Recaro convertible

Hazelandlucy

Active member
Just out of curiosity, has Recaro addressed the Consumer Reports test results with it's convertible? Is that not a lawsuit waiting to happen if a kid does go flying through the harness in a real world accident?
 
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LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
I'm not aware of anything new in terms of a response.

The Consumer Reports test used forces significantly stronger than NHTSA testing, which is already more severe than most real-life crashes. The seat meets federal standards, so I don't know that Recaro is responsible for anything beyond that. (Not that I'm letting them off the hook, because I do think it's a problem that a seat would fail that catastrophically with a 3-year-old dummy while other seats didn't. I'd like to believe that public pressure would lead to some changes---and perhaps it is--but I don't think many people actually know about it.)
 

Hazelandlucy

Active member
I'm not aware of anything new in terms of a response.

The Consumer Reports test used forces significantly stronger than NHTSA testing, which is already more severe than most real-life crashes. The seat meets federal standards, so I don't know that Recaro is responsible for anything beyond that. (Not that I'm letting them off the hook, because I do think it's a problem that a seat would fail that catastrophically with a 3-year-old dummy while other seats didn't. I'd like to believe that public pressure would lead to some changes---and perhaps it is--but I don't think many people actually know about it.)

I know it's more severe, but it's also more realistic, right? The seats are less firm and some other changes. If I were Recaro, I would have done a voluntary recall and tried to truly figure out if there was an issue.

I have Britaxes and I have to say, it crosses my mind sometimes when I have my 4 yr old FF in one that it failed at 52 lbs. No way would I put my child in the Recaro! I just can't believe they are not terrified of a lawsuit and/or child death and haven't seemed to change a thing with the convertible.
 

abigaylebelle

Active member
The fact that the seat failed at just 35 pounds is very concerning. We used a recaro convertible ff up until last year when it expired. Fortunately we never had to test the seat in a crash.

This concerns me about other seats also having harnesses rip through at weights well below the upper limit. I'm no longer convinced that harnessing larger children is safe if the plastic seat shells cannot withstand crash forces at 40-50-60 pounds. Fortunately my children are light and are 6 years old before reaching 40 pounds.

I'm looking forward to the harness to booster testing to see if those seats fare better with the larger dummy.
 

melissa621

New member
I'm looking forward to the harnessed booster test too. I wonder when those will be completed/released? I have a Frontier 90 and a Nautilus for when my son goes FF in about a year since he will be 4I hope the results are released before then, otherwise I may just leave him in his convertibles. I'd hate to think that I possible my have a seat that may fail at 35 lbs FF.

I'm sure they're probably fine, but I'm a worry wart. I've been debating on whether I should just sell the FR 90. DS is so tiny that the Frontier just swallows him.
 

LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
This concerns me about other seats also having harnesses rip through at weights well below the upper limit. I'm no longer convinced that harnessing larger children is safe if the plastic seat shells cannot withstand crash forces at 40-50-60 pounds.

Well, the other ones that had damage like that had it happen when they were tested with the 52- or 62-lb dummy. (I'm not sure if they specified which one/s.) Since most forward-facing seats now go to 65 lbs forward-facing, that's not necessarily "well below" the upper limit, although it's still concerning. The reality, though, is that most kids outgrow seats by height before weight, and it's very unusual to have a 70-lb kid in a harnessed seat even if they still fit in the seat, which is rare (especially when talking about convertibles).

Also, the other seats had damage, but still contained the child within FMVSS requirements. They weren't catastrophic failures like the Recaro.

For the record, I'm still using my Recaro Performance Sport (the combination seat, not the convertible). I had some reservations, but damn, I love that seat. I figured there were enough differences between the two that I consider them completely different seats. (Different base/center of gravity, rethread vs no-rethread harness, etc.)
 

abigaylebelle

Active member
Is there a dummy who weighs between 35 and 52 pounds? I thought the dummies were only the three and six year old? So if we tested the seat at 35 and 52 and it failed at 52 we don't know what what point between 35-52 the seat becomes unsafe, yes?

Also if we don't test seats with a 40 pound dummy, how are booster minimums set?
 

LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
The Recaro failed with the 35-lb dummy. The other seats (which had structural damage but still protected the dummies) failed with either the 52 or 62 (6-year-old or weighted 6-year-old). I'm not sure which. (I don't know if Consumer Reports released that or not--I don't have access).

I think boosters are tested with the 3-year-old dummy (as well as 6, etc.). I'm not sure there's actually a testing standard for determining the minimum weight of a booster, though. I think manufacturers can set that at anything they want. It's been a while since I've read over FMVSS213 though.
 

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