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Emilysmom
Guest
A few questions about the Roundabout
I have been using the Graco Snugride, and I *love* it but my 4-mth old is too tall for it. (She is 28" tall and the seat says its max is 26")
Anyhow I purchased a Britax Roundabout after some research, I was convinced it was the safest, but I have had no joy installing it. I went to a carseat technician who had never seen one before and did not know how to install it.
I have a 2000 Toyota Camry.
So, without further ado, here are the questions
1) The rear-middle seat of the Camry has a fold-down armrest. What are the pros/cons of putting the carseat in the rear-middle or rear-side position?
2) I have heard that rear facing car seats are designed to tilt upwards in a crash to absorb the force. I have also heard that when they do this the childs head can hit the seatback and this can result in serious injury. What is true? Sort of the same question, does tethering a rear-facing seat make it any safer? It does swing upwards quite easily in my car without the tether.
3) Finally a certain DIY-guy purchased a "Cam-buckle lash strap" at Canadian Tire (a hardware store) made by Erickson Manufacturing Ltd. It is designed so that the harder you pull it the tighter it gets, but it has a quick release buckle, you just press a lever on the buckle to release it, and that worries me. I am also concerned that the buckle mighn't be strong enough to withstand any serious force. He put the Roundabout in the rear passenger side seat. Mr.Handyman didn't want to use the D-ring strap that comes with the Roundabout because he wanted to tether it to both seat rails to make it more secure. Is this safe?
4) Finally is it possible to have a proper tether anchor retro-fitted onto the car by Toyota? It has an upper tether but I can't find a lower one, and when I took the car to the dealer, he did not know what a LATCH was, and he said "most people just keep using the infant carriers because they're more convenient" <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/eek.gif ALT=":eek">
Thank you in advance for taking the time to answer all my questions!
Emily's Mom
I have been using the Graco Snugride, and I *love* it but my 4-mth old is too tall for it. (She is 28" tall and the seat says its max is 26")
Anyhow I purchased a Britax Roundabout after some research, I was convinced it was the safest, but I have had no joy installing it. I went to a carseat technician who had never seen one before and did not know how to install it.
I have a 2000 Toyota Camry.
So, without further ado, here are the questions
1) The rear-middle seat of the Camry has a fold-down armrest. What are the pros/cons of putting the carseat in the rear-middle or rear-side position?
2) I have heard that rear facing car seats are designed to tilt upwards in a crash to absorb the force. I have also heard that when they do this the childs head can hit the seatback and this can result in serious injury. What is true? Sort of the same question, does tethering a rear-facing seat make it any safer? It does swing upwards quite easily in my car without the tether.
3) Finally a certain DIY-guy purchased a "Cam-buckle lash strap" at Canadian Tire (a hardware store) made by Erickson Manufacturing Ltd. It is designed so that the harder you pull it the tighter it gets, but it has a quick release buckle, you just press a lever on the buckle to release it, and that worries me. I am also concerned that the buckle mighn't be strong enough to withstand any serious force. He put the Roundabout in the rear passenger side seat. Mr.Handyman didn't want to use the D-ring strap that comes with the Roundabout because he wanted to tether it to both seat rails to make it more secure. Is this safe?
4) Finally is it possible to have a proper tether anchor retro-fitted onto the car by Toyota? It has an upper tether but I can't find a lower one, and when I took the car to the dealer, he did not know what a LATCH was, and he said "most people just keep using the infant carriers because they're more convenient" <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/eek.gif ALT=":eek">
Thank you in advance for taking the time to answer all my questions!
Emily's Mom