LATCH system for kiddies

[LI FJ40]

We're kicking around the idea of getting an old Cruiser for a weekend Home Depot run rig and something to use going to the beach and local use.

We have two little ones, a 5 year old in a booster and 1 year old in a rear facing seat. My wife is pretty adamant that we need a LATCH system meaning 2002 and newer. Since I really only want to spend a few thousand dollars on the Cruiser that kind of puts us older than a 2002.

Does anyone have knowledge of adding LATCH to an older one or something OTHER than just using the seat belt?

 

[retrofive]

Search here. There has been some conversation on that. I don't recall the threads off the top of my head however.

 

[bhicks]

I had 3 kids in the middle row. A one year old, 3 year old and 5 year old. We used the seat belts and installed the traditional way. It's completely safe. I had no fear of a safety issue with the seat belts IF you install correctly. The issue is the middle seat. There is no shoulder strap. When our 5 year old when to a booster seat we could no longer put him in the middle. With my 5'2" wife she could not reach the middle seat to strap in one of the other two. With the lift and 35's the vehicles no longer worked for our family so we picked up a 100. If we only had the two kids then I never would have sold the 80. It's perfect for a family of 4. Install the car seats correctly and move on.

 

[Seth_O]

My experience is that the LATCH system is no safer than a seat installed properly using the seat belts. LATCH is just designed to reduce the possibility of installing incorrectly.

 

[dcguillory]

Getting the same saftey lvl with a seatbelt is just more time consuming and you have to actually care. My CHP buddy was mighty impressed when he found out how tight I get my seats in with just a seat belt. Gotta be willing to climb into the car seat with your knee to wrestle it down into position

 

[cjmoon]

I use the rear facing in the center and it protrudes through the front buckets. I also have to get into latch my daughter. Can get her out easy enough without crawling in. Latch system is a hair faster but not any more secure from what I can tell.
I would look to add your talking about retrofit of seats from a newer vehicle and then modified mounting positions. Keep it stock. The seat frames down to the mounts are all designed for it's spicific configuration. Keep it original.

Sent from my SM-G900V

 

[ericb1]

drop a knee in the child seat, back against roof and give it good tight install. I work for the FD and we have dedicated "installers" that literally spend about 40hrs of class and field time being trained to install these. Check your local FD, Its free (at least here). Previous post is correct. Seatbelts are just as safe but have a certain way to be done correct, the latch system was designed to be simpler, not safer because people spend 2 minutes installing a car seat that should take 10

 

[dharmabuminajp]

Ditto all that was said above. I have 5 kids and have used so many car seats in multiple cars its crazy. The LATCH system is great in that it makes it easier to get the install right but seat belts are just as safe. Also your 5 year old should no longer be in a seat mounted using the LATCH system assuming they and their seat weigh over 40 or 45lbs combined as that is all the LATCH is rated for in most cars and you need to switch to seat belt mounts at that point. I currently use an infant seat, a 5 point convertible and various boosters and have no problem with them in my 80, even in the third row.

 

[bdac]

I have 3 kids all using car seats. Our 200 and the Audi have LATCH systems which I don't use. I prefer the seatbelt with the third tether on the top. I wouldn't retrofit the 80. In fact you might cause more harm because you have no way to test the operational safety of the system unless you're in an accident.

 

[FirstToy]

Getting the same saftey lvl with a seatbelt is just more time consuming and you have to actually care. My CHP buddy was mighty impressed when he found out how tight I get my seats in with just a seat belt. Gotta be willing to climb into the car seat with your knee to wrestle it down into position

They are tested both ways, so it's the installation that's important not which method.
This vid is pretty good at showing installation both ways.
Installing convertible car seats

 

[wearsabrowncoat]

ARB bumper is more important than style of car seat attachment system. I kid but really, do a search of ARB bumpers (or any other after market bumpers) on this thread involved in accidents. Crazy pictures but shows how important vehicle integrity is in a crash.

 

[ericb1]

I Have an ARB and love it, as well as other aftermarket bumpers. Just remember the kinetic energy must be displaced and absorbed somewhere. I was on an MVA 3 weeks ago where a 100 (stock) hit an F350, lifted, hauling a loaded dual axle trailer. It was head on and each car doing about 40MPH. The F350 looked great, needed front axle work and maybe some frame straightening to the horns, radiator, grill etc. 1 dude died OS the other probably did later. The LC was destroyed. The engine dropped out the bottom with the trans as it was designed to, the grill was sitting about 18" from the firewall with the rest of the front end. The entire front end accordioned as it was designed to, and the hood "hooks" made sure the hood deflected up and not back. The driver didn't have a scratch on her, didn't go to the hospital.

I love the front bumpers, while they do not remove the engineering and crumple zones that ultimately left the "cab" completely untouched, they will cause you to absorb quite a bit more energy than you would in stock form. Remember if the car doesn't absorb the energy, you do. It's all about your internal organs hitting your skeleton at speed, and then bouncing back. Torn aorta, lacerated liver, that stuff will kill you quick.

Not trying to hijack, seems original question has been answered thoroughly

 

[footrat]

On my 80, the middle row seat belts don't lock when pulled all the way out and allowed to retract. That makes correct and tight installation of a car seat very difficult.

 

[S.CarolinaFZJ80]

On my 80, the middle row seat belts don't lock when pulled all the way out and allowed to retract. That makes correct and tight installation of a car seat very difficult.

Mine did the same until I removed them and cleaned them up. I pulled the belt completely out, soaked it all in a bucket with hot soapy water and scrubbed it all down with a brush. After hanging it all out to dry and reinstalling, it all retracted and locked fine. It seems as all the grime and goop from twenty years was binding it up. Give that a try.

 

[malteserunner]

I use these to lock the seatbelt in place. Most car seats include them. Or, Dorman makes them as well, part number 74356.

 

[ElCid04]

Sooooo... No one else uses the "baby cage anchored to the tiedowns in the back" method?





I sometimes use a car seat for my 3 year old princess in the back seats. It's amazing how tight a seat belt can get when you take the time to route it correctly and take out the twists, etc. I've had her all over trails and that seat hasn't moved an inch. You're good.

 

[IanB]

I install my daughter's carseats using the seatbelt and the rear anchor point in my LC and my car. The wife's has LATCH in her Lexus. The potential to be as safe is definitely there with the seatbelt setup, but the install/removal time is huge (as above, 10 min to do it properly. OP has 2 kids, I get the appeal.

 

[SFSig]

Where are you guys attaching the rear tether? The third row seat anchors are a little off center and seem to cause the seats to be uneven when tightened. Using the rear seat anchors is also obviously an issue when the third row seats are installed.

Also, I'm able to get the seats super snugwith the seat belts but they always end up just a tad uneven because of the shoulder belt pulling up - any tips on getting the seats even would be much appreciated!

 

[toyotaspeed90]

I used to have an IS300 with LATCH, the 2014 Prius C my fiance has has LATCH. The FZJ80 and the AE95 are too old for latch, I have 2 front facing toddler seats. I interchange them between the 3 cars (the Prius, FZJ and AE95).

I actually find LATCH in the Prius more cumbersome to install. The FZJ isn't a vehicle that requires a seatbelt lock as one is built in (the case of my old 95 explorer was NOT the same, it did not have a lock).

Whether you use LATCH or the seatbelt, you have to put your weight into the seat to tighten it down.... it just won't be tight enough just putting it onto the LATCH hooks and tightening, you're still having to get the seat down into the pad a bit. The FZJ makes it surprisingly easy to get tight.... once your knee is in and the seat is buckled through, pull the bottom as tight as you can, then pull the top ALL THE WAY OUT to engage the seatbelt lock. Slowly let the top pull the remaining belt through. Pull tight as needed.

The LATCH in the Prius, for example, is awkward because of the design through the rear hatch, the rear hatch cover, the headrest.... once you get the top on, then you can get the bottom on. The exact seat in the FZJ gets just as tight and can do it in less time, once you're used to it.

In my AE95 I don't even adjust the belt since nobody/thing ever sits back there. If I take the seat out, I just leave the buckle where it was (which is difficult to get in without having my whole 180lbs in the seat).

The same actually goes for the spare rear facing (with base) we have when we are with friends that we'll throw in the corolla or the FZJ (with a german shepherd also in the vehicle we never have a front facing and a rear facing in the Prius as there isn't room). I find the base easier to install and actually get tighter in the FZJ than I can with latch. I did install that same base in the Prius 1 time and I couldn't get it as tight as I could in a normal seatbelt through it.


Given the fact that in 1983 when I was born it was the discretion of the mother whether they wanted to hold the child or put them in the car seat.... and look how many of us survived.....