't mean it's easy for a parent to do without hands on instruction.

But you're right - just because it's compatible with UAS in the Vue, doesn't mean it has to be used. I agree that if it's causing problems than a seatbelt install may be easier.

I think there's nothing easy at all about their ez-latch connectors when it comes to removal, but I've honestly never encountered a vehicle that I couldn't install the Snugride with LATCH in. Maybe I've just been lucky. :shrug-shoulders:

[canadiangie]

In some cases, yes. Though knowing the vue and knowing the snugride, I'm positive it fits fine. As to if the person can get the UAS belt to tighten enough for them is another story.. As we know just because we know it can be done doesn't mean it's easy for a parent to do without hands on instruction.

But you're right - just because it's compatible with UAS in the Vue, doesn't mean it has to be used. I agree that if it's causing problems than a seatbelt install may be easier.

I think there's nothing easy at all about their ez-latch connectors when it comes to removal, but I've honestly never encountered a vehicle that I couldn't install the Snugride with LATCH in. Maybe I've just been lucky. :shrug-shoulders:


Give it time? ;)


It's not that I can or can't do it. Sure I can probably do it. Heck I get a kick out of trying. But it's not about me. It's more about can mom and dad do it once they leave? A seatbelt install, in lots (but not all) cases tend to be easier because of the style of connectors Graco continues to use. :twocents: