albiracer
06-18-2009, 01:44 PM
As I work toward switching my Britax Marathons to a forward-facing position in my Volvo wagons, I appear to be encountering a problem that many others have faced before. First the basic facts. We've got:
2 (twin) boys turning three very shortly
2 Britax Marathons, both to be mounted outboard (via LATCH) in the backseats of
2 Volvo wagons, both of them 2002, one a V70 and the other an XC70
The boys have hit about 32 pounds, so it's time (for this generation of Marathon) to finally flip them to forward-facing. I've just now headed out to flip them around and am now encountering what seems to be a fairly frequent complaint with the Volvo seats and FF car seats. The problem is that the rear headrests, which are neither detachable nor adjustable, impede the back of the Marathon from making contact with the car's seat back (or, at least it won't make contact for the entire length of the Marathon's back).
Thus, one has the choice of:
a) keep the base of the Marathon flat on the car's seat and have a gap between the back of the Marathon and the car's seat.
b) angle/shim the base in some fashion (with a towel, etc.), or maybe just cram it down and tighten, so that the back of the Marathon is flush with the car's seat.
I'm getting increasingly frustrated doing research online as many people seem to report this a potential problem, while others claim it works just fine. Indeed, the carseatdata.org database certainly shows a number of "successful" such installs...yet, there is, of course, no way to know if any of these were done properly! And, there is very little information as to what actually constitutes a "proper" install - including virtually nothing in the Marathon instructions. At least when you do a RF install you are instructed to keep the seat back at a 45 degree angle and so forth. With the FF install nothing in the Marathon manual tells you about a proper angle nor even if the back of the Marathon is supposed to be flush with the back of the car's seat.
So, this finally brings me to my questions:
1) Is the back of the car seat supposed to be flush with the car's seat?
2) Is it wrong to shim (with a towel, etc.) under the base of the Marathon (when FF) to get it level?
3) Is there some particular angle of position I should be aiming for when I have a child FF?
4) Any direct experience out there with outboard, FF, Britax Marathons in a 2001-2007 Volvo V70 and/or XC70 wagon?
Many Thanks!
Ben
2 (twin) boys turning three very shortly
2 Britax Marathons, both to be mounted outboard (via LATCH) in the backseats of
2 Volvo wagons, both of them 2002, one a V70 and the other an XC70
The boys have hit about 32 pounds, so it's time (for this generation of Marathon) to finally flip them to forward-facing. I've just now headed out to flip them around and am now encountering what seems to be a fairly frequent complaint with the Volvo seats and FF car seats. The problem is that the rear headrests, which are neither detachable nor adjustable, impede the back of the Marathon from making contact with the car's seat back (or, at least it won't make contact for the entire length of the Marathon's back).
Thus, one has the choice of:
a) keep the base of the Marathon flat on the car's seat and have a gap between the back of the Marathon and the car's seat.
b) angle/shim the base in some fashion (with a towel, etc.), or maybe just cram it down and tighten, so that the back of the Marathon is flush with the car's seat.
I'm getting increasingly frustrated doing research online as many people seem to report this a potential problem, while others claim it works just fine. Indeed, the carseatdata.org database certainly shows a number of "successful" such installs...yet, there is, of course, no way to know if any of these were done properly! And, there is very little information as to what actually constitutes a "proper" install - including virtually nothing in the Marathon instructions. At least when you do a RF install you are instructed to keep the seat back at a 45 degree angle and so forth. With the FF install nothing in the Marathon manual tells you about a proper angle nor even if the back of the Marathon is supposed to be flush with the back of the car's seat.
So, this finally brings me to my questions:
1) Is the back of the car seat supposed to be flush with the car's seat?
2) Is it wrong to shim (with a towel, etc.) under the base of the Marathon (when FF) to get it level?
3) Is there some particular angle of position I should be aiming for when I have a child FF?
4) Any direct experience out there with outboard, FF, Britax Marathons in a 2001-2007 Volvo V70 and/or XC70 wagon?
Many Thanks!
Ben