Small crossover/hatchback/wagon type vehicles?

Aurezalia

Aurezalia

Well-known member
twinkletoes said:
:thumbsup:

double check it can have the headrests installed if you will need them!.. I could have sworn I saw the holes in the back of ours to install head rests - but sadly, when I checked today - there are not any holes for the head rest to go into :thumbsdown: I"m loosing my mind :eek:

Hopefully a 2006 will have head rests :confused:

I'm pretty sure a HBB can be installed without headrests (at least the frontier and nautilus will be able to as they both have tethers for stability.

of course, a backless booster is a different matter - but I would only see this as a problem if the child's ears were above the top of the seat (as in a ff car seat).. however, by the time a child goes into a backless booster, they will need the headrests..

I"m not a tech either! ;)
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Trying to find pictures of the '06 and it's hard to tell what I'm looking at, it doesn't seem as if it has rear headrests either. What was Ford thinking? :confused: Anyway, guess the only passengers, besides those in seats, will be my 5' friends who I can restrain in a HBB. :p (I am joking, BTW. A little. ;) )
 
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twinkletoes

New member
Aurezalia said:
Trying to find pictures of the '06 and it's hard to tell what I'm looking at, it doesn't seem as if it has rear headrests either. What was Ford thinking? :confused: Anyway, guess the only passengers, besides those in seats, will be my 5' friends who I can restrain in a HBB. :p (I am joking, BTW. A little. ;) )
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I know! crazy thing is, I had dh searching online for find out who sells headrests for the ford focus wagon :p

we keep toying from the Idea of a mini van but want to wait until they are more eco.. so then we were looking at super small compact cars for gas milage - however, our new car will have to accomodate our parents now that we can't install headrests :(... so it can't be super compact after all (there will be luggage to tote too) ... Ford have ruined my plans :p
 
Jeanum

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
It's the Dorel highback boosters (and Dorel combination seats like the Apex) that require the vehicle seatback or vehicle headrest to be at least as tall as the top of the child's ears to provide adequate support and protection from whiplash. Highback belt positioning boosters from other manufacturers don't have this requirement.

To my knowledge, the Ford Focus wagon model doesn't have factory equipped or retrofittable rear headrests for any of its model years. The lack of rear headrests is also sadly true of some/most of the other Focus body styles until approx. the Focus sedan version's 2009 model year in the U.S.
 
Aurezalia

Aurezalia

Well-known member
Jeanum said:
It's the Dorel highback boosters (and Dorel combination seats like the Apex) that require the vehicle seatback or vehicle headrest to be at least as tall as the top of the child's ears to provide adequate support and protection from whiplash. Highback belt positioning boosters from other manufacturers don't have this requirement.

To my knowledge, the Ford Focus wagon model doesn't have factory equipped or retrofittable rear headrests for any of its model years. The lack of rear headrests is also sadly true of some/most of the other Focus body styles until approx. the Focus sedan version's 2009 model year in the U.S.
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Aha! Glad to know I'm not completely crazy and had read that somewhere. :)
Any similar wagons - 25+ city gas mileage, 3-across, under $9,000 - that don't lack in the same area, that you know of? I know I'm going out on a limb here.
 
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twinkletoes

New member
Jeanum said:
It's the Dorel highback boosters (and Dorel combination seats like the Apex) that require the vehicle seatback or vehicle headrest to be at least as tall as the top of the child's ears to provide adequate support and protection from whiplash. Highback belt positioning boosters from other manufacturers don't have this requirement.
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is evenflow owned by dorel? (sorry, I'm not from the US and brands are foreign to me! so, when a child sits in the child's car seat, his/her ears can't be any taller than the back of the actual car seat?
 
Jeanum

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
No, Evenflo is an entirely different company. :) Dorel has multiple carseat brands and makes Safety 1st, Eddie Bauer, Cosco, and Maxi Cosi carseats.

I don't know of a wagon model that meets all of the criteria for rear headrests, mpg and pricing off the top of my head, sorry. FWIW, it's generally the non-domestic branded car manufacturers that seem to have gotten on board earlier with 3 headrests in the back seat.
 
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twinkletoes

New member
Aurezalia said:
Found an 06 Focus Wagon in Payson! We're meeting up in Phoenix next Sunday. Keep your fingers crossed, hopefully this is it!
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GOOD NEWS!!!!!!

a 2006 wagon has head restraints outboard :love:

here is a link to some pictures....

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=35397

(hopefully link will work)

if you stay away from Dorel and company for boosters, it wont matter that the center doesn't have a head restraint.. and who knows, you may be able to get one retrofitted in the center?

graco, britax, evenflow, sunshine kids, recaro..plus more! there are so many brands you could choose from!

Good Luck and fingers crossed :thumbsup:
 
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twinkletoes

New member
I'm excited now that I can choose another focus wagon as our second car :love: should we be lucky to find a newer one at an affordable price..

I wonder what year they introduced the rear head restraints and what year they stopped making the ford focus wagon...
 
Jeanum

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Hmm, very interesting and encouraging. The poster in that Focus thread is in Canada and it could be a variation between U.S. and Canadian Focus models or possibly dependent on the Focus version or trim level.
 
Aurezalia

Aurezalia

Well-known member
Bumping again... decided not to go with the Focus. Didn't even drive up and see it.
I'm going to either hold off a couple of months before looking again, OR save up for several more months and find something cheaper I could pay cash for. Any ideas on something in the $4,000 dollar range that has what I'm looking for? I was thinking maybe an 04 Matrix? Not sure how great they are with Radians though...
 

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