Becoming disenchanted w/ SKJP?

thepeach80 · Oct 3, 2007

I know some people were/are hard on the Radian b/c of the aftermarket products SKJP makes and sells as well, but I never connected the 2. There was a mom on another board who was in a car crash w/ her Radian (unoccupied), but the crash did not meet NHTSA's guidelines for keeping the seat. She called SKJP to double check and they told her the seat was fine and they had crash tested the same seat 3+ times w/ no change in the results. Does anyone find this odd and just very cocky? I mean it's one thing to have trust in your prodcut, and another to risk children's lives on that IMO. I don't know, I like my Radian a lot and I think it's a great seat for those who need a narrow seat or who want a seat w/ no base like my son likes, but they've just been very strange lately and I'm not sure if I would buy another Radian at this point (had been thinking about it for later). Thoughts?

arly1983 · Oct 3, 2007

thepeach80 said:
but they've just been very strange lately?

:yeahthat:

ccjones · Oct 3, 2007

Hmmm...yeah, SK has been doing/saying some strange stuff lately. However, you can't minimize the really good crash-test ratings the Radian received, especially the head excursion numbers.

I try to separate the Radian from the company, because wasn't the rumor that SK bought the design or rights to the seat from the engineer who came up with the idea for the Radian? I'm thinking it wasn't something they came up with in-house, they're just basically marketing/selling the seat (and doing the CS for the seat, which is definitely hit or miss).

If I was in a car crash and the carseat did not meet the guidelines set by the NHTSA for keeping the seat, I would junk it immediately. I wouldn't even have thought to call the carseat manufacturer. And if I did happen to call and the manufacturer said it was OK to continue to use, I'd just chalk it up as incompetent customer service, let my common sense override the incompetency and replace the seat.

An Aurora · Oct 3, 2007

Yeah, the fact that they told her to pick the glass out of the seat and keep using it made me shudder.

That, coupled with the problems that several people on here have had that were unresolved by SKJP makes me quite disenchanted.

ThreeBeans · Oct 3, 2007

I was equally disturbed by SK's response. Talk about cocky.

Patriot201 · Oct 3, 2007

They said to pick the shattered glass out of the seat and keep using it?

OMG!

LimePink · Oct 3, 2007

Wow...that's ridiculous. I'd replace the seat...and probably call back to SK and let them know what I thought about telling me to pick out the glass

Crispymama · Oct 3, 2007

Oh I was

over what they said too! Thats why I told her I would replace it either way!

southpawboston · Oct 3, 2007

no one has bothered to mention that the radian is made out of cast metal, not plastic like most carseats. it's probably the strongest seat on the market. that may be why SK is confident that a crashed seat can keep passing crash tests. i honestly wouldn't be surprised if that were true. and NHTSA's guildelines are probably based on the assumption that all carseats are made out of plastic.

personally, *i* wouldn't use the carseat after a crash, but that's probably what SK was thinking when they said that...

snowbird25ca · Oct 3, 2007

southpawboston said:
no one has bothered to mention that the radian is made out of cast metal, not plastic like most carseats. it's probably the strongest seat on the market. that may be why SK is confident that a crashed seat can keep passing crash tests. i honestly wouldn't be surprised if that were true. and NHTSA's guildelines are probably based on the assumption that all carseats are made out of plastic.

personally, *i* wouldn't use the carseat after a crash, but that's probably what SK was thinking when they said that...

Yeah, that's what I was wondering too. Although I'm fairly certain the manual says to replace after a crash...

Even if the seat was strong enough, I wouldn't trust the same harness straps multiple times - mind you, seeing as the straps can't be replaced, they would've had to use the same straps in their crash tests...

safeinthecar · Oct 3, 2007

The IIHS also has found that car seats do very well after repeated crashes, and supports the current replacement guidelines.

Personally, I have my doubts, as I have found visible damage* on all five of the seats that were in the Quest when it crashed, despite the fact that they were UNOCCUPIED. So my personal rule is that I replace any seat in a car in a crash. Period. It's just not worth the risk IMO.

* the RA was twisted on the base and was unable to lock in either reclined or upright positions.

the backrest of the Body Guard collapsed upon impact (this seat was nearest the POI)

The Futura was cracked at the pivot of the OHS.

the TB showed stress marks where the backrest had flexed against the seatbelt.

and an old Evenflo Joyride (used to transport DD's baby doll) cracked at the belt path. (ok so this seat was about 9 years old, but still...)

snowbird25ca · Oct 3, 2007

http://ca.skjp.com/Media/Radian_Premier_Manual_En.pdf

pg 7 (CDN manual but I'm guessing US is the same..)
I couldn't copy & paste - it must be protected... but I copied my screen and cropped it in photoshop. :thumbsup:

Defrost · Oct 4, 2007

safeinthecar said:
and an old Evenflo Joyride (used to transport DD's baby doll) cracked at the belt path. (ok so this seat was about 9 years old, but still...)

Did you take a picture?? That would be an awesome visual for "why we don't use expired seats!"

ZephyrBlue · Oct 4, 2007

I was going to order a Princess Radian and decided against it; primarily because I don't feel comfortable w/dd riding in it FF outboard because of the lack of shell depth but I was also really turned off by SKJP's response to the 2 people here who have Radians with cracked/bowed bases; I just can't afford to spend $250 on a seat that I can't be sure will come with good customer service, even if I could make the seat work in the center seating position so that I would feel good about DD riding in it.

thepeach80 · Oct 4, 2007

Trudy, I looked up an down for that part the other night and couldn't find it. lol I'm glad to know it's in there.

joolsplus3 · Oct 4, 2007

http://www.icbc.com/library/research_papers/child_seat/index.asp

It's probably still safe. But they should NOT give advice conflicting with their manual!

Avery'sMama · Oct 4, 2007

I decided to get the Regent instead of the Radian due to issues that kept popping up. After reading that post on the other board, my feelings are confirmed. I just don't see, even with the metal frame, why they would tell her to keep a seat that was against the door where the impact occurred. It wasn't just in the car it was against the door closest to the point of impact. Pick the glass out of it? I don't think so!

safeinthecar · Oct 4, 2007

Defrost said:
Did you take a picture?? That would be an awesome visual for "why we don't use expired seats!"

No, for some idiotic reason I didn't take any pics of the seats at all. I have tons of the van, and even one of the shirt my x-H was wearing because the seat belt was twisted on him and cut right through, but no car seats. *smacks self in forehead*

Becoming disenchanted w/ SKJP?

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