Help! 10 year old too big for a booster but doesn't 5 step

Unregistered · Sep 21, 2014

Hi all!

I have two giant kids that ride dodge caravan. My 6 year old son is 4'7 and 75lbs and in an evenflo amp backless booster. My 10 year old daughter is 5'3 and approx 125lbs and has been out of a booster for years. I live in British Columbia, Canada where the law to be out of a booster is 9 years old or 4'9 so up until today that's what I went by until I found out about the 5 step test. I read that by 4'9 most kids should pass this test, but after looking at my 10 year old in the car I realized that she does not pass all the steps. Her lap belt fit is my biggest concern, it seems to be higher up on her abdomen than it should be. She is far too big to sit in a booster seat but I am told that the way the belt sits on her is unsafe. What do I do in this situation? Help!!

1mommy · Sep 21, 2014

You should try the incognito, it's specifically designed for bigger kids who don't 5 step.

http://safety1st.djgusa.com/en/djgusa/incognito-kid-positioning-seat---black-bc093blk

Baylor · Sep 21, 2014

Unregistered said:
Hi all!

I have two giant kids that ride dodge caravan. My 6 year old son is 4'7 and 75lbs and in an evenflo amp backless booster. My 10 year old daughter is 5'3 and approx 125lbs and has been out of a booster for years. I live in British Columbia, Canada where the law to be out of a booster is 9 years old or 4'9 so up until today that's what I went by until I found out about the 5 step test. I read that by 4'9 most kids should pass this test, but after looking at my 10 year old in the car I realized that she does not pass all the steps. Her lap belt fit is my biggest concern, it seems to be higher up on her abdomen than it should be. She is far too big to sit in a booster seat but I am told that the way the belt sits on her is unsafe. What do I do in this situation? Help!!

Move her around the car. I found for me in my caravan my 10 yr old only 5 steps behind the driver. Everywhere else he needed a booster. So I put the 6 year old in the monterey and then the 10 yr old there.

He 5 steps in every other car he rides in except that one car.

bubbaray · Sep 21, 2014

My 10yo, who is under 4'6", 5 steps in my RAV4, definitely not in DHs truck. She still uses boosters in both cars. She has been asking to stop in my car, but there was a big thing on Global the other night about how parents move kids out of boosters too soon.

My 7 yo DD2 also 5 steps in my RAV 4, she is almost the same height as DD1.

I thought the incognito wasn't sold in Canada? Hope I'm wrong. I was actually considering it for my DD.

tiggercat · Sep 21, 2014

The incognito is not (yet?) available in Canada.
Can we see a picture of the belt fit? What year is your Caravan?

ETA, my kids 5 stepped first in the capt chairs, but by that size i know my eldest fit nicely in in the 3rd row as well...

bubbaray · Sep 21, 2014

Here is the segment that ran on Global. I'm not sure I agree with what they said was the criteria (80lbs)

http://globalnews.ca/video/1574071/booster-seats-too-soon

1mommy · Sep 21, 2014

Looks like the incognito is not available in Canada yet, sorry. I googled incognito and canada and the safety first page I linked said "English - Canada" so I thought it was available there but turns out that's just a language option

Keeanh · Sep 21, 2014

Could you post a picture of the lap fit? Feel with your fingers to see where the tops of her hip bones are and if they're above the belt. I agree that another seating position might work better.

I'm in Canada and have a couple Incognitos

. Since they're for 10 & 12yos, it's not illegal as far as I can tell (at least from reading BC law).

kaitlyn · Sep 21, 2014

I agree, a photo of the lap belt fit would be great. If it is indeed too high and isn't fixed by sitting in another seating position in the van then a backless booster may be needed. It's true though that at that height it's likely that she does 5 step, just maybe not in that spot. Any chance it's a newer Caravan and she's in the third row outboard? Those seat belts are notorious for bad fits on just about everyone.

Adventuredad · Sep 22, 2014

Use a low back booster. A LBB is very likely safer than a HBB for kids older than 6-7 years according to research by Jacobsson. This is especially true for big kids like yours. This mainly has to do with the unfortuatne larger size of todays seats.

A LBB is just as safe as a HBB, see peer reviewed research by Arbogast. Side impact protection in a FF is worthless and it doesn't matter if a harnessed seat, HBB or LBB is used. At impact your child's head is already far forward and has no protection due to forward momentum and pre-impacdt braking. Size of head wings etc is of no relevance. Larger head wings just lead to your child keeping the head in a more forward position.

tiggercat · Sep 22, 2014

The trouble with using a backless in the 3rd row of a Caravan is that the head restraints back there aren't tall enough to give adequate head support to a child that tall. My 9yo is now too tall to ride in a backless in my 3rd row because her ears are above the top of the head restraints, but she doesn't 5 step there. I think she is 55in, so 4ft 7? She does barely 5 step in the capt chairs, but rides in a hbb still as the belt fit is slightly better and she's not quite in puberty yet.

aept · Sep 22, 2014

tiggercat said:
The trouble with using a backless in the 3rd row of a Caravan is that the head restraints back there aren't tall enough to give adequate head support to a child that tall. My 9yo is now too tall to ride in a backless in my 3rd row because her ears are above the top of the head restraints, but she doesn't 5 step there. I think she is 55in, so 4ft 7? She does barely 5 step in the capt chairs, but rides in a hbb still as the belt fit is slightly better and she's not quite in puberty yet.

Yes, this.
Plus a HBB in the third row can help bring the child's torso forward to actually be in contact with the shoulder belt. Otherwise it the shoulder belt hovers in space in front of the child in a nbb. I barely 5-step back there and I'm 5'6" and nearly 150 lbs.

tiggercat · Sep 22, 2014

aept said:
Yes, this.
Plus a HBB in the third row can help bring the child's torso forward to actually be in contact with the shoulder belt. Otherwise it the shoulder belt hovers in space in front of the child in a nbb. I barely 5-step back there and I'm 5'6" and nearly 150 lbs.

Do hbb fit back there fully extended in newer Caravans? In mine, the parkway hits the roof on the setting M needs. She gets so annoyed that I won't let her sit in the back but there isn't really a safe way to do it...

aept · Sep 23, 2014

tiggercat said:
Do hbb fit back there fully extended in newer Caravans? In mine, the parkway hits the roof on the setting M needs. She gets so annoyed that I won't let her sit in the back but there isn't really a safe way to do it...

The Vivo fits at its tallest setting with room to spare (in a 2010 grand caravan.)
I can't remember if the parkway can go all the way up. I haven't used it back there in a while and I'm currently using it backless for my 8 year old in the captain's chair. He still fits in it with the HBB height-wise but I think the lap belt fit is better and he seems more comfortable backless. With the back off he's got better leg support and with the back he was looking "crammed in" at the shoulders.
Also I found the parkway (ours has a 2010 date of manufacture) had trouble with the third row outboard shoulder belts hanging up in the belt guide. I generally only used it in the middle of the third row.

bubbaray · Sep 23, 2014

No Recaro seats in Canada. Unless that is a new
Thing.

tiggercat · Sep 23, 2014

bubbaray said:
No Recaro seats in Canada. Unless that is a new
Thing.

No recaro as of yet, though I hear that they are coming.

aept · Sep 23, 2014

Sorry for the confusion. I wasn't trying to recommend a Recaro vivo, just attempting to explain how much head room there was in my van. The Vivo is discontinued anyhow.

Help! 10 year old too big for a booster but doesn't 5 step

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