Car seats needed for daycare kids and my kids

[CDNTech]

I'll have to download the pics later, but I found the driver's front seat to be a little squishy with the Radian RF behind in the captains chair. The steering wheel felt too close to me.

I moved it over to the passenger captains chair and had the same room I have when the MA is installed RF there. Decent, comfortable space for me.

DH said he can recline the seatback one extra notch when the MA is installed compared to when the Radian is installed RF behind the passenger seat. Leg room remained the same... doable for DH.

 

[CDNTech]

Here's the pics...

This is the Radian RF
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/215/458804456_3a69f5a27e.jpg?v=0

This is the Marathon RF (I'll edit this with a better pic later - this install was a little too upright for Mikkel when sleeping)
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/182/413178532_ca0d1e8623.jpg?v=0

The MA's shell sits between the headrest and the seatback of the front seat which allows me to recline the vehicle seat one extra notch when compared to the Radian. (Dh likes the extra recline on the vehicle seatback, I don't)The Radian's shell won't allow for the extra notch of recline - taller seatback on the Radian.

If I can get away with it, I prefer to not have any RF seat behind the driver. With either the MA or the Radian, I have about the same amount of space for driving and I find that Dodge did not allow enough space for drivers. Even with the seat all the way back, I find that I just have enough space comfortably between me and the steering wheel. With a RF seat behind the driver, it takes up an extra 2" and puts me too close for comfort to the steering wheel.

 

[Jumanji]

Still working on this. I had one of the kids cancel at the last minute so I'm just working on filling the space. Once I have everything figured out I'll post pictures.

 

[Jumanji]

Okay, so I think I've finally got this all figured out. I just went and bought 3 Radians on sale yesterday at Canadian Tire. At $159 each I don't care when they were made and that they only go to 48 lbs. Most of my daycare kids aren't that big and the cost per year even only for 6 years is still awesome. So I now have 4 Radians, 1 Parkway and 1 Scenera. I can fit a Radian, Scenera and Parway on the rear bench and I'm going to put 3 Radians on the middle bench. Just have to decide where the two rear facing kids will go. I think I'm going to try to put them in the middle. Only two of the young ones can rear face as the other 15 month old weight 35lbs!!

I have a question about tethering rear facing Radians in a Grand Caravan. Where can I tether it. I don't see anything under the front seats to attach to. Also, if I put a rf Radian in the center of the middle bench where do I tether?

 

[CDNTech]

There isn't really anywhere to tether a seat when it's in the middle position in the 3rd row bench.

As for the captain's chairs and RF tethering...

If you look under the front passenger seat, there is a lockbox there that pulls out. When you pull it out and look under the passenger seat from the back you will see a flat metal plate in front of you with a hole in it. When you close the lockbox, a bar from the lockbox will slide through that hole.

Open the lockbox and wrap your d-ring around that metal plate through the hole. Once the d-ring is attached, slide the lockbox closed again. The d-ring will be off to the side and should not interfere with the sliding lockbox at all.

The front driver's seat should have the same metal plate with a hole in it, only there will be no lockbox under the driver's seat.

My typical set up is the following...
FFing Radian (Driver's side captain's chair)
RFing Radian (tethered as described above to front seat passenger chair)
RFing Radian (tethered RFing to passenger captain's chair anchor)
FFing Radian (tethered to dedicated anchor)
Parkway

so it looks like this...
driver passenger
FF Radian RF Radian
Parkway, FF Radian, RF Radian

The FFing Radian in the driver's side captain's is installed with LATCH and allows me to flip the seat forward and out of the way to install kids easily in the 3rd row.

 

[cdncasper]

Okay, so I think I've finally got this all figured out. I just went and bought 3 Radians on sale yesterday at Canadian Tire. At $159 each I don't care when they were made and that they only go to 48 lbs. Most of my daycare kids aren't that big and the cost per year even only for 6 years is still awesome.

Just so you know Radians are good for 8 years. Makes it so nice to have a carseat as good as a Radian for longer.

 

[Jumanji]

April, that's good to know they're good for 8 years. I thought it was only 7 years.

Jen, I'm going to be using 2 three seater benches in my van to allow seating for 6 in the rear. I'm sad to take my captains chairs out as I specifically looked for a van with them but I didn't know I'd have 6 carseats in the back. I thought I'd just have 5. I have seen the metal plate under the seat but it didn't seem strong enough to attach to. I'll give that a try though. Now I just have to get used to sitting close to the windshield while in the passenger seat. The Radian is so tall.

 

[snowbird25ca]

Just a note if you have Aug 06 date of manufactures to check to see if you have short or long straps. If you have short straps, then contact sunshine kids and they'll replace the seat with the right length straps. From what I've seen on here, only aug 06 seats were affected, and I'm not sure if it was all of them or not.

The best way to check the length of the strap, is when the harness is loosened as much as possible when it's on the top height setting, check how close the buckle will come to reaching the flap that covers the harness adjuster. If it comes close, then you have a long strap, if it's nowhere near - as in barely goes to the buckle, then you have a short strap.

 

[Jumanji]

I have 3 Oct-23-06 and 1 Dec-06. They all seem to be okay for straps. I do have a question about the Safestop though. The picture they sent me of the recalled one doesn't look like the one I have. I've been trying to find the pictures that someone had posted but I haven't had any luck yet.

 

[CDNTech]

I have 3 Oct-23-06 and 1 Dec-06. They all seem to be okay for straps. I do have a question about the Safestop though. The picture they sent me of the recalled one doesn't look like the one I have. I've been trying to find the pictures that someone had posted but I haven't had any luck yet.

The correct safestop is black with yellow threading throughout it (instead of red) and does not have the sleeve over it... it looks like a mini bungee cord.

 

[Jumanji]

Thanks Jen.

 

[cdncasper]

I have a safe stop with the sleeve on my Jan 07 Radian. What is up with that?

 

[CDNTech]

I have a safe stop with the sleeve on my Jan 07 Radian. What is up with that?

That would be the second generation safestop. Call SKJP about getting the new one.