My Complete Air pics

**UPDATED** to add more pictures and thoughts about the seat.

I originally posted with just the two attachments of the kids in the seats in the house. Now I'm adding installation pics.

Here is Jessica's seat:



Can anyone tell me what the recline angle is?

Here is a close-up of the locking clip. I had tipping issues, so I ended up using a locking clip. For some reason I didn't have to use one with Tyler's seat, and there are only two differences between the installations - the recline angle and the kind of noodles used. Tyler's seat has a bigger, harder noodle. I may switch Jessica's to this kind of noodle. There is ZERO movement at the belt path, but if I push down on the side by the buckle, I can make it tip (even with the locking clip). Is a little tippiness normal? I have never had a tipping issue with any previous seats.



Here is a picture of the noodle pyramid and lap portion of the belt. The shape of the seat and the recline angle make the lap belt catch at a funny angle. However, I can probably fix that (didn't notice until I came inside and looked at the pics - she hasn't ridden in the seat with this installation). One thing I want to point out - look at the bottom of the seat, toward the front. There is not much frame that makes contact with the noodles. Not sure what I think about that.



Tyler's seat:

Angle check please?



Here is a close-up of the angle indicator. I think the seat looks pretty close to 45, but the angle indicator is far from 45. I know he doesn't need 45 degrees, but he falls asleep all the time in the car and his head gets floppy.



Close-up of noodle pyramid:



My general thoughts about the seat: I really like it. Love the side impact protection!!! My kids seem to like the pillows. The cover seems to be a nice quality, and fits the seat well. Of course I love the RF height and weight capabilities, which are the main reason I bought the seat (along with the wings). I'm not thrilled with the size of the RF belt path holes. I had to remove the cover from one corner of the seat to get the belt threaded through, then had to get the cover back on. Not impossible, but having had a True Fit with the nice cut-outs in the cover for accessing the belt path, I guess I'm a little spoiled. LATCH installation RF wasn't great when using noodles. Had to have the noodles longer than the lower anchor spacing to make the most contact with the bottom of the seat, so this interfered with how the LATCH clips connected. I ended up using the seat belt instead to solve the problem. Tyler's seat isn't tippy, but Jessica's is (as described above).

Overall, I'm glad I bought the seats and feel that my kids are super safe in them. I have no regrets with this purchase.

My kids' stats are in my signature. Tyler is using the lowest harness position, Jessica is on the second. Both kids are using the middle crotch strap position. Jessica is not over it at all but is over the 1st. Tyler pushes the strap out a bit in the 2nd position, but it's not bad (he's much chunkier than Jessica plus he's in diapers).

(Sorry the pics are kind of big... not sure how to resize them in photobucket).

awesome. Although amusing that your 1 yr old is bigger than my tiny dude, lol.

Um yeah, he's huge. My DD was only about 17lbs at 12 months. He's probably about 25lbs now (at least). He's only a few pounds less than my 3 year old but 9" shorter. You can tell in the pictures that he's wider than his sister.

I was wondering from other pics of a child's head could actually get to the top of the headrest with the wings there. But the picture of Jessica shows it can Thanks for the pics. Looking forward to more

The fit looks great on both of them!

What does your dd think of it? My dd is getting pretty vocal about car seats - she said that the XT was 'freaking her out' (even though it was the pink Malibu). I'm going to get a CA as soon as it hits my BRU.

Thanks for the pics...I'm looking forward to more soon please My 10/06 and 08/08 babies have the exact same stats as your two, so when I see yours, it really gives me an idea of how they'll fit in seats!

jujumum said:

The fit looks great on both of them!

What does your dd think of it? My dd is getting pretty vocal about car seats - she said that the XT was 'freaking her out' (even though it was the pink Malibu). I'm going to get a CA as soon as it hits my BRU.

Click to expand...

LMAO! It was freaking her out?! So cute.

NannyMom said:

I was wondering from other pics of a child's head could actually get to the top of the headrest with the wings there. But the picture of Jessica shows it can Thanks for the pics. Looking forward to more

Click to expand...

Yep. If she were FF, she wouldn't be close to the top of the headrest of course because the straps (and therefore the headrest) would be up one position higher.

jujumum said:

The fit looks great on both of them!

What does your dd think of it? My dd is getting pretty vocal about car seats - she said that the XT was 'freaking her out' (even though it was the pink Malibu). I'm going to get a CA as soon as it hits my BRU.

Click to expand...

I was afraid she'd hate it. She has sensory issues, so I thought the wings might upset her, but she said she likes the "pillows" so apparently it's not a big deal. Today was her first ride in the seat and she was happy (of course we were on our way to the zoo and Grandma was sitting in the back with her).

Melodiya99 said:

Thanks for the pics...I'm looking forward to more soon please My 10/06 and 08/08 babies have the exact same stats as your two, so when I see yours, it really gives me an idea of how they'll fit in seats!

Click to expand...

Oh wow, glad I can help! I don't have torso heights for my kids... maybe one of these days I'll get those measurements. I think they both have kind of short torsos, especially since at almost 1 year old Tyler is still on the lowest slots. I used to think he had a huge torso. Right now he wears size 24 month clothes, so it seems that he would have a long torso, but....? I don't know.

One thing about this seat is that with the lowest harness position being so high, and not providing a height insert, most babies won't fit this seat for several months.

Thanks for the pictures.

How close is your dd to needing the next height position up when rf'ing? I'm also surprised to see the top of her head up above the actual head pillows just because the other pic's of seen thus far have had the head contained. (Of course there haven't been that many so far so it's pretty limited experience. )

eta: What is the leg room like compared to the TF?

I think she's pretty close to needing the next position, but I didn't measure exactly how close. Maybe I can get that info tomorrow.

The leg room is slightly less than that of the TF, but adequate in my opinion. DD didn't seem to notice a change, and certainly didn't complain. She's quite leggy, too.

How do you find the harness adjustor?

**UPDATED with new pics in the first post!**

The harness adjuster is very easily accessible RF. However, the harness is a little "sticky" sometimes. It's definitely not a buttery smooth adjustment, but it's not too bad. Perhaps it'll loosen up with time.

How's the plastic.. Is it better than most dorel seats? Great pics they look like the it.

Feels pretty sturdy to me, moreso than the old AO I have. It's a pretty heavy seat.

Mommy0608 said:

Jessica's seat:
Can anyone tell me what the recline angle is?

Tyler's seat:
Angle check please?

Click to expand...

It is kinda hard to see where the seatback for the seat is, but guesstimating it, I get about 43 degrees for Tyler's and about 34-32 degrees for Jessica's (depending on the picture ).

munchkin said:

It is kinda hard to see where the seatback for the seat is, but guesstimating it, I get about 43 degrees for Tyler's and about 34-32 degrees for Jessica's (depending on the picture ).

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Thank you so much! I was thinking Jessica's seat was pretty upright, but I guess it's not as upright as I thought.

One other thing I don't like... the cup holder only fits on one side of the seat. For Jessica, it would be the outer side (by the door). However, it wouldn't work because of the shoulder portion of the seat belt. So, she has no cup holder unless I switch sides of the van and put her on the drivers side so that the cup can be on the inside. This is fine for now, but then what happens when Tyler needs a cup holder? Hmm.

they look great!! if only i needed one......
thanks for sharing

munchkin said:

It is kinda hard to see where the seatback for the seat is, but guesstimating it, I get about 43 degrees for Tyler's and about 34-32 degrees for Jessica's (depending on the picture ).

Click to expand...

I got just under 33 for Jessie's and 34-36 for Tyler's depending on the pic. The level indicator gave me a reading within 1 degree of what I measured, so it looks pretty accurate on this seat.

About Jessie's tippiness ... Can you get the belt any tighter? I'm not seeing a lot of denting into the noodles (though that can vary depending on the seat and noodles) or tension in the seatbelt (though pictures can be deceiving). I know it's tight enough that it's less than one inch, but I'm thinking if you can get it in tighter, it might not tip as much. Check it again in a few days, too. I always find that my installs loosen up after about 30 minutes, and again every day for about a week or two. I don't know if the belt is stretching a little bit under the tension, or the vehicle seat is compressing, or the pool noodles (when used), or a combination of all three, but I always have to go back and retighten. I've had a previously rock-solid install go unacceptable. Anyways, after it settles in and you retighten, it might stop tipping.

pixels99 said:

I got just under 33 for Jessie's and 34-36 for Tyler's depending on the pic. The level indicator gave me a reading within 1 degree of what I measured, so it looks pretty accurate on this seat.

About Jessie's tippiness ... Can you get the belt any tighter? I'm not seeing a lot of denting into the noodles (though that can vary depending on the seat and noodles) or tension in the seatbelt (though pictures can be deceiving). I know it's tight enough that it's less than one inch, but I'm thinking if you can get it in tighter, it might not tip as much. Check it again in a few days, too. I always find that my installs loosen up after about 30 minutes, and again every day for about a week or two. I don't know if the belt is stretching a little bit under the tension, or the vehicle seat is compressing, or the pool noodles (when used), or a combination of all three, but I always have to go back and retighten. I've had a previously rock-solid install go unacceptable. Anyways, after it settles in and you retighten, it might stop tipping.

Click to expand...

Wow, really only 34-36 for Tyler's seat? Just eyeballing it, to me, the two seats look very different in their recline angles, more than just a couple of degrees. I can't imagine reclining his another 10 degrees to get to 45. I guess what matters most is that they are both at appropriate angles. :thumbsup:

As for tightening the belt, it's as tight as I can get it. There is absolutely no movement at the belt path and I can't get it any tighter. I will check again today to see if it has loosened up a bit. It's hard to tell in the pics but the little pieces on the bottom of the seat that make contact with the noodles are compressing the noodles... they just don't look like it because there isn't a whole lot actually making contact with the noodles, if you know what I mean.