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Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. V70-XC70 2001

Hi,

I just recently bought a 2001 XC. While I'm thrilled with car overall, I found an odd problem when installing an infant (rear-facing) car seat. The problem is that the car seat, when installed in the middle rear position, covers the latch for the seat belt for the right rear position. I have a Graco Snug-ride car seat. It appears this may be a problem for other car seats as well. My sister has a 99 XC and a Century car seat and has the same problem. (Previously when I had installed this same car seat in my Toyota Camry, there was no problem. For a car company that makes safety the priority, Volvo seems to not be so sharp in this area-- such that a fourth adult passenger in the right rear cannot use the seat belt!) Has anyone used another infant seat that works better?

By the way, I called Volvo to ask about installing the car seat in the middle position. Interestingly, the customer service rep initially told me that the rear center seat was the safest; however, when she looked at her manual from Volvo, she found, to her surprise, that they claim _any_ position in the rear seat is the safest. She also suggested I called the government safety board. And, get this-- the same thing. The consumer rep initially agreed that the middle position was the safest-- and then after telling her my story, she checks with her supervisor, who responds that _any_ position is fine (which seems to me to be counter to common sense).

Thoughts?

Thanks!









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    Re: Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. V70-XC70 1999

    I have a 99 XC (I am not sure how similar the rear seats are), and I have found the Fisher Price Safe Embrace series to fit well.

    Good Luck

    Doug









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    Re: Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. V70-XC70 1998

    I called Volvo about this also. They get several calls a week. They have now answers. All the seats that fit have been recalled or are no longer in production. The new seats have that big base.

    I have removed the adjuster piece from the base as it is not needed in our car. This allows the base to sit over the buckle on the passenger side. I considered cutting a notch the plastic to allow the belt to be used in that seat. I am worried that this will weaker the seat base and have not done it. The only good news is that the forward facing seats do not have this problem. We are 9 month away from getting to that stage.

    Lots of cars are having this problem. We checked an A4 this afternoon and it covers all buckles in the rear. The seat fit great in our 240 :-(.

    Scott








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    Re: Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. V70-XC70 2001

    Hi, Bert,

    I have the exact same problem in my 99 S70 with the convertible seat I purchased (a Britax Roundabout). But, the good news is that my infant seat (a Century SmartFit Plus 22) was narrow enough that I could install it in the middle and have access to the two other rear seatbelts. We really liked that infant seat so I recommend it.

    When I get a chance, I am going to try and install the Britax more forward so it doesn't cover up the latches. I think it will still be secure because I am using the rear tether straps. I am also thinking that when I switch the seat to be forward-facing, it won't cover up the latches. So, hopefully it is a temporary problem.

    Thanks,

    Mark








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      Re: Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. S70 2000

      Mark,

      I can substantiate that the Roundabout will not cover the latches when the seat is in the forward position. Just something to look forward to...

      Dave








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    Re: Car Seat Problems in XC- Argh! Help.. V70-XC70 2001

    It seems to me that your car seat's base is too wide. The buckles on the rear seat bottom cushion are positioned so that they are held in place to ease lowering the rear seat bottom cushion if you fold it up as part of making a flat load floor. The buckles on cars that don't have folding seat bottoms are ususally on loose belts and not on a storage bracket that facilitates the folding seat.

    This is an unfortunate situation but I don't think Volvo has a solution nor do many of the other car makers that make wagons with folding rear seat bottoms that have made folding their seats easier.








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