Do car seat manufacturers not get that people need to do 3 across?

D

dimsumdaddy

New member
With the exception of Combi, none of the manufacturers seem to get that there are a LOT of people out there who need to do 3 across, want to do it safely, but do NOT have a van or monster SUV.

It really seems that they could design a 5 pt / booster that can accomplish this. It should have STRAIGHT sides that maximize the window of space. This would allow 3 of the same seat to be installed side by side safely. A good example of this is the Combi Corocco. But unfortunately this unit is for very young children.

Finally, I don't understand why so many chairs are not realizing that the lap belt used for non-LATCH install should have the "flat corner" where the belt pulls on the chair be the closest point to the belt anchors. This would make this position the natural "fall to" position when installing and would encourage and extremely snug install.

Anyone feel this way?
 
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Mae

Mae

Well-known member
Well, most seats are so wide because, well, it's going to fit much larger children than the Combi Coccoro, so it needs to be wide enough for the child to be comfortable. ;)

The Radian is also 3 across friendly; It's slim and has smooth/flat sides. It's not a booster, but has a tall harness. Again, though, an 8yo (who would need a booster) wouldn't be comfortable in it.
 
D

dimsumdaddy

New member
Mae said:
Well, most seats are so wide because, well, it's going to fit much larger children than the Combi Coccoro, so it needs to be wide enough for the child to be comfortable. ;)

The Radian is also 3 across friendly; It's slim and has smooth/flat sides. It's not a booster, but has a tall harness. Again, though, an 8yo (who would need a booster) wouldn't be comfortable in it.
Click to expand...

I agree Radians are slim at the base, but I have 2 Radian 65's and the shoulder bolsters are wide enough to make side by side not work in our "compact" SUV.

I guess I have small children. Even my 7 yr old has lots of space on her sides.

I'm complaining about those "throne" looking seats. :):eek:
 
J

jjordan

Moderator
I'm not sure what you mean by your description of a lap belt installation.

That said, lap-only belts are being phased out of cars, so as they get to be less common, if anything, carseat manufacturers will be considering them even less as they design new seats. Often lap-only belts make for very easy carseat installations even now, though.
 
J

jjordan

Moderator
dimsumdaddy said:
I agree Radians are slim at the base, but I have 2 Radian 65's and the shoulder bolsters are wide enough to make side by side not work in our "compact" SUV.

I guess I have small children. Even my 7 yr old has lots of space on her sides.

I'm complaining about those "throne" looking seats. :):eek:
Click to expand...

The radians work very well when facing opposite directions, though.

And, surprisingly, often the combination of a "throne" seat and a radian takes up less space than two radians! You should give one a try! :)
 
cookie123

cookie123

New member
I for one am appalled at the size of the newer Evenflo convertible seats. Well, you'd think they could at least make one of each.
 
Defrost

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
The problem is, there's not actually a HUGE market for 3-across. Most people who have more than 2 kids buy a minivan or SUV. Also, most people simply follow the law and not beyond (which of course are the bare minimums for safety) so that means a lot of people have two carseats with the oldest, legally non-boostered child using just the seat belt in the middle of those two seats.

Heck, we can't even get most vehicle manufacturers to put three full sets of LATCH in their sedans (never mind not even having enough top tether anchors in minivans). Or test LATCH to higher weight limits.
 
carseatcoach

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
It's rare -- not impossible, but rare -- that three-acrosses can't happen.

They sometimes can't happen cheaply, and they sometimes can't happen conveniently (kids "have to" RF or harness longer than they want, for instance), and they sometimes can't happen with the desired seats, but they can happen in almost every vehicle.
 
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