Age/seat for occasional forward facing

sunnymw

New member
GMIL sometimes rides with DS1 (2 years 7 months, 25lbs, 34") and it would admittedly be easier for her to put him in FFing, in something like the Nautilus--she has little strength in her fingers and the crotch buckle would be easier for her to undo, the straps would always be going over his shoulders, the chest clip would be easier, and the tightening mechanism would be more easily accessible. Basically--SHE would be more likely to use it correctly.

Would you be okay with your child--same stats--riding FFing 2-3 times a week?

Did the Nauti have good head excursion numbers? Does it install well in an 07 Honda Civic?

If we do this, I'll ditch the Titan Elite (notches, no EPS foam) and put the Uptown in OUR car in its place.

Also--my other kiddo is 10 months old and 21lbs. Which one of the kids would you put RFing in the Uptown, and which one in the TrueFit? Any special reasons? Eventually I'll buy the new Graco seat or another TF/RN (DH loves the TF) for our car, but for now I'm thinking of GMIL's car because she has a hard time with the Uptown and cramming Jake's legs in there RFing.



Opinions?
 
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ravekiss

Member
To answer your first question, I would honestly prefer my child (thats over 2 years old of course) to be secured properly FF than having to constantly worry that he's GMIL didnt do something right with his RF seat and he's not secured safely.

To answer the second question, once the Nautilus is tethered properly, head excursion is significantly less than an untethered FF seat and it should install well in your car since its pretty easy to get a good install (hopefully someone can verify that though).

Third question is totally by my preference but I'd put the 10 month old in the Uptown and the 2 year old in the true fit. No particular reason except the size and heights of the seats.

Just my :twocents:
 

gecikuh

Senior Community Member
would have to say i agree completely with ravekiss. i will absolutely rearface my child to the max but would be much more comfortable knowing she would be properly installed ff than knowing she might be properly rf. ease of use for the person using it is a huge component of choosing the right seat.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
I would...but are you sure the GN is easy to unbuckle? I've found it takes a lot of force and can be kind of sticky.

Anyway, make sure SHE can do whatever you buy comfortably :thumbsup: (the harness adjuster is just a dream, so that makes it excellent!)
 

menfusse

New member
My dd FF once a week in my MIL's car for all the same reasons. She's tiny (stats in my siggy), but 3.5 years old. I made the decision that for her, in this instance, MIL would have a much easier time with her FF for several reasons, making her much less likely to misuse it. So, we took the plunge and she's now FF one day a week.
 

TechnoGranola

Forum Ambassador
My DD is the same age, 3-5 pounds heavier, and 2 inches taller. And no, I wouldn't let her ride FF under any circumstance. If I couldn't find a RF seat that was easy for grandma to use properly, then I would rearrange my schedule, my life, etc. so that my child didn't have to ride with grandma.

My personal opinion is that if my kid is going to ride RF, they're going to do it in all vehicles at all times. If I am worried enough about FF to have the child RF in my vehicle, then I am worried enough about FF to have them RF in all vehicles. An accident can happen at any time and I wouldn't forgive myself if it happened when my child was FF.

ETA: and this is my opinion for this age and size of child. My opinion may change as my child gets older. I know my FF comfort won't start until at least 3.
 
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Pixels

New member
My first choice would be to find a seat that she can use properly rear facing. If that's not a possibility, then a properly used forward facing seat beats an improperly used rear facing seat.

I can't tell you anything about head excursion numbers for the Nautilus or any other seat. We just don't have them. Sunshine Kids has released numbers for the Radian, and they look good, but really we don't have anything to compare them to, and we don't have independent confirmation of those numbers. We do know that using the top tether does reduce the head excursion numbers for all seats.
 

lorismurph

Senior Community Member
I would feel totally comfortable with a child that age riding ff on occasion. Yes, we should all keep them rf as long as possible and it sounds as if you've reached that point in that particular car. You have done great to make it to 2y 7mo and still be rf so if you decide to ff in gmil car, don't beat yourself up, you're doing great!
The Nautilus is a great seat but I would make sure (like another pp said) that she really can undo the buckle first. I see no problems with using a Nauti in that car.
 

christineka

New member
As long as the seat is on the side, I find putting a kid in rear-facing easier because I don't have to bend over as much. As for little strength in the fingers, I'd go for a dorel seat over evenflo or graco. It often takes two hands and two tries for me to get the evenflo chest clip undone and clipped together right. The dorel clip is much easier with only one button.
The graco buckle requires force to undo it. My 6 year old has troubles with it occassionally and then it takes a bit for me to get it undone.

I would try a different seat if you could. Why is putting the kid in rfing hard to do? Also, my 2 year old has been climbing into his seat since around 18 months, Could you teach your ds to do that? Then grandma only has to do the chest clip and buckle. Actually, my 27 month old gets his arms in his straps and tries to do his chest clip. (He can sometimes get the dorel one.)
 

natysr

New member
I would say that riding with GMIL 2-3 times per week is more than "occasional".

With that in mind, *I* would not put my child FF in her car if I were in your shoes. I do agree though about the Uptown. While I liked it, getting Jordan buckled in it was a PITA compared to my Marathon. Maybe I'm spoiled.

But, I would not judge you for doing it. Staying RFing that long is a great accomplishment.

It does make me question though....if you are too afraid to allow your older child to ride RFing with GMIL due to a fear of misuse, why would you allow your baby to ride with her at all? (since you of course will not be turing her FFing) I think you need to settle the fear of misuse issue that you have first.
 

jess71903

Ambassador
I guess it depends on the particular buckle you get. I find the Graco buckles to be extremely easy manage.
 

bobandjess99

Senior Community Member
I have to say no. I think a couple of points that have already been made are worth repeating..namely, that a couple times a week is not all that occasional, and with techno about that if I am worried enough about FF it includes all vehicles, all rides.
I know that might sound hypocritical, since I do NOT feel the same way about ffing vs hbb. But I believe there are a number of differences and that the safety differential between ff harness and ( a good) hbb for a child over 4/40 is small. Whereas the safety difference between RFing and FFing is extreme. Although we don't have specific stats about kids from 24-36 months like yours, I believe the 500% safer from 12-24 is probably still pretty close to accurate.
And, of course, I would never live it down if something happened in a FFing trip.....

I do not have an uptown, but I do have a titan and find it extremely easy to use..big honking buckle button, adjuster that doesn't get buried...and of course, you would have the harness in the right slots for her.

I struggle with the part about her not using it correctly. Putting a (compliant)child into a carseat isn't that hard, if you WANT to do it correctly. i assume she has plenty of time, can be very thorough with buckling him, clinching the chest clip, adjusting the harness tightness,etc? most of the time,when someone says a person "can't" use a seat correctly, they really mean they "won't"...and in that case, in my world, you lose your grandchild-driving rights if you won't make sure they are safe. If it is not an attitude issue, but a *true* inability..like a strength issue, or a memory issue..well..I'm not sure I want that person driving my child anywhere either. If they can't buckle the seat, can they really drive and react and be able to turn the wheel or hit the brakes in an emergency situation?

so I guess my final answer is..NO. If a person is not physically capable of restraining my child correctly, or they are not willing to restrain my child correctly, they don't drive my child.
 

fyrfightermomma

New member
All I have to say is I learned a long time ago to never ask that question..... *having flashbacks*



Good luck with your decision :)
 

cryswilkins

New member
I would, and do. My DD rides in a GN with Grandma weekly because its it easier for her to use. I just make sure that the seat is tethered, and that the harness is tight and she is fine.

I am all for ERF, but a RF seat does no good if its not used correctly.
 

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