Aug 09 2009
The Struggle With Installing Children’s Car Seats
We just returned from a two week vacation on Prince Edward Island. We had decided to drive - we live in Massachusetts-, and, out of safety concerns, decided to rent a car. We didn’t quite trust the 203,000-miles-Jeep or the 139,000-miles-Altima. Both cars have an impressive history of repairs during the past year, and a replacement will happen eventually. My wife, a stay-at-home mom, drives the Jeep, and, naturally, this is where the seat for our two year old son is installed.
For the trip to Canada we moved the seat - the “Cadillac” of all children’s seats - into a very nice Chevrolet Impala (drives beautifully, 6 cylinder engine, gas mileage is an impressive 25 - 30 mpg for mixed traffic, i.e. city and highway). The installation was, surprisingly, a breeze, and the car even provides several spots for a hook, which made me happy. I don’t like the idea of merely using the seat belts.
Upon return from our vacation I installed the car seat into the Altima, because the 203,000-miles-Jeep had yet another appointment with our friendly repair shop. The next day, after the Jeep was done, I moved the car seat back into the Jeep, meaning within two days I had to install the car seat twice. All this works best with a sufficient amount of cursing and yelling, despite the fact that the seat belt in both cars remained in perfect settings for the car seat.
I am always worried about the installation in the Altima, because it does not have a fixed seat belt, and there is no spot for a hook. In this case I use all three seat belts. As a result, my wife drives the Altima only when absolutely necessary.
Anyways, every time I go through this annoying process I do curse the designers of car seats and ask what they were thinking – if they were thinking at all. There must a better and equally safe way to install children’s car seats. I am frequently inclined to work on my own design, but I am also aware how fast our little guy grows. By the time I am finished with my design he will call me “Dad” instead of “Daddy”, and he will be busy apologizing for the nutty old man.
If you have similar experiences or thoughts, please let me know by responding to this blog entry.
For further information on Children’s Car Seat Safety have a look at http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/WELCOME/safety/car_seats_safety/.
