Baby Car Seat - Am I risking safety?

[MLI33D]

Hi All,

It's been a while which can be explained by this post - arrival of my my first kid!

So I bought the Maxi-cosi as it was compatible with the pushchair we chose and went for ISOFIX as it was in the car, and apparently safer. (I was also forced to buy the more expensive car seat that sits on ISOFIX base by the missus as it's tested to 70mph - and she has seen how quickly the car can get close to those speeds on the motorway!).

I've got a major concern in that the ISOFIX base I bought has sound and light to confirm that the base and seat are secure - however the base can still slide left and right along the ISOFIX rail in the car seat?

Can anyone here with experience with ISOFIX shed some light? I'm going to contact Maxi-cosi and Audi but am bracing for both palming each other off - so just wanted some independent advice beforehand.

Thanks,

[The Polisher]

All ISOFIX rails are the same. The "hook" is less than 1 inch wide, so the most it can move is half an inch either way.

My car has two ISOFIX seats in the rear, they don't move side to side really, maybe a little if you shake it........ but the point is, it is held secure and can't move forwards or backward.

It still is far more secure than a non-ISOFIX seat. When my children go in my Mum's car she just has the sit on booster seats, and they roll around all over the place in that!!

I wouldn't worry, it all sounds fine to me.

Plus, when the seat belt is on around the child............ it won't move then!

[Plife]

I have 2 isofix seats in the back, and have never seen them slide about. Much better than without isofix where they slide and tilt all over the place.

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[satsu]

We've had a Maxi-Cosi baby seat with a base and now a Britax toddler seat. Absolutely agree with the other posters that Isofix seats are better - they're much more firmly planted than ones attached with seatbelts. I have two tips: first I put a towel under the base which protects the seat and (especially if you've got leather) helps reduce any tendency to move around. Second tip is to make sure that the base is clicked in as tightly as it will go. Once the base is clicked into place and pushed back then hold the front of the base and push/pull it horizontally towards/away from the door to work it backwards until it won't click any more. This will probably leave some indentations in the seat/back but that's a fair trade-off to make sure that the seat is firmly in place with no chance of movement.

[MLI33D]

Thanks for the responses and reassurance.

It's the sideways flex (of the amount stated by The Polisher above) that's got me concerned from a side impact perspective - but this sounds like it's still better than a direct seatbelt connection?

To make matters worse, Maxi-Cosi list on their website the cars with ISOFIX that are compatible......... confusingly the A4 B8 2008 model is approved fro use with their ISOFIX bases - but not my 2009! :confused:

[satsu]

It's the sideways flex (of the amount stated by The Polisher above) that's got me concerned from a side impact perspective - but this sounds like it's still better than a direct seatbelt connection?

There's still a lack of independent research available, but the Maxi-Cosi (http://www.maxi-cosi.com/products/car-seats/maxicosi-isofix-car-seats.aspx)and Britax (http://www.britax.co.uk/safety-centre/360-degree-protection/isofix-faq) websites both say that Isofix reduces the force in an accident compared to seatbelt fitting, as the seat is more rigidly attached to the car. They also say that it's much harder to make sure that a seatbelt fitting is done correctly. This swayed us, but clearly with such an important decision you need to make your own choice.


To make matters worse, Maxi-Cosi list on their website the cars with ISOFIX that are compatible......... confusingly the A4 B8 2008 model is approved fro use with their ISOFIX bases - but not my 2009! :confused:

We went through this when we bought the first seat: even though it was 2010 Maxi-Cosi still didn't have the B8 A4 on the list at all! The shop insisted that we shouldn't use the Isofix because it wasn't on the approved list, but I took this as being a**e-covering on their part, ignored them and used it anyway.

[neilos100]

Yep...whole point of isofix is that it's a standard. Fits one, fits 'em all.:thumbup:

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[The Polisher]

When I ordered the car I checked to make sure it had ISOFIX as we knew kiddies were imminent. Never checked anywhere else for approval.

Bought 4 x Recaro Monza seats from Prams, Pushchairs, Baby Equipment and much more | Babys Mart (www.babys-mart.co.uk).......... awesome service, 20% cheaper than Hellfrauds and they told me if it has ISOFIX, fit and forget!

Then fit in the Audi and the wife's Focus. Assuming they will fit the new Mercedes which also has ISOFIX.

[MLI33D]

Thanks all for your insights


Yep...whole point of isofix is that it's a standard. Fits one, fits 'em all.:thumbup:


That's exactly where my concern stemmed from in the first place - thinking of SCART, HDMI and USB as standards and you'll find that the connections are exact....... yet none are safety driven. I think I may have just found the potential issue: "ISOFIX is not an official DIN standard". http://en.volkswagen.com/en/innovation-and-technology/technical-glossary/isofix-system.html (http://en.volkswagen.com/en/innovation-and-technology/technical-glossary/isofix-system.html)

Which is misleading as the ISO in ISOFIX is normally associated with standards:confused:


When I ordered the car I checked to make sure it had ISOFIX as we knew kiddies were imminent. Never checked anywhere else for approval.

Hmmm the Audi Dealer somehow knew this in our case as he kept going on about the ISOFIX in the car even though we hadn't started thinking about starting a family!

[Hex69]

There should be no difference in safety between ISOFIX and non-ISOFIX IF fitted correctly. However because it is more difficult to fit a car seat without ISOFIX, it was bought in to make installing seats safer.

Isofix or Seat Belt – What’s Safest? | CarSeat.se (http://www.carseat.se/isofix-or-seat-belt-whats-safest/)

What is more important is that kids should be in a rear-facing seat for as long as possible, ideally up to the age of four.

[NickPicks]

If you're concerned about movement, pop along to halfords or mothercare, and ask them to check the fit.

A lot of local councils also offer a checking service, or rospa (actually, they link to the link below)

London councils are listed here: childcarseats.org.uk (http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/advice/london.htm) (a quick check shows that croydon council will do a free home visit to check for you)

[YawnGumbo]

As others have said the side to side movement is normal. Isofix is designed to stop the forwards and backwards movement more than anything. If you have concerns then get a seat protector (Sunshine Kids do one on Amazon or Halfords) which protects the seat and grips the seat base in place. Also you get little yellow isofix adaptive with the seat usually which you can put in the hole first to reduce the sideways movement even more.

[ibiswhiteA4]

I use to isofix seats in my A4, both Britax and the bigger seat does have a bit more sideways movement than when it was fitted in my Seat Leon. I'm not worried, the movement is only 20mm.

[MLI33D]

My Missus has read this discussion thread with me and it's brought a smile to her face from the help given:o


If you're concerned about movement, pop along to halfords or mothercare, and ask them to check the fit.

A lot of local councils also offer a checking service, or rospa (actually, they link to the link below)

London councils are listed here: childcarseats.org.uk (http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/advice/london.htm) (a quick check shows that croydon council will do a free home visit to check for you)

Unsurprisingly my London council is not listed - if they had their way they'd be NO cars anymore....... Anyway I'll check with Mothercare and Halfords before going as I didn't purchase the seat from them.

[The Polisher]

Perhaps I'm seeing this wrong.

Seat without ISOFIX can move about loads...... only the seat belt holds it in position.

Seat with ISOFIX, cannot move front to back at all, and a small amount of side movement, but far FAR less than non-ISOFIX

So, whats the problem?

[The Polisher]

My Missus has read this discussion thread with me and it's brought a smile to her face from the help given:o


Glad we could help!! Why not be proud of our child seats?!?!
19486

[neilos100]

Recaro eh? Hmmm was that yours or the wife's desicion? :D

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[neilos100]

My little fella is in recaro too by the way....

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[The Polisher]

Recaro eh? Hmmm was that yours or the wife's desicion? :D

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Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeell, I did the research and to be honest, these where the best value!!!!!



(honest!)

[neilos100]

So nothing to do with the 'well, they make the seats for rallye cars etc etc so must be the safest, honest' that I mentioned to the wife....:rolleyes:

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[The Polisher]

Being totally honest, we went to Halfords to get the expert advice. Looked at the ones there and the Recaro won because it was better padded, and the covers are removable and washable.

I think they were about £175 each then. Got them online, pair for £220......... then bought another identical pair for my wife's car (Focus so doesn't look as good as in mine!)

Honestly, they were actually the best buy!