What's safer: LATCH on side or belt in middle?

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sarah

Guest
What's safer: LATCH on side or belt in middle?

In our 2002 Subaru Outback, I have my 4 month old daughter in a Graco Snugride (made before LATCH was standard) in the middle, using the top tether belt. With normal use, the seat base loosens itself often enough to bother and worry us, and my husband and I dread the regular readjustment we have to do because it's just so tiring, usually when my daughter is starting to get fussy on the way somewhere! We've visited the local official seat station and had it adjusted twice, and they said it's just bound to happen with taking her in and out.

We're going to grin and bear it till she outgrows this seat and we put her in a covertible; what we're trying to decide is where to place that next seat. Our Outback does have tethers, but only on the two outer seats: is it safer to use LATCH and put the seat on the left or right, to insure the tightest fit, or to forgo LATCH and use the seat belt in the middle in case of a side crash? I have read about using the two outer tethers to jerry-rig putting the seat in the middle, but have also read that that's not recommended. I want to do what's safest for my baby, and seeing how loose the seat can get in the middle using the belt is unnerving.

Thanks for any help you can provide, and happy holidays!

Sarah
 
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C

Caviller

Guest
Lots of ideas!

First, the seatbelt in the middle should lock tightly and not loosen over time in theory. Some seatbelt systems don't work as good as others, but the problem is often the way the adjuster rests against the carseat.

Sometimes, the cinching latchplate happens to be going into the routing path of the carseat at an angle. Since it only cinches when the belts are coming out flat on both sides, that is why they may loosen. In these cases, many times all that is needed is to flip the latchplate upside down before you click the buckle into it.

On other seatbelts with a shoulder belt, you need to pull the shoulder belt all the way out to cause it to lock as the belt is fed back into it. This is how the middle belt works in our 2000 Outback wagon, though the 2002 could be different.

If neither of these suggestions locks in your carseat well enough, you may also use a locking clip. Please also see this helpful site for more details on locking seatbelt systems and clips:

www.geocities.com/carseat...gclips.htm


Second, can you please describe your top tether? Infant carriers usually do not include a top-tether, and these should not be used rear-facing unless specified in the manual.


Third, the choice of LATCH on the outside vs. seatbelt on the inside is up to you. Both are safe as long as the carseat is installed properly. If you cannot get a solid, reliable installation in the center with the seatbelts, it would be better to use the outside with LATCH. If you can get a good installation in the center that doesn't loosen all the time, then the center is probably somewhat safer. The Outback does get very good side impact crash ratings, and rear-facing convertible seats do offer relatively good protection from side impacts. That may comfort you a little more if you are concerned about the outside position. For what it is worth, both of our kids ride outboard in both of our vehicles. This is mostly for convenience and to keep them apart, as it would probably be slightly safer to have one of them in the middle.


You may even be able to use LATCH in the center of some vehicles. If your vehicle owner's manual says you can do this, and your carseat owner's manual doesn't prohibit this, then follow the instructions in your vehicle owner's manual. Similarly, if the carseat manual allows this and your vehicle owner's manual does not prohibit it, then you may follow the instructions in the carseat owner's manual to do this. You are out of luck if neither manual permits this, or if either one says NOT to do it at all:-(

I hope that helps and wasn't so confusing to read. Please ask again for a clarification! One final suggestion is to try a different local seat station if there is another one, and maybe even ask for a senior checker or instructor. While all technicians have the same basic training, some have a lot more experience than others and also attend regular update classes and seminars. Some also do a better job teaching you how to do it, rather than just installing it for you:)

Have a safe new year!

Darren
 
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sarah

Guest
More about the top tether belt

THANKS for the very fast reply! The top tether seatbelt forms a three-point harness. It comes from the right side of the ceiling of the car above the cargo area, diagonally down and across the seat base, and buckles into the receptacle on the left side of the seat. The other end of the belt crosses back across the car seat base and is fixed along the base of the rear seat on the right side of center. A locking clip would have no place in this arrangement.

According to both the car seat and car manuals, as well as our checker, this is the safest belt to use. (But this arrangement is another reason that it's annoying to have the seat in the center: both outer seats' buckles are used, meaning that any adult passenger in the back seat must do without a seatbelt!) It's very snug and tight right after we re-install it, but with every time we lift and place the seat in the base, it gets more and more lateral play (but no back-and-forth play), especially along the axis of the diagonal portion, the part that comes down from the top. Re-installing it takes a lot of effort. But I don't want to be one of those 80% of people who have their car seat installed incorrectly.

From our experience, I was very hot to use LATCH, and disappointed that the safest course would be to continue placing the seat in the middle. From what you right, LATCH and outer might be almost as safe as a less-than-perfect fit in the center, is that right? Which side is safer to put a rear-facing convertible on, and should we switch it after she turns 1 and 20 lbs and we turn it around?

I don't know what convertible seat we'll end up getting (probably a Britax, since we've been reading good things about them), but when we do, I will read the manual to see if it's okay to cheat and put the seat in the middle and use the outer tethers of the outboard seats.

Thanks again!

Sarah
 
C

Caviller

Guest
Re: More about the top tether belt

Oh! Usually we use the term "top tether" to refer to a strap on the top of many convertible and front facing carseats. Most infant seats do not have them. Sorry for the confusion:)

Your center seatbelt sounds like the one in our 2000 Outback Wagon. The retractor mechanism is anchored in the ceiling, and the shoulder portion clicks into the latchplate that comes out of the seat. Ours does switch into locking mode if you pull the shoulder section all the way out. If you can pull more shoulder belt out of the retractor in the ceiling, yours is not locked. The only real problem for carseats with our center position is that the center seatbelt stalk and buckle are very narrow, even narrower than some carseats. That may be part of the problem, too. Our Outback does have a full set of buckles for all three positions, though. You might want to search again and check the manual to make sure you are using the right one. We have occasionally had 2 carseats and a passenger in a seatbelt in the center. Very cramped, but all had a seatbelt:)

With correct use of the carseat, any spot in back is safe. We do try the center spot first, of course, because it is a bit farther from a side impact. On the other hand, it is more important to have a good fit than to have a carseat in the center. If yours will not install well in the center, it is better to put it outside, with LATCH or seatbelt.

It doesn't matter much which side you put the seat on. For one carseat, I prefer the passenger side though the differences are very small. It's easier to load and unload on the curbside on a busy street. The risk of a side impact is also very, very slightly lower on the passenger side. Plus, the passenger seat in front is less likely to be occupied, and less likely to collapse backward if the seat back fails in a serious rear-end crash (these are pretty rare). Rear-facing IS definitely safer as long as you can go! Also see our page on rear-facing:

www.car-safety.org/rearface.html

Our daughter is 28 months and almost 30 pounds, and is just about to be turned front-facing in our minivan now:) Granted, we turned her front facing in our wagon a long time ago because it was cramped and she didn't like it. It wasn't a safety problem, just a crying problem:)

Most convertible models should fit well, though wider ones may be tricky in the center spot again. Make sure to get a good return policy no matter what you buy! I do own a Britax Roundabout, but there are many other good brands and models. I'm not sure if any carseats allow you to "cheat" with the center LATCH spot. I heard Britax might allow this with some models, but haven't yet seen a manual that says you can do this.

Good luck!

Darren
 
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sarah

Guest
Thanks for your help!

So sorry it took a week to respond -- I just wanted to really thank you for your comprehensive advice. Very much appreciated!

Sarah
 

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