Question 1999 Lexus RX 300 -LATCH

I seem to remember reading somewhere that there were some vehicles that had LATCH and/or TT's before they were mandatory. Is the 1999 Lexus RX 300 one of them?

TIA

Not in the case of the 1999 model year RX300 nor the 2000 model year RX300. Outboard sets of full LATCH were first factory equipped in the 2001 model year RX300s (somewhat early for lower LATCH anchors but when top tether anchors were phased in as mandatory factory equipment). 1999-2000 model year RX300s can be retrofitted with 2 outboard top tether anchors using anchor points on the back of seat and Toyota/Lexus tether anchor retrofit part number 73709-12010. There's a low cost retrofit voucher program available for retrofittable Toyota and Lexus model owners through SafetyBeltSafeUSA for $5 per tether anchor to cover administrative costs. Program details and an application form are online at http://carseat.org/Events_Media/0_ToyotaIP.htm

Thanks! A friend is looking at one online and might go out to take a look but she has a FFing kiddo(no chance of RFing or boostering as he is a 50ish pound fidgety five year old). She'll be leaving him at home

Is there a comparable Canadian program to retrofit the top tethers?

The same Toyota/Lexus top tether anchor retrofit part should be available in the U.S. and Canada according to the LATCH manual, but it's not 100% clear to me if the SafetyBelt Safe reduced cost Toyota/Lexus retrofit program is U.S. only or not, although it is technically SafetyBeltSafe USA and not International in terms of the organization's primary focus. I see Hawaii is excluded and it's probably U.S. only, but it sure wouldn't hurt to inquire using the contact info. listed for the program to see if it possibly extends to Canadian owners. There are supposed to be more detailed instructions about the tether anchor points and how to do the retrofit in the owner's manuals for retrofittable Lexus and Toyota models, so perhaps she could acquire the part posted above from a local Toyota or Lexus dealership and then do the install herself using a torque wrench to save on the labor (or labour using the Canadian spelling ) costs. I also suggest she double check with a Toyota or Lexus dealership before making the vehicle purchase to doubly make sure the tether anchor retrofit part is available in Canada and to check on the costs involved since she has the legal requirement to top tether forward facing harnessed carseats there in Canada to avoid any surprises.