To Tether or Not...vehicle currently has no anchors

Ok. We settled on the True Fit as our first convertible for our twins who are 6 mos old (but already outgrowing their snugrides).

I've been doing a lot of research (TF, BLVD, Marathon, Signo & Radian 80) and we chose the TF for our children because genetics suggest that they will be tall & robust. DS is in 98%ile in weight & 75%ile in height while DD is 98% in height & 70% in weight.

The TF seems to physically fit our current & future needs the best.

However, I've been watching the video links to youtube here and now I'm wondering whether we are making a mistake by not getting a car seat that can be tethered. I keep imaging our seatbelts unlatching and the car seat being thrown because it has no tether RF. (My understanding is that is can be tethered FF).

Our mini-van does not have tether anchors & the 2nd row of seats are gone to accommodate DH's wheelchair. We could anchor to floor anchors though which were installed when the van was retrofitted for wheelchair.

I guess there seems to be pro/cons to tether in the first place. Are my fears of seatbelts unlatching & babies' carseats being thrown unfounded? Is that more of a booster seat concern only?

Thanks for any feedback/advice!

-mg

MontecitoGal said:

Are my fears of seatbelts unlatching & babies' carseats being thrown unfounded? Is that more of a booster seat concern only?

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I would say the fear is largely unfounded, even for booster seats, unless the child is playing with the buckle. I know the booster video you're talking about, and I don't believe it was ever confirmed that it was seat belt failure that caused the child's ejection, and even if it was, I believe that was a rare kind of belt that is no longer being used.

That said, I don't believe that a rear-facing tether would really make much difference even if the seat belt were to fail. However, the True Fit (and some other seats) do have lockoffs which might help hold the seat belt if it were to come unbuckled. (That's not the purpose of the lockoffs, but I imagine it might help.)

In any case, seat belt failure is not something that keeps me up at night

If you post the year, make and model of your vehicle, we can tell you how to get tether anchors retrofitted for FF use.

I agree, unless the child is playing with the release button (certain types had buttons that were easily pushed; Chrysler comes to mind), seat belt failure is not something I worry about. I'm sorry that family lost their child in the accident, but that video's claims/conclusions are highly suspect IMO. I've done litigation before and I dunno, I just felt that video was more of a mom's way of blaming who she wanted to blame instead of actually being a video to warn other parents. I'll mention things to other parents (like rear face as long as possible) and will provide links if asked, but I never mention that video cuz I just don't think it deserves any attention. I just tell people to keep kids in a 5 pt harness as long as possible and I'll find other links to back it up instead of that video. Just my own personal opinion.

Oh, and you prolly know this, but if your kids are robust, the Recaro may not be the best fit for them. It's best for skinny kids. Tall or short is ok, but they should be skinny.

LISmama810 said:

I would say the fear is largely unfounded, even for booster seats, unless the child is playing with the buckle. I know the booster video you're talking about, and I don't believe it was ever confirmed that it was seat belt failure that caused the child's ejection, and even if it was, I believe that was a rare kind of belt that is no longer being used.

That said, I don't believe that a rear-facing tether would really make much difference even if the seat belt were to fail. However, the True Fit (and some other seats) do have lockoffs which might help hold the seat belt if it were to come unbuckled. (That's not the purpose of the lockoffs, but I imagine it might help.)

In any case, seat belt failure is not something that keeps me up at night

If you post the year, make and model of your vehicle, we can tell you how to get tether anchors retrofitted for FF use.

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Thank you for your feedback. I'm glad to get additional perspective on that video.

Our van is a 1999 Dodge Caravan that has been retrofitted for wheelchair accessibility. That is, the middle row of seats were removed and the floor has several anchor points just in front of the 3rd row bench & directly behind front seats.

Any info you have would be great!

codex57 said:

I agree, unless the child is playing with the release button (certain types had buttons that were easily pushed; Chrysler comes to mind), seat belt failure is not something I worry about. I'm sorry that family lost their child in the accident, but that video's claims/conclusions are highly suspect IMO. I've done litigation before and I dunno, I just felt that video was more of a mom's way of blaming who she wanted to blame instead of actually being a video to warn other parents. I'll mention things to other parents (like rear face as long as possible) and will provide links if asked, but I never mention that video cuz I just don't think it deserves any attention. I just tell people to keep kids in a 5 pt harness as long as possible and I'll find other links to back it up instead of that video. Just my own personal opinion.

Oh, and you prolly know this, but if your kids are robust, the Recaro may not be the best fit for them. It's best for skinny kids. Tall or short is ok, but they should be skinny.

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Thank you also for your thoughts on that video.

Yes...I'd already figured out that the Recaro is made for slim race car driver-types. DD fits that profile but not DS.

MontecitoGal said:

Our van is a 1999 Dodge Caravan that has been retrofitted for wheelchair accessibility. That is, the middle row of seats were removed and the floor has several anchor points just in front of the 3rd row bench & directly behind front seats.

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If the anchor points are bolted to the floor and are meant to hold a wheelchair, I would think those would be acceptable for RF tethering, if you get a seat that allows RF tethering, of course. (Very few cars actually have dedicated RF tether points--we have to make them up by attaching them to something bolted to the floor, like a seat track.)

I assume then that your kids ride in the third row? Here is the part number for retrofitting anchors in 96-00 Caravans: 05018506AA (same for the center and outboard positions).

If you call a dealership, hopefully they'll know what you're talking about--it's often hit or miss. You can also try having them refer to Technical Service Bulletin 23-008-00 Rev. B to see if you can get them installed for free. There is some talk that they might have discontinued that program, though.

LISmama810 said:

If the anchor points are bolted to the floor and are meant to hold a wheelchair, I would think those would be acceptable for RF tethering, if you get a seat that allows RF tethering, of course. (Very few cars actually have dedicated RF tether points--we have to make them up by attaching them to something bolted to the floor, like a seat track.)

I assume then that your kids ride in the third row? Here is the part number for retrofitting anchors in 96-00 Caravans: 05018506AA (same for the center and outboard positions).

If you call a dealership, hopefully they'll know what you're talking about--it's often hit or miss. You can also try having them refer to Technical Service Bulletin 23-008-00 Rev. B to see if you can get them installed for free. There is some talk that they might have discontinued that program, though.

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Thank you, Jennie.

I called a couple of the local Dodge dealerships and they quoted $40/per anchor and then they out-source to local bodyshops to do the work. I need to call the bodyshops to find out what their quote would be to do the install of the anchors.

MontecitoGal said:

Thank you, Jennie.

I called a couple of the local Dodge dealerships and they quoted $40/per anchor and then they out-source to local bodyshops to do the work. I need to call the bodyshops to find out what their quote would be to do the install of the anchors.

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That's weird that they'd outsource the installation. It's the kind of thing someone (especially a mechanic) with instructions and a torque wrench should be able to do in a few minutes.

You might want to start another thread (or modify the title of this one) to say something like "Dodge Tether Installation" and maybe some people who are more familiar with that vehicle/company will be able to give you some more guidance.