Pixels
New member
This booster does a very good job of positioning the belt low on the hips. However, the same low belt path that ensures the belt is positioned so low also makes this booster very difficult to use properly, and therefore gets a Not Recommended rating from me.
The proper belt routing is under the arm rests. They are extremely low, and very difficult to even get the belt under. The belt tends to get wedged between arm rest and child's thigh. Once the belt is under the arm rest, it tends to get stuck about mid thigh, out at the front edge of the arm rest. With effort, you can get the lap belt pulled up to the back edge of the belt path, near the child's hips.
Now you have a lot of slack in the lap belt that needs to be removed. First you have to pull the slack into the center section of the lap belt. The child has to lean over to the side to get the slack out from between the arm rest and outboard seat belt anchor. Then the child has to lean the other way while you pull the slack out of the center section of the belt and through the latchplate (buckle). Only then can you pull up on the shoulder belt with the child still leaning away from the buckle to get the last of the slack out. With most boosters, simply pulling up on the shoulder belt will pull all of the slack out of the lap belt, but even 9-12 year olds were not able to use that technique when pulling with all their might. It took 2-3 minutes each time, with adult help, whether it was a 40 pound child or a 100 pound 11 year old.
I saw this scenario played out over and over with approximately 100 kids in 15 different vehicles this weekend. Not a single one was able to do it properly without help.
The proper belt routing is under the arm rests. They are extremely low, and very difficult to even get the belt under. The belt tends to get wedged between arm rest and child's thigh. Once the belt is under the arm rest, it tends to get stuck about mid thigh, out at the front edge of the arm rest. With effort, you can get the lap belt pulled up to the back edge of the belt path, near the child's hips.
Now you have a lot of slack in the lap belt that needs to be removed. First you have to pull the slack into the center section of the lap belt. The child has to lean over to the side to get the slack out from between the arm rest and outboard seat belt anchor. Then the child has to lean the other way while you pull the slack out of the center section of the belt and through the latchplate (buckle). Only then can you pull up on the shoulder belt with the child still leaning away from the buckle to get the last of the slack out. With most boosters, simply pulling up on the shoulder belt will pull all of the slack out of the lap belt, but even 9-12 year olds were not able to use that technique when pulling with all their might. It took 2-3 minutes each time, with adult help, whether it was a 40 pound child or a 100 pound 11 year old.
I saw this scenario played out over and over with approximately 100 kids in 15 different vehicles this weekend. Not a single one was able to do it properly without help.