Question Which Toddler front facing car seat fits in Porsche 996 back seat?

Unregistered · Jun 1, 2009

Which forward facing toddler car seat fits in the back seat of a Porsche '03 996 convertible? My son is 1 1/2 years old, weighs 30 pounds and is 31 inches tall. I am looking a toddler car seat (not a booster car seat) that has worked for other 996 owners. I would appreciate knowing the brand name and the specific model name/number, please. The Porsche branded car seat is not an option since we are only going to use this car seat for a couple of months.

I have read the carseat.org forum about the Britax Monarch car seat fitting in the back seat of the 996. Unfortunately, the Britax Monarch car seat has been retired by Britax in 2008.

We are living abroad. We currently don't have access to our 996 to try various car seats in the back seat. I am heading back to the States to drive our car. My husband bought the car and I'm the one left researching this topic. Any help would be fantastic!

FYI...I found out from another forum, renntech.org, that the Recardo Vivo booster seat fits in the back seat. However, the booster seat is from older kids (+3 years) so my son is too young for this option based on the U.S. car seat safety regulations.

ketchupqueen · Jun 1, 2009

The Monarch and the Vivo are both belt positioning booster seats and not appropriate for a toddler.

At 1 1/2 years old and 30 lbs., your son would be 5 times safer rear-facing. I highly suggest you purchase a convertible with a 35 lb. (or higher-- there is now a 40 lb. rear-facing convertible on the US market) rear-facing limit and rear-face your son to the limits of the seat.

I know we have some folks who have put seats in Porsches before, hopefully they will see this thread and have more specific suggestions.

An Aurora · Jun 1, 2009

I know that one poster on here has had a Britax Marathon RF'ing in a Porsche

Maedze · Jun 1, 2009

As the other posters have said, neither a booster (you mentioned dedicated belt positioning boosters which are appropriate for MUCH older children), nor a forward facing harnessed seat, are appropriate for your child.

Your baby needs to remain in a rearfacing convertible for quite some time

SafeDad · Jun 1, 2009

Unregistered said:
Which forward facing toddler car seat fits in the back seat of a Porsche '03 996 convertible? My son is 1 1/2 years old, weighs 30 pounds and is 31 inches tall. I am looking a toddler car seat (not a booster car seat) that has worked for other 996 owners. I would appreciate knowing the brand name and the specific model name/number, please. The Porsche branded car seat is not an option since we are only going to use this car seat for a couple of months.

I have read the carseat.org forum about the Britax Monarch car seat fitting in the back seat of the 996. Unfortunately, the Britax Monarch car seat has been retired by Britax in 2008.

We are living abroad. We currently don't have access to our 996 to try various car seats in the back seat. I am heading back to the States to drive our car. My husband bought the car and I'm the one left researching this topic. Any help would be fantastic!

FYI...I found out from another forum, renntech.org, that the Recardo Vivo booster seat fits in the back seat. However, the booster seat is from older kids (+3 years) so my son is too young for this option based on the U.S. car seat safety regulations.

Aside from safety regulations, a booster is not appropriate for a toddler. Kids usually aren't mature enough to ride safely in a booster until around 4 years old. The injuries from incorrectly used or fitted seatbelts are horrendous.

You definitely want a child restraint with a 5-point harness. Rear-facing would be safer, but a properly installed and correctly used front-facing model would be apporpriate for an 18 month, 30 pound child as well.

SafeDad · Jun 1, 2009

ketchupqueen said:
At 1 1/2 years old and 30 lbs., your son would be 5 times safer rear-facing.

One of the major limitations of the single study on this topic from the USA is that it does not break down data to specific months or weights at all. According to the author, the conclusion applies only in general when comparing the entire sample population of kids 12-23 months old vs. 0-11 months old.

Other limitations of this study included low sample sizes, limitations on known crash specifics such as misuse and variability of performance and installation issues. Given these problems, it may be grossly misleading to state that an 18 month, 30 pound child would be 5 times safer rear-facing. The author stressed to me that the message to take home from this study is that rear-facing restraints are shown to be more effective than front-facing restraints at preventing injury, but the specific findings are not as important. For example, you might also conclude from this study that front-facing is less dangerous for 0-11 month olds than it is for 12-23 month olds.

wendytthomas · Jun 1, 2009

An Aurora said:
I know that one poster on here has had a Britax Marathon RF'ing in a Porsche

It was a Wizard we had in the back of my husband's 996. It wouldn't fit forward facing, and we got rid of the car before she turned forward.

I agree, I'd put him in rear facing, not forward. Safer, easier, he can see out the back window much better, and I just don't know what works forward. LOL Those bucket seats are a hassle. A Radian might, but I don't know.

Wendy

capeKO71 · Jun 1, 2009

Well - I agree with the rear facing seat - and a britax is probably your best bet with the base being pretty thin.

If you can't go that route, I believe the Recaro Young Sport will fit... we had it in the back of a mustang with severe bucket style seats - and in the back of a bmw with pretty deep bucket seats... and its not that tall of a seat in harness mode.

But - try the britax rear facing first.

SafeDad · Jun 1, 2009

Does the vehicle have LATCH and adequate head restraint? If so, the SafeGuard Go may be an option that should have a minimal impact on legroom.

mburks26 · Jun 1, 2009

I have no idea what the seats look like in the car you are tring to install in but our 2000 TransAm has bucket seats and locking latch plate belts. Graco Cargo fits. I wish I still had the pic of the seats in the car.

Unregistered · Jul 1, 2010

We just bought a 1999 911 C4 (996). I'm not sure if our backseat is the same as the later model 996s (2000-2004). However, our back seat is narrower at the very back and then "fans out" or gets wider the closer you get to the edge/front. Thus, at the very back we have about 12 inches and then it gets wider at the front.

We really struggled with which seat to buy and searched a number of different websites.

We ended up going to several stores (Target, Sam's Club, Walmart) and turning the sample booster seats upside down and simply measuring them. The seat we chose was the Harmony Lite Rider. It fits PERFECTLY and was only around $20.

The website (http://www.harmonyjuvenile.com/products/2009/backless/503785.php) indicates this booster seat is 17.75 inches wide. This is true. However, there are 2 important reasons why this "wide" seat fits perfectly into the narrow seat of the 911.

1) 17.75 is the absolute "widest" measurement taken at the top of the chair (i.e., from arm-to-arm), and
2) the bottom of the seat is slightly narrower than the top.

Anyway, anyone looking for a car seat or booster seat may be well-served to buy seats that are more "V-shaped" or "circular" vs. the standard square bases (which tend to be quite large). Good luck.

wendytthomas · Jul 1, 2010

Unregistered said:
We just bought a 1999 911 C4 (996). I'm not sure if our backseat is the same as the later model 996s (2000-2004). However, our back seat is narrower at the very back and then "fans out" or gets wider the closer you get to the edge/front. Thus, at the very back we have about 12 inches and then it gets wider at the front.

We really struggled with which seat to buy and searched a number of different websites.

We ended up going to several stores (Target, Sam's Club, Walmart) and turning the sample booster seats upside down and simply measuring them. The seat we chose was the Harmony Lite Rider. It fits PERFECTLY and was only around $20.

The website (http://www.harmonyjuvenile.com/products/2009/backless/503785.php) indicates this booster seat is 17.75 inches wide. This is true. However, there are 2 important reasons why this "wide" seat fits perfectly into the narrow seat of the 911.

1) 17.75 is the absolute "widest" measurement taken at the top of the chair (i.e., from arm-to-arm), and
2) the bottom of the seat is slightly narrower than the top.

Anyway, anyone looking for a car seat or booster seat may be well-served to buy seats that are more "V-shaped" or "circular" vs. the standard square bases (which tend to be quite large). Good luck.

Thank you, that's very interesting to know. Not many people try to put their booster age kids in the backseat of a 911 (that's five or six and above, a backless booster like you got is for kids about eight and older). They just put them in the front seat. So thank you for finding something that works for older kids in the back! Great information for people to come and find.

The OP in this thread was looking for a seat for his 18 month old (who is now 2.5 years old, this thread is a year old), and a backless booster is by no means acceptable for his child. In fact, he specifically stated no boosters. And we recommended, based on both the age of his child and the shape of his backseats, that his child face the rear for a good long while, not ride forward facing in that or any car. But especially with deep buckets that are shaped as you pointed out, kind of horn shaped, that rear facing works much better than a forward facing harnessed seat.

Wendy

Question Which Toddler front facing car seat fits in Porsche 996 back seat?

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