Britax FF upright mode

brightredmtn

Well-known member
When out of a car should the seat be able to stay in upright mode (vs. reclined?)

I'm sure my old Roundabout used to be able to and then it stopped. Britax replaced it no questions asked. Now the Marathon is doing the same thing. This seat is only a few months old and I've never pulled to tightly on it's RF tether (which I may have done with the Roundabout.)
 
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snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
Yes, the seat should definitely be locking in the upright mode. If it's changing from upright to reclined without you pulling the black handle, then it's not locking and I wouldn't use it that way.

Sounds like you're going to have to call Britax on this. Bummer that it's happened on such a new seat. :(

eta: I see in your siggy that your ds is still rf'ing. I'd ask Britax for sure just to double check, but I'd most likely continue to use the seat rf'ing like that since it has to be in the recline position anyways. But I wouldn't use it ff'ing unless it was locking in to position.
 

brightredmtn

Well-known member
Yes, the seat should definitely be locking in the upright mode. If it's changing from upright to reclined without you pulling the black handle, then it's not locking and I wouldn't use it that way.

Sounds like you're going to have to call Britax on this. Bummer that it's happened on such a new seat. :(

eta: I see in your siggy that your ds is still rf'ing. I'd ask Britax for sure just to double check, but I'd most likely continue to use the seat rf'ing like that since it has to be in the recline position anyways. But I wouldn't use it ff'ing unless it was locking in to position.

Yes he's still RFing but I noticed this when the seat was out for travel this week. I'll call Britax and hopefully if it's still OK to use RF then maybe I'll wait until the seat needs to be used FF so I'll get a new one then and get another six years from that point.

When this happened to our Roundabout it was way out of warranty and they replaced it no problem. They're going to think I'm eating this locking mechanism or something!

ETA THANK YOU for your quick reply!
 

NannyMom

Well-known member
I noticed this with my Marathon this week too. I've never over tightened the RF tether. The seat was manufactured in July, and I bought it towards the end of August. I guess I should call them now and see if they want to replace it. Or should I wait awhile and get a newer seat? I am only using it RF.
 

melniemi

New member
My new one is a little hard to get to lock into upright mode. But if I hold the seat so it is facing me and grab the back of the base and pull it down and forward with a little force, it will lock into place.

Try that before calling for a replacement seat. It should work, might just need a little muscle.
 

thepeach80

Senior Community Member
My BV used to take some work to get it to lock, but it did. IT's easier now and I don't have that problem anymore.
 

britfish

New member
I just had this issue w/ my MA. It was out of warranty and they replaced it for $100. They told me I could still use it FF and put it in the upright mode and "hold" it there by tightening the straps to keep it in that position. I wasn't comfortable w/ this so I decided to get the replacement. Unfortuanately I didn't check the upright position until my daughter was 32 lbs. so I missed the warranty period!
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
Before calling Britax, try this tip posted by Jools to see if it fixes the problem (originally posted by Alisa Baer, M.D. and one of the "The Carseat Ladies," on the CPSPList):

Try this:

According to Alisa Baer,

I have found this to be a frequent "problem" (problem in quotes as it

>>is easily fixed). To get the seat to stay in the upright position,

>>the easiest thing to do is to turn the seat upside down (the head of

>>the car seat is touching the ground), squeeze the black recline

>>adjuster lever, and use your other hand to take the base (the part

>>toward the back of the car seat) and very forcefully pull up - you

>>will hear an audible click when the seat has snapped into the upright position.

If the above tip doesn't help, then give Britax a call. I wouldn't wait until you actually need to use the seat FF because Britax may change how they handle the issue after more time elapses, and it's also good to let Britax know that another owner is having this issue for the record, KWIM?
 

NannyMom

Well-known member
Before calling Britax, try this tip posted by Jools to see if it fixes the problem (originally posted by Alisa Baer, M.D. and one of the "The Carseat Ladies," on the CPSPList):



If the above tip doesn't help, then give Britax a call. I wouldn't wait until you actually need to use the seat FF because Britax may change how they handle the issue after more time elapses, and it's also good to let Britax know that another owner is having this issue for the record, KWIM?

I tried putting the head against the ground and pushing hard while pulling the handle. But I wasn't pulling on the back of the base. I'll have to try that.
 

LiveLaughLove

New member
I had this problem with my MA when I went to turn it FF after being RF for about a month. It took alot of force, but I was able to get it to lock into FF position. After being installed FF for about a week, it doesn't stick anymore. The recline moves from RF to FF smoothly again.
 

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