Need Some Help On Mounting Rear Facing Car Seat

I have a 2013 SCab and two girls: 18 months and 6 months old. When my oldest was born, I put her in the center and used the seat belt for the car seat base. It works like a charm. When my youngest was born, we moved my oldest into another type of reach facing car seat behind the passenger seat and put my youngest in the middle. If it wasn't dark out right now I would snap a couple of pics for ya. Rest assured, that I can easily fit two babies in the back of my SCab. Granted, my wife is small and doesn't require much leg room but I've had my friend ride with me and he was still good to go.

I've got 3 when the baby was really little I had him in the middle then the 1yo and 6 on sides,, now the baby picks on my middle son (it's kinda funny) so I've installed the oldest I between the two lol.. Their 1-2-7 now. I use belt and clips. Little *****. Lol.

We put our daughter on the passenger side because it was easier to get her in and out without jiggling her around too much. This is very important when a small child has just fallen asleep! Congrats on the new addition!

First off CONGRATS, your in for a hell of a ride. My son was born in September and for the first 2 months we left him in the middle using the seat belt as it was told to us that having the child seat in the middle and use the latch points for the side seats is against the design of the latch system. Was also said that the restraint capabilities are the same with the belt and latch system. We chose to use the middle until his neck muscles were stronger plus as he got heaver it became more difficult to reach across to the middle to get the seat out, so now he sits on either side depending on which vehicle we take. Plus from my understanding the reason it's recomended to use the middle seat is because it's the farthest from any impact point but in the raptor I feel that he is up high enough for most situations.

Surprised nobody has suggested this: take the vehicle and child seat to your local police or fire station. Most every station or department will have someone trained in installing car seats. They should install it and show you how free of charge.

I put my first born on the passenger side for access reasons, like some said before me parking situations and size of your child does impede reaching to the middle easily. The one recommendation given to me by my friend who is CHP and gives the car seat install classes was to use the seat belt and not the latch. His reasoning being the seat belt is OEM and meant to hold a 200lbs plus adult in place in the event of a crash. I trust his first hand experience.


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Congratulations on the upcoming arrival of your first child! You've been getting some good information so far, but I just wanted to add my $.02. You should contact the hospital where you are planning to have your child. They will have trained technicians who will help you with the proper installation before your child ever leaves the hospital.

Having previously been one of the certified child restraint technicians, I will add that the best place to install any child restraint device is where it can best be installed/secured in the vehicle. Since our seats are relatively flat, any of the rear locations should be fine, from there it comes down to personal preference. Rear seats with center humps are not usually a good location.

At one time, the center rear position was recommended for the best protection against side intrusion during a crash (look both ways before entering an intersection even when your light is green). The main things to consider are proper angle (many devices have a type of level indicator on the side) and proper securement. As previously mentioned, once properly installed, there should be very little side to side movement (less than one inch). You should be able to rock your vehicle by pulling side to side on the safety seat. If you end up using the seat belt, be sure to install the locking clip!

Your owners manual and the instructions that come with a child restraint are also good sources, but most people are too impatient to read them all, and they can be confusing at first. Another source for good information is Safe Kids Worldwide . They provide safety seat information and checkpoints where you can have your devices checked for proper installation and recalls.

For a bit of humor: As a defensive driving instructor for more than 22 years I was often asked where is the safest place to install the seat. Back when the center rear position was the recommended location one parent asked, "What if you have more than one child?" One of the other students in the class chimed in by saying, "You put your favorite one in the center rear position!"

Finally, use the bed of your truck for carrying cargo. Any objects being hauled in the passenger area can become deadly to you and you passengers during a crash...even groceries.

You will soon find you have a new purpose in life! Congratulations!

I just want to say thanks to everyone who responded. We are so excited for our little girl to come. It was nice to see what everyones ideas were on this subject. We have an appointment set up for the installation of her car seat next week with our hospital where we are having our daughter.

WarEagle,
Congratulations! I agree with all of the above. We always put the youongest in the center of the rear seat....and she's now 18!
One last obvious statement. Use the child seat. I've seen lots of kids in the detachable seat carrier put into front seats, on top of groceries etc. In the ER we have a saying "God protects drunks and little children".
I don't trust God!
Eddie

Congrats! I have a 14 months old and it is certainly a life changer but you will have more fun than you have ever had before. Kids are amazing.

I installed the car seat behind the passenger seat with the anchors for the many reasons that have already been stated.