2002 Suburban Middle Seat Lap Belt/Lack of Headrest Concerns

[Danielle B]

Hello! We just bought a 2002 Suburban for weekend excursions only, when we're hauling our pop-up camper or heading up into the mountains for skiing or hiking. We have 5 kids, ages 14, 12, 10, 8, and 6. Eight year old is in a booster, six year old is a peanut and still in a five points harness. It did not even occur to me to check around too thoroughly for seating solutions since we've only got one kid left in a car seat. And we've driven 2002 vehicles before that were more up to date, so I figured top tether anchors and shoulder seatbelts were standard by then. This particular vehicle doesn't have top tether anchors. The center seats have lap belts only, and no headrests. It feels like there is no way to make this car safe for all five kids. At first I thought I'd put the car seat in the center, but with only a sketchy lap belt and no top tether anchor, how can I do that safely? And what about when he outgrows the car seat? It feels so unsafe to have any one of them in a lap belt. And then what next when he's tall enough to need a headrest? I know other large families that drive everywhere in these cars. Do they just ignore the lack of lap belts and headrests?! Does anyone know of any after market solutions? Thanks in advanced!

 

[ketchupqueen]

Hi! You're right, there's not a great solution for this. One option might be using the third row lapbelt to tether the second row seat to for now, but long term, there are going to be only unsafe options.

Most families who do these things are either unaware that they are making unsafe choices, have decided they're ok with doing something risky, or feel they have no other options.