Help pick a seat for a light weight TALL child!

AbbieJack

New member
Ok DD has a Radian Xtsl and is on the top harness slots FF and on the 2nd to the top Rf . I put her FF today in my fathers car and i noticed how close she is to out growing the Radian FF . I am afraid she will not make it till booster age in the radian . She is only 4 (Just turned) and is no where near ready for a booster. Even if she could sit still long enough ,she can not legally use a booster in Texas untill she is 40lbs and she is only 28lbs. She is rather tall at 41inches. I would love to find a seat that would keep her harnessed for a LONG time as i don't see her gaining 11lbs in the next year or two. She will stay RF in my car until she can no longer fit . She has the torso height of 15 inches so she only has 2 in to go until she out grows the radian (I don't want to use it FF below he shoulders) and she is gaining height rather fast just not weight. Would the Frontier be a good choice for her? I would LOVE to be able to look at car seats before i buy, but its just not possible where i live . The only places around her to buy car seats are walmart and target and they don't have a very good selection,they mainly only carry Graco & Evenflo brands not Britax or any thing else .
 
ADS

monstah

New member
2 inches of room before reaching the top slots is actually substantial. :thumbsup: I would estimate 2 years, to be honest. Even tall kids with very long torsos (like my DS) don't usually go over the harness until 45ish+ inches.

I bet that's good news! :p HTH!
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
My long torsoed 28 pound 4 year old outgrew the Radian by shoulder height at seven. Her torso stopped growing completely for two whole years. She sprouted legs. So there is hope that she will slow her torso down and stay in the Radian. I'd start worrying at about a half inch left of torso height. It may take a very long time to get those two inches.

Wendy
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
My 4 year old is already over the top slots. We do have seats that she still has room to grow in, but if she needed one and I was on a budget, I'd get the Maestro-- it's got room to grow for her!
 

Maedze

New member
2" of torso height equals two-plus years for a child her age. You have nothing to worry about.

Also, I'm pretty sure Texas has no such stipulation about being 40 pounds before the use of a booster seat. I'm googling for the actual text of the law and not a website's interpretation of that law and coming up short. Any Texas advocates have it handy?
 

Jennifer mom to my 7

Well-known member
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/director_staff/public_information/seatbelt.htm

Old law, under 5 and under 36 inches?

Oh, duh, missed it.

TRC § 545.412. CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY SEATSYSTEMS; OFFENSE. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a passenger vehicle, transports a child who is younger than eight [five] years of age, unless the child is taller than four feet, nine inches [and less than 36 inches in height], and does not keep the child secured during the operation of the vehicle in a child passenger safety seat system according to the instructions of the manufacturer of the safety seat system.

(b) An offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not [less than $100 or] more than $25 for the first offense and not more than $250 for a sec­ond or subsequent offense [$200].

(b-1) In addition to all other fees and court costs, a per­son shall pay 15 cents as a court cost on conviction of an offense under this section. Court costs due under this section shall be collected in the same manner as other fees, fines, or costs are collected in the case. The clerk at least monthly shall send the court costs collected under this section to the comptroller for deposit in a separate ac­count in the general revenue fund that may be appropri­ated only to the Texas Department of Transportation and used to purchase child passenger safety seat systems and distribute them to low-income families.


Pasted from new law, only age and height, no specifics on type of restraint :)
 

armywife12

New member
She sounds pretty average sized to me. My 2 yr old is about the same size (39 inches and 15.25 inch torso but 37lbs). I still think my son will fit in the radian until he is ready for a booster lol. It sounds like your DD has about 2 yrs left in the radian and probably has at least a yr left rf. I know my son does at least. He still has about 3 inches of growing room above his head rf.
 

babygirlsmom1005

New member
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/director_staff/public_information/seatbelt.htm

Old law, under 5 and under 36 inches?

Oh, duh, missed it.

TRC § 545.412. CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY SEATSYSTEMS; OFFENSE. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a passenger vehicle, transports a child who is younger than eight [five] years of age, unless the child is taller than four feet, nine inches [and less than 36 inches in height], and does not keep the child secured during the operation of the vehicle in a child passenger safety seat system according to the instructions of the manufacturer of the safety seat system.

(b) An offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not [less than $100 or] more than $25 for the first offense and not more than $250 for a sec­ond or subsequent offense [$200].

(b-1) In addition to all other fees and court costs, a per­son shall pay 15 cents as a court cost on conviction of an offense under this section. Court costs due under this section shall be collected in the same manner as other fees, fines, or costs are collected in the case. The clerk at least monthly shall send the court costs collected under this section to the comptroller for deposit in a separate ac­count in the general revenue fund that may be appropri­ated only to the Texas Department of Transportation and used to purchase child passenger safety seat systems and distribute them to low-income families.


Pasted from new law, only age and height, no specifics on type of restraint :)

Yeap, new law is 8 years old or 4'9 - no specifics, just appropiate child restraint and proper clause.
 

jjordan

Moderator
That's a summary of the law and doesn't necessarily mean that there is a 40# minimum for booster use. Did you check the pdf linked above the chart? (My computer has trouble with pdf's but I'll try to get to it in a minute here...)

ETA: looks like the pdf linked on the page is more about when a child can legally ride without a booster, not when they can transition from harness to booster.
 

kandamom

New member
Your dd is similar in height to my 2 1/2 (soon to be 3) year old. He had a 14.5" torso shortly after he turned 2. (need to update my signature) He still has plenty of harness room in his Radian65. If I were you, I would see how long your dd fits in her Radian. You might be surprised! DS1 fit in his marathon for two years after I started worrying about him outgrowing his marathon straps. My philosophy has typically been to not buy anything before I really need it, since new products are always coming out.
 

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