Would you call it quits??

love-pink · Mar 23, 2012

I've been searching for hbb's for my middle two kids (6 & 7 yrs old, just above 17 inch torsos, 55ish lbs). Right now they are out board in Literiders (pic in siggy). They are both comfy and content, can easily buckle them selves. Both have very nice belt placement.

I just can't get it out of my head that I want them hbb's. I've tried a few different hbb's only to have them not puzzle with the FR in the center, not fit at all, the headrest rubbing on the side panel of the car or not lie flat against the vehicle seat because of the fixed angled headrests.

I'm pretty sure my only option to get them into hbb's would be to swap out the FR

I really really like how the FR fits there and how easy it is to get dd in/out because of its low profile and I can put the straps around the armrests to keep them out of the way. So quick in simple so I dont have my oldest daughter waiting 10 minutes to get into the car.

So I guess I'm wondering what y'all would do if you were in my shoes.

Would you call it quits and leave the setup how it is and feel just fine with the 6 & 7 yr olds in lbb's?

Would you get rid of the FR and put up with a slimmer but more time consuming and annoying seat so you could fit in two hbb's?

The only seat hbb's I feel fit the car well was the Big Kid DX and the PWSG. The bk has no foam and next to nothing for headwings and that bothers me alot. If I have a hbb I want nice supportive wings

The pw does not sit flush with the vehicle seat because of the fixed headrests. I'm going to call Britax tomorrow and see what they suggest but I'm guessing it will not be okay :/

I guess I also feel guilty about my youngest dd in a expensive Britax with all the bells in whistles while my middle two ride in the bare bones Literiders.

The first pic my ds is moving around for the picture. Dd is sitting up a tad but pretty normal. The second pic shows ds normal fit.

HaileysMommy · Mar 23, 2012

Personally I'd get rid of the FR and get them in hbb's. I realize that if the belts fit good they are "safe" but just too young for me to be comfortable with them in lbb's fulltime.

Qarin · Mar 23, 2012

Maybe I missed the discussion, but why is your youngest forward-facing? She looks so small!

Carrie_R · Mar 23, 2012

To echo what Qarin said... If you swap the FR out for a RF seat - pretty much anything but a TF - you'll gain a ton of room for boosters and make a huge step up in safety for ALL of your kids.

hrice · Mar 23, 2012

I agree the youngest should be RF. plus, that will free up room for HBBs. Do you already own convertible seats? I would try parkways or Vivos for the 6 & 7 year olds.

joolsplus3 · Mar 23, 2012

http://carseatblog.com/8243/to-backless-or-not-to-backless-that-is-the-question/

"This study reconfirms previous reports that BPB seats reduce the risk for injury in children 4 through 8 years of age by studying a greater percentage of children aged 6 to 8 years than previous studies. After adjustment for potential confounders, children who were aged 4 to 8 and using BPB seats were 45% less likely to sustain injuries than similarly aged children who were using the vehicle seat belt. Among children who were restrained in BPB seats, there was no evidence of a difference in the performance of backless versus high-back boosters."
The car has curtain airbags, no? And yeah, 2 is kind of early to ff, but statistically there, too, the danger is in side impacts, which a Frontier in the middle will certainly protect against that.
A nice RF Radian and a couple of Parkways would also be nifty...

MommyShannon · Mar 23, 2012

I've sat beside my 6 yo in a no back and she didn't stay positioned nearly as well as a hbb. She would be leaning one way or the other for support. I'd rather a hbb with small headwings than a nbb, but I'd get rid of the FR too since your youngest could fit just about any seat and the FR is huge.

love-pink · Mar 23, 2012

My kids sit very very well in the lbb's, in hbb's they actually tend to lean forward alot to talk to each other.

Dd2 is ffing. That's not the question here. I flipped her full time about 4 weeks ago and it's what works best for our family. She's 2 1/2 and 33 lbs fully clothed. My goal was 2, then to get through winter this year and be at least 30lbs.

Little Ps Mama · Mar 23, 2012

Carrie_R said:
To echo what Qarin said... If you swap the FR out for a RF seat - pretty much anything but a TF - you'll gain a ton of room for boosters and make a huge step up in safety for ALL of your kids.

This is what I would do.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org

krystin_21a · Mar 23, 2012

If they sit better in lbb then in hbb, then I think you should leave them. I'm not a tech so take my opinion for what its worth, but, as a mother, I'm going with lbb if they sit better.

mominabigtruck · Mar 23, 2012

I agree that the fr is overkill for a smallish 2yo. Something like a radian or secure kid would work just as well and take up way less room. I have several large britax seats but my kids are ginormous, I can't imagine wanting to deal with the beast if I didn't have to.

I wouldn't worry about hbb vs lbb for kids that age though if they sit well and are in a relatively safe vehicle. Ds2 has been in a lbb in gma's van for quite some time because he sits in the middle with side curtain air bags and really there are very few hbb he fits in without me shelling out some serious cash.
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love-pink · Mar 23, 2012

And yes side airbags

Ladyl · Mar 23, 2012

love-pink said:
My kids sit very very well in the lbb's, in hbb's they actually tend to lean forward alot to talk to each other.

This is going to come across as nitpicky, but I'm really just curious. If this the case don't they lean forward to talk to each other with the Fronteir between them?

emandbri · Mar 23, 2012

You said you had a radian in another thread, I would put the 2 year old in, and turbos for the older kids.

I would not feel comfortable with that set up, my 8 year old has only been in a low back booster a handful of times.

hrice · Mar 23, 2012

Anyone who posts here with a FF 2 year old gets asked the same questions. Our passion, as is yours, is child passenger safety.

love-pink · Mar 23, 2012

They do not lean coward in the lbb's as nearly as much as with the hbb. I sold the rxt. It was hard to install and get the tt tight enough with my fixed headrests.

The only hbb that is remotely close to having good contact with the seat back is the big kid booster. That offers pretty much no wing at all. If its the big kid vs the Literider I don't really see a difference. I would be using it basically for the top belt guide. My kids fit great with my vehicles belt guide using the Literider.

Louisa · Mar 23, 2012

It sounds like you've already settled on what you're going to do. So why ask for opinions? If you are comfortable with your set up, go for it. If not there have been several great sugestions

ETA: Asking what we would do opens the door for personal opinions, not just Tech thought on the safety of the current setup. Mine would differ.

luckyclov · Mar 23, 2012

"Respect differences in attitude, behaviors, and the needs of each caregiver.".

Forward-facing/rear-facing/whatever, I really think you need to boot the FR85. The back is just too substantial for a 3-across like yours, I think. If BK (big kid) and MK (middle kid) ride properly in NBBs, then keep those. Just work on finding something a little slimmer for the center. Complete Air? Or what about a Britax convertible, since it sits up higher?

MommyShannon · Mar 23, 2012

Does anything work with the FR outboard if you don't like your setup now? I wouldn't move them too hbb either if they sit worse in them.

christineka · Mar 23, 2012

How do they sleep in the car? Or do they? Do you want them to sleep sometime? My oldest rode in a hbb till she was 12. She used to sleep in the car. Since she moved to the backless booster, she gets drowsy, but does not really sleep because there's no support.

I like my kids to sleep sometimes and so I would change the frontier to something thinner and find high back boosters to work.

Would you call it quits??

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