When would YOU let them go backless?

menfusse · Jul 18, 2010

Do you have age/size requirements or what is your basis for allowing them to go from a highback to a no back booster?

I'm considering letting A go full time backless soon in our Jeep. We have side impact air bags. She would have to ride outboard because there's not enough head support for her center on a booster. She is 72lbs. She'll be 9 in Sept. I'm not sure how tall now, but she wears a 12-14 in pants or 00 petite in jr's. slightly thin to average build. So, she's generally a good sized kid for her age.

She HAS to go backless in my MIL's car soon. She is currently in a Vivo in there. It can't move up anymore and it no longer positions the shoulder belt right. She's gotten too tall for it. The Monterey still fits her in terms of height and she's riding in it right now in our Jeep. I can't get it into MIL's. She drives a Cavalier and it will not fit at the height it needs to be. Hits the roof and tilts. Probably works center, but won't fit next to E's seat.

She's also outgrown her Compass in dh's truck by height. So, I'm moving the Monterey in there, because I prefer she remain in something with a back in there. It fits her better than backless. There's wonkiness with the shoulder belt backless in there.

Anyway, would YOU just go backless in the Jeep too or would you buy another hbb that might still get height out of it?

I'll be honest and say I don't want to spend the money on another hbb. She might get some more use out of it, sure...but how much safety am I gaining in our Jeep with her in a hbb vs. a backless at her size? The fit in the lightrider is awesome. I was also considering getting an Ozzi, even though it's a bit pricey for a backless.

carseatcoach · Jul 18, 2010

I don't know exactly. My kid's on the wiggly side, and also on the short side so she still fits fine in HBBs. She's 8 and while I'd go backless if I *had* to, I'm not planning on choosing it any time soon. However, for averagely squiggly kids, I'm generally fine with backless for convenience or preference around 9yo.

ETA that as long as the seatbelt fits well, age/maturity is far more important to me than size.

jaded · Jul 18, 2010

My 8year old is riding with his boosters backless now, primarily because the backs had to be so high up for him(He was on the last adjustment for the Turbo) that it obscured my vision in my van. It was fine in my old sedan, but with the seats being higher in vans, it just didn't work for me anymore(I'm short too, 5'1, so that probably played into the obscured vision thing too)

April · Jul 18, 2010

DD1 is in a backless in my van now and she'll be 9 in November. A backless was the only way I could fit 5 seats in my van. She sits good now and the belt fits great. In DH's truck she's in a Parkway on the last setting, and its hitting the roof and tilting now. I'm waiting as long as I can to put her in a backless in there because her head will be resting on glass.

christineka · Jul 18, 2010

I let dd1 go backless at 10 yo and really, I think I would have earlier, but she gets stuck on stuff like her seats. Dd2 is the same way, but has recently been riding around in the backless cosco. The seatbelt fits her perfectly. I'd let her ride in it now (she'll be 9 in August), but she loves her vivo too much. I will allow her to ride in it till outgrown.

joolsplus3 · Jul 18, 2010

I've owned quite a few backless boosters and only rarely used them... probably because there're no curtain airbags in their main car.
I don't feel too too terrible going to a backless as long as it doesn't push the shoulderbelt off the side of the arm (in our suv, it was highback or nothing, a backless just didn't work). How's the head support in the Cavalier?

thepeach80 · Jul 18, 2010

I don't have anything set in stone in my head about when it'll happen. I assume it'll be kind of like I do w/ the other things. Maybe no back in other people's cars but still hbb in the main vehicle? At this point he's nowhere near outgrowing our boosters and he's 7 so it'll be a while.

menfusse · Jul 18, 2010

joolsplus3 said:
How's the head support in the Cavalier?

She's ok outboard. Haven't tried her center, but my guess is there won't be support center. It doesn't have separate headrests, it's like humps on each outboard area and then not in the center. The "humps" are as tall as a headrest. She doesn't need to ride with her much in the summer. I work on Fridays and MIL comes here. When school's in though, she'll be picking her up on those Fridays.

I'd be in a mess if there were no support. I'd need to find something for E that would fit next to the Monterey in the center. Bleh.

I'm feeling pretty ok with letting her go backless. We don't have the shoulder belt issue with a backless and we have side airbags in our jeep (commander). Dh's truck belt does come off the shoulder with a backless, so that's why the transfer of the monterey to it. Hopefully, she'll 5-step when the Monterey is outgrown for the truck. She *almost* does now.

It feels like almost as big as a leap to go backless as it did going to a booster in the first place.

ketchupqueen · Jul 18, 2010

9 years old AND doesn't fall asleep in the car AND the belt fits properly without a shoulder adjuster for full-time use OR has outgrown all available high-backs by height is my personal thing.

christineka · Jul 18, 2010

ketchupqueen said:
9 years old AND doesn't fall asleep in the car AND the belt fits properly without a shoulder adjuster for full-time use OR has outgrown all available high-backs by height is my personal thing.

Under your rules, I'd still be in a booster. I fall asleep in the car if I'm not driving.

I think the rule should be instead, can fall asleep in place. When I fall asleep in the car, I stay in position, not sideways or forwards or slump or anything.

Splash · Jul 19, 2010

When the fit in a HBB is worse than that in a NBB.

Lea_Ontario · Jul 19, 2010

I'm probably going to have to have Boo in a backless-booster in our Grand Am within a year (he'll be 8 next month), because I can't raise the back on the Parkway up any higher in the car. It hits the side of the car, even though there are more nothches on the Parkway to use.

When he gets too tall for this spot on the Parkway, I'll grab a backless Turbo I think.

Unfortunately, no curtain airbags or side protection of any kind in the car.

susanx4 · Jul 19, 2010

Hailey is 9 and 61 lbs, she was asking to get out of the booster all together, and she isn't ready ( of course) so my compromise was that she can go backless now, so she is backless in mine and dh's car but i have to put the back on in grandma's car, focus with no headrest.

Sammy is 7 and 50ish lbs he rides mostly in a highback... though he went camping last week with his uncle and i let him go backless because it was easier to transport and i knew he wouldn't be falling asleep.

melniemi · Jul 19, 2010

My almost 10 yo is suddenly horrified of people seeing his pw. He never mentioned anything before. Of course, he got this way after I bought a FR for ds2 to use as a booster when his pw broke. I would've been fine with my ds1 in a backless and passed his pw down to ds2 rather than buying a frontier. Oh well. I told him that after this winter, he can go backless - where we live now we drive on the freeway 100miles roundtrip at least once a week. He doesn't sleep in the car often but ds2 does.

Kecia · Jul 19, 2010

Since my oldest is now 13 and has been out of a booster for the past 2 years - I have some perspective on this issue. If the vehicle has curtain SAB then I'm okay with moving to a backless BPB if the child's seated height is 31" or more when sitting IN the BPB. This is assuming the child doesn't sleep in the vehicle, the belt fit is good, etc., etc. My reasoning is that the SI testing conducted by the IIHS uses the 5th % female dummy. That dummy has a "sitting height" of 31". We expect that every vehicle with curtain ABs that has been made since the IIHS implemented their SI testing program will be able to deploy down far enough to protect the head of that particular dummy (to some extent) in a SI crash. With a shorter occupant, there are just no guarantees.

Now, if the vehicle has no curtain SAB then I would really prefer to keep the child in a highback BPB with good SIP for as long as possible.

scoutingbear · Jul 19, 2010

We are some time away from this but since all A does is grow...

For us it will be when he has outgrown the only boosters that fit 3 in a row in my car (other seats in use are the Radian and CCO, can't get smaller than that!). And, unless something else comes out that is nice and thin, it will be when he outgrows his HB turbo. In dh's car, it will be when he outgrows the turbo by height since dh has side curtain airbags. I do not. A does not sleep in the car unless directly ordered to close his eyes and even then does not move out of position when he does eventually fall asleep.

IndyColtsChick8977 · Jul 19, 2010

Mine was 6 when we went backless, he kept complaining that his neck hurt with the back on and so we tried it and he fit better. He is 67 lbs and 4 ft 3 in tall and really he just needs the backless so the belt doesnt cut into his neck. When he turns 8 this September I am going to have a hard time keeping him in it since my mom and dad and xhusband have all told him at 8 he doesnt need to ride with the booster anymore. Uggh.

menfusse · Jul 19, 2010

Kecia said:
Since my oldest is now 13 and has been out of a booster for the past 2 years - I have some perspective on this issue. If the vehicle has curtain SAB then I'm okay with moving to a backless BPB if the child's seated height is 31" or more when sitting IN the BPB. This is assuming the child doesn't sleep in the vehicle, the belt fit is good, etc., etc. My reasoning is that the SI testing conducted by the IIHS uses the 5th % female dummy. That dummy has a "sitting height" of 31". We expect that every vehicle with curtain ABs that has been made since the IIHS implemented their SI testing program will be able to deploy down far enough to protect the head of that particular dummy (to some extent) in a SI crash. With a shorter occupant, there are just no guarantees.

Now, if the vehicle has no curtain SAB then I would really prefer to keep the child in a highback BPB with good SIP for as long as possible.

I just measured A, because this makes total sense. I measured her in lightrider, which is what she'll be riding in most likely unless I can sell dh on a clek ozzi, lol. She's 30 inches in the house, maybe slightly more, slouched a bit. I think I feel ok with her at that. If she were any shorter seated though, I'd probably have to figure out how to get another Moneterey or Parkway or whichever is the tallest high back.

I hate that she has to go backless in MIL's car. I fairly sure she wont have head support center, but I'm going to try her first. Otherwise, nothing fits outboard because they hit the roof. Thankfully, she isn't in it more than once a week, for a short distance from school. Not much at all in the Summer.

myliljunebugs · Jul 19, 2010

Connor is in a backless in my car because he needed the high back for my mom's when he outgrew the TB. She has no head rests or SCA while I have both. So he is HBB in mom's and ex's cars (Taurus and Sable, same basic cars) and a backless in my car. I don't have a clue what to do on his next growth spurt in their cars because his PW and SKM are both hitting the roof and he can't go center because his sister's seat is in the way.

He actually is close to fitting in their cars in the center so that is what I may have to do at that point. sigh.

When would YOU let them go backless?

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