[barrys]

We just got our new V last night. It's very nice and we're just getting used to it now.

We have Britax Marathon child car seat. We like to put it in the middle for safety reasons. Then, the top of it is higher than the headrest and seriously blocks the view out the rear view mirror which scares my wife.

The Britax has at least 6" between the the car's seat and my kid's butt.

Has anyone else had and resolved this -- perhaps with another child car seat that's shorter in overall height?

 

[jeprox]

We just got our new V last night. It's very nice and we're just getting used to it now.

We have Britax Marathon child car seat. We like to put it in the middle for safety reasons. Then, the top of it is higher than the headrest and seriously blocks the view out the rear view mirror which scares my wife.

The Britax has at least 6" between the the car's seat and my kid's butt.

Has anyone else had and resolved this -- perhaps with another child car seat that's shorter in overall height?

you have 3 options:
move the seat to either left or right, buy another seat that's lower or try raising the driver's seat.

depending on the driver's height, raising the driver seat may not work.

my car seat is right installed right behind me. i've tried installing it in the middle and for me it's ok, i can see over it... but i find it hard to get to, so i installed it behind me.

 

[barrys]

My wife is really short so we've got the front seat jacked up all the way.

I like putting it in the middle because I want my little one surrounded by as much car as possible.

Does anyone know of a seat that's shorter? I'll start looking at seat specs on the web but any good tips will help.

 

[motoguy128]

I have a similar issue. In order to see my 4 month old daughter in her car seat, I have a mirro attached to the center headrest. It blocks parts of my view directly behind, but i can still see enough to either side, that it's not a problem. I've gotten used to it and don't really notice much. What happens if you had 3 adults in the back seat???

If it makes your wife feel better. Motorcycle can't see directly behind them. Neither can drivers of most commercial trucks and semis.

It's not ideal, but it's a reality with the "stadium" seating of the CRV and the position and size of the rear window. It could be worse. Many crossovers have even larger C pillars than the V.


the trick is to take advantage of the design of the passenger side mirror, and aim it so you can see far behind you as well as to the sides. You should still aim the drivers side mirror to be able to see as far to the left as possible, but still almost overlap you view out the rear.


Keep in mind also, that the rear view mirror is double articulated (has 2 ball joints). So you can position it vertically, horizontally as well as it's angle. That might help in seeing over the booster seat.

 

[barrys]

> Keep in mind also, that the rear view mirror is double articulated (has 2 ball joints). So you can position it vertically, horizontally as well as it's angle. That might help in seeing over the booster seat.

I tried that one...
I'll get used to it I'm sure.

 

[jeprox]

is your car seat one of those "all-in-one" type? it goes from infant to about 8-9 yrs old. i think if you have those type, there's really no way to get around the problem unless you move the seat to the side.

some seats are age specific, infant, toddler, etc. those ones i believe are a bit lower, but then you have to keep changing/buying new seats as the child grows older.

one thing i forgot to mention is that you can buy a good wide angle mirror.
i have it for all my cars, i guess it's one reason i have no problems seeing over the car seat. they come in different sizes. you can get them as flat convex or with a little bit of curve. broadway/napolex is an excellent brand, but can get pricey. this is their US website. http://www.napolex.com/index2.html
you can buy them on ebay or some aftermarket parts store may carry them.

some of these mirrors can let u see all of your back and also your side - so it cuts out the blind spots. they also come tinted or regular or colored. i have a blue colored one that matches my car color.

keep in mind that if you use these type of mirror, you will loose the day/night function of your rearview mirror and also the compass or temperature display on the oem mirror (if you have it) coz these mirrors go on top of the oem one. usually though, it's not a problem coz these mirrors block out the glare of the lights. i highly recommend these mirrors, check them out.
i've been using them since the day i started driving.

 

[Serj22]

Technically speaking the worst spot to put the child in is behind the driver, because of the amount of materials on that side, I.e> car gets hit in headlight pushes back dash, pushes back steering wheel, pushes back seat, etc. Not sure on the actual rulings or reason for it but I've always heard that putting the car seat in the middle or behind the passenger is the safest. It also allows you to reach back and touch them, where as doing the same maneuver with them behind you is a lot harder I would think.

 

[beige2007]

i know that if it's an 07-09 V then the "center" latch location should be offset towards the passenger side.....the manual is clear on its suggested "middle" latch position. this gives you a slightly better view of the rear glass and actually helps the driver (while seated) get better access to the child seat....you don't have to turn your body as much. i too have a britax (decathlon), but my wife is OK with the view (she's 5'5"). one thing about britax is that they make HUGE seats. we bought a SUNSHINE KIDS RADIAN car seat and are satisfied with it......the seat is much lower than a britax, narrower than a britax, but has almost as much room as a britax. if you're baby is still in the rear facing stage, the RADIAN comes with an attachement that lets you set the correct angle. if forward-facing, the attachement is removed and the bottom of the seat can be "pulled out" to adjust the angle. the back of the RADIAN also sits slightly lower than the britax. two downsides i see on the RADIAN........1.) forward facing setup tends to prop the child at a more vertical seating position than the britax......2.) it's heavy. one big plus with the RADIAN..........it folds flat so it's easier to take on airplane rides. price for the RADIAN is similar to the britax.

good luck!

 

[barrys]

These posts sure are on the money...
I'll look at that Radian seat. That could be a winner. The Britax is like a toddler through teen seat so that probably is the problem. We need a second seat anyway so it's a good time to shop.

I've got the seat in the middle position and I will never move it to one side.
That's just me. I'll have to read up in the manual a bit but I've got it belted at the bottom and latch connection on top. Compared to my last car, I can't exactly call the V stout. But, even in that car, I would not put her on one side or the other since I trust no door for side impact protection plus what's mentioned above.

The curvy mirror might be interesting. I'll pass that by my wife.

 

[barrys]

P.S. Which model of the Sunshine Kids Radian do you have? The 65 or the 80?

I'm not sure my daughter's going to hit 80 lbs before she's driving. No kidding...

 

[beige2007]

These posts sure are on the money...
I'll look at that Radian seat. That could be a winner. The Britax is like a toddler through teen seat so that probably is the problem. We need a second seat anyway so it's a good time to shop.

I've got the seat in the middle position and I will never move it to one side.
That's just me. I'll have to read up in the manual a bit but I've got it belted at the bottom and latch connection on top. Compared to my last car, I can't exactly call the V stout. But, even in that car, I would not put her on one side or the other since I trust no door for side impact protection plus what's mentioned above.

The curvy mirror might be interesting. I'll pass that by my wife.

the britax decathlon and marathon are both rated to 65 pounds / 42 inches tall i think.....the radian 80 goes up to 80 pounds / 50+ inches tall.

i used to think that the middle is the best. i can see why it would be wise to offset it slightly towards the passenger side:

- easier access while driver is seated
- off center means any debris crashing through the windshield is not gonna hit my kid straight-on (passenger headrest can take some of the impact)
- moving the seat slightly off center allows you to fold the left rear seat out of the way...also allows for two britax-sized carseats and one booster/small adult in the back
- slightly off center also means it's easier to get to the kid while parked at curb-side....shorter reach for you, easier access for the kids

as far as the latch points......the britax and radian are VERY SECURE with just the lower latch belts.....the top tether is not required.

the conversation (bubble) mirror is great for keeping an eye on the kids........but useless at night

we got the radian as a second car seat for my (smaller than the CR-V) suzuki 4x4.......works great! the britax stays in the V because our little one seems to be more comfortable during longer trips.

 

[barrys]

I'm going to bump this one just for fun. I think there might be other interesting thoughts on this topic. All the seats mentioned are about 26-27" tall and the seat is about 24 including the headrest.

The other night I was driving home from the city (SF) and was being tailgated to no end for over 5 miles. I kept looking and could not see any detail on the car until he passed me and I saw the sirens on the roof.

That's a cute anecdote, but the rear visibility problem is for real. I'm used to "turkey necking" all the way around before lane changes since I drive a Ford Ranger as my daily driver. But, my wife's in the V and she just isn't that kind of driver. Also, I'm trying to open her mind to using the side mirrors more. But, I think everything I say on that topic is goin in one ear and out the other. I took the V out for a long drive the other day and I had blind spots that were absolute... No matter where I looked or how I strained, I just could not see cars at certain points in the right rear (USA).

Maybe I might try one of those big, curvy rear view mirrors too.

 

[barrys]

So much for bumping...

I did find a reasonably effective and simple fix. Just tilt those back seats back until the back of the child seat rests fully on the seat back. That lowered it's top significantly. Now, from the center rear view mirror, I can see the rear wiper blade. Before that, I was missing view from about 1/2 of the back window.