Ponder with me re: seats with big head wings

Today as we were riding, I noticed that both my girls have to lean forward in their seats to see anyone else in the car. Doing this means their heads are in front of the wings and sometimes almost around them. It seems to me that this position could be more dangerous than a seat with no wings and less SIP. If their head's are in front of the wings, they could be forced farther in front and to the side, right? Would they be safer in seats that don't have the wings so they can see without leaning in front of them?

I could tell them to sit back, but I wouldn't want to ride the whole way anywhere not being able to see anything the the sides of my car seat and the back of the seat in front of me and I don't want them to have to either.

Abi (5) is in a regular Parkway and Kaleigh Grace (3 on the 31st) is in a BLVD.

Just a thought I had today and I was wondering if anyone else has ever had the same one.

I've wondered the same thing. A will lean forward to look out the window or to lay his head on his lovey since he can't bring it up by his head. So, I'm curious too

i've only noticed this with certain SIP seats. for example, in the RYS, despite the deep head wings, DD1 never had to lean forward to talk to people. besides, being FF, she's mostly looking forward to mommy and daddy in the front seat, and occasionally to her side to see her sister. in the signos, there seems to be some slight leaning forward to look around, even though the wings aren't as deep as the RYS. i think it may have to do more with the recline angle of the seat-- the signos are quite reclined when FF.

i have heard this is a big time problem in the BV, but more often when RFing. in the BV, the piece that holds the wings in place is not built into the shell of the seat. it is stuck in front, and it pushes the child's head unnaturally forward relative to the torso and shoulders. lots of people complain of head slumping in the BV when RFing. i'm wondering if the design is just uncomfortable for kids to keep their heads back in place and that's why the lean forward? i don't know. it seems that the radian XT has the same design. why can't carseat mfrs just "get it" and make their seats ergonomically correct so kids won't have to move around so much and they will want to sit properly??? both the BV and the XT headwings were later add-ons to existing shell designs (MA and RA65/80), so that's why they look like tack-ons and seem to force the head unnaturally forward.

obviously, if the head is out of position in a crash, the SIP won't provide its intended benefit. but i don't think that it can become a hazard. it is just a soft wing. we did have a recent discussion about head slumping and the potential danger in a side impact and how having SIP wings wouldn't help in that situation.

What about the PW where it's not just a soft wing, that's just the way the seat is built?

ShannaLeah said:

What about the PW where it's not just a soft wing, that's just the way the seat is built?

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hmm... this is true. i've never seen a PW IRL, so i can't speculate.

ShannaLeah said:

What about the PW where it's not just a soft wing, that's just the way the seat is built?

Click to expand...

A had that problem in the PW. I had to threaten to get her a backless booster

In the Vivo, she can lean her head forward, see around the wings, and still be contained within them. I think it's the shape of the PW vs Vivo wings.

I'm thinking about getting her a Nautilus and harnessing her again anyway. Mostly to avoid the PITA it is to get her booster buckled next to the baby's rfing MA. But I think the shape of the wings would help with the other problem as well. That and last time I weighed her, she'd gone from 42 lbs to 38.

The Nautilus will prevent the awake-forward-looking problem, but it tends to be really bad for the asleep-slumping problem. In some cars with some kids it holds the seat up, but in many, many kids their heads are just completely forward, dangling down.
Do you have new or old style BV headwings? The new ones are flatter and further out and I don't think are as problematic for leaning or sleeping. The Frontier is like that, and the PW seems to be the newest generation of wings, sort of flatter than even the FR or new BV, though I haven't seen them next to each other to see what the differences really are. The Chicco Strada's coming out soon, it has view holes in the wings that maybe kids can peer out of.

Dang. She sleeps so well in the PW. It's my favorite for sleeping.

We have the new BLVD. That one doesn't worry me as much as the PW because of the shape and the way they're so flexible.

I may have to try a Frontier. I love Britax stuff but I've been scared off by the reports of the fabric fraying and the tough install. I'll have to use seat belts because my truck is too old for LATCH.

how about a signo? neither of our DDs have slumping issues, and the leaning forward to see around is rare. honestly, i think that if there's one thing recaro did better than anyone else it's the SIP. i've always liked it better than britax's.

Buy the Frontier in the Sahara fabric. It doesn't look like a mesh and they have been using it as a option on the Regent for a while.

http://www.britaxusa.com/car-seats/frontier/fabric-options

I am going back to the store to take another look at it and will hopefully purchase a Frontier before the Britax sale is over.

We actually have just decided to buy the Frontier because of the True Side Impact protection around the head. My 3 year old DS has been in his Boulevard since he was 6-8 months old and I haven't noticed him craning his neck to see out. I guess he is just used to the head restraints. We have older cars and we chose are choosing the Frontier because of the True SIP over the Regent. I just wish the Frontier had as high of a maximum harness slot as the Regent does.:thumbsdown: