1990 Ford with rear bench seat and lap belts

Janelle B · Jan 17, 2022

Hi there! Starting a new conversation on this topic because my searches drew up old conversations and the knowledge of car seat safety has expanded over the years.

My family recently purchased a 1990 Ford Bronco. The rear seat is a bench with lap belts. According to my chicco fit4 manual, this vehicle seat is not suitable to safely use a car seat. The lap belt is not locking therefore there would not be a tight, secure installation.

The old threads with links recommending different solutions do not work. I’m hoping that the techs on here have current information to share regarding the use of car seats in this vehicle. Some ideas I’ve had is to install a roll bar where we can upgrade the seat belts from lap bets to today’s current shoulder belt, or to add a device that would support latch installation.

Brigala · Jan 17, 2022

Hi, Janelle!!

I’ll answer the easiest part of the question first: There is no way to safely add a LATCH system to your vehicle. While there are aftermarket products available that claim to serve this function, they are extremely unsafe.

Before I dive in to the rest of the questions, can we get a little more info? What are the ages and sizes (height and weight) of the kids? Any special considerations to take into account? Can we get some photos (or videos) of your rear seat belts? Have you inspected them closely to make sure they are in serviceable condition? Belts of that age often are getting ready to need replacement, but not always.

Erin · Jan 17, 2022

Can you provide stats for the child(ren)? I’m looking into options.

SafeDad · Jan 17, 2022

In addition to the information about the seatbelts, occupants and car seats, can you please let us know if you are near a major metropolitan area? This could end up being a situation with an older vehicle where an in-person evaluation with an experienced technician may be the best option.

Janelle B · Jan 17, 2022

SafeDad said:
In addition to the information about the seatbelts, occupants and car seats, can you please let us know if you are near a major metropolitan area? This could end up being a situation with an older vehicle where an in-person evaluation with an experienced technician may be the best option.

ok so I can’t figure out how to upload the image that I took of my vehicle so I have found an image from Flickr that is a similar representation. The two outside seats have a retractable belt, and the middle seat has a loose belt that you can adjust the size.

I realize that generally speaking after market parts are not crash tested and are therefore not safe. I do hope to find a solution that is either tested and approved by car seat techs, or something that is supported by the vehicle manufacturer. Ideally a solution from the manufacturer is best but I’m realizing from old threads that the information is not easy to get from the manufacturer. I am also hoping that your network of techs would be better to pool from than a local tech that might not be well versed in configurations with older vehicles. Though I am hopeful to find a solution for my family to cruise safely in our leisure car!

I will soon have a new born that will ride in a Nuna pipa lite infant car seat, and a 1.5 year old that weighs 28 pounds riding in a chicco fit4 convertible car seat. Located in Santa Barbara, California, USA.

https://flic.kr/p/7ALcbq

SafeDad · Jan 17, 2022

Thank you- Hopefully, if we cannot come up with some good solutions, we can find an expert near you. With cars older than 20 years, sometimes there is no substitute for being able to inspect the seatbelts and seating configuration in person, and manual trial and error with your car seats to see if they will even install acceptably, especially if something like a belt-shortening clip is possible/necessary.

As for uploads, I believe I may have just approved a new account that might be yours? If so, you should be able to link or embed images now. Unregistered guests have some limitations on images because of spammers.

Brigala · Jan 17, 2022

In the short run, you should be able to install the one car seat with the center lap belt. Those side belts are what we need to evaluate more closely.

I know you said they don’t lock, and it’s entirely possible this is the case, but often these seat belts can be deceiving so humor us a little so we don’t have to start talking about really tough choices - like seat belt replacement - unnecessarily.

Sit down in the back seat of the car and buckle yourself up in one of those retractable lap belts. Gently pull the lap belt all the way out until no more will come out. Then let it retract back so you are correctly buckled in. Last, see whether you can pull the belt out so it’s loose again, or whether you’re now “stuck.” If you’re stuck, wiggle your hips around a little and try again. If you’re still stuck, the belt probably does lock and we can help you with the next step of seeing whether it will stay locked with a car seat installed. If it loosens up freely, we need to talk about options.

When is baby due? Does this car have any air bags in the front passenger seat?

1990 Ford with rear bench seat and lap belts

Janelle B

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Brigala

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Erin

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SafeDad

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Janelle B

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Brigala

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