Question Front-facing seats that don't require top tether...

[KatieGrace]

My daughter is front-facing in her Britax Boulevard 70 in our Ford Fusion. This is working great for us right now. She's 4 years old and about 40 lbs. My dad is wanting to get a seat for his truck. He's going to get a harness-to-booster seat instead of a convertible so he won't have to get another seat later. He has a 2004 Chevy Silverado 1500 extended cab truck. The top tether in the back seat of his truck doesn't allow the tether to ever be completely tightened so basically any seat that requires a top tether can't be used properly in his truck. Are there any seats that can be used that doesn't need a top tether? I also need it to be able to be installed with a lap belt only. I'd love to hear suggestions! Thanks!!

 

[TyAndCheyMommy]

With a lap only belt you will only be able to use a harness. Never use a booster with lap only belt. (I say this because you posted about needing to get a combination seat).
In most of my trucks- the tether system is odd. You route the tether through a loop behind the seat and across the back of the seat to the next seats tether to hook it.

 

[Syllieann]

The nautilus does well w/o tt and I'm told it fits well there. I tried a frontier 85 in our '98 and it was not a good fit in any position. The radian also does well w/o tt but the nautilus will give you longer use for less money.

 

[KatieGrace]

Thanks! We were looking at the Nautilus but was worried about the top tether being slack. We're only going to have the seat in the middle with the lap belt while she's in the harness. The outboard seats have shoulder/lap belts and we'll move her outboard once she outgrows the harness. I'd just prefer to have her in the middle as long as she can be. We'll get a Nautilus and try it out. Can I really use the Nautilus without the top tether? Thanks for the help!!

 

[KatieGrace]

With a lap only belt you will only be able to use a harness. Never use a booster with lap only belt. (I say this because you posted about needing to get a combination seat).
In most of my trucks- the tether system is odd. You route the tether through a loop behind the seat and across the back of the seat to the next seats tether to hook it.

Thanks for this! I was wondering what the loop was for!

 

[InternationalMama]

Can I really use the Nautilus without the top tether? Thanks for the help!!

You can use almost any seat on the market without the top tether. All seats perform better with a top tether, but they must pass testing without the top tether. From the little information we have available, it seems that the Nautilus and Radian perform particularly well without a top tether, but again, almost any seats can be used without one.

No booster can be used without a shoulder belt, however.

 

[MommyShannon]

I am not a tech so I'm not sure of all seats, but there are some that REQUIRE it. I know the Frontier 85 requires it for a child over 65lbs and I think there are seats that require it when installing with a lap belt.
ETA: I do have nautilus seats and it isn't required.

 

[KatieGrace]

I am not a tech so I'm not sure of all seats, but there are some that REQUIRE it. I know the Frontier 85 requires it for a child over 65lbs and I think there are seats that require it when installing with a lap belt.
ETA: I do have nautilus seats and it isn't required.

Thanks for mentioning this...I was going to ask about that. We're getting a Frontier SICT for Katie in the near future when we give her brother the Boulevard, and I remember reading that the SICT didn't require the top tether, so a lot of people liked that seat better for that reason. Which confused me on the tether issue. lol That leads me to another question...what if the seat requires it, and the top tether has a weight limit of 48 lbs? Or what if your car manual doesn't give a limit at all? Is it still ok to use the tether if the seat requires it? Thanks for answering all of my questions!!

 

[LISmama810]

That leads me to another question...what if the seat requires it, and the top tether has a weight limit of 48 lbs? Or what if your car manual doesn't give a limit at all? Is it still ok to use the tether if the seat requires it? Thanks for answering all of my questions!!

Officially, that would be considered an incompatibility.

Unofficially, many people make the choice to top-tether regardless of the vehcile's limit.

 

[MommyShannon]

I opted to get regular FR85s since we do have top tethers in all positions and I am sure my kids will all outgrow the harness before hitting 65lbs. DS has been the heaviest and he is 45lbs at 4.5 so he should be fine in a booster by the time he gains 20 lbs. DD is 6.5 and 50 lbs. she uses the harness for now but will outgrow it first and already rides in boosters too.

As for the tether limits, my non-tech decision is to use them beyond the vehicle limit ONLY when the carseat doesn't require them. If the carseat says they are REQUIRED (such as the FR85 over 65lbs), then I am not comfortable using it beyond that limit. Does that make sense? So my honda's limit is 40lbs. I would use the top tether up to 65lbs with our FR85s, but would stop using the seats in harness mode after 65lbs.

 

[PikkuMyy]

I would recommend using the top tether even if it can't be tightened 100%. At my tech course, we were told that the top tether doesn't have to be super tight (although I tighten as much as possible). In a crash, the tether helps keep the child's head and neck from flying as far forward as it would without being tethered. If you can limit that movement with a not-super-tight tether, it's better than nothing. Head and neck injuries are the most serious.

Britax Frontier 85 is the only seat I know of that requires the use of a tether after 65 lbs.

I did a lot of truck installs at my CPST course because I took it with a bunch of firefighters that drove big trucks. The tether routing is weird but not difficult after you've read the instructions in the vehicle manual.

 

[InternationalMama]

I am not a tech so I'm not sure of all seats, but there are some that REQUIRE it. I know the Frontier 85 requires it for a child over 65lbs and I think there are seats that require it when installing with a lap belt.
ETA: I do have nautilus seats and it isn't required.

You're right! There are a few seats that require a top tether for specific installations (Frontier, Foonf, Safety 1st Go, Ride Safer Travel Vest)! I forgot about those. The vast majority do not, however, and the Frontier is a bit weird because as the OP pointed out many vehicles don't allow the tether to be used at the weight that the Frontier requires it to be used...so...

Thanks for correcting me though. My point was, however, that it is *not* the case that there are only a few seats that can be used without a top tether (Radian and Nautilus mentioned by PP), but that in fact only in very special circumstances is one required.

 

[BeautifulChaos]

I would recommend using the top tether even if it can't be tightened 100%. At my tech course, we were told that the top tether doesn't have to be super tight (although I tighten as much as possible). In a crash, the tether helps keep the child's head and neck from flying as far forward as it would without being tethered. If you can limit that movement with a not-super-tight tether, it's better than nothing. Head and neck injuries are the most serious.

Britax Frontier 85 is the only seat I know of that requires the use of a tether after 65 lbs.

I did a lot of truck installs at my CPST course because I took it with a bunch of firefighters that drove big trucks. The tether routing is weird but not difficult after you've read the instructions in the vehicle manual.

I thought you weren't supposed to tighten it "as much as possible", but only remove the slack

 

[PikkuMyy]

I thought you weren't supposed to tighten it "as much as possible", but only remove the slack

Ok, I probably didn't use the best wording. I don't yank on it until it's crazy tight but "remove the slack" as you said.

 

[PikkuMyy]

You're right! There are a few seats that require a top tether for specific installations (Frontier, Foonf, Safety 1st Go, Ride Safer Travel Vest)! I forgot about those. The vast majority do not, however, and the Frontier is a bit weird because as the OP pointed out many vehicles don't allow the tether to be used at the weight that the Frontier requires it to be used...so...

Thanks for correcting me though. My point was, however, that it is *not* the case that there are only a few seats that can be used without a top tether (Radian and Nautilus mentioned by PP), but that in fact only in very special circumstances is one required.

Ah yes, I forgot about the Safety 1st Go and Ride Safer Travel Vest too! I didn't know about the Foonf.

Anyone know what the tether anchor limit is for Chevy? I know the LATCH limit is 48 lbs but I don't know the tether anchor limit. I don't have my LATCH manual yet.

 

[gagenivy]

My understanding is you only remove slack, not tighten as tight as possible, when it is RF. I am not a tech so I could totally be wrong.

 

[Ninetales]

I put a CA65 outboard in my mom's 04 Silverado and was able to tether it fine. It wasn't the easiest thing but I got the slack out.