Using a Rear-Facing Tether
If you’re looking for information on using a rear-facing tether, you probably have a Clek convertible with a Q-Tether or an UPPAbaby Knox. Please click on their respective links for more information on those seats and how to use them.
OUTDATED INFORMATION!
The only carseats in the U.S. and Canada with the capacity to use the tether rear-facing are the Clek Fllo and Foonf, and the UPPAbaby Knox. —June 2023
Updated 01-28-17
In the What Is A Tether? blog article, we learned all about forward-facing tether use. But what if you have a convertible carseat that can be tethered in the rear-facing position? How do you do it? And why?
Which Seats Can Be Tethered Rear-Facing?
Let’s start with which current carseats can be tethered rear-facing. There are four manufacturers which allow their convertibles to be tethered in the rear-facing position: Diono (formerly known as Sunshine Kids), *Clek, Combi, and Peg Perego. If your carseat isn’t listed, it can’t be tethered when rear-facing and the tether should be stowed safely away until you need to use it for forward-facing.
| Models That Currently Allow Rear-Facing Tethering | |
| Britax | Advocate (manufactured before 06/03/15) |
| Advocate ClickTight (manufactured before 01/28/15) | |
| Boulevard (manufactured before 06/03/15) | |
| Boulevard ClickTight (manufactured before 01/28/15) | |
| Decathlon (Discontinued) | |
| Highway (Discontinued) | |
| Marathon (manufactured before 06/03/15) | |
| Marathon ClickTight (manufactured before 01/28/15) | |
| Marathon “Classic” (Discontinued) | |
| Pavilion (Discontinued) | |
| Roundabout 50 “Classic” (Discontinued) | |
| Roundabout (manufactured before 06/03/15) | |
| *Clek | Foonf |
| Fllo | |
| Combi | Coccoro |
| Diono/Sunshine Kids | Radian 65, Radian 80 & Radian XT (Discontinued) |
| Radian R100 | |
| Radian R120 | |
| Radian RXT | |
| Olympia (Discontinued) | |
| Pacifica | |
| Rainier | |
| Peg Perego | Primo Viaggio SIP 5-70 |
*Clek only allows rear-facing tethering when the vehicle has a dedicated, factory-installed rear-facing tether anchor available, such as in Volvos and Saabs. See the picture gallery at the end of the article for two pictures of factory-installed rear-facing tether anchors on a Volvo front seat track.
Britax, originally the only manufacturer allowing rear-facing tethering, offers anti-rebound bars for their G4.1 series convertibles and their ClickTight convertibles which serves to function like Swedish style rear-facing tethering (see below). Anti-rebound bars (ARBs) are available for convertibles manufactured after June 2010, excluding the Classic models. If in doubt, follow the instructions written in your carseat manual.
The reasons for a movement toward anti-rebound bars are two-fold: vehicle manufacturers are concerned with the advanced airbag wiring that may be housed around the front seat legs and ARBs perform the same Swedish style rear-facing style tether function with less force being transferred to the child. Even though there’s minimal force applied to the tether and carseat on rebound, that force is transferred to the child as a sudden stop when it’s tethered rear-facing. The ARB absorbs the force and allows a bounce-back so the child isn’t absorbing that sudden stop. To date, we don’t know of any injuries to children in carseats tethered rear-facing vs. using ARBs. These are energy management features on higher-end carseats that are like icing on a cake. Any rear-facing child is going to be *very* safe.
Styles of Rear-Facing Tethering
There are two styles of rear-facing tethering: Swedish and Australian method. Swedish is the more popular of the two in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, and has the tether attached to a point under the front seat. Australian is more common in, you guessed it, Australia. In the Australian method, the tether comes back over the carseat and is anchored to the vehicle’s tether anchor. Britax was the only manufacturer that allowed Australian tethering because of the shape of its tether. There are pros and cons to each method.
| Pros | Cons | |
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Australian RF Tethering Toward the rear of the car |
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Swedish RF Tethering Toward the front of the car |
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A note about Australian seats and why they tether to the vehicle’s tether anchor: Australian convertible carseats have an ARB/foot that prevents the seat from rebounding into the vehicle seat. That anti-rebound bar, combined with the tether that doesn’t allow downward rotation, means that there is little movement of the carseat in an impact.
Why Should You Tether Rear-Facing
Many parents and caregivers are concerned about a rear-facing carseat rebounding into the back seat. Rebound is the secondary movement a rear-facing carseat will make during a frontal crash. The initial movement is a downward rotation as the carseat is pulled towards the point of impact in a frontal crash. After the carseat reaches its peak rotation down, it will start to rebound towards the back of the vehicle seat. This is similar to how a driver moves forward into his airbag and then rebounds back into his seat in the late stages of the crash sequence. This rebound motion isn’t necessarily a terrible thing since rebound is generally considered to be a “low energy event.” If there are injuries to the child that occur as a result of rebound, they should be relatively minor because the main forces of the crash have already been absorbed by that point. The most common rebound-related injuries occur when children rebound into something that has been placed on the backseat facing them (such as hard mirrors or toys dangling from the infant carseat handle). Contrary to what some people believe, rebound isn’t something that was designed or engineered into a rear-facing carseat as a way to manage energy in a crash; it’s just the result of the top of the carseat not being connected to the vehicle.
By tethering a rear-facing carseat Swedish style, rebound is greatly reduced. The installation may also be more secure and there may be benefits in side impact or rollover crashes simply because the CR is firmly attached to the vehicle in more than one place which improves overall stability. There’s a definite benefit in rear impacts since tethering a seat Swedish style reduces head excursion, much the same way a tether works for a forward-facing carseat.
But let’s be clear: rear-facing tethering is optional. No carseat requires its use; think of it as an added feature.
How to Set Up A Rear-Facing Tether Using the Swedish Method
Since the Swedish method uses an anchor point under the front seat, you’ll have to move the front seats forward. Look for a solid point that’s anchored to the vehicle floor, like a front seat leg or seat track. If the point you want to use isn’t solidly bolted to the vehicle frame, there’s a possibility the tether might fail in a crash. A seat that is able to be tethered rear-facing will come with a tether connector strap, otherwise known as a D-ring (though lately, they don’t look like “D” rings). The current tether connector strap being shipped with Britax convertibles is a piece of webbing with a loop on each end; there is no metal ring on one end anymore. This D-ring is threaded around the solid point you’ve found and the carseat’s tether is attached to it. If the D-ring doesn’t fit around the leg, see if the plastic covering will pop off. These cosmetic pieces usually are removable and can be put back on either after you’ve attached the D-ring or after you’re done with rear-facing.
If you are installing the rf seat in a 3rd row or have one of the rare vehicles that has a tether anchor on the back of the front seat or front seat track (some Ford minivans do, as do some Volvo and Saab models), you can attach the tether of Britax seats directly to the tether anchor on the vehicle seat in front of the carseat, as long as that tether anchor isn’t already being used by a ff seat (Diono/Sunshine Kids doesn’t allow their tether to be used in this manner). It’s much more important for a ff carseat to be tethered than a rf one if you have to choose between which seats get tethered. Plus, you can always use the d-ring for the rf seat. And it’s never preferable to turn a carseat ff because you can’t tether rf.
For positioning, try to use an anchor point closest to the carseat; for example, if you’re installing the carseat on the passenger side, use the passenger side front seat leg, not the driver’s seat leg. This will help keep the carseat from leaning excessively. Carseat manufacturers also test the rf tether when it’s 20° off-center or less. Twenty percent is about the distance to the vehicle seat front legs directly in line with the rf carseat. Attach the tether to the rf tether point you’ve created with the d-ring or to the tether anchor and pull the slack out of the tether. Do not use the tether to change the angle of the carseat; simply pull it snug.
Concerns
- Finding a suitable location to wrap the d-ring (aka tether connector strap) around. Many newer vehicles have potential locations that are covered by large plastic trim pieces that can’t be easily removed. In some vehicles rear-facing tethering just isn’t possible because there is no suitable location.
- Airbag sensor wiring: As you wrap the d-ring around the front seat leg, take care not to disrupt any wiring that may be attached or near the leg. This wiring may be for the front seat airbag and you definitely don’t want to mess with it. If you notice any airbag warning lights coming on or going off after you’ve attached the rear-facing tether, discontinue use of the tether immediately.
- Older vehicles: Some older vehicles in the rust belt may have problems with undercarriage rust. This could be a problem because if something is rusted, it’s a weaker point in the vehicle and the whole purpose of using the vehicle seat leg is to provide a solid tethering point. We don’t have any statistics on rusted vehicles, but it is something to keep in the back of your mind.
- Vehicle manufacturer resistance: Because rear-facing tethering isn’t commonplace, most vehicle manufacturers don’t address it in their manuals (even Volvo omits it from their North American manuals). Some vehicle manufacturers are not on board with Swedish style rf tethering at all, though it may be because of user error in setting up the d-ring.
- Chrysler brands, specifically, do not allow Swedish style rear-facing tethering in their vehicles. Current manuals address the subject and if you call and ask (if it’s not in your vehicle manual), you will be told it’s not allowed. Brands include: Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Plymouth, and Ram. Other vehicle manufacturers may be following their example in the near future.
Now for the pictures . . .
Swedish Gallery
If you have a 2005-2012 Honda Odyssey, you’ll be interested in reading this thread from our car-seat.org forums. It’s a step-by-step guide on using a rear-facing tether in those vans. If you have a 2013-14 Honda Odyssey, you can see video on how to tether rear-facing in this blog post.
Thanks to CDNTech for providing her ’03-’08 Grand Caravan pictures in this thread: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=28939; and thanks to Emily for providing the pictures of her ’12 Volvo S60 front seat track tether anchors!
Australian Gallery
@Chris, yes, Volkswagen doesn’t allow rf tethering and I believe Dodge doesn’t either. But, they don’t state this in their manuals so how are parents going to know? IMO, if it’s that important, they’d put it in the owner’s manual.
As for tethering 2 carseats to one vehicle seat leg, no can do. It’s just like tethering a ff carseat: only 1 carseat per tether anchor or in this case, one vehicle seat leg.
Are there any car manufacturers that outright prohibit RF tethering? I was at a safe kids seat check and had a tech get quite adamant that I must untether my correctly tethered Britax because RF tethering was not specifically allowed by my vehicle manufacturer (Dodge grand caravan).
Also, I can’t tether two car seats to one vehicle seat can I (FFing anchored on tether point, RFing anchored with D-ring to the same vehicle seat’s leg)?
hi heather ,is the tether clip the same as the Australian one?
@moiety, sorry, but no, you can’t tether back to the vehicle seat that the carseat is installed on. It changes the angle of the tether pretty drastically and the carseat either hasn’t been tested for that or has been tested and has failed that test. Here’s a thread for tethering in an Odyssey: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=9902 . The picture for tethering under the driver’s seat is missing, but I’ll let the author of the thread know and see if she can replace the pic. She does give a description of what to look for, so maybe you can find what she’s talking about.
This is probably obvious, but just to confirm to my husband. We have a new-to-us 2008 Odyssey, and a Cocorro tethered RF. My husband ran the tether under the seat back onto its own own tether anchor on the back of the driver side 2nd row seat. This isn’t an allowed use, is it?
@min, you should be able to adjust the tether by making one side longer and one side shorter. That should even it put so it’s not tilting so much. I haven’t seen anything saying its unsafe for a tilted carseat, but you definitely want to minimize it.
Thank you so much Heather. When I anchor my Diono to the left front seat base of my Subaru Outback, the seat is pulled to the left. Does it need to be tethered to a point at the center of the car seat? Is n’t it unsafe if the seat is pulled to one side?
Thanks,
Min
Yikes!
Will do the alterations!
Thanks! Pipermom
@Pipermom, TBH, whenever I see the word “bolted” and a carseat in the same sentence, I break into a cold sweat, lol. What do you mean by bolted?
It sounds like in both cases, you are tethering the carseats to the vehicle seat upon which the carseat is installed. Right? If so, you should not do that with your carseats. Britax used to allow it years ago, but says if you are going to tether using the Swedish method, it must be toward the front of the vehicle, not back. And in both cases, you should use the d-ring strap to create a point around a front seat leg if possible. If not, don’t tether when rf. Also, don’t make the tether super tight; removing the slack is enough. It’s possible to damage the rip-stitch energy management in the Britax tether by pulling the tether too tight.
As you mentioned, changing the position of the tether when rf does change the way the carseat handles crash forces. Rebound forces aren’t as high as initial forces, so the tether point for rf seats doesn’t have to handle as much force as a ff tether anchor.
If you don’t have a d-ring strap for the Coccoro, give Combi a call and order one. 🙂
HI,
My husband bolted the RF tether for our Cocorro in our Porsche Cayenne to the frame under the front part of the back seat that the carseat is sitting on.
Similarly, we ran the tether in our Audi Q7 for our RF Britax Marathon UNDER the seat to the frame /rear tether.
Both of these are directly connected to the frame and seem stronger than the belted RF tethering to the front seat.
Will this cause abnormal rotational forces in a crash….In the Cayenne, it seems unlikely, but if tethered UNDER the seat in the Audi, it seems it might “compete” with the retraint provided by the LATCH anchors re: distribution of the vectors of the force..
Ideas?
Thanks!
@Wayne, all rear-facing carseats that aren’t tethered to a vehicle tether anchor (a la Australian style) will move forward and down in a frontal crash. Seat belt stretch and vehicle seat compression play roles in a carseat moving toward the point of impact. So, because a carseat tethered Swedish style is tethered in such a way that it allows the carseat to move down, that’s what it’ll do.
Hi – Can you confirm what you mean regarding the sweedish tether system •Doesn’t prevent over-rotation toward floor of vehicle.
We have a seen a Brio Zento in a roll over crash in NZ that did not move at all, there is no way it moved at all towards the floor of the vehicle as the seat belt holds it in place……..
Also none of the crash test videos show it over rotating anywhere! This is why we chose to own a Brio ourselves.
Wayne
Nice pictures!
Thank you that was it!
@momtogray, I’m not sure I understand your question. If the Diono Radian is installed in the center position of the back seat, yes, it can be tethered rf.
@Jean, my source didn’t mention specific manufacturers, but it is something to watch for in any vehicle. I live in the desert and don’t see rusted cars, but in a place with more humidity or snow, the car should be inspected. I’ve seen some cars in Hawaii that I’m surprised can even hold passengers, lol!
Thanks for this useful post Heather.
I especially like the instructions on the Swedish Method on installing the tether.
Are there any particular vehicles in the “older category” you my have noticed issues in?
Thanks
J
ahh, another excellent how-to link to post in our Parents of Multiples club web site. Thanks, Heather!
Can you use a rf teather for the diono rf in the middle seat?
Would love to know the answer to this question as well. My daughter is in the middle and we just got a Diono Rainier. Was looking for as much info as possible before installing tomorrow morning.
@Heather, it depends on which vehicle the carseat is being installed in. Check your owner’s manual to make sure a carseat can be installed there. If so, not a problem!
Great blog!
Thanks for this, Heather!
Very thorough and a fabulous resource! Thanks, Heather!
A carseat that isn’t approved for rf tethering could break in a crash. I don’t know if there’s extra support built into rf tether-capable seats, but both Britax and Diono utilize a V-shaped tether connection to their carseats. The Combi Cocorro has a single attachment point on the carseat for the tether, but it has a fairly robust seat back.
Great article. Theoretically, what are the risks of tethering a rearfacing seat if the manufacturer doesn’t allow it?