Child seat in a Caterham

[Agent Orange]

Other than leaving my 6 year old, nearly 7, son at home what are the options for a Caterham?

I'm not adverse to changing seats from Tillett to the "comfy" Roadsport style seats or vice-versa.

Cheers

[ewenm]

Have you asked Caterham? Harnesses if you have them rather than 3-point belts might make it difficult, but I'm sure Caterham will have been asked this before so should be able to help.

[Agent Orange]

Have tried calling but their phone is never answered and doesn't go to voice mail. Pretty poor service!!

[framerateuk]

Agent Orange said:

Have tried calling but their phone is never answered and doesn't go to voice mail. Pretty poor service!!

Tried emailing?

I got a reply straight away when asking about parts last week, and got replies within minutes when ordering the parts this week.

Top service, can't complain!

[spiderlane]

The "volvo booster cushion with backrest" is a very good fit for the Tillets. I picked one up from eBay at around 20 quid and use it with my 4 and 5 year olds (with the harnesses)

http://i22.ebayimg.com/03/i/05/45/fa/ed_2.JPG

They love it.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5221/5672957881_f73...
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5023/5672953217_efb...

Cheers
Mark

[Farlig]

spiderlane said:

The "volvo booster cushion with backrest" is a very good fit for the Tillets. I picked one up from eBay at around 20 quid and use it with my 4 and 5 year olds (with the harnesses)

Cheers
Mark

Sorry but that doesn't look safe to me in the slightest - one sideways shunt /lateral acceleration/deceleration & they're flying outta there. The belts are located too high to retain the child properly & the width of the belt is too wide to allow sufficient hugging. Check out a proper child seats & straps. The shoulder straps locate much lower down - almost behind the child,and they're much narrower allowing the belt to hug the child for proper restraint.
I wish you good fortune!!

[130g]

Farlig said:

Check out a proper child seats & straps.

My understanding is that child seats come in various types and levels of "hugginess". Some are just basic seats, while others almost wrap around the child. I think that dismissing a Volvo child seat as not being proper is taking it a bit far...
I have the standard Caterham leather seats, and is using a basic Brio booster cushion to raise my four year old so that he will fit the harness correctly.

Farlig said:

& the width of the belt is too wide to allow sufficient hugging.

Belts being too wide? In my world wide belts are a good thing as they distribute the force of a crash over a wider area.

[Farlig]

130g said:

Farlig said:

Check out a proper child seats & straps.

My understanding is that child seats come in various types and levels of "hugginess". Some are just basic seats, while others almost wrap around the child. I think that dismissing a Volvo child seat as not being proper is taking it a bit far...
I have the standard Caterham leather seats, and is using a basic Brio booster cushion to raise my four year old so that he will fit the harness correctly.

Farlig said:

& the width of the belt is too wide to allow sufficient hugging.

Belts being too wide? In my world wide belts are a good thing as they distribute the force of a crash over a wider area.

Look at the pictures again & tell me you're happy those kids are totally secure...?

In my opinion, based on how proper child seats with their own integral belts secure the child, that set-up is not safe. I'm not saying the volvo child seat is not proper. In conjunction with race harnesses designed for adults, it's being used outwith it's design scenario here...

I agree with you re. wide belts, for an adult... But in this case, they dwarf the child, do not have the correct mounting geometry & hence do not secure them properly - when did you last see a child seat with belts that wide - kids weigh nothing, they don't need wide belts...

Edited by Farlig on Saturday 29th September 09:16

[spiderlane]

Thank you for your concern.

In those pictures the belts aren't actually tightened up yet.

I'm happy that they provide a suitable level if restraint when adjusted and tightened.

But as with all things we all make our own judgements about risk for ourselves and those under our care.

All the best
Mark

P.S both children are of sufficient height and weight to use standard 3 point belts in cars with boosters. Rather than seats with built in harnesses.

Edited by spiderlane on Saturday 29th September 10:15

[DougBaker]

If they are legal in a normal car with a booster seat they are legal in a Caterham.

Just fit the booster so that you are happy with how it fits, they are your kids nobody else can tell you what is safe enough.

[Farlig]

Just cause something's legal doesn't mean it's safe but anway:

DougBaker said:

...they are your kids nobody else can tell you what is safe enough.

Wise words.

[130g]

Farlig said:

Just cause something's legal doesn't mean it's safe

Safe from what? I would wager that you simply can not make the seven a safe car compared to contemporary tintop. The total lack of active safety alone make it a total death trap compared to a new Volvo, never mind lack of passive safety. So for the REALLY safety concerned parents, the seven is not a place to put your child.
So indeed, its your kids your call Personally I feel that the experience and fun of trying a proper car outweighs the small chance of an accident.

[DougBaker]

It is important to understand statistics rather than imagine what could happen.

A quick trip in the Caterham on well chosen roads has virtually no risk associated with it. I would not personally commute through significant traffic every morning to drop the kids at school. But choose the time and place for a drive and the kids will have a great time.

The same sort of choice applies to so much stuff. Avoid teaching the kids to ride a bike and they never get knocked off, instead they die of obesity related diseases earlier than the average cyclist.

[mickrick]

It's a good thing I never had kids
They'd have been on a motocross bike as soon as they could stand on their own two feet.

[Agent Orange]

DougBaker said:

It is important to understand statistics rather than imagine what could happen.

A quick trip in the Caterham on well chosen roads has virtually no risk associated with it. I would not personally commute through significant traffic every morning to drop the kids at school. But choose the time and place for a drive and the kids will have a great time.

The same sort of choice applies to so much stuff. Avoid teaching the kids to ride a bike and they never get knocked off, instead they die of obesity related diseases earlier than the average cyclist.

Absolutely. There is risk everywhere in almost everything you do and you can be injured or die doing the most mundane or routine tasks.

For what it is worth my son is almost 7 and no longer requires the 5 point harness child seats but uses a booster seat with side impact protection with the standard car lap belt.

Therefore a good booster seat with the Caterham harness should be fine. The Volvo booster seat looks good.

[Steve Campbell]

You can source small narrow booster seats...I think I got mine from Tesco's which just fits a Tillets with a long narrow garden chair cushion underneath (raises the booster seat a little and comfy on the back too). Have used it for my now 9 year old for about 3 years...don't forget ear protection...

He even fell asleep in it one time driving back from Dad's Day Out :-)

Edited by Steve Campbell on Monday 1st October 21:58

[Alistair1537]

What a bunch of Nancies we've all become! Get over yourselves - I can remember flying down the roads - standing on seats of my parents cars - back in the days where there were no seat belts............

[pipnjones]

Alistair1537 said:

What a bunch of Nancies we've all become! Get over yourselves - I can remember flying down the roads - standing on seats of my parents cars - back in the days where there were no seat belts............

Please try to be a little gentler with your comments. You might be smiling and being ironic, but the light heartedness cannot be transmitted through the internet. That's two insensitive posts on this Forum in quick succession.

When I was a kid, we had a Citroen Diane and then a 2CV, so yes, it is a miracle that I am alive.if you have a bad crash in one of those, the undertaker can just bend the edges in and save on a coffin. I remember sitting in the back seat, no seat belts, and the driver passing out and driving up the motorway verge. We didn't know better at the time.

With the way a Caterham can corner, a good child seat is arguably more critical than in a standard compact car, so it is an interesting topic. We have become risk-averse in the recent past, and I think children need more (controlled) risk to learn and to have fun, but the injuries that can be sustained being pinged around in a hi perofrmance car are well above the forces as a passenger in the car times of my youth.

[BBL-Sean]

Alistair1537 said:

What a bunch of Nancies we've all become! Get over yourselves - I can remember flying down the roads - standing on seats of my parents cars - back in the days where there were no seat belts............

You got that one right!

[V7SLR]

I bought my first Caterham when my youngest was just 3 years old .... she's doing her driving test in a couple of weeks time! I've done thousands of miles with them in the passenger seat (just 1 at a time!), took my son to Le Mans in it when he was 12 and never had any concern that they might not be safe. Back then there wasn't the same availability of child seats that would fit - I had to butcher a Britax "super cruiser" foam kiddy seat with a kitchen knife and used a load of gaffa tape to get something that was reasonable. In fact the main purpose was to get them high enough to be able to see over the bonnet! The result is they've all loved it and it's been part of the family not just Dad's toy - my elder daughter has even said she wants to get married in it.
So were they safe? I know I'm a very safe driver in the Caterham, more so than plenty of Volvo drivers are in their protect-all tin tops ... I know this because I've had additional driver training. But then again we all think we're driving gods don't we.