Looking for SAFE child car seat that wont damage leather

Looking for recommendations on a car seat for the new addition that won't mess up the upholstery (read no sharp plastic corners on the base) that looks good in the black limited interior.

 

Mods please move if this belongs elswhere.

I purchased an Eddie Bauer seat protector. Well worth $20

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3695514

Good deal man, thanks for the heads up.

What type of car seat do you have?

I second the seat protector, I forget what brand we have, but its black, covers the whole top/bottom of the seat, and has anti-slip stuff on the bottom and rubberish material on the top, works/looks great.

 

We have recaro car seats in both cars, not only are they super safe (we owned britax/other high end ones in the past and like the recaro's better) - but our son loves it. And they look pretty cool in the back of the legacy and the tribeca :-)

 

Chris

Yeah I've seen them but I don't want to study them too closely as I may be too tempted.

We have recaro car seats in both cars, not only are they super safe (we owned britax/other high end ones in the past and like the recaro's better)

 

Have you seen any US/North-American testing of the Recaro units?

 

I really love how the Recaros look (and have been impressed, in independent reviews, by the comfort offered to the kids inside as well as their ease-of-use for the parents), but I've been having the hardest time finding any testing data that's not European in origin.

 

 

 

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CDubbs -

 

Over time (i.e. the years that your child will be in the seat), it's unlikely that any such padding will keep the seat completely free of damage.

 

If you're pressing downward-and-inward with sufficient force (when I install my child-seats, I'm actually pushing my knees into the vehicle's seat and backrest, using my back/shoulders to brace against the roof of the vehicle while pulling the restraining/anchor straps tight - our FD's Certified Inspector commented that he'd never seen an untrained parent get the seat that solid before, but if you do the math, I'm 6', 250 lbs of solid fat , and given that I am actively pushing against the vehicle roof while pulling on the anchors with all my might, you can now see how the seat's not "going anywhere," right?), my experience has been that you're going to leave some kind of impression.

 

That said, the pads should help avoid the worst of the indentations - but it still won't be perfect. You'll likely need interior detailing/restoration help upon resale, unless it's also to another family with-children.

 

As for "safe?"

 

That's hard to determine.

 

Since it's your child , not mine, I can only say that you should follow manufacturer's recommendations - and many caution strongly against any such pads.

 

Yet, for us, even with me (while I do confess to lurking on Car-Seat.org, I have not insisted on ERF w/Anna ) and the wifey (a licensed and practicing pediatrician, who trained and is practicing at one of the nation's top kid's hospitals), well, we still have our 4-year old forward-facing, and with the seats on protectors.

 

Happy Father's Day.

 

Oh, BTW, don't Google "Sparco Wingman." Trust me, just don't.

Oh, BTW, don't Google "Sparco Wingman." Trust me, just don't.

 

Crap. I didn't trust you.

 

And thanks for the info. Extra leverage with seat protector, got it!

^

 

Yeah, I know, that's my dream seat. The only reason I haven't asked for it as a gift (not saying that my wife would ever get that for me! even if it was truly retail-available ) is that I can't find *any* crash-testing on it, at all.

 

Back on-topic....

 

My view of things is that if I can't get the seat to move, tugging with all my might (and moreso, weight!), then it *should* be OK. Pressing the seat tightly into the vehicle's seat and seat-back is critical to that - some Johns Hopkins grad-students, a couple of years back, patented a strap-on mechanical crank-type device which would allow even the most lightweight and non-muscled among us to apply at least 200 lbs. of force towards getting this accomplished.

 

Granted, crash-forces are much higher...but I haven't lost sleep over it, yet.

 

Still, your life-blood is yours, so I can't do anything but present my simple opinion, while highlighting the potential dangers of following it - and to counterbalance that by quoting what may be "by-Hoyle" by your seatmakers' instructions and warnings (and I'll also say this: look at the recommendations and warnings of those certified, in dedicated communities such as Car-Seat.org: you'll find many who are adamantly against even the thinnest of such padding/"protectors"). After all, I'd truly feel horrible if something were to happen to yours, while you were taking my advice, advice which may contradict the instructions and warnings of the seat's manufacturer. So either way, it's your decision to make, as a parent.

 

No matter what you do, though, my standard advice is one that I'll give here:

 

Be sure to have your seat/setup inspected by a certified inspector in your area, typically offered by hospitals and/or Fire/Rescue.

 

It's not an empty certification - rather, the people who are certified to do such inspections do actually undergo specialized training, and I truly do believe that even the best-intent and best-educated (about the seats and safety devices) among us can benefit from the double-check as well as the knowledge and experience of these personnel.

 

I've put in a lot of seats/bases for my friends and family, and thankfully, not one has ever failed such an inspection or failed to provide crash protection. But to EVERY person I help, I still *make* them sign up to get their seats inspected, simply because I am *not* an expert, and because I truly believe that this is something that's worth the time and effort to do.

Fair enough man. Believe me I understand that standard internetz disclaimers apply. I don't consider anyone an expert and take full responsibility for how I apply the opinions I am offered.

 

I will take a look around. Now, if I can just get the darn thing back.

Just want your kid to be safe, that's all.

Thanks for taking the time to weigh in on this stuff. Interior type vs car seat wasn't a concern 5 years go when I bought it

^ NP, glad to help.

 

Oh, BTW, I haven't CLEANED my interior since Anna was born. She's now 4 and 1/2.

 

Granted, I keep the car pretty clean to begin with, but you don't want to see the driver's floor-mat and carpet. Trust me.

What, no HANS systems for the baby?

 

Anyone ever use a Recaro?? I'm tempted as we are about to move up from the baby bucket (graco snugride) to a bigger seat.

What, no HANS systems for the baby?

 

 

Anyone ever use a Recaro?? I'm tempted as we are about to move up from the baby bucket (graco snugride) to a bigger seat.

The Recaros are very popular in the tuner crowd, and quite a number of my friends and acquaintances have them. However, my hang-up is that I've been unable to search up good Stateside/North-American crash-testing data on them. Granted, I haven't tried to do so in the past 6 months or so.... If someone can point me to these, I'd be grateful, for sure.

 

Whenever I get the itch, that's what's hung me up on the decision. Yeah, I want a seat that (I think) looks good - but I also want it to be safe, and just because the seat's got "Recaro" embossed on it doesn't necessarily mean very much to me, if it has not withstood the rigors of proper testing. We also had a SnugRide, and while it may not look particularly racy or stylish, that thing proved to be exceptionally well-built and safe.

 

On the plus side, there are some models of the Recaros which get high marks for both child-comfort as well as subjective "ease of use" from some of the parent-advocate sites/communities. With the boosters, these particular factors carry a lot of weight.

My daughter is 14 months and now I'm faced with the question of when to turn her around to a front facing seat. After doing some research I've realized how important being rear facing is. I just read that from 1992-1997 less than 10 kids died in car wrecks in Scandinavia where they put all kids rear facing till they are 5, and it's the #1 way kids die in the US.

^ ERF - (E)xtended ®ear (F)acing - is a *very* hot topic now (I think it actually started really being examined here in the US as of some time within the last year), and yes, the statistics are staggering.

 

I didn't learn about it until long after I'd already made the switch with Anna (a late front-facer, as she's got a cousin who is only a few months younger than her, and we elected to keep her rear-facing until he could also front-face), and at that point, there was no going back.

 

If I - and my wife - knew what I/we know about it then what we do today, I think that we would have elected to keep her rear facing, and at least give ERF a good try.

 

Children are infinitely adaptable, and what seems like an uncomfortable position for us may well be plenty comfortable (and cozy) for them. If your child doesn't complain about the lack of leg-room as she grows, if I were in your shoes, I'd definitely at least give it a try.

 

But again, this is, at this point, still something that's up to the parents to decide, and it is also my firm personal belief that I should not tell another parent what to do.