Comments on: Combi Crash Tests – A Better Way?

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 23:44:48 +0000

From practice, I have found that there’s a trick to using the retrofitted Combi Centre. You have to push down firmly on the carrier handle with one hand while pulling firmly on the middle of the release handle. Then, you pull up on the carrier handle while still holding the release. The latch mechanism seems to get in a bind if you don’t push down or if you pull up too early.

Definitely not a perfect retrofit.

By: murphydog77

murphydog77 — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 05:02:43 +0000

I’ve heard of this happening, Michael. I wish I could remember how my friend’s Centre worked when I looked at it for her because she had the retrofit on it.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 15:22:12 +0000

I just used my Combi infant carrier for the first time after doing the spring retrofit. I installed the replacement spring very carefully and exactly as laid out in the installation manual.
Got home from the hospital yesterday with my new infant and I couldn’t get the seat separated from the carrier. I pulled the release handle as far as it could go. Could only get one side or the other to release, but not both at the same time. I resorted to just taking her out of the seat.
Anybody else use the retrofitted Combi infant carrier yet?

By: murphydog77

murphydog77 — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 21:41:02 +0000

I’m not so sure the Combi fix was the answer. My understanding is that seats with the fix are very difficult to remove from the base now. I’ve never encountered one, so I can’t speak from personal experience.

I’m not privy to manufacturers’ ledger books, but several have shared that it costs tens of thousands to run a sled test when a change of design occurs. To totally redesign a seat means lots of engineering time, prototypes, testing, approvals, technical writers, etc. All that cost gets passed onto the consumer, even if it’s only a $5 price increase in the cost of the seat, though look at the cost of many infant seats now–they’re well over $100. I’m not letting manufacturers off the hook; they need to provide safe seats and I think they are. But I do think cost is a big factor too. I’m concerned we’re not producing vehicles as safe as we think they are.

By: Wineaux

Wineaux — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 02:11:59 +0000

They fixed the problem with a new spring…

Yup, lots of costs for new designs, extra testing, and of course heavier and more expensive car seats. Oh wait, they fixed the problem with a new SPRING! It leads me to believe that a lot of the hand wringing being done by the JPMA and many of the various car seat manufacturers is a whole lot of hot air designed to deflect attention from the real issue.

Will every issue be this easy to fix? Probably not, but don’t get too distracted by all of the hyperbole and straw man arguments coming from the car seat industry either…

By: CPSDarren

CPSDarren — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:22:10 +0000

It is probably impossible in terms of time and cost to test every child seat in a large number of vehicles in a real NCAP test.

On the other hand, you might be able to do it in a select few types of the best selling vehicles, though this would still be at considerable cost to the taxpayer.

Maybe they simply need test sleds that not only mimic a sample of modern vehicles more closely, but also the crash pulse in the NCAP test. They could then use such a test to establish a supplemental star rating for car seats. They could also continue the research by putting car seats in NCAP testing for vehicles to refine their sled testing.

By: Infant Seats and Crash Testing: What Do We Know?

Infant Seats and Crash Testing: What Do We Know? — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:13:09 +0000

[...] Combi Crash Tests – A Better Way? [...]

By: Kat_momof3

Kat_momof3 — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:36:54 +0000

I’d also point out that it’s not that we don’t think a 35mph test is a bad idea… it’s that the consumer reports test that they originally did was not accurate of a portrayal of a crash with a car going 35mph.

We’re not saying that they shouldn’t test some higher speeds, we’re saying that to keep costs down, they should try to use math and science to figure out what would happen in a higher speed crash test by seeing what happens in this existing crash test.

I really respect Combi for owning this and going above and beyond to fix it.

Their seat was clearly the one that really did have a problem and when they couldn’t find it, they went and did what they needed to do to figure it out.

By: Snowbird

Snowbird — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 09:49:14 +0000

Thanks Heather. I’d been under the impression the 15* seat was already in use, so that’s why I was asking.

By: murphydog77

murphydog77 — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:36:42 +0000

Thanks, Trudy! I’m not sure when the change will occur. Looking up stuff on the NHTSA web site is impossible and I’m sure I have it written down somewhere else, but I just have to find it.