Britax Click Tight and Seat Belt Stretching

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

Anyone noticing the seat belts being stretched after use?

I have had mine installed for a few months and then uninstalled for a few days. The seat belt is stretched out.

Anyone else noticing this?

bnsnyde · Oct 17, 2013

No, but I did not take mine out yet, so it could be!
I am actually afraid to look.

Not sure what my options are.
I've had kinks in the belt before after uninstalling seats I tighten.
You mean actually stretched? That's scary b/c I was taught a belt is meant to stretch one time in an accident...and then replace it.

yetanotherjen · Oct 17, 2013

I don't have one but YIKES that sounds bad.... maybe I'm glad I didn't get one now...

katymyers · Oct 17, 2013

The whole Click Tight things makes me nervous, I know it passed testing but what about long term use? These seats have nine year expirations! I actually went with the Pioneer because it didn't have Click Tight, I bought the EZ buckle belly pad and HUGS for it, so it didn't end up being much cheaper than the Frontier but I feel like there's less that could go wrong on it over time. I just wish it had the higher limits like the Frontier.

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

It seems stretched to me. Not a whole lot, but definitely some.

If anyone uninstalls and checks, post back and let us know what you find.

tiggercat · Oct 17, 2013

I'll take a look at mine tonight. I was a bit worried about the possibility of belt stretching, so I am careful not to pull the belt tight before closing the ct, I just take out enough slack to end up tight at the end.

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Aurezalia · Oct 17, 2013

tiggercat said:
I'll take a look at mine tonight. I was a bit worried about the possibility of belt stretching, so I am careful not to pull the belt tight before closing the ct, I just take out enough slack to end up tight at the end. Sent from my iPod touch using Car-Seat.Org

Yeah, exactly that. The first time I installed I could tell belt stretching could definitely be an issue if the clicktight is forced down over a tight seatbelt. I buckle and then introduce slack into the belt so it's tight at the end but not overtight as to damage the belt.

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

I think this has the potential to over tighten a lot. Love the feature of click tight though.

bnsnyde · Oct 17, 2013

How did it pass testing?

Nobody installed a seat and left it there for months, even years maybe. Right?

The seatbelt in our van is the one my kids will use as tweens, maybe even teens. I'd be really, really sad if having used carseats means they are not safe as teens in the belts.

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

Pic added to first post.

tiggercat · Oct 17, 2013

I just checked mine, and I don't see any stretching. It is a bit crumpled where the lap portion routes over the edge of the seat but otherwise seems fine.

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tiggercat · Oct 17, 2013

Looking at your pic, is it possible that the bottom layer of belt was folded over inside the click tight?
It doesn't look so much stretched as folded or crumpled. Can you take a close up of the area that looks most stressed to you showing some normal belt and some that looks stressed?

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msg221 · Oct 17, 2013

I took mine out two days ago because I was going to Ikea and wanted the seats out of there in case I bought anything big and needed to fold the seats down. I will have to look at my seat belt now. I did wonder about this as well but I also try not to make the seat belt too tight before closing the Click Tight.

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

Here is a bit of a closeup:

I think what really bothered me is that the crinkle/stretch did not come out of the belt when uninstalled those days.

Syllieann · Oct 17, 2013

Mine's only been in a couple weeks but I took it out to look. There is some wrinkling but it's more where the belt bends around the side of the seat, not where it's actually in the ct apparatus. There's definitely no stretching in the weave.

As I was putting it back in, I routed it around the red part, thinking for a moment that it was the 85. Then I realized what I had done and routed it the proper way. It occurred to me that closing the ct when it is routed along the red would definitely cause more tightening than when routed in the green path. I'm not even sure if it would be possible to close the ct if it was on the red, but is it possible that it was installed the other way at some point?

smackeen · Oct 17, 2013

Pretty sure there is no way to close the click tight when it is through the booster guide.

Always been routed through the correct way. UAS has never been used. Seat belt only.

Athena · Oct 18, 2013

I'll have to check mine. This is freaking me out. Mine has been installed in both positions and DD1 will be boostered soon in one of those positions, so the seat belt must be working properly.

soccer_widow · Oct 18, 2013

smackeen said:
I think what really bothered me is that the crinkle/stretch did not come out of the belt when uninstalled those days.

My belts look crinkled like that every time I take a seat out, not just my FR90. In fact, they were the most creased/crinkled with my Radians. I haven't had a stretching problem.

judesmommy · Oct 18, 2013

mine is super stretched out and I've only had the seat for a month or so.... I will see if I can grab a picture real quick.

judesmommy · Oct 18, 2013

Here is ours. I'm very upset about it because my son is 5 already... within the next few years we will be boostering. I'm not comfortable with this. And I'm a single mother of a child with disabilities. How am I supposed to afford to pay for new belts installed?? :O

Britax Click Tight and Seat Belt Stretching

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