FF Car seat in the back of a 97 Dodge Dakota club cab

Unregistered · Jul 9, 2007

I have a 1997 Dodge Dakota Club Cab as well as a couple of cars. I only use the truck when it snows, which is only a few times a year. We have a Britax Boulevard in one car and are looking at the Recaro Young Sport for our primary car. Our son is 15 months old and I need to find a FF car seat that will fit in the small back seat of my Dakota club cab. The Boulevard will not fit at all. I want something really safe like the Recaro for the primary car, but also need something for the truck.

wendytthomas · Jul 9, 2007

At 15 months you need a rear facing seat, your son is too small to FF.

The Evenflo Triumph (the old version) has a short shell and a 30 pound RFing limit. For those reasons it's not a great RFing seat, but if you're tight for space it may work for you.

Have you tried a Scenera? That may work as well. Plus it's only $40, a great spare seat for occasional use.

I'm assuming the seat isn't fitting front to back RFing? I'm not at all familiar with the truck so I can't picture the back seat.

Wendy

mike4100 · Jul 9, 2007

The Boulevard fits when it`s installed facing backwards, it does not fit FF front to back, it hits the center console. He is 34" tall and 27 pounds, so we decided with our pediatrician that now was the time to turn him around to FF. We didn`t want to drive around with him sitting with his knees in his face.

wendytthomas · Jul 9, 2007

Unfortunately your pediatrician seems very ignorant of best practice when it comes to carseats. Not too shocking as their basis is medical, not practical.

http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/StayRearFacing.aspx
http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=13&topic_id=44503&mesg_id=44503&page
http://www.aap.org/family/carseatguide.htm
http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020801/practice.html
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3225/is_3_66/ai_90137870
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;109/3/550
http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/isakswings/ratetherrf.html
http://cpsafety.com/PDFfiles/RearFacingBrochure.pdf
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2DVfqFhseo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRP7ynNI8mI
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/airplaneRF.aspx
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868
http://www.motionbox.com/video/player/7494d2b5161bf0/#1

Check those out. Here's also the RFing album page on my daughter. http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Piper.aspx You can see she's not at all uncomfortable with her knees in her face. Babies very rarely sit with their legs out in front of them anyway. Nor do you, I'm sure. People cross them, sit on them, sit indian style, dangle their legs everywhere, etc.

Plus, his legs are not your concern. At 15 months his neck bones are not yet formed well enough to keep the skull on the spine in a serious collision. A picture of the neck bones of a one year old is linked up above (the windorspeak link). You can see the dangers.

Here's one more picture. Piper last October at 4y3m. She was 31 pounds dressed at the time, so well in the limits of the Wizard (the older Boulevard).

HTH

Wendy

joolsplus3 · Jul 9, 2007

Pediatricians are not generally well informed on carseat safety. The AAP says to use convertibles to the limits of the seat (a full 33 pounds or till the head is at the top of the seat), but most Dr's aren't up on that important recommendation, unfortunately (unless they work in the emergency room treating head injuries...). If it still fits rearfacing, keep doing so for at least a little longer, it's *considerably* safer...especially in a smaller truck cab like that with no top tether anchors (see if you can go to the dealer and get them installed before you even consider turning your kiddo forward, it's almost as safe as rearfacing).

Read this article to help you make the safest choices for transporting your little one (in addition to Wendy's articles...I like the MSNBC one best...) http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/m...story/03-05-2002/0001681478&EDATE=Mar+5,+2002

mike4100 · Jul 9, 2007

Wendy, I`m pretty sure our son is bigger now than your daughter was in those pictures. Thanks for the info.

scatterbunny · Jul 9, 2007

At 34" and 27#, he's got lots of time rear-facing, still.

Legs are not a risk, plain and simple. It's a theory that simply does not play out in real-world crashes.

ThreeBeans · Jul 9, 2007

Your pediatrician has given you information which could seriously injure or even kill your child. NO fifteen month old should be forward facing. It simply is not safe.

My son did not turn forward facing until he met the limit of the seat (33 lbs) at 2.5 years, and 38 inches. Your boy sounds a big bigger than mine, so he may not make it to 2.5, but I am quite confident he will make it past two.

The Cosco Scenera is a good choice for rearfacing. It has a nice high limit (35 lbs), and is compact, good for tight seating arrangements.

wendytthomas · Jul 9, 2007

mike4100 said:
Wendy, I`m pretty sure our son is bigger now than your daughter was in those pictures. Thanks for the info.

Doubt it.

In the younger two photos she was 14.5/19 months and only 17/20 pounds, so yes, she was lighter. At 15 months she was 30.5", at 19 months she was 33.75". So yes, she's slighter. However, she was 31 pounds and 40 inches when I turned her forward facing in March at 4y8m. And she's in the same seat essentially as your son. Honest, he'll fit. Your pediatrician is simply wrong. Hard words to hear, no one likes to be told they've made a wrong decision. Look at the crash test footage and put your son's face on the dummies. Then decide.

Wendy

FF Car seat in the back of a 97 Dodge Dakota club cab

Unregistered

Guest

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor

mike4100

New member

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

mike4100

New member

scatterbunny

New member

ThreeBeans

New member

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Sponsors

Forum statistics