twokidstwodogs
New member
So we had some friends in town this weekend, who live halfway across the country On my advice, they just purchased a Marathon for their five month-old, who has outgrown her Snugride. They had it installed in their non-LATCH car by a tech, but she told me that the tech admitted he almost never saw Britax seats and didn't know what to do with the rearfacing tether. (It's a rural area.) I told her not to mind, that I would show her how to use it when she got here. They arrived yesterday with their Marathon installed in the rental car. Since they weren't familiar with LATCH, they did it with the belt, but my friend said she wasn't satisfied with the installation and asked me to check it. When I went out, I discovered that it was incredibly loosely installed. I reinstalled it with LATCH outboard, because it was an SUV and I wasn't sure if it allowed center seat installations. (So annoying that rental car companies don't give you a manual!) I got a great install and tethered it for them--no problem. So my friend comes out to see the installation and to learn how to do it herself. She asked me whether it was too tight. I said, no, that tighter was better. Now brace yourself....
She said that their tech had warned them that it must be installed loosely, with an inch or more of movement at the belt path, because in side impact collisions, you want the seat to move away from the side of the car as much as possible. (I can't even begin to count the errors.)
There's no chance she misunderstood this tech.. She is super-smart and very safety-conscious. Both she and her husband have Ph.Ds. But she trusted the tech. Fortunately, she trusts me more, so the baby is now riding quite safely. But *what* is this tech possibly thinking? How can anyone think that a loose installation is safer?
She said that their tech had warned them that it must be installed loosely, with an inch or more of movement at the belt path, because in side impact collisions, you want the seat to move away from the side of the car as much as possible. (I can't even begin to count the errors.)
There's no chance she misunderstood this tech.. She is super-smart and very safety-conscious. Both she and her husband have Ph.Ds. But she trusted the tech. Fortunately, she trusts me more, so the baby is now riding quite safely. But *what* is this tech possibly thinking? How can anyone think that a loose installation is safer?