Questions about installing the Britax Roundabout

[MB05Prius]

I'm upgrading from a Graco Snugride to the Britax Roundabout in my '05 Prius. I've got the Britax in the rear center seat in the rear facing position but it doesn't seem too snug using LATCH or the seatbelts. My husbancd can move the entire seat a few inches all around. Any suggestions on which creates a tighter and safer fit? The base is definitely a little wobbly sitting on that center hump...maybe we're just not putting enough pressure when tightening the belt? I also want to use the Versa Tether that came with it to anchor the top of the car seat to add stability but I don't know where to tether it to in the rear facing position. There is no floor anchor that I know of. Has anyone done this? Since my car has side air bags in the drivers and passengers seat, I'm afraid to use the seat tracks or any part of the seats as an anchor point for the tether. Should I instead tether the Britax to the back of the rear center seat? I'd appreciate anyone's suggestions or advice on this. I'm a first time mom and want to make sure my baby is as safe as I can make her in my car. Thanks in advance!

[efusco]

I practically sit in the seat when I'm snugging it down. Now, technically, the LATCH hooks on the Prius are not designed for the center seat position...that could be part of your problem with getting it completely secure. That said, we've used the LATCH hooks for our center seat for 3 years and it's pretty secure. But we do have that center hump pretty smooshed down and I pull the belt very tight.

You don't need the tether for rear-facing seats...I'm not familiar with any car/system that's designed to support the tether for rear-facing. If you've got the seat snugged down it shouldn't be an issue.

[elmofongo]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(MB05Prius @ Jan 9 2007, 12:06 PM) [snapback]373069[/snapback]</div>

I'm upgrading from a Graco Snugride to the Britax Roundabout in my '05 Prius. I've got the Britax in the rear center seat in the rear facing position but it doesn't seem too snug using LATCH or the seatbelts. My husbancd can move the entire seat a few inches all around. Any suggestions on which creates a tighter and safer fit? The base is definitely a little wobbly sitting on that center hump...maybe we're just not putting enough pressure when tightening the belt? I also want to use the Versa Tether that came with it to anchor the top of the car seat to add stability but I don't know where to tether it to in the rear facing position. There is no floor anchor that I know of. Has anyone done this? Since my car has side air bags in the drivers and passengers seat, I'm afraid to use the seat tracks or any part of the seats as an anchor point for the tether. Should I instead tether the Britax to the back of the rear center seat? I'd appreciate anyone's suggestions or advice on this. I'm a first time mom and want to make sure my baby is as safe as I can make her in my car. Thanks in advance!
[/b]

We have 2 Britax Roundabout's in our '06 Prius. We started with one facing forward and the other facing backwards (both using the latch system). I have never tried one in the center but let me suggest a few things:

1) Make sure the latch strap on the Britax is configured for rear-facing (obvious but I had it wrong once)
2) Make sure the trap is as tight is possible. You have to put a lot of pressure on the Britax while you're pulling both ends of the strap.
3) Sometime the angle of the base makes a difference, make sure it's at the best angle for rear-facing.
4) Try moving the seat to one of the sides instead of the center to see if it's more stable.

We only use the tether for forward-facing configuration.

You can always try putting one of those anti-slip mats under but some people think it compromises the safety.

Hope it helps. Send me a PM if you have more questions.

-Adriano

[Bohous]

Just to pile on, we have the Roundabout too and haven't had any problems with it in the middle. It takes some effort but you can crank the LATCH buckles down pretty tight.
Yes, the tether is only used for fwd facing. We just turned ours around to be fwd facing and the new problem was getting it centered on the hump. That along with the fact that it's now miserable for passengers in the back seat.

[mcbrunnhilde]

The latest Consumer Reports (Feb '07) has a very disturbing article about infant seats--it seems that they are not tested to the same crash standards as cars are (i.e. higher speeds and side impact), and many of them do not protect well in crashes. In addition, car seats sold in Europe perform better than seats sold in the US. The Britax Cosy Tot (sold only in Europe) was their top performer, but the Britax Companion (sold in the US) performed poorly. I do not see the Britax Roundabout in the list of their recommendations, so they must not have tested it.

The two top performers were the Baby Trend Flex-Loc Adjustable Back ($90) and Graco SnugRide with EPS ($90). Judged "not acceptable" were the Evenflo Discovery and Eddie Bauer Comfort infant seats. I urge anyone with an infant to get this CR issue and read about car seats. Many parents buy the Prius because of its safety, and choosing a safe car seat is just as important.

Also, many seats are installed incorrectly. CR recommends that you visit http://nhtsa.gov/ to locate a free car-seat inspection station near you.

[naterprius]

The Britax Roundabout was not tested by CR because it is not classified as an infant seat (the kind that snap in and out of a base). It is a convertible seat. The one piece design is much safer than the kind that snap in. (Individual seats may vary).

I have the roundabout in the back of my Prius, albeit front facing. When I had it in my 1994 Camry, I went ahead and added floor tethers to tie the Britax down in the rear facing position. I have not done this to the camry, but the same idea applies.

By the way, Britax is one of the few manufacturers that recommends using the top tether in the rear facing position.

Step one:

1. Obtain top tether brackets from Toyota or some other vehicle manufacturer. I got some from the part number in the book that came with my 1994 Camry. They were intended to go up top in the rear deck, so I got six, three for the top, and three for the bottom. The top ones go in without a hitch as the nuts are already welded in place, but that's another story.

2. Decide where to mount the anchor. This is where the risk is. Some locations may not be strong enough, others may interfere with wiring, etc. I settled on drilling through the steel support plate that wraps vertically under the front seat.

3. Get nuts (I chose locking flarenuts) to match the bolts that come with the tethers.

4. Remove the seat, cut a corresponding hole in the carpet, and drill. Then, bolt the anchor in place.

FYI, I will be installing these in my Prius next summer if and when I have a second kid.

The important thing to understand is nobody knows if my solution will hold in a crash. One thing is for sure, it certainly beats NO tether.

Let me know if someone wants a pic of my Camry.

Nate

[MB05Prius]

Well, my hubby and his friend used their muscle to get the Roundabout in pretty tight using the seat belt in the rear center location. So tight in fact the plastic in the top of the rear seat where the seat belt feeds out has actually pulled away from the seat fabric! Anyone had this happen? Is this dangerous in any way? Also because the rear center belt is a shoulder belt, it pulls tightly on the left side of the car seat (from the baby's perspective) thus the car seat itself is slightly cockeyed. Not very noticeable. I wonder if the results would be different if we just used LATCH instead? I don't think we'll go as far as using the versa tether for the rear facing installation since there is no where to anchor it on the floor. I'm trying to track down a car seat inspector who can check it for us. Thanks for everyone's help!

[deroosa]

The Britax is classified as a "convertible" child seat. The recent Consumer Reports Article only covered Infant Car seats. I of course am one of thousands that currently own the Evenflo Discovery, which is the seat that Consumer Reports is recommending for recall.

In researching a replacement, I have found Consumer Reports recomendations for convertible car seats. The top rated seats are the Britax Roundabout, Evenflo Triump 5, and the Cosco Alpha omega Elite 22-155.

In my 07 it has top tether anchor points on the back of the rear seats. The interesting thing is that there are 3 of them. One for left, right, and center. However when you read the owners manual the LATCH anchors are only recommended for the left and right seats. So I guess the center can only be used with the seatbelt.

The 07 also seams to have a very flat rear center seat. I need to compare to a few friends to see if Toyota has reduced the "hump" in the center.

[jeffd]

So what is the verdict on using a forward facing convertible on the side of the back seat (i.e. not the center position)? We have an '07 which has the side airbags. Would these injure our 2yo in case they went off in an accident?

BTW - we were never able to get our seat to sit as tight as we'd like until we bought the "Mighty-Tite" belt tightener. It allows you to ratchet the belt tight. Love the thing -- works wonders, especially when we travel and are unsure of what the rental car's belts are going to be like. We haven't used a Latch system yet with this thing.

[dylandog]

Hey there - I am a big fan of the Britax carseat and have been using them for 8 years (starting w/ my first kid). I wasn't surprised when CR came out with their review of American-based car seats. I feel that many of the car seats marketed in the US are poorly constructed and poorly tested. With the birth of my last child 19 months ago, my husband and I decided to import a Maxi-Cosi carseat from the Netherlands. It is the safest carseat available in Europe (whose safety testing is much more stringent. They test car seats are much higher speeds and impacts.) It is a great car seat, very lightweight and is built to protect a larger infant. While they are technically illegal to use in the US, I couldn't see the CHP knowing the difference and knowing that our son would be safer made us feel better. While I can't outright recommend buying/importing these carseats.... going to their website and watching their impact/safety testing is a good idea. I think it gives the consumer an idea of how much better we can be at protecting children while on the road. And, as a pediatric emergency room RN and flight nurse, I have seen the devastation brought on by motor vehicle collisions. I think that requiring car seat manufacturers to be more diligent in their designs and safety testing is a must.