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As a new Prius owner, I found it difficult to get
information about car seats compatible with the new car seat
connectors available in the 2001 Prius. <br><br>Here?s a
little background on my family?s car seat requirements.
When I got my Prius I did not trade in my old car,
which is a very reliable, if somewhat rusty, 1990
Nissan Stanza. We decided to keep the Stanza for a
winter beater, so are still using it. My husband and I
carpool to work and we drop off my two kids (ages 5 and
2) at daycare on the way to work so need car seats
in both cars. My very tall five-year-old uses a
booster seat that works with any shoulder belt and
transfers very easily from one car to the next, but the
little one (at 23 lbs.) can?t use most booster seats
yet. It?s a major hassle to move the car seats back
and forth between cars, so we needed to get a new car
seat for the Prius.<br><br>I?m posting a summary of my
findings to help some of you make a car seat decision.
First, I did not find any product reviews or safety
information online for any car seats that would be compatible
for use with the new connectors. Of all product
listings I looked at online (and there were hundreds), not
one mentioned being compatible with the new
connectors. As a concerned parent, this left me in a
quandary: were ALL car seats compatible? Not likely!
<br><br>So, where did I finally get my information? Luckily I
know someone who inspects car seats for our local car
seat safety clinics. She told me the car seat safety
inspectors in my area have not even seen anyone using the
new connectors yet. She put me in contact with a
local expert who trains the car seat safety inspectors
for most of Minnesota.<br><br>A call to the expert
got some results. Here?s what I found out. There are
only two products currently on the market to fit a
child my younger daughter?s size and weight. One is
manufactured by Century and costs around $80. The other is
manufactured by Fischer Price, and costs around $100. (Sorry I
don?t have the model names ? the scrap of paper they
were written on has already been recycled.) Both car
seats fit children infant to 40 lbs. Both products are
generally thought to be available at Shopco and Toy-R-Us.
Now, both these seats cost more than most other car
seats, and when it comes to safety, a high price does
not always mean a safer product. The expert was not
able to give me an opinion on whether it was safer to
use the new connectors; she stated that they provide
an alternative to seatbelts. She also said that over
the next 10 ? 12 years, car seats anchored by
seatbelts would be phased out.<br><br>Neither of the car
seats she mentioned met my family?s needs for car
seats. I was looking for something that I wouldn?t have
to replace again next year when she gets too tall to
sit in an infant seat and will need to use a booster.
(Parents, you know it can take an act of strength roughly
proportional to moving a mountain to properly install a safety
seat!)<br><br>I ended up getting a booster seat by Cosco that
fits children 22 ? 80 lbs. It has a five-point harness
like a car seat, and in fact, looks and works like a
car seat when the harness is used. Later, it can be
used as a belt-positioning booster seat. It uses the
traditional shoulder belt to anchor it in place. It fits OK
in the back seat of my Prius, and I was able to
tighten it so it doesn?t move at all, but only by using
the tether strap that came with it. My efforts
rewarded me with a visit to the chiropractor the next
morning, but at least the seat is installed. We are now
able to start driving my Prius to work, except my
temporary license plates have expired and haven?t received
the permanent ones.
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Child Safety Seat in my Prius
Jan 31 2001, 09:01 AM
