No tether for forward facing in captains chairs

[MommaTooters]

We have an '05 Chevy Uplander and I can't find tether spots for a forward facing seat. The only ones I can find are all the way in the back and I would prefer not to put one of the kiddos back there if I didn't have to.

Do you think there would be any way I could get some retrofitted? The back of the captains chairs 'double' as a table with a cup holder so it can't go on the back of seat and it would be too far for my tether strap to reach if they put it on the floor (unless I can add a tether extender to an Evenflo Triumph Advance seat). So what about the top of the van? No?

 

[Jonah Baby]

I believe that the year of your vehicle is required to provide top tethers, so perhaps you are just missing them?
Do you have a manual?

It took me a long time to locate top tethers in my Caravan (2001 model I believe.) The captain's chairs were also the seats in question.
Turns out the hook for the tether was partially hidden by the upholstery on the back of the captain's chair. If you tip the captains chair forward (so that the nice cupholders, etc. is in usable position) mine were located just a few inches after the hard plastic portion for the cupholder/table thing, almost to the bottom edge of the seat. Even this way they were partially obscured by upholstery fuzz, I don't know if you will have that issue or not, but I did later confirm that they WERE the top tether anchors and not just a hook of metal (don't worry.)

Hope that helped...

 

[MommaTooters]

When my hubby gets home I will have to check that. There is a spot on the back that looks like it might be a tether spot but in order to use it I have to turn the tether around once then hook it in. Which means I don't get as tight of a fit that way. Who knows, that MAY be the tether...but I will fold down the seat and look.

Off to see if my manual is online since it's also in the van that hubby has!

 

[Jeanum]

Additional tether anchors can't be retrofitted in GM vehicles that already have factory equipped tether anchors for some seating positions, and a 2005 Chevy Uplander with the third row has 3 factory equipped tether anchors total, including a tether anchor on each second row outboard vehicle seat. The LATCH manual indicates the tether anchors are located on the lower back of the second row outboard seats in the center, so you probably just need to check that out a bit more to locate the tether anchors, and the owner's manual likely has a diagram to illustrate their exact location. The third row has a tether anchor for the third row center seating position, located on the center of the vehicle seatback.

 

[MommaTooters]

Okay, I just checked the manual online and the spot I am talking about is, in fact, the tether spot. I can't tether it without twisting the tether around once sine the tether hook itself is bulky. Is it okay to twist?

 

[Jonah Baby]

A Tech should confirm, but I believe it is dangerous to be twisting a tether strap.
A tether strap helps absorb a lot of crash force in an accident. I don't see a twisted strap properly absorbing forces. I could also see it leading to possible failure of that strap or seat.

Can you describe in a bit more detail why it appears that it has to be twisted?

 

[MommaTooters]

It's hard to explain. But I can get the strap to tether because of the design of the hook on the strap. I will take a picture when dh gets home and see if that helps.

 

[joolsplus3]

It's fine to twist it a half twist to make it work. Not dangerous at all (tying it into knots might reduce the strength of the tether fabric, for instance, obviously you wouldn't do that). In fact, with Britaxes there's no way NOT to have at least a half twist, and some Fords require the hook to go on backwards, just FWIW
A picture would be great, though, because usually the kind of hook on the seat like that should fit perfectly with the tether, which hooks downward, so I'm having a hard time imagining you needing a twist at all.

 

[NannyMom]

I had an 08 Uplander as a rental van. What I had to do was fold the vehicle seat to make the tether anchor more accessible. I'd hook the tether on, and put the vehicle seat back up. Meanwhile the carseat itself was kind of in front of the vehicle seat. Will that work for your 2005?

 

[MommaTooters]

I'll have to try that.

 

[carseatcoach]

A Tech should confirm, but I believe it is dangerous to be twisting a tether strap.
A tether strap helps absorb a lot of crash force in an accident. I don't see a twisted strap properly absorbing forces. I could also see it leading to possible failure of that strap or seat.

Can you describe in a bit more detail why it appears that it has to be twisted?

A tether is intended to stabilize the top of the seat, not to "absorb crash forces". If the tether does fail, it will most likely have already done its job (this is why we consider it "okay" to exceed manufacturer limits on top tethers). Seats are required to pass even without tethers, so even if the tether did fail completely, the seat would not fail.

Still, tethering is way better than not tethering, and if it has to twist, it's still better than not tethering.

 

[MommaTooters]

A tether is intended to stabilize the top of the seat, not to "absorb crash forces". If the tether does fail, it will most likely have already done its job (this is why we consider it "okay" to exceed manufacturer limits on top tethers). Seats are required to pass even without tethers, so even if the tether did fail completely, the seat would not fail.

Still, tethering is way better than not tethering, and if it has to twist, it's still better than not tethering.

What do you mean by "this is why we consider it "okay" to exceed manufacturer limits on top tethers"

 

[Maedze]

What do you mean by "this is why we consider it "okay" to exceed manufacturer limits on top tethers"

Many manufacturers have 'weight limits' on top tether anchors which are more about politics than actual crash tests.

The advice of all major safety organizations is to continue to use the top tether, regardless of the weight of the child. You should always observe the weight limit on the lower anchors (because those are what essentially holds the seat in the car), and switch to the seatbelt installation when you reach the max weight limit on them, but continue to use the top tether as long as the child is in a forward facing harnessed seat.

 

[An Aurora]

Your TAs are the same as the ones in my older Chevy van.

To clip them on, clip the tether down onto the lower part of the TA, like it would be upside down, then rotate it around so the strap is straight and the tether is right-side-up.