Most seats have removable covers, some are just easier to wash/clean than others. Go into a Babys R Us, Target, whereever and check them out in person, that's the best way. Yeah forget about the no eating/mess rule. Seat covers and floor mats are key. And keep a canister of paper towels, baby and/or leather wipes handy in the car at all times.

 

Do you all use the latch or the shoulder belt with your car seats? I've got the Recaro in my TSX and the Chicco Cortina in my wifes. The Recaro in rear facing is really tight and I'm not even sure if I can get my daughter in the (she's not here yet, will be here in the next few weeks.) car seat the way the door frame is shaped on the TSX. I'll have to take some pictures. It looks like rear faced sucks and takes up a lot more room.

 

I got the same issue. I got a rearfacing Chicco Keyfit behind the passenger (my wife 5'2") and it is still a tight fit for her. The base requires the use of the LATCH system and shoulder belt. I suppose my wife will just have to bear with it until we get a front facing one, although she does sit in the back with him quite often now.

 

Looks like it's going to be pretty annoying. I can't have it behind my drivers seat and I hate having my passenger seat pushed way up to where no one can even sit there. I'll take some pics this weekend of both seats.

 

Rear facing seats are always going to suck up major space, even more so considering how small the TSX rears are. Unfortunately, you're just going to have to deal until your child is old enough for forward facing seats. My kids are 6 & 4 now, and even in booster seats it is sometimes tight for them back there.

 

My daughter is 6 months, and we just made the change from the infant carrier (snap in/out thing with the base that stays in the car) to the convertible Britax seats.

Couple thoughts:

-I have a Britax Boulevard 70 in my TSX, and my wife has a Britax Roundabout in her Jetta; Roundabout is much less bulky. If I was doing it again, I'd get 2 Roundabouts and skip the Boulevard

-As it is, with the Boulevard in the back passenger side, there is space for 6' me or my 5'8" wife in the front passenger seat, but it's a little snug, not comfy for a long trip. However, if we are going on more than an hour drive, my wife usually sits in back with the baby anyways.

-We had the Peg Perego Viggaio removable seat, and it wasn't too bad, it was an inch or two smaller than the Britax which made a lot of difference for the front passenger.

-We actually find the Jetta easier than the TSX because the TSX has a sloping rear doorline, where as the Jetta's is higher and then kinked downwards. That means there's more room to get the baby in without banging her head. However, there is less space in the front passenger seat of the Jetta than the TSX for sure.

-Remember, they are only rear-facing for 2 years, max (depending on how fast they grow) so it doesn't suck forever. Front facing is no big deal at all.

-+1 on the towel or pad; I got a couple pad things from Buy Buy Baby that cover the flat part of the seat, and then have pads that stick up in back and hang down in front to protect the leather from your kids. Invaluable.

-Recaros look cool, but IIRC are not that highly rated. The Britax company is owned by an OEM that makes seats, airbags, seatbelts, etc. They know how all this stuff works together. They are very highly rated, and are, IMO, the best for your kid. I'm not saying they're the best because I own them, I'm saying I own them because they are the best.

 

I have a little guy on the way and I’m trying to get my cars ready. Do you guys recommend any specific products for protecting the seats besides just using towels?

I have a rear facing seat that we plan on putting in the middle at first but have not test fit it yet. Once I do I will post pics for you guys to see how much room there is. I’m also 6’4” so I do take up a lot of room.

 

if you have a TSX, to put the car seat in the middle, you will have to use the car's seatbelt to secure it. if you use one of the outboard seats, you can use the LATCH. you CANNOT use the inner latches from both outboard seats to use in the middle.

 

Good to know, Thank you! I have no idea how to hook one of these up. I havn't even looked at it yet. I should probably get on that.

 

THis is what I have:

http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.as...16407&RN=7024&

Protects the back cushion where she would be otherwise kicking the seat.

 

If you're going to use the car's seatbelts to secure any baby/child seat, forward or rear facing, it might be a good idea to get an additional belt tightener because the seat belt method itself doesn't always secure the child seat that tight. Coupled with the fact that the TSX's rear seats are contoured, the child seat may still move no matter how tight you make it.

Most child seats come with a relatively crappy supplemental fastener, which is useful, but you could also look at one of these:



For seat protectors, I have one of these under the child seat:



And had one of these kick protectors for a period, until we somehow misplaced it:

 

I also went with Britax for all my seats and they are no doubt the best seats hands down. Apparently like 90% of seats are not installed or tightened correctly so finding an easy-to-install seat is important. Britaxes have this down pat and I can uninstall/adjust/reinstall a seat in like 10 minutes.

LATCH vs belt? Do the method you can tighten down better--the seat isn't supposed to move like more than an inch. For most people this is going to be LATCH.

Oh, and in my opinion if you're just installing one seat the safest position is behind the driver since a lot of accidents involve getting struck on the passenger side when making a left-hand turn

 

I have one full size(2 year old girl) Graco and a booster for my 5 year old. They both fit perfect but lkme its been said, bearlly any middle space. Now for the guys that are going to be having newborns, my suggestion (after 3 kids) is, dont put a newborn next to a door. God forbid you get t-boned on the door you child is on. I always had them in the middle. My first child, 13, now always rode in the middle. My second rode in the middle till my 3rd came along and was forced to put him by the door and my newborn in the middle. Now they both sit by the doors, but its inevitable. Atleast now if something where to happen their bodys are more forgiving, where's a newborn is more fragile. So if it your only child right now, do yourself a favor and sit them in the middle away from harms away, atleast for more protection from a side impact.

 

Could you reference this please? I would like to see that fact since this is the first time I have heard of this.

 

lol this guy is too funny... i suggest you get your self a MDX if u wanna be in the Acura circle

 

Eze, I think you maybe referencing this note from the NHTSA site:


NOTE: Most vehicles will have lower anchors in the left and right rear seat positions. If there aren’t anchors in the center seat position, you can still safely install any child safety seat using a seat belt.

I think you may be miss interpreting what they are saying. NHTSA is talking about if anchors are not accessable in the center. You can use an anchor from the left and one from the right, since an anchor is an anchor.

I know for sure with our rear facing car seats we cannot use both the anchor and the lap belt. You can only use one or the other.

 

Overpriced Pilot IMHO. I would go with the new RDX.

 

In case anyone is interested, here are some shots of my TSX with a Britax Marathon 70 installed. Pardon the dirty car, it's winter in Chicagoland.







Adequate, but not great, legroom for passenger.

 

a little extra towels doesn't hurt lol!!!

 

http://www.thecarseatlady.com/vehicl...system_10.html
It has to do with spacing.

I know for sure the owners manual for my Cube says not to do it, i dont remember if the tsx owners manual says the same. It may be a case where the auto manufacturers are covering theirs asses.

 

Thank you for the link. Not sure where they are getting the 11.02 in measurement from. I looked at the actual CFR:

http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/ruli...FinalRule.html

I only found that the anchors need to be a 6mm bar that is not felt by the passanger sitting in the seat. Also this:

"the 6 mm bar would be permitted to be located up to 70 mm (2.75 inches) rearward of the seat bight."

"However, NHTSA is requiring that if a vehicle has at least three designated seating positions in the rear seat or second and third row of seats, another seating position, other than an outboard position, shall be equipped with a user-ready tether anchorage. This requirement addresses the concerns of many commenters that the center rear seating position in cars would not have an improved means of attaching child restraints, even though that is the position preferred by many adults to place a restraint. In the typical family car with three rear seating positions, the center rear seating position would thus have a tether anchorage in addition to the lap belt (and in more and more cars, a lap and shoulder (Type II) belt), to give consumers flexibility in where they choose to restrain their children. NHTSA is not requiring that one of the two independent anchorage systems be placed in the rear center position in a vehicle having such a seating position because, as explained above, it may be difficult to fit the lower anchorages of two child restraint anchorage systems, or two child restraint systems, adjacent to each other in the rear seat of small vehicles.(27) The final rule also requires that, in vehicles with three or more rows of seating positions, at least one child restraint anchorage system must be at a seating position in the second row. Some parents may want to place the child restraint in the second row rather than further back in the vehicle to comfort or supervise the restrained child from a closer distance. This requirement ensures that a child restraint anchorage system will be available in the second row to such a parent.

To better ensure that a vehicle's designated seating position and child restraint anchorage system on that seat will be able to fit a child restraint, this final rule requires the vehicle to be designed such that the CRF can be placed inside the vehicle and attached to the lower anchorages of the child restraint anchorage system. If the CRF cannot attach to the child restraint anchorage system, the vehicle cannot be certified as meeting Standard 225, the standard adopted today for child restraint anchorage systems. When testing for compliance with this requirement, NHTSA will place adjustable seat backs in the manufacturer's nominal design riding position in the manner specified by the manufacturer. The nominal design riding position should be the same position that the manufacturer recommends in its instructions to parents. Adjustable seats will be adjusted to their full rearward and full downward position."

My 2011 manual on pages 48 and 53 show that you can install the rear facing seat in the middle and it does not say in the reading anywhere that you cannot.

CFR does mention that you can use the center anchors and lap belt to be as effecitive as a fully anchored system. (Fully anchored would include the top tether point which rear facing seats do not have. Only front facing seats have the top tether I believe)

CFR also mentions that car manufacutures only need 2 anchor positions if the car is too small to accomodate 2 anchor systems right next to each other. The TSX middle from anchor to anchor is 15.5 in (rough measurement). Since I do not see the 11.02 in measurement in the CFR and the fact that Acura (Honda) shows you can use the middle I would say it was ok to use and up to the parent to decide.

I dont use the lap belt with the anchors since our Britax manual says not to use them together.

I guess it is just up to you to decide. But it doesnt say that you cannot use the middle.

 

OK, I looked at this statement again:


"the 6 mm bar would be permitted to be located up to 70 mm (2.75 inches) rearward of the seat bight."

I think this is were they are getting the 11.02 in standard measurement. Since an anchor has a max setting of 70 mm (2.75inches) most car manufacturers, I am guessing, set this so the anchors are close together to fit in the car without having to place a third set in the middle. Since it is a max setting it would, IMHO, let the 15 - 16 in measurement in the middle of the TSX be OK to use. If you add 2.75 in to both sides that would cover the 15 - 16 inch spread of the middle in the TSX.

At least that is how I am reading it. CFRs are so fun.....

 

The Car Seat Lady website is just being too conservative on things, which I dont blame them. CYA basically. They also list that all Acuras except 2007 and newer RDXs and MDXs cannot use the car seat in the middle, but my manual shows you that you can use the middle.

They also say that Britax allows 11 to 20 inches of spread if the manufacuturer allows it.

This is why I never go by third party websites. It seems most of them do not have a Regulatory Affairs person and/or department to handle reading the CFRs correctly.

Always go by the Regulatory body (Federal Government) and manufacturer of the product. Why do I do this?, because this is what I do/have done for a living for the past 10 years. Either by reading CFRs and creating policy or making sure the policy I am following is correct.

 

Yes they say u can install the seat in the middle, using the seat belts. Page 53 of my 2012 manual says you can install a LATCH seat in either of the two outer rear seats. Whether you see that as being ok to use the inner hooks for the center is up to you.

 

Very few (if any) manufacturers put latch attachment for the center position.

If you look at the attachment points for the two outside positions, you'll note that they point towards each other (towards the center of the child seat you are intending to install there).

If you use the two centermost LATCH points to attach a seat in the center position, then the attachment points are pointing away from each other and away from the car seat.

 

Yea, from my research, i think only mostly full size cars, minivans, and suv's have the center seat LATCH anchors

 

On the TSX though, with the way the center seat is contoured, isn't it hard to secure the seat regardless of what restraints you use, seat belt or LATCH? The middle is flat, but it has those bumps on each edge. I guess if you tighten things down enough it'll just compress everything.

 

I ended up having tint installed this weekend and took advantage of trying different things with baby seat removed. I tried with and without a seat protector (blanket), and tried behind the front passanger seat as well as the center. What I found out was:

1. Using the blanket was the worst of all. Allowed too much side to side movement of the seat using either latch or belt for both positions.
2. Behind passanger seat was a little better than 1 using the latch system without the blanket.
3. The best was center with latch and belt. (adding the belt only added a little more tightness of the base, not much, but noticable).

I ended up using the latch and belt in the center since it was the last setup I did in the center and seemed to be the best. I am also using a Britax model. Not sure the model number but it is a higher end model of the brand. Our B-Cool in my wife's TSX is better using just the latch in the center. We are unable to tighten the base down with the latch and belt and the manual says not to do this any way on with this model of Britax.

Just my . Take it with a grain of salt if you want.

 

hehehe. that's funny. wondering how long that lasted?

For anyone else who stumbles upon this thread, I'd thought I'd offer this:

We started off with the Graco Snugride 22 for our newborn. He graduated to the Britax Blvd 70. We had it rear facing for a while. he's now front facing behind the driver, and the graco is rear facing behind the passenger. I'm 5'10" and never had an issue with either seat rear facing behind the driver. i don't recline a lot, but i do sit pretty far back. I think the recline is where you would encounter problems.