Question BEST HBB choice for a 3 yo boy at 40" and 40lbs...

[Unregistered]

I need help figuring out which HBB is the best option for my son. We used to have him in a Britax Marathon. Unfortunately, however, he's a mini-Houdini and he manages to get out of the 5-point harness 80% of the time... the other 20% of the time he becomes dangerously tangled in the belts (nearly suffocating). Since I was really frustrated with this I thought we would try him in his sister's booster with the car seat belt... however we encountered two problems - 1) he's much too young for a booster-only seat and 2) he can easily unlatch the buckle.

I'm beyond frustrated. I want to transition him into a HBB - but I'm debating between the Britax Frontier with the 5pt harness or the Graco HBB without the 5pt harness (I know Graco also makes a 5pt harness HBB but between the Britax and Graco - I would rather have the Britax). I don't want to spend the extra money on a 5pt harness HBB if he's not going to use it... on the other hand, I'm concerned with him unlatching the car seat buckle. So I'm a bit stuck either way. ARGH!

Hoping to get some suggestions - maybe there's a product out there to prevent unlatching the seat belts that I'm not aware of???

Thanks, in advance, for your help!

 

[wendytthomas]

Welcome. Glad you've come by.

A three year old needs a harness and top tether, or to be rear facing. A booster is for a child over the age of five or six who has both the size and the maturity to sit properly in a booster seat. As you found out, if he's fiddling with his straps, there's nothing that will keep him in just a seatbelt. A good way to judge is, if you'd trust him to cut something with a sharp knife, or cross a street on his own, a booster may be an option.

It sounds like his straps are far too loose. He should not be able to strangle himself at all. Make sure you can't pinch anything on his shoulder. http://www.carseatsite.com/pinchtest.jpg If the harness is snug enough, he should also find it difficult to undo.

What I would suggest would be a long button down shirt. A thin one. Put him in the seat and buckle him in, then button up the shirt over his harness. That should make it so he can't actually get to the harness.

The other thing to do is simply discipline. Either positive or negative. Undoing the chest clip, and occasionally the crotch buckle, is not uncommon (the chest clip is common, the crotch buckle is not). It's a discipline issue, and making a child less safe and more susceptible to unbuckling is not the issue. Plus, their heads are still proportionally large and their spines still weak, so the lack of head excursion in a booster is a big issue. If he stays buckled.

Wendy

 

[carseatcoach]

Agree with Wendy, and adding this -- a child who cannot be trusted with his own safety ABSOLUTELY is not ready to be trusted in a booster.

 

[Unregistered]

That's the thing - the belts are always pulled very taut (not to the point of cutting off his circulation - but close). He doesn't actually unbuckle the 5pt harness... that's why I'm at a complete loss as to how he accomplishes getting out of the seat!

When he gets out of the seat the 5pt harness is still fully buckled/intact - but again, the belts are always pulled VERY snug and the adjustment strap in the front is beneath the seat fabric (as I have a custom cover and there wasn't a cutout designed for the front adjustment strap/buckle) - so I can't imagine him loosening the straps that way).

The way he nearly strangles himself when he can't successfully escape is because sometimes his head gets stuck as he escapes through the harness by going down. A bit hard to explain - but you get the idea.

I will definitely give the button up/down shirt trick a try and see if that doesn't stop him in his tracks!

 

[canadiangie]

If he can release the components on a Britax Marathon I wouldn't be considering a Britax Frontier. Same chest clip, same crotch buckle.

The newest crotch buckle by Graco is tough to open for some adults. In fact, you need to push on it at just the right angle (towards the top, angling upwards) for it to release. The Graco Nautilus would be tops on my list for your kiddo. It has cupholders too and I'd be filling one with small toys and the other with something yummy like fruit loops -- anything to distract him.

And while we don't have actual ratings for car seats, we know the Nautilus has very good head excursion numbers in testing. I'd have zero concerns using a Nautilus, none whatsoever, actually.

What I would be concerned with, and would not do under any circumstances, is put a Houdini child into a booster seat.

 

[amyd]

Ditto Angie. I can barely get my kid out of his Nautilus. I can't imagine any 3 year old being able to open the buckle while strapped in. Much harder than the Britax ones, in my experience. I find the chest clip even a bit more difficult than some. My DS is 3y8m and he can't undo the clip on the Nautilus, although he can on his Radian.

 

[Kaitsmom]

A booster at his age may also be illegal in your state as well.

 

[bearwithmoi]

You might also want to make sure the harness straps are above his shoulders forward facing. Some kids have a easier time wiggling out of older model Britaxes when the harness straps are incorrectly fit for their torso

 

[cookie123]

Welcome to car-seat.org. Good for you for researching what to do to keep your son safe in the car.

How is your son getting out of the harness? If he is just pushing the chest clip down to escape, my grandson did this. What worked for us was to put the harness covers on below the chest clip so it couldn't be pushed down. Also, as some one else mentioned, be sure the harness is snug with no bulky clothing underneath.

 

[wendytthomas]

What about something like a carseat poncho, going over him so he simply can't see the harness? But a buttoned (not snapped or zippered) shirt may work better than that.

Also, a custom cover is not permitted, not safe, and I wonder if it's causing your problems by pushing the harness too far over his shoulders, allowing him room to maneuver and escape.

http://www.britaxusa.com/support/warranty-return-policy

The use of non-Britax Child Safety, Inc. covers, inserts, toys, accessories, or tightening devices is not approved by Britax. Their use could cause this restraint to fail Federal Safety Standards or perform worse in a crash. Their use automatically voids the Britax warranty.

So you need to put the regular cover back on. Then I'd see if the seat works as it should. And if not, make change then.

Wendy