LATCH system in middle seat

D

Donas64

Member
:
2002 MP5
Hey guys, my wife and I are expecting a little girl next month. I got her child seat installed in the middle using the LATCH system. I've heard that installing it in the middle using a LATCH from either side is unsafe because the frame could twist and compromise the seat.

Does anyone have any solid info on this? I want to do what is best for our little girl. I'll move the seat to either side if I need to.

Any info is appreciated. Thanks.
 
I would put the car seat on the side, I did not feel safe using the middle. After a couple times of the seat tipping to the side when making turns, I moved the seat over to the side.
 
What kind of seat are you using? I have the Chicco cortina travel system and I use the middle seat. In the instructions for the seat it states the maximum distance apart the latches should be, and because of the huge width of the p5's rear seat (sarcasm) it was within the acceptable range. I also feel safer with my son in the middle rather than the side as there is more distance to the outside world.
 
side is best i also use the seatbelt behind to hold it after i have it latched down.
 
if i could i would have my carseat installed in the middle, however i have twins so thats not a option.

i don't think the seat could twist and compromise the seat when installed in the middle as long as the latches are within range according to the seats instructions. and as far as i can tell they are centered so its not like the seat would be off centre from the latches when the seat is in the middle of the back seat......i hope that made sense to you.
 
Thanks for all the responses. I finally got to look at the Manual today. I have the Chicco Keyfit30. The P5 manual states that the innermost latches can be used as long as it's a certain amount of distance apart as stated. Looks like I'm good to go. I also think the middle is very safe for an infant but with more than one kid, it's not an option. It's just good to know that I'm within the manufacturers specs.
 
From all the car seats I've had I seem to recall they all say middle is the safest. I never had that setup as I've always had two carseats since getting my P5. Doesn't our car have an anchor point somewhere in the hatch floor?
 
Yes there is an anchor point. It goes up through the middle of the headrest and behind the seat. The exact spot it anchors too I forget at the moment. But as Donas said, the P5 manual lists the distance between the side latch points to use the middle seat. It states that as long as the car seat manufacturer lists that it is specifically safe for this distance it is fine. Just make sure that the carseat is made to accept that distance between latches.

Yes I read through the entire safety manual when I first got the car, I was bored at work and excited about a new car.
 
please oh please oh please don't put it on the side... I had mine on the side and luckily my daughter wasn't with me and this is what happends when its on the side :

fjdkaslfjdsafe.jpg


the picture is small, but I had the car seat on the side... the white/gray piece is half of the car seat the other half split into tiny little pieces most where logged into my arm. but thats another story.

middle is always safer. anchors will be fine if your in a sevier(sp) enough accident to twist the frame she would've been worse off on the side.

hope this helps :)
 
wow! glad your daughter was okay. That pic makes me doubly sure that I want the seat in the middle. Again, those people with 2 kids don't have an option. All they can do is make sure the seat is installed properly and drive safely.
 
main drawbacks with seat in the middle are:

1. access to get kid in and out
2. both front seats are impacted by the placement of the rear-facing seat.

for instance, when my kids were rear-facing, I put them behind the passenger seat so I didn't have to slide my seat forward to wedge the seat in (I'm 6'-2" so the front seat is all the way back).

3. The middle of the seat is a "hump", so it's much less secure in terms of slipping/sliding.
 
uiuc240 said:
main drawbacks with seat in the middle are:

1. access to get kid in and out
2. both front seats are impacted by the placement of the rear-facing seat.

for instance, when my kids were rear-facing, I put them behind the passenger seat so I didn't have to slide my seat forward to wedge the seat in (I'm 6'-2" so the front seat is all the way back).

3. The middle of the seat is a "hump", so it's much less secure in terms of slipping/sliding.
Click to expand...

While it does have it's drawbacks, I'm pretty sure I like the middle. I can have my seat all the way back in my P5 and the child seat does not interfere and also I have no issues with slippage.
 
the middle is still the safest regardless of the hump. If I can find pictures I'll show what happened to my civic when I got t-boned. Lets just say if one of my kids was sitting in the rear passenger side seat, I'd be visiting the graveyard to talk to them now. The car seat on that side was completely demolished. And that damage was caused by another civic who claimed to be going 50km/h.(although not proven, I believe he was going much faster).
 
Yes, i put my son in the middle if i can, much safer in my opinion. But now we have two so no choice but the sides now.

Man all this talk of T-boning make me want to buy a giant SUV....
 
funkytuqe said:
Yes, i put my son in the middle if i can, much safer in my opinion. But now we have two so no choice but the sides now.

Man all this talk of T-boning make me want to buy a giant SUV....
Click to expand...

No joke. I'm scanning craigslist for used M1-Abrams'.
 
No probs with the middle position! We have put our son since we bought the car (witch would be around my first post on here!) the only time we put him on the sides is to put more stuff or bigger items in the car. The atachment for the back is under the hatch latch.
 
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