Expiry Dates

Ok, so I'm sure this had been discussed in the past, but not that I've seen.

Something came up about an expiry date in another thread and it lead to me taking a closer look at the expiry table on the TC website (http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/safedrivers-childsafety-notices-2007c10-menu-355.htm). I've used that table before as reference, but I never clued in to the fact that manufacturer's that make both 3-in-1 or combination seats will give these seats a longer life than their other seats, like so:

Dorel 3-in-1: 8 years
All other Dorel: 6 years (including dedicated boosters)

Britax Frontier: 9 years
All other Britax: 6 years (including dedicated boosters)

How is it that a seat that can be used both harnessed and as a booster can have a longer useful life than a seat made by the same company that can only be used harnessed? I would get it if it was just booster mode that was longer (like the Graco Nautilus - extra 3 years of life for LBB only). Do they use a different kind of plastic for the shell that lasts longer even if the seat is being used in harnessed mode for the life of the seat?

But then even the Graco Nautilus example of the seat being good for 9 years as a LBB begs the question of why other boosters aren't good for longer than 6 years. Even the Monteray is only good for 6 years while the Radians are all good for 8.

I had always figured Radians had the 8 year useful life because they aren't only made of plastic, and I'm only now realising o) that there are other harnessed seats that are good for 8 or 9 years. But I don't understand why those ones are.

And in all likelihood someone will answer in 5 minutes with a perfectly obvious explanation that I've totally missed.

My assumption has always been that the manufacturer makes the assumption that a 3-in-1 or combo seat will not be used for its entire life in harnessed mode. A booster just boosts the child up. It doesn't restrain the child and has no harness to degrade or slot strength to be concerned about. I know that we always tell parents not to use Dorel 3-in-1s in booster mode, but of course, parents do anyway. I think it would be rather rare for a 3-in-1 or a Frontier to be used for all 8 or 9 years in harnessed mode and manufacturers know this.

With the newer Britax seats, the info I saw said that they increased the expiration from 6 years to 7 years due to the following

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=131578

New black plastic shell will extend the expiration on the car seat from 6 years to 7 years as the UV rays of the sun do not affect it.

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I guess changes to various things such as different plastic or an incorporated metal frame can affect the expiration. I don't know why each manufacturer chooses the expiration date. They may prefer to put shorter expiration dates even though the seat might last much longer since they are wanting older seats out of the market due to changing safety features. We may never know the full reason.

I have to admit that I could care less about plastics breakdown. I do care about missing parts, unknown histories, abuse, and advancing technologies. For those reasons, and not plastics, I encourage people to replace their restraints at or before expiry.

-Nicole.

amyd said:

My assumption has always been that the manufacturer makes the assumption that a 3-in-1 or combo seat will not be used for its entire life in harnessed mode.

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Its a poor assumption for them to make. :thumbsdown: I know of many a seat that has been passed down to be used with its harness near the end of its life. If the Scenera's not safe at that age, how is the Alpha-Omega? (I seriously doubt they're using a different formulation of plastic between the two.)

unityco said:

Its a poor assumption for them to make. :thumbsdown: I know of many a seat that has been passed down to be used with its harness near the end of its life. If the Scenera's not safe at that age, how is the Alpha-Omega? (I seriously doubt they're using a different formulation of plastic between the two.)

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That's what I was thinking. Unless you say it can only be used in booster mode for the extra time (like the Nautilus) I don't think it is in any way reasonable to assume the harness won't be used for the life of the seat. :twocents:

amyd said:

A booster just boosts the child up. It doesn't restrain the child and has no harness to degrade or slot strength to be concerned about.

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Exactly. So why are boosters only good for 6 years while a harnessed seat from the same manufacturer expires in 8 or 9 years?

QuassEE said:

I have to admit that I could care less about plastics breakdown. I do care about missing parts, unknown histories, abuse, and advancing technologies. For those reasons, and not plastics, I encourage people to replace their restraints at or before expiry.

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I agree totally that earlier rather than later expiry can be a good thing for all of these reasons. Plastic degredation with harnessed seats is an issue for me though. It'll be a long time before the images of the harness ripping though plastic on the Marathons in the "beyond compliance" TC research testing are wiped from my mind, whether that had anything to do with degredation or not (which it likely didn't). There is also a similar video out there that is supposedly a 10 year old Britax seat with the harness ripping through the shell. In any case, expiry is a good thing whatever the reasons are.

sparkyd said:

Exactly. So why are boosters only good for 6 years while a harnessed seat from the same manufacturer expires in 8 or 9 years?

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Right or wrong, I really think a lot of it is due to marketing. You can't buy "the only seat your child will ever need" if it expires before the child is old enough to legally be out of a booster seat (8 years old in many provinces).

No arguments here. Cosco misleads parents to make a buck. But, really, the problem here is that parents allow themselves to be fooled. Most parents spend more time choosing a nursery colour than they do selecting a carseat. So Cosco sees a mark, and goes for it.

-Nicole.

amyd said:

Right or wrong, I really think a lot of it is due to marketing. You can't buy "the only seat your child will ever need" if it expires before the child is old enough to legally be out of a booster seat (8 years old in many provinces).

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QuassEE said:

No arguments here. Cosco misleads parents to make a buck. But, really, the problem here is that parents allow themselves to be fooled. Most parents spend more time choosing a nursery colour than they do selecting a carseat. So Cosco sees a mark, and goes for it.

-Nicole.

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This is so true that it's disturbing ! I see families come in two or three times before they can pick out a bedding set, and see the same family just pick the first carseat they like the colour of at all