Child Seats

[jonesey]

Hi all,

I'm about to get a child seat for our new Cali and am interested if anyone has any recommendations, experiences, dos/donts etc.

We currently have a maxi-cosi isofix rear facing seat which I've used fine in the Cali but I'm after a new one since little one is growing up and now will fit a forward facer.

I'm thinking isofix again but they strike me as very bulky if you're installing and uninstalling them a lot to use the bench bed. I don't like the leg support either really but that's a minor niggle, I think it's the safest fit.

On non-isofix seats I have no idea if they are a good fit or not with the Cali and the bench seat since the belts are integrated and not from the vehicle frame like cars.

Finally, I'm thinking I need a seat that I can whip out and easily reuse as an outdoor seat for little one. Any other things I should consider for a seat that's in a camper van?

Current favourite is the maxi cosi priory fix or Xp version, probably fix.

Thanks,
Chris

 

[TravellinJones]

You beat me to it - I have the same query. I can't really add anything but will watch with interest to see what the good people on this forum have to say...

 

[barry]

Maxi Cosis are cumbersome and heavy which is why they score highly in the safety tests.
We've had the backward and forward facing isofix versions which are seriously heavy but seriously safe.

One drawback with the latter is that the downward leg DOES NOT REACH THE FLOOR and so the little safety indicator never goes from red to green. Our way round this is to put a 1" thick small panel on the floor and all is fine. But not a solution really?

We cart the seat between the Cali and my wife's BMW Coupe so from the expansive back seat of the Cali to the claustrophobic back seat of the coupe. Crazy.
HTH

 

[KernowLad]

Is this for a toddler?

We use a Britax Evolva. Perfect fit, not too bulky, easy to fling out once you arrive at your campsite (we stash ours in a small pop up tent).

We have a rear facing Multi Tech in the car and while very safe, it's a complete PITA to fit and seriously limits front passenger space so we now use it forward facing. I don't think a rear facer would fit in the Cali anyway?

Done ISOFIX with the smaller rear facer; its handy but as you say, it's all very bulky. A properly fitted non ISOFIX is just as safe.

 

[Stu]

We use a Recaro Young Sport -

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[BMVS-Camper-Hire]

We use a Recaro Young Sport -

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When I had my RS4, and my two youngest were very young we had a pair of these, they are a top seat and looked awesome in the back.

 

[Stu]

Not sure if its still the case but there were the VW/Audi OEM option seats.

Good seat with lots of scope to grow with your child.

We have two of them, to save keep moving them around.


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[AndyFromTheBrac]

I too have been doing a bit of research into these and am tempted to follow the Swedish rear-facing approach (and rumoured to be future EU legislation). They have an impressive record with children in cars.

They have compulsory rear-facing car seats until age 4. Yep, quite bulky and inconvenient, but I think we will adopt that when we replace ours in the next few months.

http://www.carseat.se/the-swedish-rear-facing-car-seat-approach/


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[Stu]

I just don't see that working from a practical aspect Andy.


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[KernowLad]

I too have been doing a bit of research into these and am tempted to follow the Swedish rear-facing approach (and rumoured to be future EU legislation). They have an impressive record with children in cars.

They have compulsory rear-facing car seats until age 4. Yep, quite bulky and inconvenient, but I think we will adopt that when we replace ours in the next few months.

http://www.carseat.se/the-swedish-rear-facing-car-seat-approach/


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That's what we had in the BM and from that website. As I said, very secure but a major pain to fit and remove. I also can't see ours fitting rearwards in the Cali.

 

[choplee]

I agree with stu....i have the recaro young child seat .....i used it in my audi to cali to volvo to van and it has worked very well so far ...not the cheapest ,but the age range is very good and it does look good as well as doing it's job well..

 

[AndyFromTheBrac]

I hear you re the practicality, but I'm going try to persevere with this.

Even a minor shunt can give infants in front facing seats significant neck & restraint strap injuries that just don't happen in rear facing seats. Also, the relatively large head to neck ratio of a small child means bumps that could just give us a sore neck, can be much more severe. I'm not prepared to compromise on that.

Once I get the replacement seat I'll let you know how I get on fitting & using in the Cali

I wondered about using the 5th seat, but turning it to face the fear with a regular forward facing seat, but I'm not sure how that would work esp if the kiddie seat isn't designed for that kind of impact. It could be an alternative. I shall investigate...

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[MrsShambly]

Britax seats are apparently the safest on the market, meeting more European safety standards than their competitors.

I hear you re. the rear-facing safety aspect, but, I couldn't imagine our boy (now 4 1/2 yrs old and into the next age-bracket seat) enjoying any journey where he couldn't see where he was going...

I would highly recommend isofix,however, bear in mind it's not accessible if you have seat covers on.

Eleanor

 

[lonsdale13]

we went for rear facing for as long as possible with our kids, surely safety before looks??

http://www.rearfacing.co.uk/facts.php

 

[KernowLad]

Just check the rear facer fits. There is a "leg" that supports them and I'm fairly sure it wouldn't reach the floor of a Cali.

We persevered with ours with our first (I did tonnes of research, spoke to several experts, etc) and for a while with our second but in the end we turned it around. The basic shape of the Multi Tech is the same as that of our other seat. Tuck the "leg" in, turn it around.

I have a pic of it in the BM (rear facing) if needed. Whatever anyone says, they are tight for both passengers and child.

 

[Californiaman]

Will the rear seat go in backwards? Would that be legal?

 

[AndyFromTheBrac]

Will the rear seat go in backwards? Would that be legal?

Not the rear bench, I was talking about the 5th (middle) seat & think KL was referring to his child seats...

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[CamperDad]

Isofix does fit if you've got Brandrup covers on. A bit of a faff but workable!!

We use a Britax (think it is a KidFix) seat on one side, and a MaxiCosi Tobi on the other (non-Isofix). It took a while to get the hang of it, since the Isofix points are set a long way back under the seat back. I always end up sweating trying to get it in, but its worth it for a stable ride.

CD

 

[drmanhattan]

I made small incisions along the seams of the Inka rear seat cover to access the Isofix anchor points. Easy to do. We use a Britax Duo Plus, which our son seems to like. It's not too bulky (as far as child seats go), fixes in and out easily and, above all, it's safe.

 

[jonesey]

Hi all

As thread starter I hope everyone has found it useful, I did.

If anyone is interested in the end I bought a Britax Trifix. It scores very high in the Which? tests and although pricey seems like a good seat.

It uses a top tether that you attach to a 3rd isofix point found in modern cars. The Cali doesn't have one as such but I have connected it to the bar at the base of the bench seat that is sturdy enough in my opinion.

Thus, with this I think I've got what I was after mostly - safety with no isofix dangling leg so I can move the seat and open the draw and also something that can double as a seat out of the van.

Downsides are price and fitting is a bit fiddier than I would like still (but I think any isofix seats are hassle to fit in the Cali now I've tried a few).

Britax also do one called a varifix which does the tri-isofix and belted seats too if you need to swap between cars.

Cheers

 

[AndyFromTheBrac]

UPDATE: it was time to replace our son Bens infant carry system with something a bit larger.

In the end we opted for the BeSafe X3 isofix combi which is a rear-facing seat good for up to 18kg (so about 4 years). This is one of the few isofix rear-facing seats available in the UK. It can also be swung around as a front facing seat anchored using the belts if we find ourselves without isofix available.

We got it from Jeff + Baby & Co in Bristol (Keynsham) who were just excellent. Jeff asked us to pull up outside the back of the store & showed me how it fits in the Cali (the isofix points are tricky to locate!) & then instructed me on how to fit properly. We asked Jeff for his opinion on the BeSafe & he replied that he puts his boy in the same seat. Enough said.

Its no less practical than a forward facer IMO & offers way better protection than these, even at very low speeds (see the link below). Plus Ben feels like the king in it lol

With the headrest plopped down he can see straight out the back too

http://www.rearfacing.co.uk/index.php

 

[Alexander]

It is better idea to think about child seat and it is available so now good options are there in the market and adjustable seats are there with safety features