Recent seating mod.

[Han'sGT]

Well, not exactly for everyone, but with the little guy here now it was a must have.

Mod: Graco Snug ride car seat, black on black. First off, this is entirely custom ;). The black car seat only comes with a tan height adjust. This simply would not do in a GT with a black and grey interior. I then purchased a silver base which has the black adjuster piece, but didn't like it. So I swapped the height adjust sections. My sister-in-law took the silver base with now tan height adjust. (She's not so picky and her interior is grey).

The things got stickers all over it. So first off is to remove the easily visible ones. (I left the warnings cause they are giant and would have taken all day). Anyway, some Goo Gone did the trick. But left a chalky finish. So out comes the Prima Nero. Works wonders....look how deep the black is now.

Now to the install. (These things are a bitch the first or second time you install one) First I applied a non slip seat protector which has handy pockets! Attached anchor points and then adjusted the seat belt to the correct length for a snug fit....click...done.

Now the kid can enjoy the Subie!

I know some will ask....why not debadge it? :lol: Well, maybe later.

(note: not a lot of room getting the car seat in the car. You've go to lower the handle or your scrapping the roof. Also the passenger seat may have to move up a bit. One thing the Subie doesn't have is a lot of room.)

[chutracheese]

You did the LATCH system and used the seat belt? I think it is supposed to be either/or.
Nice job with the mods though.

[Han'sGT]

^ doesn't feel secure enough using just one. Can't hurt to double up. :confused:

[SnarlyMarley]

I use that same seat protector and it works well as we are now on our third seat for our growing guy. I'd just run the LATCH without the belt. It felt secure when I was able to put my knee on the base to bear my weight and then reef down on the LATCH strap for ultimate tightness.

[Legacy05]

I never used the latch with the seat base, I used the shoulder seat belt, only because we put the seat in the middle.

[rookie ddz]

nice mod. Wish I thought of that when our lil guy was in the snug ride. He using the Costco Alpha Omega seat now. Cool blue so I may not change it.

I do need to work on making some foot protector for the back of the pass. front seat. My friends say some kids sit there and kick the back of the seat. I got sometime before he is long enough to reach. But I like my clean car. It's tough when he thinks it's funny to throw food. :)

[unclemat]

^ doesn't feel secure enough using just one. Can't hurt to double up. :confused:

:rtfm:

It does. At least my car seat manuals strictly forbid using both.

[Han'sGT]

:rtfm:

It does. At least my car seat manuals strictly forbid using both.

Manual only states not to hook both latches at the same anchor point. If you use one method or both, I can't see why it would hurt since the thing is ment to stay put.

Btw....Subaru manual does not recommend the center position.

[Legacy05]

true, but the center in our mind was the safest place :) no matter anymore though, she is old enough to be in a forward facing seat and she sits on the drivers side now .. using the latch.

[Han'sGT]

true, but the center in our mind was the safest place :) no matter anymore though, she is old enough to be in a forward facing seat and she sits on the drivers side now .. using the latch.

I found the center seat belt lock to be in the way....guess it can be tucked under the seat? Plus the seat seemed to wabble back and forth on the hump. Oh well.

[rexster]

i think when you use the shoulder strap you need to also use the H shaped metal sleeve that keeps the shoulder and waist strap together. and i'm not sure about using them both - you might want to call graco or bring it to a firestation for inspection. i know that when you yank on the seat if you can move it more than one inch to either side (where it meets the seat back) it's not secure enough. you have to put some serious downforce on it to get it tight enough. i used the latch with my rear facing snug ride in the middle. it was snug against the seat back, but the front of it had some verticle movement. i switched to a britax when my daughter was around 16 lbs. the britax has a reverse thether that you strap around the rear base of the front seat. the installation is way more secure.

[Legacy05]

Well when I had it in the middle, I would sit on the base with all my weight and I'd pull the shoulder belt tight .. it was snug ... the latch is much easier to use though :)

[G.T.Subie]

No kids FTW!





































J/K

[mbcracken]

Your car is way to clean for having a kid. HAHAHA.

Soon, you'll have french fries & fishy crackers shoved in every crevasse of those nice black seats.

Cheers,
Mike

[Han'sGT]

i think when you use the shoulder strap you need to also use the H shaped metal sleeve that keeps the shoulder and waist strap together.

its on there. ;)

[TSi+WRX]

That's the brand/make of infant seat/base we had for Anna, too. :)

I didn't bother debadging the base, but with the seat's mating stroller ("travel system"), I debadged that and put various Subaru and other related automotive stickers all over it. :lol: Yes, I riced my daughter's stroller. :oops:

---

Honestly, Han'sGT, I don't know about using BOTH the belt and the LATCH anchors at the same time. I wish I could say, either way, but I just don't know if it's completely Kosher, or not.

I'd honestly and *highly* recommend that you take your seat to your local inspection station (either the hospital and/or your local Fire/EMS station will offer free inspections, but call/contact them to make sure about scheduling) to be sure that you've got the install correct.

Once you guys have the baby, take the baby with you, again, to the same place, so that they can show you how to properly secure the baby in the seat as well as to insure seat set-up. And as the baby grows, remember that you may have to adjust the seat mount/position in order to insure that it remains at the proper recline angle (as well as tightness, as your seat cushion will compress).

Don't just do what you "think" is right - no matter how many times you've read the manual.

The guys and gals who are trained to inspect these seats sometimes have gone through week-long training courses to specifically spot not only the most common mistakes, but also ones which no-one but trained professionals will think of.

Between Anna, her cousin, and various friends/family, I've put in about 30+ car-seats into just about all of the major car manufacturers' offerings. :eek: With the last set of seat changes, the local Fire/EMS-guys were so impressed with my installation that they actually all came out to congratulate me, saying that they've *never* had a parent do so well before. :lol: But as you can see, I *still* take every car/seat down to them to get it checked-out. I just don't trust myself to spot everything, and I think that my child's safety is worth the time/trouble. ;)

You've already got a great seat, showing that you truly care about your child's safety - don't skimp out on this next important step just because it's gonna cost you a couple of hours of extra time. :)

Oh, and also, if you've already disposed of those stickers, then don't worry too much about it, but if you've got anything that has a build serial-number on it, save it. That way, you can always keep an eye out for recalls!