Seat for 2000 Dodge Caravan???

Hi! My name is Melissa and my daughter is close to outgrowing her infant car seat. The process of finding the best car seat is probably the most difficult one I have had since having her. There are so many confusing reveiws and opinions.

I have a 2000 Dodge Caravan and am having tether/anchors installed next week. I highly disliked not having a LATCH system. Anyhow, I have been looking at getting a Britax. Either the Roundabout or the Marathon or Wizard. But honestly, I dont know why. I guess I heard they were rated very well.

I have looked all over online to find a website that shows what car seats are compatible with our minivan, and have not been able to get any results. I keep getting referred to www.carseat.org/compatibility and do a search and get no results. It is too weird.

Can someone PLEASE PLEASE help me find the very best/safest car seat for my specific Caravan for my little girl? Cost is not an issue for something so important to us.

Thank you!

Ok, now I am a member. It is Melissa again. I have been reading more and more. Now I dont see the Wizard anywhere, but have been seeing lots of stuff about the Boulevard. Including a recall notice.

Ok, anyone able to help me find what fits my car?
Sorry I am so impatient.

Do you mean (Carseat Data website closed - link broken) when I searched. (I hope that link works). Maybe some of that info can help? I've personally never heard of any seat that can't be safely installed in a Caravan. Just to clarify, are you having LATCH installed? Or just the top tether anchors? You really shouldn't worry too much about not having LATCH. While it can make installing seats easier, seatbelts are just as good safety-wise. Britax's are all wondeful seats. They are very user friendly and safe. I would recomend the Marathon, Decathlon, or Boulevard, since they have a higher weight limit than the Roundabout, you would get more use out of them. Britax doesn't make the Wizard anymore - the Boulevard is the new version of the Wizard. Also, you are planning on extended rear facing, right? Britax and Sunshine Kids are the only car seat manufacturers that allow you to tether a rear facing seat, which is a really nice feature... it makes it easier to get a good recline angle and makes for a very stable installation. HTH! Let us know if you have any more questions and what you ultimately decide!

She can't have lower anchors installed, only top tether anchors. LATCH stands for Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren, and consist of both lower anchors and top tethers. Only VW and Audi can retrofit lower anchors, but almost all manufacturers will install top tether anchors.

Seatbelts are just as safe to install a carseat with as LATCH; LATCH was only designed to be EASIER for parents to do than a seatbelt install, and that's not always the case.

Top tethers make any forward-facing seat safer by reducing head excursion (the amount of space a child's head flies forward in a crash) and should always be used when possible.

Britax seats (and the Sunshine Kids Radian and the Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe) are recommended so often because they will last the longest. They are more pricey up-front, but they break down to less $$ per year most of the time because of how long they can be used.

For example, Britax and Fisher Price top slots measure 17 inches from the seating area. Sunshine Kids measures 18 inches. The Graco ComfortSport, a popular convertible seat, has top slots measuring just 14 inches high. The Cosco/Safety 1st/Eddie Bauer convertibles have top slots measuring just 14-15 inches high. When forward-facing a harnessed seat is outgrown when shoulders go over top slots, so it happens MUCH sooner in some seats than others. My dd would have outgrown a Graco ComfortSport by her 2nd birthday, and only about 30 pounds. She would have lasted in a Britax or Fisher Price seat until her 5th birthday, and about 45 pounds. She's a tall girl, and we've spent way too much $$ over the years buying new seats because she outgrew them all by height. Buying a Britax from the beginning would have saved us a bundle.

In addition to taller top slots you get higher harnessed weight limits. Britax Marathon/Decathlon/Boulevard to 65 pounds (though they are almost always outgrown by height around 45-55 pounds), Fisher Price to 55 pounds and Sunshine Kids to 65 pounds.

Britax and Sunshine Kids allow the use of a top tether when rear-facing.

Britax, Sunshine Kids and Fisher Price rear-face to 33 pounds and have a tall enough seat shell to actually allow kids to get to 33 pounds RF before getting too tall.

Rear-facing as long as possible, to the limits of the seat (head even with top of seat shell or when RF weight limit is reached), is safest. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended keeping kids RF to the limits of the convertible seat since 2001 (unfortunately many doctors don't keep up-to-date with this stuff and still tell people to turn their babies at 1 year/20 pounds).

I haven't heard of any horrible installs in a Caravan. In fact, someone on the BabyCenter Car Safety Tips board that I know drives a Caravan and had a rear-facing Britax Marathon. It fit just fine. The Marathon, Decathlon, Boulevard and Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe are all virtually identical so they should all fit.

I have an '01 grand caravan and will list the seats I have successfully installed(none are a Marathon though sorry)
ALL installs are with seat belt

infant seats
graco snugride (all rear seating positions)

Convertibles
cosco scenera Rear facing(RF) middle 2 seater bench both positions
cosco safety 1st intera (RF) middle 2 seater bench both positions
cosco safety 1st intera (FF) middle 2 seater bench both positions

Forward facing only
Britax regent (FF) middle bench, center/outboard position
Cosco Summit (FF) middle bench, center/outboard position

I have a 2000 Grand Caravan and the Marathon fits just great for me! I can't say for sure the difference between the Caravan and Gr Caravan, not sure if it's only the difference between cargo space and has nothing to do with the passenger compartment or what. I would be happy to measure for you the distance between my middle row and front row capt chairs if it would help, or I can post a pic. The shell of the Marathon, Decathlon and Boulevard are all the same, only a few features (and covers) are different. I'm not familar enough with them all to list the differnces, but you can visit ToysRUs/BRU and try out whatever they have in your vehicle then if you want a different cover or even another seat, just order it online. Most people don't bother with the Roundabout, it only harnesses to 40 pounds and has the same top slots as most other convertibles, but the big Britax seats are AWESOME!! My dd that is the size of an average 6.5 year old still fits in her sis's Marathon and she has outgrown so many seats it's not even funny! Let me know if I can help in any way!!

OK, I do have a pic that I can post. This is my 2.5 year old in her Marathon, my hubby has to have the front seat back very far, so if you needed more recline (which is only needed for the first few months a newborn can't hold their own head up well) you might need to use the passenger side. But really most kids like to be more upright.

Wow! Thank you all very much for your help.

I have decided to go with either the Marathon or the Boulevard. I like the side impact things on the BV.

Next step would be to go to BRU and try them out. The reason we so badly wanted a LATCH system was because it seemed as if the seat always became very loose and moved around when using the seatbelt system. We even had it installed by an Officer. I was hoping that the LATCH would anchor her down more securely.

I do have to admit, the whole tethor/anchor thing has me confused now. Top vs. lower and what and when and how to use each one. And why I cant have the lower retro fit....

I would guess that if you are having trouble getting your seat tight in a Caravan you just need to learn a few little tricks. It is possible your latchplates aren't holding, but not likely from my experience. With a Britax you won't have to worry about the latchplates, and with another seat there are a few tricks as well that are very easy. My Radian even installs great in Caravans, and it has issues in some vehicles. (I think 5 of DD and my friends have Caravans, so that's how I know.)

If you get your seat inspected by a tech, then they *should* teach you how to get a secure install.

I think that most any seat would install well in your vehicle. If you let us know sort of where you live there is always a chance one of us could be close ;-)

Oh, and you're not seeing the Wizard for sale because it was replaced by the Boulevard in 05, so all the new ones are gone.

I totally forgot to tell you my favorite tricks for installing in my capt chairs!
#1 - Set the carseat on the capt chair, recline the capt chair about halfway down, buckle the seatbelt, Rear Facing- move the front seat as far forward as possible, then stand (lean over, actually) between the front seat and the carseat you are trying to install, push down with your stomach as you pull on the shoulder belt part until it's as tight as possible OR.... Forward Facing - just put one knee in the seat and tighten the belt, then release the recline for the capt chair as you pull it back up as far as possible (might take 2 people, one to release the lever and another sitting in the 3rd row to push the seat back up)

#2 - If your seats install tight, then loosen a bit over time, you can do all the above steps, but then right after you get the seatbelt tight, flip the male buckle part over once and then buckle it. This really helps to keep the "lightweight latchplate" that Dodge uses from slipping. Here's a pic in case I didn't explain it well: http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c390/m3glaura/car seats/peanut/100_1738.jpg

I thought the seatbelt could not be twisted? I dunno i thought i heard that some place