Car seat perpendicular to driving direction.

Hi,

We are going to rent a camper-van for a trip in the southwest.
The camper-vam has seat which is perpendicular to the
driving direction.
See here:
http://www.destinationusa.de/company/motorhome/campervan17pic1e.htm
It is the only place where we can place our car seat.
We can install it properly, but i am not sure what happens when
there is accident.
Our baby is 10 months old.

Do you think it is safe to drive like this ?

Thanks,
Ron

Unfortunately camper are a different breed when it comes to child safety seats. If there is no front passanger air bag, you might want to opt for the front passanger seat, that way the child seat would be facing in the right direction.

Thanks for your answer.

It comes out that there is air-bag in the front passenger seat.
It means I can't put the baby's car-seat there.

So, I am left with the question - how safe (or not safe) is it to put
the car seat on bench with is perpendicular to the driving direction ?

Thanks again,

Ron

I have often read that car seat installation is not recommended in camper/motor homes because the dinette or couch with the seat belt is not actually secured to the frame of the vehicle, only to plywood, thus offering no protection. I personally would not allow my child to ride in one (I have a 10 month odl too.)

Brooke

This is tough for people. The RV or camping van is a great way to have a family vacation, but it's nearly impossible to transport kids in safely. The only two seating locations that work for the proper installation of car seats are the driver's seat and passenger seat up front. Obviously the driver's seat is out, and with an airbag the passenger seat is too.
There are not any carseats on the market that are approved for installing on a vehicle seat that faces any direction other than to the front of the vehicle. It hasn't been tested, and I wouldn't choose to risk my child being the crash test dummy in case of a collision.
I hope you and your family can work out something safe and fun for all of you. Good luck.

Really, it's not safe. It might be better than nothing, but the best idea would be to drive a vehicle in which you can safely restrain all the passengers, even if it means taking an extra car.

Well, this answers my question about whether or not to take up my parents' offer to ride with them in a rented RV down the coast next summer!!! & I was really looking forward to a long, cheap vacation for once, too

Why not rent an RV AND a truck to pull it? Can you do that? Get a 5th wheel or travel trailer, and a full size truck/van to pull it (and safely buckle everyone in).

Here's the travelouge of a woman I know on-line. If you scroll down to the Dec 10th entry, there is a pic of their set-up, click on it to get the larger version. She's got the two big boys in Super Elite's, the older girl in a Marathon, and the youngest in a Roundabout in the van. They tow the travel trailer.

http://harvestmoon.typepad.com/travelogue/2004/12/index.html

It sounds safer to rent a truck and pull a trailer, but I wonder what the statistics are for this. We have a truck/trailer combination because I wanted a safer place to install the carseats (and I didn't think my DH would agree that I could follow the RV with my car). My DH has had extensive driver's safety training (he is a paramedic and is experienced in driving large vehicles), but it still seems a little scary when towing a trailer. The trailers are large and can be subject to sway unless you have a trailer that is within length specifications for the wheel base of your truck. Then you need the correct anti-sway bars and the brake control. There are all kinds of technical details that can be really quite difficult to research properly (and the sales people won't tell you the truth). Plus, it takes quite a bit of practice to properly tow a trailer. I wouldn't want to learn on a rental -- by the time your vacation is over, you are just learning how to tow.

Ok -- I just clicked on the link below. It might not be so bad with a pop up trailer. These are usually lighter and not as subject to sway. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it with a full size trailer or a fifth wheel -- at least as a rental. It will take time to get comfortable with the set up.

I followed my DH home from the dealer the first time we took the trailer off the lot. The RV dealer did not properly install the sway bars, but we didn't realize it! So, about half way home, a semi passes my DH and wow, did that thing sway! I think it may have been one of the scariest moments in my life watching that wild sway. Luckily, my DH knew how to handle the sway, but many drivers would have fought to keep the steering wheel straight, which would have caused the whole set up to flip. The next day we immediately had the set up fixed (by a different place), but I still tense up when passing those semis. The wind sheer can be incredible.

Oops. I just went back and looked at the full size picture in the link. Definitely not a pop up! Sorry.