Is this a piece off a LATCH?

[Mugsmom]

I was uninstalling my Size4Me70 when I found this under it. It's black plastic, about an inch long, and the print reads "R 3". I don't think it's off the seat, because the seat is grey. Could it be a piece of the LATCH adjuster? It was on the same side of the seat as the adjuster.

I'm going to reinstall with seatbelt for now, but I want to make sure this isn't a big safety issue.

 

[4boysmom]

do all the LATCH connectors still look alike? I just looked my seat up down and all around and do not see that part visibly anywhere on the seat.

 

[Mugsmom]

I just heard back from Graco, and they said it's definitely not from the LATCH, but they seem to think it's a part of the seat, possibly something to do with the recline. I sent more info, so we'll see what they say. I'm not sure what to do in the meantime, I don't want my son in a potentially unsafe seat. DD rides in one too, same manufacturing date, so I may have to be swapping out 2 seats. Damn.

ETA: Forgot to mention that this is a REALLY brittle piece of plastic. It actually broke in half just from me picking it up. I have a hard time believing it would be used for anything important on a carseat, but I guess we'll see.

 

[4boysmom]

ETA: Forgot to mention that this is a REALLY brittle piece of plastic. It actually broke in half just from me picking it up. I have a hard time believing it would be used for anything important on a carseat, but I guess we'll see.

so is that half of it or did it break in half again further? I really tried to look everywhere I could see (have the seat out as I used it in a taxi yesterday) and can't find that part or anything that would look like that part... keep us updated!

 

[Mugsmom]

so is that half of it or did it break in half again further? I really tried to look everywhere I could see (have the seat out as I used it in a taxi yesterday) and can't find that part or anything that would look like that part... keep us updated!

The picture is the entire piece I found, and it broke again when I picked it up. I had to check the tag on the seat to get info for the Graco rep, and I briefly checked the seat over. All of the plastic I saw was gray, and this piece is dark black. I wasn't able to check UNDER the seat though, which is where I found the piece. Still haven't heard back from Graco since last night's reply.


Going completely off-topic: I can't believe how dirty my floor is in that picture, I'm now going to mop.

 

[4boysmom]

The picture is the entire piece I found, and it broke again when I picked it up. I had to check the tag on the seat to get info for the Graco rep, and I briefly checked the seat over. All of the plastic I saw was gray, and this piece is dark black. I wasn't able to check UNDER the seat though, which is where I found the piece. Still haven't heard back from Graco since last night's reply.

Yeah I am looking in every nook and cranny, turning the seat upside down, looking up every place to look up. I doubt it is from the recline mechinism honestly as it seems to be fully enclosed and all the parts I can see anywhere are the same grey color or the red from the handle itself.
Are you sure it is part of the seat and not some peice from something else that may have been in your car?

 

[Mugsmom]

Yeah I am looking in every nook and cranny, turning the seat upside down, looking up every place to look up. I doubt it is from the recline mechinism honestly as it seems to be fully enclosed and all the parts I can see anywhere are the same grey color or the red from the handle itself.
Are you sure it is part of the seat and not some peice from something else that may have been in your car?

I considered that, and it's possible. I don't know how it would have slipped under an installed seat, especially since we don't allow hard plastic items in the passenger compartment. If it's not off the seat, the only thing I can figure is it was something in the seat bight from the van's previous owners, and slipped under when I installed the seat. I still haven't heard back from Graco.

 

[Mugsmom]

Just heard back from Graco. They can't figure out what it is, so I'm guessing some mystery plastic just found it's way under there. They offered me a trade or refund, but I told them since they can't place it, and neither can I, I'll just hold off for now. They seemed to research it pretty thoroughly, and with your help looking over the whole seat, I'm confident enough to continue to use it.

Their customer service was pretty awesome though, which is good to know.

Thanks 4boysmom for your help.