Chaperone takes up so much room...

Rebelnicky04

Active member
I know everyone says that infant seats take up a lot of room I didn't realize how much though. I just installed my Chaperone in my car to see how much room it takes up and I am amazed. I drive an 07 Chrysler Sebring and once I got the seat installed I had to move both the back of the seat and the entire seat up. Here I was thinking that my car was a mid-sized sedan... looks like we will definitely be getting an SUV if there is a baby #2 (since baby #1 will still be RF-ing and DH and I are both over 6'.)
 
ADS

Cryssy Jane

New member
it's just the chaperone... I'm pretty sure that's THE biggest front to back infant seat out there. The chaperone takes up way more space front to back than my onboard air does, and the shell is taller in the ob. It's that anti-rebound bar that pushes the seat 3-4 inches away from the seat back.
 

canadiangie

New member
I know everyone says that infant seats take up a lot of room I didn't realize how much though. I just installed my Chaperone in my car to see how much room it takes up and I am amazed. I drive an 07 Chrysler Sebring and once I got the seat installed I had to move both the back of the seat and the entire seat up. Here I was thinking that my car was a mid-sized sedan... looks like we will definitely be getting an SUV if there is a baby #2 (since baby #1 will still be RF-ing and DH and I are both over 6'.)


Did you try installing it in the middle. The seatbelt lockoff is so nice for middle installs. The seat might puzzle between your front seats allowing you more room up front. The chap is large though, I agree. Down the road it's much cheaper to replace the chap with something smaller than it is to get a new vehicle.
 

NVMBR02

New member
it's just the chaperone... I'm pretty sure that's THE biggest front to back infant seat out there. The chaperone takes up way more space front to back than my onboard air does, and the shell is taller in the ob. It's that anti-rebound bar that pushes the seat 3-4 inches away from the seat back.

This.

I had one for about 5 months and I loved somethings about it and I hated other things. One thing I didn't like was how much front to back room it took up.
 

Rebelnicky04

Active member
I didn't see latch in my center or I would have tried it. I hated the seatbelt install because it felt like I couldn't get it as 'tight' as I could with the latch. I may try and find a tech in my area and see if they have any ideas. Unfortunately right now I can't afford a bigger car even though I think that would be the easiest solution for us since DH and I are both huge :eek:
 

canadiangie

New member
I didn't see latch in my center or I would have tried it. I hated the seatbelt install because it felt like I couldn't get it as 'tight' as I could with the latch. I may try and find a tech in my area and see if they have any ideas. Unfortunately right now I can't afford a bigger car even though I think that would be the easiest solution for us since DH and I are both huge :eek:


Move your front seats all the way fwd and get into your backseat standing *behind* the base. Use you knees to really dig the base into (into meaning towards the back) of the vehicle seat while you push down on it and use your other hand to pull the seatbelt tight. Then close the lockoff. This technique also helps with the space issue. I can gain an inch or two at least just by getting that base dug in. Then dock the seat onto the base and re-adjust your front seats.
 

Rebelnicky04

Active member
thank you I will have DH try this :) It's like 100 degrees outside and after monkeying around w/ the chaperone and my MA70 for 2 hours I'm exhausted. Thanks so much for the help though- hopefully it will free up some space for us!
 

christineka

New member
The chaperone is a huge seat! It takes up a lot of space in my van. I'm quite certain that it takes up more front to back space than a radian, so if you can get the chaperone to fit in your car, then you can fit a radian:)
 

Rebelnicky04

Active member
Is the key fit any better? DH drives a Volvo S40 that has a much smaller backseat... we are planning on using the CCO but I wonder if a key fit would work. I know that Chaperone is going to be way too big for his car!
 

Rebelnicky04

Active member
I love the CCO and have done it RF in my car and I have a ton of room with it. The problem is like I said neither DH and I are small so I know my baby will be a hoss. 40 lbs isn't going to get us far. I have a MA70 that I can RF but it takes up as much room as the Chaperone... once baby outgrows the CCO in Dh's car I will be in a world of trouble trying to find a RF'ing convertible that doesn't take up a TON of room.
 

NVMBR02

New member
I can get both the BLVD 70 and the True Fit in my Dh's Golf. I do have to move the passenger seat up some but not all the way. I can also get a rear facing Radian in there, but I have to move the seat up more than what is comfortable for me.
 

Emi's Mommy

New member
I tried the Chaperone in the middle of my Avenger(same as your Sebring) and it was a beast. I had a Keyfit and it was like a dream outboard as well as the middle. I moved it outboard just for the ease of plunking the seat in/out of the base.

There is no centre LATCH and to be perfectly honest, the LATCH outboard was hard for me to reach. Not sure if it's me or the car but DH got it no problem with our Keyfit. I prefer seat belt installs. Keyfit base took me about 5 seconds.
 

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