WZ FF lockoffs

About 8 months ago, Britax changed the FF lockoffs on our WZ when I sent it in for repair (to repair the base). The old lockoffs were red, the new lockoffs were black and called the "latest model"

Ok, until recently, I had never used the lockoffs -- red or black -- because the WZ was installed by LATCH. On the last few car rides, I noticed the lockoff opposite the buckle (ie the lockoff that is being used) would spontaneously open. The whole carseat looks crooked since there is far more tension on on side than the other. (The open lockoff still grips witha bit of friction just from the teeth even though it's open) But the seat moves several inches on either side this way.

So I just called Britax and spoke with Debra. She said that since our car (06 Accord) has ALR seatbeats, the lockoffs are not necessary and I don't need to use them at all! I told her this is not what's written in the manual. She even checked with a technician and said he corrobated.

Huh? There is no way our seatbelt would hold the WZ still without something else to pre-tension. Do we have a defective car, or defective carseat?

Do you have the vehicle seat belt in the locked mode (i.e. pull all the way out, and then let it back in -- it should be making little 'ratchety' sounds as the belt retracts, and not allow you to pull the belt further out again)? If so, that would be adequate to lock the seat, assuming you get the seat belt tight enough, of course, to get rid of the 'several inches' of movement you're seeing. I've read repeatedly that with the Britax lock offs you can use 'either, both, or neither' ('neither' is ONLY an option IF your seat belt locks)... despite the instructions in the printed Britax manuals. Hopefully some techs will chime in on this issue.

Also, I believe you can get replacement lock offs from Britax, although I don't know if they still have the older style (the black ones on your Wizard) in stock -- current Marathons, etc. use a different style (and probably inferior) FF lock off. I just got a new Marathon, and am almost tempted to see if I can get the older lock offs (I have a two-year-old WZ, so I can double-check if the mounting point on the shell is identical for the two styles of lock offs).

Katrin

Also, I believe you can get replacement lock offs from Britax, although I don't know if they still have the older style (the black ones on your Wizard) in stock -- current Marathons, etc. use a different style (and probably inferior) FF lock off. I just got a new Marathon, and am almost tempted to see if I can get the older lock offs (I have a two-year-old WZ, so I can double-check if the mounting point on the shell is identical for the two styles of lock offs).

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Nope, it's not. I have a MA with the older style FF lockoffs, which I really like , and a new MA with the new lockoffs. It's not possible to put an old lockoff on a new seat - it's not molded the same at all in that spot. :thumbsdown: on the new lockoff, but :thumbsup: that the new seats have rip-stitch tethers now!

lynsgirl said:

Nope, it's not. I have a MA with the older style FF lockoffs, which I really like , and a new MA with the new lockoffs. It's not possible to put an old lockoff on a new seat - it's not molded the same at all in that spot. :thumbsdown: on the new lockoff, but :thumbsup: that the new seats have rip-stitch tethers now!

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Well, that answers that question . Any idea, for the purposes of people (like the OP, perhaps) who need to replace the older style lock off, whether Britax still stocks them? I have our WZ installed in a 1990 vehicle, with non-locking seat belts, for example, so I would be SOL on installing in this vehicle if the lock offs stopped working...

Katrin

Which is the coolest (least sweaty) Britax cover for the BV? Denim??

I sent back the WZ and they said the FF lockoff can't be fixed and offered to send a BV in its place with my choice of cover! I didn't even ask them for anything ... wow.

I know it was offered on the Wizard, but I don't think the Blvd. has a denim cover option, a pity because denim is pretty comfy and possibly less sweaty than other options. Wizard covers don't fit on the Blvd. based on info. gleaned from other posts on the board. I'm not sure whether any available Blvd. cover is less sweaty. They're all fairly plush if I'm remembering all of the cover options correctly. DD2 rides in Shannon and Park Ave. Blvds. in our vehicles, and I haven't noticed a difference between those two covers at any rate.:twocents:

Well, your vehicle manual may call them Switchable Locking Retractors -- pull them all way out very slowly & they make a clicking sound as they retract, engaging the locking mechanism.... All vehicles since 1996 are mandated to have some form of manual seatbelt locking mechanism > http://cpsafety.com/articles/lockincss.aspx (the primary purpose of built in lock offs & traditional locking clips is for vehicles made before 1996)

broxbourne said:

Which is the coolest (least sweaty) Britax cover for the BV? Denim??

I sent back the WZ and they said the FF lockoff can't be fixed and offered to send a BV in its place with my choice of cover! I didn't even ask them for anything ... wow.

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Wow, that suggests they didn't keep any of the old lock offs as replacement parts... so now they have to replace the whole seat if a lock off fails?? That's good to know, I guess, since I own a Wizard that still has most of its life ahead of it, and I can't use it without lock offs in our older vehicle. Congrats on a good (if somewhat unexpected) outcome!

Katrin

Debra said that the WZ lockoff was broken and there was something cracked at the base too. (I am really surprised I missed that. They'd repaired both in Sept 2006. Maybe it was something internal.). Originally, she wanted to just mail me some new lockoffs for the WZ for me to install but since I really thought the WZ chassis holding the lockoff in place was broken, I sent it in for them to do.

The ALR seatbeats in our 06 Accord do ratchet back if you hyper-extend the belt as papooses said, but its locking is not as tight as I would like to hold back the WZ. Even with ratcheting, I cannot get rid of WZ movement without the FF lockoffs. Well, we'll see how the replacement does...

Thanks for everyone's help.