What is your biggest beef with car seat makers?....

emandbri

Well-known member
the newest blog got me thinking about it and I think it would be an interesting discussion.

My biggest beef is I think they need to try REAL kids in the seats and see how they fit. I really think if a seat goes to 40 lbs then most kids should be able to fit in it until 40 lbs. I know kids are all different sizes and have different torso lengths but it really is crazy that we have seats such as the comfort sport in which hardly ANY kid would make it to 40 lbs.

I also believe very strongly that there needs to be age limits on boosters and would like to them to start at 40 lbs in the US instead of 30.
 
ADS

Maedze

New member
right now it's that they KNOW rearfacing is safer but they don't make seats to accomodate most older rear facers.
 

christineka

New member
I'd like the age and size requirements changed. 4 years and 40 pounds for a hbb and 6 years and 50 pounds for backless.

Ff from 30 pounds, age 1, and 34 inches.

I'd like higher rfing seats, but they first need to convince a good chunk of the population to rf past age 1.

They should print safety info in the manuals as to why kids should rf as long as possible and stay harnessed to at least age 4.

All the horrible combo boosters should have their belt guides removed and be ffing harnessed seats only (or convertibles if applicable.)
 

mykidsmylife

Well-known member
I'd like the age and size requirements changed. 4 years and 40 pounds for a hbb and 6 years and 50 pounds for backless.

Ff from 30 pounds, age 1, and 34 inches.

I'd like higher rfing seats, but they first need to convince a good chunk of the population to rf past age 1.

They should print safety info in the manuals as to why kids should rf as long as possible and stay harnessed to at least age 4.


Ditto on this...
 

PixieEMT

New member
The fact that CS manufacturers from our country make seats that RF past 35lbs that are available in Europe but screw the US children! :mad:

Then again as a pp stated, we need to convince the rest of the population that RF past the MINIMUM 1y/o and 20lbs is safer (their little cherub won't break their legs...or doesn't need to see the DVD player!):rolleyes:
 

rodentranger

New member
Taller harness slots on the HWH seats,
Lower harness slots on convertibles.
Higher rf limits on convertibles. (I'm not ready to turn DS ff yet!)
More safety information in the manuals (ie rf vs ff, tethered vs non tethered, why not to tighten your rf tether so tight you distort the webbing:whistle:), More publicity re: car seat safety.
Easier installation in more vehicles for the Radian. It is completely incompatible with 2 of our vehicles and belt installations.
More CPSTs as CS reps for the manufacturers so you get more than "The manual states xyz" when you call with a question.
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
It's not the carseat manufacturers that bug me, it's the auto manufacturers.
 

Chex

New member
I second everything christineka and jessi (rodentranger) said. :thumbsup:

ETA: Oh, and now Debbie too. I've wondered that all along.....would it be so hard for the carseat manufacturers and the car manufacturers to get together on a few things and get all sorted out? Like making LATCH and top tethers standard in ALL rear seating positions. Why this hasn't happened yet is beyond me. Like making LATCH hold more than 40-48 lbs. Like making the top tether hold more than 50 lbs. All these things need to be addressed by the car manufacturers too.

Oh, and designated rear-facing tether locations (yeah, right....like that's going to happen any time soon:rolleyes:.)
 

christineka

New member
I'd like built in booster seats. It wouldn't be so embarrassing for older kids to flip down a section of the seat in order to be comfortable in the belt. That way you won't have to send your 10 year old to school with a booster seat if they should go home with a friend. Not that everyone would have new vehicles...
 

jess71903

Ambassador
Not that everyone would have new vehicles...

It would be a start, though.

ITA with everything. I think Ford needs to call me next time they want to redesign the Explorer. I have some demands.

The biggest thing to me is the safety info in the manuals. That way if I have an argument with a mom about RF or EH or whatever, all I have to say is "go home and look at your manual."
 

rodentranger

New member
It's not the carseat manufacturers that bug me, it's the auto manufacturers.
Amen! Honda! :whistle:
I second everything christineka and jessi (rodentranger) said. :thumbsup:

ETA: Oh, and now Debbie too. I've wondered that all along.....would it be so hard for the carseat manufacturers and the car manufacturers to get together on a few things and get all sorted out? Like making LATCH and top tethers standard in ALL rear seating positions. Why this hasn't happened yet is beyond me. Like making LATCH hold more than 40-48 lbs. Like making the top tether hold more than 50 lbs. All these things need to be addressed by the car manufacturers too.

Oh, and designated rear-facing tether locations (yeah, right....like that's going to happen any time soon:rolleyes:.)

I'd like LATCH and top tethers to go to 100 lbs please. Then I could tether my dogs instead of belting them.:D
I didn't even know what all those little bars were for when I bought my 03 Wrangler. I don't recall the owner's manual really helping either. I just thought they were for threading the retaining strap through when you had the seat flipped forward.
Maybe someone at Honda could give me a definitive answer as to whether or not my side airbags (not curtain) are a problem with a rf seat in the outboard position...
 

SusanMae

Senior Community Member
I would like seats that RF past 35 pounds. I'm thinking that FMVSS 213 has something in it that doesn't allow foot props, which many of the euro ERF seats use.

Susan
 

Kat_Momof3

New member
I would like all manufacturers to use cdc growth charts to aid them in design on all their seats.
some manufacturers do it, and not on all of their seats... but it needs to be more common.

On the seats where they have been used (Evenflo TFA, Graco SS1, Graco Nautilus, just to name a few), look how much better they work for longevity.
 

NannyMom

Well-known member
It's not the carseat manufacturers that bug me, it's the auto manufacturers.

exactly! people in my family have more than once said carseats should be made to fit better in cars. NO.....the problem (usually) is the cars are all different...they need to be made to fit carseats better.
 

KirasMommy

Senior Community Member
I wish they made HWH seats that were more affordable for the lower income people. A friend of mine has her 3 year old in a booster because she can't afford the price tag of even the cheapest seat that harnesses past 40 lbs.

I wish that car seats would not allow FF at only 20/22 lbs. If they made it higher, maybe more people would keep their young toddlers RFing longer.

I wish that manufacturers would make a bigger deal out of expiration dates and not using seats with an unknown history. Prove to people that car seats don't have an expiration date just so that the car seat companies can sell more seats.
 

Gypsy

Senior Community Member
I agree - LATCH and top tethers to at least 80 pounds.

Rigid LATCH available on all carseats - with compliance from automakers to have properly spaced LATCH anchors in all rear seating positions.

NO forward of the bight belts! No rigid buckle stalks. No overlaping buckles/belts. No TINY center seating position that most people would never fit in. ALL headrests should be adjustable and removable.

More narrow options for 3 across in small vehicles - including tall boosters, HWH seats, convertibles and infant seats.
 

Evolily

New member
My biggest thing is the lack of transparency. There are no labels for harness heights, usually the box says in big print "last until 100 lbs, the last car seat you'll ever buy!" and then in the small writing you find out that at 40 lbs it's a belt positioning booster, but at no time are you told that the average child will outgrow the harness at 32 lbs and that the booster almost never fits a child safely. My other issue is that they are still selling OHS, and most parents buy OHS seats because they believe they are the safest thing on the market (I know my mom did this).

But, the only way I really see it changing is if there are federal guidelines for car seat labeling. Something that is easily comparable.
 

Lea_Ontario

Well-known member
- Ditch the deceptive marketing. I know in a heartbeat what seat someone has when they come into my work and tell me they have "that one that's good to 80lbs", and they are almost always shocked to find out that the harness is only good to 40lbs. Shame on you Cosco !!

- Include an informative DVD, to compliment the owners manual. So many people don't read the manual, but they MIGHT watch a DVD.

- Have higher weight and AGE limits on FF seats and boosters.

- Have a better variety of narrower seats.

- Have a true way to test for side-impact so we don't have things like "Company X's OWN side-impact testing"

- Not have a 40-lb limit allowed on FF seats at all, set 47 or 50 lbs as the legally allowed minimum.

- Force companies to be more transparent about the testing and results for the seats. So many of us think that Britax is 'better' than Cosco - now let's see them prove it. It won't hurt the companies that preform well already.
 

skiersnowboarder3

Senior Community Member
My big thing is LATCH. It should be available in all rear seating positions. It should go to at least 80 lbs. And, it shouldn't cause me to waste 10 inches of my backseat because I can't slide the carseat over to the door. :twocents:
 

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