What do you think about the fit in the lap belt on the monterey?....

What do you think of the lap belt fit?

  • I'd say is is a good fit on Daniel

    Votes: 4 20.0%
  • I'd say it is an okay fit on Daniel

    Votes: 8 40.0%
  • I'd say it is a bad fit on Daniel

    Votes: 3 15.0%
  • I'd say it is a good fit on Benjamin

    Votes: 14 70.0%
  • I'd say it is an okay fit on Benjamin

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I'd say it is a bad fit on Benjamin

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • click box

    Votes: 5 25.0%

  • Total voters
    20

emandbri

Well-known member
After seeing pictures of now nice and low the lap bet is in the recaro young sport and turbo I'm second guessing how the lap belt fits in the monterey.

here is Kecia's blog about the recaro young sport

http://images.google.com/imgres?img...oster&hl=en&sa=N&um=1&ei=IzrGSbejJoTYMKTwvIkK

here is momtoem's post with pictures of the turbo

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=77341&highlight=turbo

Here is Daniel in the monterey

DSC02244.JPG


and here is Benjamin

DSC01922.JPG


Oh and Daniel is 10, 4 foot 9, and around 80 lbs.

Benjamin's picture was taken when he was a little over 5, 43 lbs and 43 inches.

What do you guys think? Is the lap belt low enough?

Does the added awesomeness of the side impact on the monterey outweigh the lap belt being a tad high?
 
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Pixels

New member
I think it's a bit high on Daniel. But I notice that he doesn't have much leg support in it, and his thighs are angled down, pulling his pelvis and everything ... basically, I think the lack of leg support for him might be causing a bit of a slouch.

Benjamin has full leg support (plus foot support on the seat in front ;)) so the lap belt fits nicely on him.
 

Stretchy Glue

New member
I think on Daniel, it is riding high because it looks like he's sliding out of the seat. That being said, it still looks like it's sitting over mostly bone, just a little higher that ideal. I think that's because he's about outgrown it.

The sencond picture does look much better, but like Pixels said, he's got better leg support.
 

Maggie

New member
I agree with everyone else, it does look a tad high. Like PP, I think it might be because of the lack of leg support. Benjamin seems to fit well.

I'm very anxious to get ours this week to see how it fits DD.
 

jen_nah

CPST Instructor
I agree with everyone above the lack of leg support is making it not such an ideal seat for Daniel. I would look for a deeper booster for him. I don't think SIP is going to matter if you have a low abdominal injuries from the lap belt riding across his soft tissue.
 

Kecia

Admin - CPST Instructor
I think belt fit on Daniel would be improved if you removed the back and he used the Monterey backless. This would allow him to sit father back and change the geometry of the lap belt fit. Of course, that would mean eliminating the additional SIP of using the seat with the back. It's a tough call.

The other thing to consider is that at 10-years-old he probably has mature iliac spines. Having mature iliac spines can make a big difference in a crash because they tend to "hold" the lap belt and keep it from riding up in a crash. This reduces the chance of injures to the soft abdominal area and helps reduce the possibility of submarining.

What I'm trying to say is that having the lap belt fit the way it does in that picture might be worse for a younger child than a child who is 10+ simply because of the iliac spine maturity issue. It's hard for me to tell in that first picture, but it doesn't look like the belt is near his abdomen. If that's true, then I think the chances of it riding up further during a crash on him are less likely due to the maturity of his iliac spines. Does that make sense?

View attachment 3988

*Anterior superior iliac spines are part of the pelvic bone. Their function in a crash is to keep the lap portion of the belt low and over the strong hip bones. Formation of these iliac spines is not complete until around age 10. Iliac spines that are immature may not be able to keep the lap portion of the belt low during a crash even if belt was positioned properly pre-crash. If the belt rides up on the abdomen that increases the risk of submarining and injuries.
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
Is the lap-belt in the pic of Daniel really that "high," though? At first glance I thought it looked "okay," but after looking again, I'm wondering if his shirt is making it look like it's riding up more than it actually is.
 

emandbri

Well-known member
Okay here are some more pictures. Sorry, some are blurry. I need a better camera! ;)

Here is Daniel in the monterey on the side.

DSC02281.JPG


here is the monterey backless

DSC02289.JPG
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
It definitely looks better without the back in those two pics. It looks okay but not great in the pic w/ the back to me.
 

Stretchy Glue

New member
I think both of them look much better. It's still a little high with the back, but if that tightened, it'd tighten on bone. The backless picture looks 1000 times better. He's able to sit farther back, giving his legs better support.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
What I was thinking about the pic with the back on is that he looks like he wants to slouch even more than he already is-- which would be detrimental to the fit. And he looks SO uncomfortable I don't blame him! I'd want to slouch too! Backless, he looks comfy.
 

sirrahn

Active member
I'm having a similar issue with my 11 yr old. He's already in a backless Olli, but he's started slouching I think because he's had a growth spurt and now his feet can almoooost touch the floor in the booster so he tries to get them there.

I actually think he's getting to the point where he's better without a booster. His knees bend easily over the edge. He can get his feet flat on the floor and the lapbelt fit doesn't look any worse without a booster than it does when he's slouching. I think it's a tiny bit high...similar to your pictures, but it does touch his thighs and doesn't seem to ever ride up. It's really hard to totally make that move though!
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
Does he pass the 5-step test in that seating position without the booster? He might actually fit better without it, and that's always my criteria for when to move my kids out of a booster. Not just "well, now you pass, bye-bye booster!" but "Does the belt fit better with or without the booster?"
 

emandbri

Well-known member
Does he pass the 5-step test in that seating position without the booster?

Nope, the shoulder belt is really on his neck. The same is true of Jacob who is way bigger. Both of them seem to fit in every vehicle except for my van. :rolleyes:

It isn't the best picture but you can see a picture of both of them without a booster in this thread. The seat belt actually fits Daniel better in the middle than it does on the outboard.

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=77226&highlight=wedding
 
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