Skinny is back in demand – that is, if you’re a carseat or booster. Unfortunately, skinny is also hard to come by these days and that’s a real problem. In a time when Americans are downsizing their vehicles in droves – increased laws and awareness are keeping more and more kids in CRs longer. The combination of these two factors is creating a real space problem. 
We need more CRs that can fit in narrow seating positions and in those tricky 3-across situations. Manufacturers need to work quickly to address this issue because if one more parent suggests removing the armrests on their Turbo booster to make it fit next to another CR – I’m going to lose my mind!
Here are some suggestions for all CR manufacturers. Work on designing new, narrow seats and pay particular attention to how your various models fit/puzzle/mesh next to each other. In the mean time, how about reviving some of those older designs that worked so well for us in the past?
Dorel – could you bring back the Touriva? The Scenera just doesn’t fit as well in tight spaces as the Touriva did.
Evenflo – how about dusting off the Right Fit mold? The Big Kid and Amp models just aren’t cutting it in smaller vehicles or narrow seating positions. If you slap some snazzy covers on the Right Fit and keep it competitively priced, it’ll be a hit – I promise. The contours of that particular design with the narrow back and the low, flared-out armrest/nubs made it fit well in narrow seating positions AND made it easy to buckle, even if it was next to another CR.
Graco – how about reviving the Ultra/Platinum Cargo? The Nautilus and Argos are both great but not exactly 3-across friendly. The Cargo was a harnessed seat that we could count on to fit in small spaces next to other seats. Of course it would be even better if you could find a way to get it rated to 48 lbs with the harness like its Canadian sibling was. It had the ideal top slot height but the 40 lbs weight max on the harness was limiting.
Britax – your original style Parkway, Monarch and FP Safe Voyage boosters all had “Best Bet” ratings from the IIHS! Pretty please? In particular, the width-adjustable bases on the less beefy models (Star Riser/Comfy and FP Safe Voyage booster) were AWESOME when you were trying to cram 3 CRs into the back of a small sedan. Even the BodyGuard might be worthy of resurrection if you did away with those annoying lock-offs. And although the Parkway was not width-adjustable it still worked well for a lot of people in narrow seating positions and 3-across situations because of the tapered shape and *lack of armrests*.
So, how about it? I know all the molds for these seats are still hanging around somewhere collecting cobwebs. It probably wouldn’t take too much to start producing some of these CR models again just until some new slimmer designs could make it to market. This trend of smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles on the road and increased CPS awareness/legislation is only going to continue.
The industry has been very focused in the last few years on bigger and wider. No doubt this is due to the the fact that American kids are getting bigger and wider not to mention they’re staying in CRs for much longer than in the past. Plus, there has been a strong, steady demand for higher-weight harness seats that can accommodate bigger/older children. This is all well and good – but you can’t focus exclusively on bigger and wider while simultaneously phasing out slimmer models. Because if the bigger, wider seats don’t fit in smaller vehicles – then what? What do you think happens when a family of 5 trades in their Tahoe for an Accord? And what happens at a check event when a car pulls in with 3 kids in the back of an old Corolla and all 3 need to be in seats? My program can’t afford to give away Radians so often the parents are forced to make those “tough choices”. Do you put a kid up front in a CR? Let the oldest ride without a booster in back even though he clearly still needs one? This is reality. This is what we have to deal with at almost every check event just because we no longer have those affordable options like Tourivas and Cargos and Right Fits.
Manufacturers, you can help those of us in the trenches (and those who are personally in these predicaments) by meeting these challenges and making more small-vehicle-friendly seats. We also desperately need more affordable options for our CPS programs that work in these tight situations. Tourivas, Right Fits, a no-frills version of the Ultra Cargo and a permanent supply of reasonably priced Safe Voyage boosters would really, really help. Right now the cupholder-less institutional version of the Maestro is my best friend but I don’t care for it as a booster anymore since the little red belt guide hooks were added. And one good, narrow, FF harnessed seat doesn’t come close to solving all the space issues we run into. I know we can’t fix or solve every incompatibility that we encounter but this particular problem seems to have some possible solutions that are realistic and within reach. I hope you’ll agree.
I have a backless star-riser on my shelf. It’s technically expired but (gasp!) still gets used every once in a while. Nice thing is that it adjusts wider. Why do some of these great features disappear?
Oh, yes, I totally agree! And even people who drive larger vehicles frequently need narrow seats – my 95 Windstar back bench is the exact same width as the back seat of my 95 Escort Wagon. I could get a rfing Touriva in the center between a CarGo and a Nania Airway (for my over 40lb 3-year-old), and when I got my Marathons the Futura was perfect in the center between them. Sadly all of those seats have expired now and I’m not sure what I’ll do if I have to do another 3-across.
ITA! It would be nice to not have to buckle my 6 yr old in and get my hand cut up ramming it between his PWSG and a Scenera in the very tight 3 across in the 3rd row of my van. I do have a CarGo back there but access to another one would help a lot along with a narrower booster.
I have 6 kids in seats in a minivan. I love my old style parkways, the bodyguard, and my radians. I maximize puzzling of seats (fitting the slim under the one that flares). It would be great to have some more options once some of my seats expire. Also, I’ve been at the check event where the booster wouldn’t fit. One 5 year old left riding in the booster up front. Another skinny 8 year old left booster-less (when she needed one) in the back seat. We need thin program seats and not just program seats either- cheap ones. I do checks for a program that gives out a ton of seats, which means they are the cheapest models that evenflo and dorel make.
And here I thought I was the only one pineing for touriva and old fp seats. I would LOVE if they brought back the eb version with the suede covers and infant inserts. Oh, how I would love to have a couple of them in the back of my volvo sedan for under $100 each instead of an xtsl and a blvd. It about kills me to have that much $$ worth of carseats in a vehicle that is seldom used to transport kids and my dh chain smokes in just because they are the only seats that fit.
And what about the fp convertible? Similiar in size to the cco with as easy an install if not easier at about half the price.
THANK YOU!! Yes, I’m shouting. This is hands-down the best Carseatblog blog post I’ve read to date. We’ve always maxed out our vehicles. I thought it was tough back when I had to get a Century Breverra, Century Bravo, and baseless Designer 22 in a 3-across. Then the seats expired and I discovered all the new seats were HUGE and had cupholders and armrests sticking out all over the place. Not everyone can afford Radians. And what are we supposed to do when the Radian is outgrown? I know of a number of people using expired Fisher Price boosters because they FIT, and kids can actually buckle them!
Also need tall HBB seats that will accommodate bigger kids in vehicles w/o headrests in all backseat spots. The problem I’ve run into is that my kid is outgrowing the shoulder belt guide on the Nautilus, Turbo Booster, and FP Safe Voyage (LOVE that seat!!!), but the taller seats (new Parkway and Monterrey) specifically say in the manuals to NOT use with long belt stalks if the belt buckle comes into contact with the lower belt guide. Older vehicles that don’t have headrests also tend to have longer belt stalks, in my experience. We have three vehicles within our family and extended family that have belt stalks long enough to preclude using our Parkway (one belt stalk is so long there is slack in the belt stalk when the booster is buckled!!!!!), but the lack of headrests in those vehicles means that I have a choice of how to put my 8-year-old at risk: either boosterless with a lap belt riding up on her belly OR in a backless TurboBooster with no headrest behind her. And most backless boosters now state that you CAN’T use them if the midpoint of the child’s head is above the top of the vehicle seat back. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?! It sucks that she can’t ride with her dad or either grandma simply because we can’t find a HBB that works with long belt stalks (and I’ve not found a CPST yet who can show me one, because they just don’t seem to exist).
Ah yes, our beloved SIV and Futura… I was able to fit my SIV in the center seating position of my 2001 Taurus next to a Britax Husky! Lol. Can’t say that would have been possible with any other seat! Honestly, the reason I didn’t include them in the blog was that there seemed little hope of getting those seats resurrected since FP holds the patents (that are maybe expired by now?). Maybe we need to start a manhunt (or womanhunt) for the engineers who worked on those projects at FP? Twenty bucks says they’re still in the business working for some other CR manufacturer now. C’mon guys, we know you can recreate everything we loved about those CRs and make them even better with today’s technology and engineering. I double dog dare you to do it! 😛
YES!!!! I have one of those FP boosters. It expires in 2013. Praying that either a new skinny seat will come out or my current 8yo will miraculously pass the 5-step test in another 16 months so she can graduate to a seatbelt because the middle seat in my Flex is a whopping 11″ wide. Even the FP booster only just barely fits. I’ve heard the Bubble Bum fits my car but haven’t gotten to the one store in our state that carries it to test it out before I buy one.
My other big complaint is the seats that you can’t use with long belt stalks. The parkway SG and the Monterrey come to mind. A booster raises my kid above the top of the headrest-less vehicle seatback in my husband and mother’s and mother-in-law’s cars so my kids need highback boosters. Except kids are maxing out shoulder belt guides on Nautilus and FP booster. The Three cars in question all have long belt stalks that jam up the buckle under the armrest of most boosters, yet the taller HBB seats specifically say in their manuals that buckled can NOT be in the belt guide area. My 8yo won’t be riding in those cars because she’s not safe with no booster and the lap belt on her tummy, nor is it okay for her to have no headrest to prevent whiplash.
Such a fabulous post!!! Hopefully the manufacturers are listening!!!
**What about that Futura? Don’t forget that lovely little narrow harnessed seat.**
YES YES YES!!! While we’re at it, can we bring back a few slim infant seats? How about reviving that MUCH-LOVED Fisher Price Stay-In-View? The lack of hard plastic handle and slim base made it WONDERFUL for 3-across seating when an infant seat was needed. (I won’t even rave about how fantastic it was to carry!)
Great post and excellent points! I hope the manufacturers are listening! (Well, reading. Whatever.)
Yeah! The adjustable base design on the SRC/FPSV booster was awesome! My 9.5 yr old dd outgrew the FPSV highback booster by height a couple of years ago, but the base is still the skinniest I have.
AMEN to that!!!!!
@MOM2DANDH – I agree that the clek oto was a good option for Canadian families because it lacks the armrests found on the other clek backless boosters. Unforunately, it’s been discontinued for a while and was never available in the USA for whatever reason.
Ah, the Star Riser/Comfy. DS uses the exact seat pictured. It’s the only high-back booster that will fit in a 3-across in our Ford Focus wagon. (Well, the FPSV booster obviously fits but he’s too tall for it.)
I don’t know what we’re going to do when the seat expires in a few months. DDs are in a CCO and Radian – nothing skinner available for them. DS will still need a high-back booster because the belt fits poorly and there’s no headrest. We’re planning to get a van soon, but the Focus will still be our secondary vehicle and the kids will be in it somewhat regularly.
Someone make a skinny booster, soon! Pretty please?
*car accident* not car seat
Another thought: I just discovered that my exhusband had my son’s Radian so improperly installed that my son would probably be dead if they were ever in a carseat. I’d like to switch to a booster in that car because I think ex would be able to use it properly. But where can I find a skinny booster for an affordable price? NOWHERE. This is really a safety issue.
YES, YES, YES, YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So freaking sick and tired of my three across situation. I have to buckle in my six year old who would otherwise be capable of doing it herself, then my 8 year old has to tip her booster and herself **completely** sideways, buckle (being careful not to unbuckle her sister’s booster), then bring the seat back down and scoot everything into place (4 year old is in a radian).
That’s so dang freaking ridiculous when the problem could easily be solved if one stinking manufacturer made a truly skinny high back booster (center has to be high back due to lack of headrest).
My kids’ backsides are not fat. Their torsos are not fat. *I’m* a healthily sized woman (not underweight) and I can fit my booty comfortably into a *supposedly* thin booster (the current Parkway).
Do carseat manufacturers live on this planet? Have they ever seen a real child or actually driven around with any in the back seat of a mid-sized sedan? I really don’t get the failure to provide what we are begging for AND required by law to use. What better cash cow could there be than one that a consumer is REQUIRED to use?
Awesome post! ITA!
I have a Clek Oto, that fits so nicely in the contoured seats in our VW Golf, better than even the Turbo booster. The Olli isn’t as good because of those high arms.
No one could have said it better! Hope they are reading!
Yes, please! Pretty please, bring out some newer NARROWER designs for not just three-across- but when we need to fit a harnessed seat in the center back, because it’s the only tether anchor available for the third kid who needs a forward-facing seat, next to a booster or a rear-facing seat that can only fit there. Larger families need safe seating for our kids too, and so do carpoolers, Cub Scout and Girl Scout troops, and all the other large group of kids that are maxing out vehicles either from necessity or out of a desire to do better for the environment!
Clek, thank you for making the Foonf narrow! BubbleBum, I adore you! Diono, the Radians are an old standby, and now work in more vehicles with the angle adjuster! Now, could someone make great narrow seats like these with a lower price point? Pretty, pretty please… I hate not being able to help families who come to me with a limited budget and a need to maximize their space. 🙁
Amen
I love this blog entry, Kecia! 😀 I hope the manufacturers are reading…