Why is the Diono Angle Adjuster safe?

cow2215

New member
This may be a simple question, but why is the "wedge" or Angle Adjuster by Diono safe?

I've been reading about the concerns re seat protectors (how thin is thin, flexible vs. rigid, etc.) If you accept that an interpositional material may affect the rigidity/tightness of an install, it doesn't make sense to me that a slab of PU foam 1.5" thick (or thicker) under a carseat base is going to result in a tight enough install by the seat protector "standard." It may be high density foam, but to a first approximation it will not behave as a rigid body under extreme loads.

Conversely, if you accept that the AA is safe for use in a RF install, why couldn't you also achieve a comparably tight install in FF configuration? Of course, I'm looking for an explanation more substantive than "the company says it's safe for RF only, so it must be so."

What am I missing?


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Cilia

New member
The main difference between the wedge and other after market products is that the wedge has been tested with the car seat. The seat passes with the wedge and it is therefore safe to use the two together.

Other aftermarket products might also pass, but manufacturers are not likely to test their car seat with someone else's product so we just do not know. Also, if you start to mix products from different manufacturers, who is responsible if there is some kind of malfunction even if the two products had been tested together?
 

love-pink

Well-known member
The wedge does NOT go under the rear facing foot nor the belt path. It goes under the bum part of the seat. It my opinion it is no different than a vehicle seat that has more of an incline vs a vehicle seat that is pretty much flat. You also install and tighten the Radian before you add the adjuster.
 

Pixels

New member
It really does come down to "because the manufacturer says so." They are the ones who have tested it. It's a lot like harness covers, infant inserts, or other accessories that are designed for a certain seat.

The wedge does NOT go under the rear facing foot nor the belt path. It goes under the bum part of the seat. It my opinion it is no different than a vehicle seat that has more of an incline vs a vehicle seat that is pretty much flat. You also install and tighten the Radian before you add the adjuster.

Nope, you don't install and tighten before adding the adjuster. It would be pretty much impossible to do so. You place the Radian on the seat, put the adjuster under the seat, and then tighten the belt.
 

love-pink

Well-known member
It really does come down to "because the manufacturer says so." They are the ones who have tested it. It's a lot like harness covers, infant inserts, or other accessories that are designed for a certain seat.



Nope, you don't install and tighten before adding the adjuster. It would be pretty much impossible to do so. You place the Radian on the seat, put the adjuster under the seat, and then tighten the belt.

Mine hasnt been delivered yet, so Im going off the threads others have posted about how they installed. Almost every thread Ive read pertaining to the adjuster they explained they installed the Radian and then lifted up the back of the seat and slid the adjuster under the bum area.
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
It'll work either way, for most cars I'd suspect. However, whenever I make a modification to a carseat (angle change, move the cover around, shimmy it left or right), I always check to make sure nothing has changed at the belt path, and retighten if necessary. So by that, I would always at least check after you put the angle adjuster in, but I know there are a lot of cars where uninstalling is not necessary, and I'm sure there are several where it is.

Wendy
 

SignCuer

New member
I just installed mine.. and wowsa what a change! I will take pics as soon as my van is cleaned out! :D

I lifted up the Radian after I installed and put the angle adjuster and I did check for movement and there was no changes and took it out and nothing changed.

On my faithful sidekick :) Don't text and drive... It may save a life!
 

creideamh

Well-known member
My RN is slowly creeping back to more reclined. :(

I also installed the seat tightly then slid under. Didn't have to tighten any further.
 

3monstars

New member
My RN is slowly creeping back to more reclined. :(

I also installed the seat tightly then slid under. Didn't have to tighten any further.
Really? How long have you been using it? Is the foam squishing down to make the seat recline more? I'm just curious as I have only had mine a week hoping it doesn't happen with ours.
 

creideamh

Well-known member
Yup the foam is super squished down. I've had it since the 8th. It still isn't as bad as without the adjuster, but it definitely isn't as upright as it was at first. Not a big deal right now... It will be if the RN reclines enough to hit my front seats (advanced airbags.)

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org
 

lilliput

New member
My RN is slowly creeping back to more reclined. :(

I also installed the seat tightly then slid under. Didn't have to tighten any further.

Really? Say it isn't so! :( We just installed ours yesterday, so only time will tell...

OP - I came to the conclusion during the process of debating whether I wanted to purchase the AA to help RF my 2.5 year old that it's not the same as other products because it is specifically for use only with SK/Diono Radians in one configuration, and it is labelled as such, and because I have to, at some point, put my faith in the company that if the product passed their crash testing, then it is safe for me to use exclusively in this configuration. And as others have stated, the AA does not go under the boot of the RN - the instructions are very clear about that. Ultimately, I have to believe it is safe because the company says so.
Also, I can achieve a tight and acceptable install without the adjuster. What the adjuster helps me do is make the install better only in as much as it makes the RN less likely to come in contact with my advanced air bags, thereby helping me more easily comply with Toyota's rules and making me and my front seat passenger safer.
 
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3monstars

New member
Yup the foam is super squished down. I've had it since the 8th. It still isn't as bad as without the adjuster, but it definitely isn't as upright as it was at first. Not a big deal right now... It will be if the RN reclines enough to hit my front seats (advanced airbags.)

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org
Oh no! I hope this won't mean having to buy a new AA after a few months use :( This could sway my decision to buy a second Radian for the other car.
 

SignCuer

New member
Well its only 10 bucks.... so I'm not bothered by it :D and if its every few months.. no biggie.

On my faithful sidekick :) Don't text and drive... It may save a life!
 

mkmama

Active member
Also wanted to chime in...I installed with the angle adjuster, pushed up on the back of the Radian and removed the adjuster (which is easier said than done) -- and I still had an acceptably tight install, only slightly looser than an install without the adjuster. As I continued to wiggle it back and forth with the adjuster out the Radian eventually started to recline more and more, so eventually it became unacceptably loose, but since it has been crash tested and is designed to work in only one configuration with one seat (and I had to wiggle it for a few minutes), I'm perfectly happy using it.
 

KaiLing

New member
I don't see a theoretical difference between the angle adjuster and noodles: both are foam under seat to fix angle that are allowed by the companies. If I took a noodle out from under my snugride base I wouldn't get an acceptable install, and no one's fussed about that. I have a kid who hit 40 lbs long before his 3rd birthday, though, so I'm predisposed to make it work.

Mine is denting the angle adjuster something awful, too, but so far it's still a huge improvement. Mine has been in three cars in multiple positions in the last two weeks, though, so maybe I'm not the best judge of long term squishing down. I have a small chip out of the adjuster (under 1 cm) that makes me think maybe this is something that will need replacing sometime in the Radian's lifetime.
 

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