The old seats for kids debate....

The old seats for kids debate....

Author
Discussion

SGirl

Original Poster:

7,918 posts

262 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Hi everyone,

Well, we did it! Took delivery of our Cerb yesterday. Tell you more later, but we're off to Power Engineering for a dyno session in a minute.

But before we go, a small question - is there any kind of rear-facing child seat which goes in the back of the Cerb without strangling the passenger in front and squashing them up against the windscreen??

plotloss

67,280 posts

271 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Not rear facing, but life flat so it may fit is the Jane Matrix...

It sort of goes across, perfectly safe by all accounts though doesnt sound it. Came 2nd in the Which test of the 52 most popular ones.

Thats the one we are currently trying to procure...

Matt.

SGirl

Original Poster:

7,918 posts

262 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Cheers Matt. Friends of ours have got one of these - it's quite wide though and costs an arm and a leg IIRC...

Might see if I can borrow it and try it out. I'll let you know if it fits!

plotloss

67,280 posts

271 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
They do seem to run to quite a bit, but then I have no frame of reference, thats the one 'er indoors wants.

We have looked in france and the travel system over here is £470 and €460 over there...

Day tripper...

Matt.

davidd

6,453 posts

285 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Sgirl

I tried three of four in ours, none fitted (we'll they would fit but not well enough). The solution was to use the other car until he was big enough to go in a big boys seat

We have a Britax something in the Saab now which is a proper forward facing seat, I'm going to try it in the cerbera this week, if not then I'll get a new one for him.

Did sbaby get a cool buggy ?

D.

whatever

2,174 posts

271 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
I tried to get our Primo Viaggio in the back of the cerb. To say it was a non-starter is something of an understatement. I didn't try it in the front as there seemed little point, but I'm sure it might have fitted. A plus point was the mpx chassis (all this is M+P stuff, btw) went in the boot ok, which bodes well for when we're in push-chair territory.

I never considered the lie-flat things as there's limited width in the back of the cerb with having the transmission tunnel running through the middle. We looked at one in a shop and from memory it seemed like it'd go nowhere near.

So, we use one of the other cars now for family trips out, though we have been known to take a "support vehicle" to VW and such like.

That leaves us just waiting for babyWhatever to get big enough for the recarro seat. :JustKeepStuffingTheBabyRiceIn:

JAK

121 posts

269 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
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We bought a Mama's and Papa's pram, which came with 1 frame with wheels, and 3 plug-in options.

A Carry Cot
A Car Seat
and A pram chair thingy for when nipper gets older.

Now the problem is I bought this 3 years ago for nipper number 2 before I had the Cerbie (or nipper 2.5).
When nipper number 3 came along (now 8 months) I looked everywhere thinking I would need a new car seat, however the one I had fits perfect in the front seat, in the back you have to get the belt on quickly, or it tends to topple onto the floor. However once in fits perfect.

I think the newer version of this is bulkier and does not fit in.

plotloss

67,280 posts

271 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
So go on then, being currently absolutely befuddled by all this travel system/3in1/carry cot malarky what do you lot recommend?

I still cant see past the fact that its going to cost a pair of tyres and a track day though!

Matt.

whatever

2,174 posts

271 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all

plotloss said: So go on then, being currently absolutely befuddled by all this travel system/3in1/carry cot malarky what do you lot recommend?


I've yet to find a group0 (i.e. suitable from birth, rear-facing) seat that'll go in the back, but I'd be delighted to be proved wrong.




I still cant see past the fact that its going to cost a pair of tyres and a track day though!

Matt.


...and the rest...

Tripps

5,814 posts

273 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Having studied the back a Cerb last week I cannot imagine any rear-facing seat would fit, but perhaps a tilting forward facer might do the job?

We have a Britax Renaisance (sp) in the Mondeo, which when we first had it was fully back at say 70 degress from vertical, now the little one sits up and looks around we have it fully up.

The Renaisance is a big bulky seat though, so would probably not even fit between the front seat and the door to get it into the car, but I know that the Britax Freeway fits, and probably has the same tilt mechanism.

I'm getting one of these this weekend in readiness for the Cerb and so the little one can enjoy some roof-free motoring (it has a bloody awful colour scheme at the moment though, if it matches any TVR interior I'll be amazed!) and can give you a report on it if you like...

SGirl

Original Poster:

7,918 posts

262 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all

davidd said: Did sbaby get a cool buggy ?

Yes! We got him a Graco travel system that does everything apart from propel itself and wind the baby after milkietime. It's even got a tray for mummy's beer cans!

Matt, had a good look at the Cerb this morning and I can't see how the Janes arrangement will fit - the transmission tunnel will be in the way. Also wandered into Halfords (resisted the neon wiper jobbies, though ) and tried their smallest group 0 rear-facing seats in the car - none of them fit. Just as well I'm only short and can fit in the back....

gazzab

21,111 posts

283 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
Rear facing goes in the front.
Front facing in the rear.
My youngest was fine in the Recaro front facing from age of 8 months but wasnt well supported when sleeping (so just let it pop n crackle to wake him up). My wife hated being in the back though.
My eldest was fine from age 2 ish in the back seat with standard seat belt etc (but just a device to pull belt down a little).

davidy

4,459 posts

285 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
I think we covered this in a previous thread and decided that since Matts wife was going to drive he would have to get used to curling up in the back of a Cerby.

davidy

PS :blantant plug: I've just put a Recaro Start Child Seat up in Ted's Classifieds :endofblantant plug:

PPS Interesting SGirl that you went the Cerby route, will keep an eye on your postings to see how you get on (we went the Volvo towing a virtually race prepared Taimar route)

editedto say whats a blantant plug????

>> Edited by davidy on Thursday 24th April 16:32

pies

13,116 posts

257 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all

SGirl said:

I'm only short and can fit in the back....


Err this seems one hell of a compromise as the cerbie is YOUR car

jonnie5

716 posts

254 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all

gazzab said: Rear facing goes in the front.
Front facing in the rear.
My youngest was fine in the Recaro front facing from age of 8 months but wasnt well supported when sleeping (so just let it pop n crackle to wake him up). My wife hated being in the back though.
My eldest was fine from age 2 ish in the back seat with standard seat belt etc (but just a device to pull belt down a little).


gazzab, what device did you use in the back to pull down the seat belt a little?

SGirl

Original Poster:

7,918 posts

262 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all

pies said:

SGirl said:

I'm only short and can fit in the back....


Err this seems one hell of a compromise as the cerbie is YOUR car

No it's not - it belongs to me and Tam Lin jointly. And since I'm shorter, it makes sense for him to drive if all three of us are travelling.

davidy

4,459 posts

285 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
jonnie5

I've got two devices for lowering the seat belt, the first is that some booster seats/child seats have a strap to enable the belt to be pulled down over the childs shoulder and the second are from Mothercare (about £8) which is like two triangles of padded material which have press studs which effectively go on the childs lap, pulling the diagonal of the belt down. These are a bit of phaff to fit and weren't very popular with my children.

A lot of the time I just use an adult shoulder pad from a racing harness, liked by the kids as they tend to have quite a lot of padding.

davidy

jonnie5

716 posts

254 months

Thursday 24th April 2003
quotequote all
I have an 18 month old who sits happily in a Britax Freeway behind the passenger seat and my 3 1/2 year old sits in the back seat (no booster) with a padded attachment to the strap (sounds like the sort of padding you get on a racing harness). Seems to work OK, but pulling the strap down a little would be useful....

tims

12 posts

258 months

Friday 25th April 2003
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Likewise we have a Britax Freeway and number one son (3 and a bit years) is in the other seat with a belt strap. The Freeway doesn't necessarily tighten up very well using just the belt, so I use a seat belt tensioner called Mighty Tite available from halfords to ensure it is sufficiently-well restrained. I was helped in sorting out this set-up by Rolex Blue - there is a previous thread on this subject towards the end of last year with pics of how the tensioner fits, etc (bit fiddly!).

Once kitted out, Cerb is ideal family car...

Tim