New KidsEmbrace Dale Earnhardt Jr seat up!

[Judi]

Will you be getting them instore as well?

I doubt it, but can check. But seriously, with 16" top slots, I am far from impressed. I can handle an ugly seat. To me, the CCO is so 1991 :duck:, but a seat that just doesn't do it's job, that sucks.

 

[Spam]

I think it's fugly, just wondered how much more fugly in person. I'm not interested in owning it at all.

 

[3acorns4Christy]

I think it looks awesome! My son would LOVE IT! Especially if it was Spiderman.

 

[Kilovar]

Hello all, since I sent someone this direction I figured I should probably register and post something about this car seat. I have been watching the facebook page for this seat since it appeared on the SPEED channel as a sponsor for a NASCAR truck. The fact I was watching the SPEED channel should give you a clue about me

I do believe this car seat is probably ok, but like the posts here about the owner trying to sneak around on this forum, there are a couple things that bother me. They make the claim they were awarded a "best fit" rating by IIHS. IIHS has no best fit rating. They later recanted and claimed it was the IIHS "best bet" rating on a pre-production model when I questioned it. There is no way to prove or disprove this, but there is no mention of Kids Embrace in the IIHS 2010 "best bet" listing. The production seat would have arrived too late for the 2010 list, we will have to see if it makes the 2011 list.

They also claim they worked with Sabelt to develop the harness. This is a bit of a fabrication in that a visit to the Sabelt web site reveals Sabelt is in the business of making harnesses for several car seat manufacturers. The harness used on this car seat appears to be a standard production model. For you that don't know, Sabelt makes seat belts for race cars among other things. Kids Embrace would lead you to believe Sabelt is the # 1 racing harness maker, but they are just one of many. Still Sabelt is a very good brand and their belts appear at all levels of Motorsports.

Lately they have begun deleting negative posts from their facebook page. It's their marketing page, so they can do what they want, but it seems a little underhanded. I do kind of get the impression the company might be financially overextended and really need to sell some seats to survive.

 

[my3boyz]

someone needs to buy it so we can get a real prospective

I bought this seat and 3 weeks later rolled my SUV over. If my son had not been in this seat, he probably would not be here today. This seat flat out saved my son's life. He was suspended upside down and it kept him secured in his seat. If he had been in his other booster he would have been thrown around the truck. Some may say the seat "looks weird" or whatever but I have my son today....that is worth everything to me.

I made a post on KidsEmbrace's Facebook page and was quickly contacted by their CEO who was concerned for our safety but promptly got a new seat sent out to us and requested our old seat sent to them so they could do research-to make sure they have the safest seat possible. I couldn't ask for more.

 

[monica-m]

I am glad to hear that everyone is okay after such a terrible accident.

Posting the same thing in more than one place is against community rules. Posters here are uncomfortable where this company is concerned because the owner has posted here about this seat under the guise of being a consumer rather than a company representative. You do not win parents and caregivers over by lying to them. I really hope they did not put you up to posting this here because that would make me think that their business practices are even slimier than I previously thought. I think the general consensus with this seat is that it may be a niche seat but it doesn't promote best practice. It is unsafe to forward face a 22 lb 1 year old. In many cases, it is not best practice to booster a 40 lb child as many 40 lb children are not developed enough or mature enough to ride in a booster. To be a combination seat that would be widely recommended this seat would have to harness to a higher weight than 40 lbs.

I encourage you to stick around this community as there are wonderful supportive people here with much to share. I have learned so much about child passenger safety in my time here. No matter where you are in your journey as a parent there is always more to learn.

 

[my3boyz]

So far I feel as I have been attacked at every angle. All I simply was trying to do was share my story about a car seat that saved my son's life. And I have received PM's attacking me and a message above that I feel is not welcoming at all.

I have shared my story. I found this site on my own....no one "put me up" to anything as you claim. But this will be the end of my posting on here. After what I have been through, the last thing I need is verbally attacking when I was trying to share my experience. Good luck to you all. And God bless your children.

 

[Judi]

It is because he was in a 5 point harness correctly, not that particulate seat that saved his life. Good job on that.

 

[Wineaux]

If it creeps Mom's out, then it means that they obviously did something right and little boys will LOVE it!

Here's the PDF for the manual: http://www.kidsembrace.com/images/manual.pdf

30-65 lbs in 5-point harness mode, and up to 100 lbs in booster mode.

 

[Wineaux]

I asked some questions on their Facebook page and they answered back very quickly. I think you'll all like the answers I received.

I am SO incredibly happy to see a car seat manufacturer that "gets" little boys!

Every seat manufacturer out there has cute patterns for girls, but the boys are left with beige, brown, tan, champagne, sand (Are you seeing a pattern here?), grey, and black, with a smattering of pale and dark blues, and a shade of green or two. When was the last time that your little boy got excited about the color Beige? Little boys want bright colored stuff with rockets, trains, planes, bugs, and their favorite cartoon characters. If those covers make the bean counters in accounting cringe, then you've probably got a winner with little boys!

So now that I've gushed over how your seat looks, lets get down to a couple of questions...

1) What is the top slot height on your seat? Seeing as almost every child outgrows a car seat by height, rather than by weight, how tall in inches that the top slots are from the base of the seat is the single most important specification for a car seat, and determines how long a child will actually be able to use the 5-point harness system. Why don't manufacturers tells us this measurement? Inquiring minds want to know!

2) Sadly I see that you only support LATCH use to 40 lbs. With many new seats on the market supporting LATCH to the full weight limits of the seat on 2005 and newer model year vehicles, when will KidsEmbrace add this much desired feature?

3) Is KidsEmbrace considering using Rigid LATCH in the future for both LATCH installs in harnessed mode, as well as in booster mode? Jane has done some VERY convincing crash tests that show Rigid LATCH makes a huge difference in side impact collisions by preventing seat rotation. Rigid LATCH is also just so incredibly easy to install. I mean REALLY easy.

Jim:

1) The reason most want tell you the height is because no matter what it is, someone will find fault in it. I am sure some of the negative comments we have received were from some of our competitions "brand advocates"! Our top height is approximately 16.5" which according to the US anatomic data covers about 87% of all 65 lb children. While we realize this is not 100% we made the decision to allow as many children as possible a chance to be in a 65 lbs harness by keeping the seat affordable. As you know, the one seat with higher harness slots retails for over $250 while our seat is $159-$179. We like to feel we are promoting safety by putting as many kids in 65 lbs harnesses as possible by keeping our seat affordable.

2) Our LATCH statement has been revised to reflect use up to 100 lbs. It can be used up to 65LBS. with a harness provided the automaker allows for this. I am sure you are aware the restriction lies more on the automakers rating for LATCH than it does most car seats.

3) We are aware of rigid LATCH information primarily through the EU proposed standard. We have done some preliminary testing in Europe and will continue to do so. When we might add rigid LATCH is not determined as of this time but it is something we are very interested in and will continue to pursue.

So...

• 22-65 lbs harnessed and up to 100 lbs in booster mode.
• 16.5 inch top slots
• LATCH to 65 lbs provided your vehicle supports it (Model years 2005 and newer.)
• Covers are machine washable per the users manual, and they tell you exactly how to wash each part of the cover! Of course no washing of the straps. I was impressed with their washing instructions. Read the PDF of the manual that I posted above!

WalMart is carrying the seat now. With their free site to store shipping and liberal return policies, I'm seriously thinking of getting one of these to replace my RA that Ian has almost outgrown by height.

 

[LISmama810]

Uh, first of all, there's only ONE seat with a harness higher than 16.5"? That's news to me since I can name lots more.

Also, other than the Radian SLs, what high-weight seats allow LATCH use to the limits of the seat?

If he's saying people can use LATCH up to 65 lbs, that makes me very nervous.

Also, there's no way 87% of 65-lb kids will fit in that seat by height.

 

[Qarin]

He says, LATCH to 65lbs "provided the automaker allows for this"- Wineaux has interpreted that to be something about the 2005-and-newer (perhaps confusing the statement with Sunshine Kids' Super-LATCH system), but that is not what the manufacturer's rep just said. There are no automakers which list their LATCH limits in a way which would allow a harnessed seat with a 65lb child in it to use lower LATCH. I do not read what KidsEmbrace says as claiming that they are using SuperLATCH.

 

[Baylor]

Uh, first of all, there's only ONE seat with a harness higher than 16.5"? That's news to me since I can name lots more.

Also, other than the Radian SLs, what high-weight seats allow LATCH use to the limits of the seat?

If he's saying people can use LATCH up to 65 lbs, that makes me very nervous.

Also, there's no way 87% of 65-lb kids will fit in that seat by height.

My son is 6.5 yrs old, 56 lbs and has just about outgrown the top slots of the GN which I think are 17"??? please correct me if I am wrong.

I think it is a neat seat, More safe options are always better but it is certainly not the BEST or the WORST. It did what it was supposed to do.

Please understand, When I came here it took me a while to fit in at all. I have a big personality and would just come and vomit information, Some right.. a lot wrong and all of it filled with passion. Take a breath and know that no one is trying to beat you down, They just want to make sure that JOESCHMOE who can not afford a seat like that knows that they can get an equally safe seat that will be just as effective. There is nothing wrong with your choice and I know I am so happy that your child is safe and sound. There have been lots of bad accidents this year.

Take a deep breath and give these people a chance. They are pretty cool.

 

[LISmama810]

He says, LATCH to 65lbs "provided the automaker allows for this"- Wineaux has interpreted that to be something about the 2005-and-newer (perhaps confusing the statement with Sunshine Kids' Super-LATCH system), but that is not what the manufacturer's rep just said. There are no automakers which list their LATCH limits in a way which would allow a harnessed seat with a 65lb child in it to use lower LATCH. I do not read what KidsEmbrace says as claiming that they are using SuperLATCH.

My concern is more for people who don't know their cars have LATCH limits and will assume that it's fine.

Plus I thought the idea is that the connectors are likely to fail before the anchors do, so it surprises me that their connectors are rated to 65 lbs whereas no one else's are. (Other than SuperLATCH, supposedly.)

 

[Qarin]

My concern is more for people who don't know their cars have LATCH limits and will assume that it's fine.

Plus I thought the idea is that the connectors are likely to fail before the anchors do, so it surprises me that their connectors are rated to 65 lbs whereas no one else's are. (Other than SuperLATCH, supposedly.)

Yes, I have your same concern; Wineaux just took it even a step further in allowing that misunderstanding by incorrectly giving a model year after which one doesn't have to worry about it at all.

 

[Kat_Momof3]

the Nautilus has 17.5-18.5" top slots (depending on if you go by installed vs. prior and if you lose room installed or not)

We all know the frontier had 20" top slots (that's the seat the guy from the company referred to)

The Radian has 17" top slots... the Truefit does, too... so do the Evenflo Triumph 65/Momentum 65... the Safety 1st Complete air has 18.5" top slots like the Nautilus and so does the Evenflo Maestro.

I hope you told them that and am curious as to what their response was, wineaux/Jim

 

[Baylor]

Thanks! I knew it was bigger than 16.5"

 

[LISmama810]

I posted some follow-up questions on the thread Wineaux started on their Facebook page.

 

[Wineaux]

Except that since 2005 LATCH connectors on vehicles have been tested well in excess of 65 lbs. It's just that no one wants to assume any responsibility, liability, or risk and so the car seat manufacturers defer to the car makers and the car makers defer to the car seat manufacturers. There are some combinations of vehicle and seat where no one makes any claims at all! Everyone is just deferring to someone else. It would be funny if it wasn't so damned pathetic, and such a disservice to the consumer.

Now, whether the LATCH connectors themselves can handle past 40 lbs is another matter entirely, and I'd expect the seat manufacturer and LATCH connector manufacturer to furnish those limits. NHTSA has allowed LATCH to devolve into a non-standard. It's time they stepped up to the plate and started forcing the issue as to real weight limits.

 

[Wineaux]

I posted some follow-up questions on the thread Wineaux started on their Facebook page.

I saw that! Good questions too.