Vent I am not liking Britax so much right now...(LONG)

Where do I even start...

This morning one of our MA's was being a butt, not wanting to tighten...because carseats should just not tighten when it's cold outside. Nevermind the fact that I started the car and let it warm up before going out.

Normally, I leave the harness alone (don't loosen/tighten), but this morning I just haaaad to loosen it a little so it'd be easier to buckle Pacey in. I had one heck of a time trying to get that sucker tightened back up. I had to pull with both hands (and that hurts with those stiff Britax straps) and hold it tight while using my other hand to push the lever back down (to keep it tight). Keep in mind, this was only tightening it basically 1 notch at a time. I was frustrated, but didn't think much of it...although that does make me love the Nautilus that much more.

Fast forward to this evening. My mom asked to take Pacey skating with her, so I decided to let her. I put his MA in her car and put him in it myself. I always give her instructions (yes...every single time) and she follows them. I told her to be absolutely sure, when she buckled him in, that she felt and heard the second buckle click because we had been having some problems with it (thinking we had it all the way in and it popping back out a few minutes down the road). I buckled him in myself and felt and heard the click (my mom heard it as well). I pulled up on the buckles, as I always do, to make sure they were in. They were.

So we got almost to the restaurant (we took Joshua to eat) and my mom called. The stupid buckle came out going down the road. Thankfully, Pacey totally freaks out when this happens, so you know immediately. They got it buckled back and met us (oddly enough, we were right near them) so we could put the Nautilus in instead. When my mom told Pacey they were meeting us to switch them, he told her his other seat was better anyway, lol.

So anyway, I'm p*ssed. I can deal with a seat that's hard to tighten. I cannot deal with a seat that unbuckles while I'm driving. Is it so much to ask that a carseat stay buckled? What if he had been asleep, not known it was unbuckled, and there was a crash? What if, for that matter, he was younger and didn't notice that kind of stuff and there was a crash? I didn't pay $200 for a seat that unbuckles when it shouldn't. This was not the first time it happened. In fact, in just happened about 1 week ago. It's happened at least 5 times. I thought we just weren't pushing it in all the way, so we started pulling up on them to be sure each time.

I'm not stupid and I consider myself to be more carseat "savvy" than a typical parent. I know how to install and use a seat properly. That harness was buckled and I am 100% sure of it. I take excellent care of my seats. They haven't had any food or drinks in them lately (and when they do, it is nothing even remotely sticky), so nothing is gunked up. I cleaned them about a month ago, scrubbed every crevice. It wasn't a false click, making me think it was in. I felt it, I heard it, I pulled up on it, it was in.

I guess we'll be calling Britax on Thursday (Alisha will call...I'm shy IRL/on the phone, very non-confrontational, so I don't get much done, lol) and see what we can get done. Hopefully they'll send a new harness and buckle...then we'll probably sell it and get a Nautilus instead.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading my big vent...just had to get it out!

WOW, that is absolutely unacceptable. I would contact Britax and freak out to them right away!! I cant believe that happened. I 'm sorry you have to deal with this!!

NOT FREAKING COOL!

I was going to suggest calling Britax, get a replacement and sell it! Sorry you are having problems with the seat.

I would be calling Britax and freaking out on that one!

Ugh, I would be ever so peeved too! My MA was a bugger to tighten in the cold, though nowhere near as bad as the Radian. The buckle coming undone though is just plain unacceptable.

I think this is definitely worth filing a report with the NHTSA over. You're hearing the click and pulling to confirm it's attached. A buckle shouldn't come undone partway through a trip. :thumbsdown:

I would just assume that Pacey learned a new trick, and I would not freak out

Yeah, I'm wondering if Pacey undid it. It shouldn't randomly release... there is no mechanical reason that it could/should/would. It's like tying a shoe and leaving it sit on a table... the shoe isn't going to randomly become untied.

If it makes you feel better, though, definitely call Britax and get a new buckle.

Nevermind. I saw that you were replacing the buckle before you sell it!

My dd's did that once. I pulled up on it and it didn't come out so I assumed it was buckled. We got where we were going and it wasn't buckled I took out the buckle and washed it per manual and it never happened again I would suggest that before anything else. Something sticky may have gotten in there and made it feel secure but it really wasn't. If it happens again, I'd definitely call. But I would try to wash it first.

melniemi said:

My dd's did that once. I pulled up on it and it didn't come out so I assumed it was buckled. We got where we were going and it wasn't buckled I took out the buckle and washed it per manual and it never happened again I would suggest that before anything else. Something sticky may have gotten in there and made it feel secure but it really wasn't. If it happens again, I'd definitely call. But I would try to wash it first.

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Yeah, it is definitely not 'acceptable' for it to willy nilly open, but washing it is usually the fix.

I hate that carseats don't tighten well in cold weather. Any seat I have had has never been easy to tighten in cold weather but if you wear leather mitts when tightening it doesn't hurt your hands nearly as much.

Trudy, I find the Radian easier to tighten then the Frontier and the MA.

I am 100% sure it's not Pacey. He doesn't have the strength to unbuckle it. I've let him try when we're stopped and he just can't do it. The Nautilus buckle is easier to undo and he can't undo it either. Plus, he really is very safety conscious. He tells us every time to pull up on it and make sure it's buckled and he doesn't touch it after that. He freaks out if he sees Joshua touching his buckle, thinking he's going to push the button. So I am absolutely positive it isn't Pacey.

It's clean too...seriously. Something sticky in there is just not possible since he hasn't had anything in the car. I just cleaned it about a month ago (after it had already done it a couple times), hoping that would fix it. I soaked the buckle part in warm water, just like the manual says, just to be sure there's nothing there. It's still coming undone.

Yikes, yeah that is definitley not okay! Dont forget to let us know what Britax has to say!

melniemi said:

My dd's did that once. I pulled up on it and it didn't come out so I assumed it was buckled. We got where we were going and it wasn't buckled I took out the buckle and washed it per manual and it never happened again I would suggest that before anything else. Something sticky may have gotten in there and made it feel secure but it really wasn't. If it happens again, I'd definitely call. But I would try to wash it first.

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We had this same thing happen to one of our BLVDs a while back. It would click and feel buckled, then a while later come undone. I washed it and it was better, but I never felt 100% secure, so I ordered a new buckle.

Our MA did the same thing (DOM 2005), I just ordered a new one and replaced it. I guess I should have pursued it further....

This has happened on my MA twice but like the previous posters after I washed it out it was fine.

KAK22 said:

Our MA did the same thing (DOM 2005), I just ordered a new one and replaced it. I guess I should have pursued it further....

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Well how convenient...this one is a 2005 also.

I will definitely be getting a new buckle, but I'm pretty sure we'll sell it after that. I just don't trust it anymore after last night. I'm okay with my others, as they haven't done it, but it does make me weary of the seat all together.

It is possible that there is a defect in your personal buckle then. I would call Britax to have them replace the buckle, but I *personally* wouldn't be super quick to sell it. Because this shouldn't be happening, when you get a new buckle it *should* be fine.

Another vote for wash it again. It could be something other than a drink making it stick- perhaps some dirt or crumbs fell in it. Did it get better at all after you soaked it?

We had a similar problem recently. Like you, we're lucky that ds freaked out when it happened. I took the buckle out and noticed that it made sort of a clicking noise when I pushed on the release button. I ran hot water over it for a minute or two and it's as good as new.

It didn't get any better at all after washing it last time (and I really am very thorough when I clean my seats). I looked down in it a minute ago and there is nothing there. It looks clean. I pushed the button and those little metal things move back and forth like they should. I don't SEE anything wrong. It buckles easily and clicks on the second side (which is the side that always comes undone).

I am soaking it in hot water, on the off chance there is something sticky, and then I'll rinse it again. The problem though, is that I don't trust it now, so I don't know if I can make myself use it again.