Graco Nautilus install question...

Unregistered · Oct 13, 2008

I just purchased the Nautilus for our son who turned 1yo last week. We're going for his one year visit to the doctor tomorrow and will know for sure that he is ready (size wise), but we're pretty sure that he's well over the 20lb benchmark.

The question that I have concerns what I have seen in some of the reviews here on these forums by other owners. I noticed that most of the people posting photos have the sliding seat belt latch plate like us. The owner's manual indicates that this type of seat belt requires that you use the lock plate that comes stored on the back of the seat to prevent sliding of the lap belt. However, none of the pictures posted by others with the sliding latch plate shows the lock plate in use. Is this just because those posting the reviews were just trying to get quick pictures up without going to the trouble or can the sliding latch plate seat belts be used without the lock plate? I'm confused.

Can anyone help me with this?

Thanks!

LISmama810 · Oct 13, 2008

If your car is 1996 or newer, it has seatbelts that lock in some way. Yours likely lock at the retractor. Pull the seatbelt all the way out slowly, then start letting it back in. You should hear a ratcheting sound and you shouldn't be able to pull any more belt out. That kind of seatbelt is perfectly fine to use to install the Nautilus.

That said, we would not recommend that seat for your child. Turning children forward-facing at one year and 20 pounds is the bare minimum. It's really best to keep them rear-facing for as long as possible. I like to recommend at least 2 years and 30 pounds. Children are 4-5 times safer rear-facing because the RF seat takes the brunt of crash forces, rather than a young child's large head and immature skeleton. I'm sure someone will be along soon to post links.

What seat is your son in now? If you're interested in keeping him RF, we can recommend some seats that will let you do that for a long time if his current seat isn't sufficient.

NannyMom · Oct 13, 2008

Hi, welcome to the board!

What seat are you currently using? How much does he weigh? I would highly reccomend waiting on the Nautilus until he's older.

The AAP reccomends rearfacing as long as possible. One year and 20 pounds is the minimum for forward facing, but children are 5 times safer if they continue to rear face until they reach the uper weight limits. Most convertible carseats will rear face until 35 pounds, some are 33, and some are 30.

A young child's head is so big compared to the rest of their body and the neck bones are not fully formed and strong enough to support the weight in a crash.

My daughter just turned 2 and is still rear facing. She's only 24 pounds so I plan to keep her rear facing for a long time.

Maedze · Oct 13, 2008

Hi!

I just wanted to 'third' the other posters. That seat is a great seat (I have it for my four year old!), but it's not really appropriate for a baby your son's age. He should still be in a rear facing convertible. It's so much safer to have him rear facing. Five times safer actually!

Like the other poster said, you only have to use a locking clip if your car is older than 1997. For new cars you can 'lock' it by pulling the belt all the way out and then letting it click back in.

Nisha · Oct 13, 2008

If you're interested in some "why to rear face" information, this is a great read
http://www.carseat.org/Resources/633.pdf

Defrost · Oct 13, 2008

Good for you for reading your manual! :thumbsup: Using the carseat properly is vital to keeping your child safe.

The part about when to use a locking clip is pretty confusing in some manuals. You have to read it super-carefully to figure it out! They usually just say something like "...unless the vehicle has other means of locking the seat belt," without detailing what that might mean, and if you've never had a car with a locking retractor, you wouldn't realize that's what they're talking about.

As LISmama said, some older vehicles have sliding latchplates, and there's no way to lock the seat belt. But newer vehicles have sliding latchplates that look just like the older ones, but they lock "at the retractor," as was described.

Those are the kind of seat belts you're seeing in the pictures - the seat belt is locked at the retractor instead of at the latchplate, so a locking clip isn't needed.

Also, as has already been stated, rear-facing for as long as possible provides a substantial amount of protection. Most parents aren't aware of this yet, because it takes time for new info to get around, so we always like to spread the word as much as possible. We know that most parents who take the time and effort to post a question are trying to keep their child as safe as possible, and we want to help in any way we can.

azgirl71 · Oct 14, 2008

Everyone has pretty much covered everything as far as the seatbelt and how to lock it. They have also mentioned that 1 yo and 20 lbs is just a minimum. It is not against the law to RF past that. My DD is going on 3 yo ad it was not until recently that I allowed her to ride FF at all. She still primarily rides RF. Here is a link to a thread on here that a Grandfather wrote. His Grandson was injured FF at 18 months old. You may want to reconsider turning him after reading this story. http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?p=582238

crunchierthanthou · Oct 14, 2008

Everyone has pretty much covered why you don't need a locking clip. I just want to show you where to find that info on your own.

I think I know the section of the Nautilus manual that you're talking about.

• Combination Lap/Shoulder Belt with
Sliding Latch PlateThis belt has a
latchplate that slides freely along the belt.
• This belt MUST be converted to prevent
movement of the lap portion of the belt. You
must use the locking clip provided with the
child restraint, unless your vehicle's seat
belt can be converted in another way as
described in your vehicle owner's manual.

note the unless.

meaning, you only need a locking clip with an emergency locking lap/shoulder belt without a locking latchplate or switchable locking retractor.

SPJ&E · Oct 14, 2008

I don't think anyone else mentioned it, but just a quick note to the original poster...you have to register before you can reply!

crunchierthanthou · Oct 14, 2008

SamPacey&Joshua said:
I don't think anyone else mentioned it, but just a quick note to the original poster...you have to register before you can reply!

not any more. Admin changed it so that unregistered users can now reply to threads in the main forums. Their posts just have to go through the moderation queue.

Jeanum · Oct 14, 2008

Admin changed it a while ago so unregistered posters could reply within threads as well as start new threads on the main Q&A sections of the forum. It was a bit of an unintended glitch before that required registration to continue posting to a thread, and that glitch has been fixed to foster easier followup communication within threads. That said, we'd love to have newcomers register and become active participants here, the more the merrier.

S1C EM · Oct 14, 2008

Hi all! I'm the original poster!

Thought it might help to register to make things easier. Here are the vitals: Our son (as officially measured at his 1 year doctor appointment today) is 30 1/2in. and 21lbs, 10oz. The vehicle in question is a 2006 Ford Freestyle.

I guess to be clear, it's the buckle tongue that is free-sliding. Also, and I will test this again tonight and let you all know, I recall last night that once I pulled the belt out and then let it retract, I was still able to pull it back out further from that position with \out it locking. The manual seems to be keying its instructions for use of the locking plate on whether or not the buckle tongue slides, which it does. It instructs you to place the lock plate just behind the buckle tongue in this instance to prevent the lap belt from drawing out further.

We have two other problems so far: One, I tried securing the seat in our car last night and had trouble both with and without the lock plate. Once I fasten the belt and tighten it from the top while pushing the seat down in the car seat, I find that the child seat will still come forward and move side-to-side well more than an inch by just barely pulling it in any direction. It fits the car seat contour GREAT! I just don't understand why I'm not able to get it to 'lock' into place more securely.

The second issue pertains to rear-facing seats. The issue we have right now with his car seat which is rear facing is that he has gotten too long. He pushes his feet against the seat back and manages to work the car seat out of position by doing this which is not safe. That said, are there any rear-facing seats that any of you have had luck with with a longer/taller child?

I'll check out the links posted once I get home and have some more time, but I'll leave you with this for now!

Thank you all!

S1C EM · Oct 14, 2008

LISmama810 said:
If you're interested in keeping him RF, we can recommend some seats that will let you do that for a long time if his current seat isn't sufficient.

This would be great! Can you please recommend some that will be both SAFE (MOST important) and have a long use life? Ideas about where to buy would be good also.

SPJ&E · Oct 14, 2008

Well that's good to know! I was gone for several months, so I had no idea.

S1C EM · Oct 14, 2008

LISmama810 said:
If your car is 1996 or newer, it has seatbelts that lock in some way. Yours likely lock at the retractor. Pull the seatbelt all the way out slowly, then start letting it back in. You should hear a ratcheting sound and you shouldn't be able to pull any more belt out. That kind of seatbelt is perfectly fine to use to install the Nautilus.

I took a video tonight showing/explaining the problem that I was having with our car seat. If you're interested, you can see the problem in action here: http://s73.photobucket.com/albums/i226/S1CEM/?action=view&current=MOV00286.flv

I'm now considering returning the seat I just bought (never used) and getting the Britax Decathlon to keep my son rear-facing based on everyone's advice here. Still, the issue I was having with the belt may be one that must be addressed with any seat, so do check out the video and let me know if you have any ideas. THANKS!

Kat_Momof3 · Oct 15, 2008

to lock the belt (only doable on the rear seating positions and the passenger seat... drivers seat will be an ELR only) you need to pull the seatbelt out ALL the way (not just enough to buckle it) then let it retract SLOWLY... you will hear a ratcheting sound as it locks.

the key to getting a tight fit with the Nautilus would then be to pull up the cover on the sides and reach in through the hole of the beltpath by the buckle with one hand and pull all the slack out of the lap portion while pushing your knee into the seat... then feed the slack into your other hand and back into the retractor.

after that, you climb out and test the seat ONLY at the beltpath and if it doesn't wiggle more than 1" in any direction, then you're good to go and you can connect the top tether and tighten it.

S1C EM · Oct 15, 2008

Kat_Momof3 said:
to lock the belt (only doable on the rear seating positions and the passenger seat... drivers seat will be an ELR only) you need to pull the seatbelt out ALL the way (not just enough to buckle it) then let it retract SLOWLY... you will hear a ratcheting sound as it locks...

There ya go! That's what I was looking for! Should have thought to try that! I haven't been where I could get to the manual to see those directions (cleaned the car out the other day and left the manual at the in-laws'), so this information was a BIG help! It answered one question at least. Unfortunately, I'm returning the seat this afternoon and will be purchasing a Britax Decathlon to replace it. What's everyone's thoughts on that seat? I noticed that it states it has a built in belt-locking system. How does this work?

Again, thanks for the help! :thumbsup:

BookMama · Oct 15, 2008

S1C EM said:
Unfortunately, I'm returning the seat this afternoon and will be purchasing a Britax Decathlon to replace it. What's everyone's thoughts on that seat? I noticed that it states it has a built in belt-locking system. How does this work?

Again, thanks for the help! :thumbsup:

Personally, I would recommend a Marathon or Boulevard instead. The Decathlon is notorious for problems with tightening the harness RF, and Britax has replaced many seats (including mine) because of that problem. The only real benefit over the Marathon is the infant insert, which you probably won't want to use anyway. And the LATCH on the Marathon is nicer, too. On the DC, it's one long strap with a LATCH hook on each end. On the MA, there are separate straps for each LATCH hook, which I personally find makes it much easier to adjust.

The lockoffs basically take the place of a locking clip (which we now know you don't need). They can also be used with a RF seat to prevent tipping, although I can usually install the seat without tipping. Check out this site for a great primer on how/when to use a locking clip. Alternatively, installing a RF seat with LATCH will also prevent the tipping, because the belt isn't pulling up on the belt path like it would be with a lap/shoulder belt.

S1C EM · Oct 15, 2008

BookMama said:
Personally, I would recommend a Marathon or Boulevard instead. The Decathlon is notorious for problems with tightening the harness RF, and Britax has replaced many seats (including mine) because of that problem. The only real benefit over the Marathon is the infant insert, which you probably won't want to use anyway. And the LATCH on the Marathon is nicer, too. On the DC, it's one long strap with a LATCH hook on each end. On the MA, there are separate straps for each LATCH hook, which I personally find makes it much easier to adjust.

Alternatively, installing a RF seat with LATCH will also prevent the tipping, because the belt isn't pulling up on the belt path like it would be with a lap/shoulder belt.

Good to know. I will look into this. Do you have a preference between the MA and the Blvd?

Also, while my vehicle has the LATCH anchor points in the seat, there is not a ceiling/roof anchor in the vehicle. I'm guessing this is because of my third row seats, but not sure. Just no way to anchor the headrest latch with some of these seats. When you mention tipping, are you referring to the seat tipping downward due to the belt pulling on the headrest area of the seat?

BookMama · Oct 15, 2008

S1C EM said:
Good to know. I will look into this. Do you have a preference between the MA and the Blvd?

Also, while my vehicle has the LATCH anchor points in the seat, there is not a ceiling/roof anchor in the vehicle. I'm guessing this is because of my third row seats, but not sure. Just no way to anchor the headrest latch with some of these seats. When you mention tipping, are you referring to the seat tipping downward due to the belt pulling on the headrest area of the seat?

If your seat has lower anchors, then it MUST have top tether anchors. (Convertible cars are the only exception to this rule.) Double-check your vehicle manual to see where the top anchors are located. You won't need these for RF anyway. You should also double-check your vehicle to see whether you're allowed to use LATCH in the middle. (Unless, of course, your vehicle has three full sets of LATCH anchors, in which case you can definitely use LATCH in the middle.) Most Ford vehicles allow you to use LATCH in the center, but I think there are a couple of newer Fords that don't allow it. I don't remember which ones.

By "tipping" I mean that the side of the car seat that's farthest from the buckle will sometimes tip up when installing a RF seat with a lap/shoulder belt. This is because the shoulder portion of the seat belt pulls up on the belt path. The link I provided above has a pretty good explanation along with pictures to illustrate the problem. Personally, I'm able to install without having a tipping problem by pulling right above the latchplate to tighten, rather than pulling near the top of the shoulder belt.

I don't have a personal preference for the MA or the BLVD. (Well, I guess I do, because I chose a MA over a BLVD.

) Some prefer the BLVD because of the extra SIP provided by the "wings." Both are excellent seats and I think you would be happy with either one.

Graco Nautilus install question...

Unregistered

Guest

Admin - CPS Technician

Well-known member

New member

New member

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus

CPST Instructor

New member

New member

New member

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus

New member

New member

New member

New member

New member

New member

Senior Community Member

New member

Senior Community Member

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Sponsors

Forum statistics