Making an F-350 Regular cab more family friendly (child seat mounting idea)?

[Patman]

I'm sure they have the data somewhere, but they're not sharing it-I tried. I called the dealer, explained the situation, asked if there was another number I could call, etc... I guess the other problem is that there are so many different kinds of carseats, and there's no way to account for installer error, etc... Why didn't I buy a crew cab to start!?

The dealer never helps, call corporate customer service, the last thing they want on their hands at this time in the market is bad press on safety. 1-800-392-3673 is the US Service/Safety contact number for Corporate m-f 8-5

 

[Amesff01]

A typical airbag deploys to 10" from the steering wheel, and 20" from the passenger side dash. However, I don't know how wide they can be. Messing with any seatbelt/LATCH system should raise a red flag... There have been a lot smarter people than me who have designed and tested all that stuff. You have a year before you can turn the seat around, look for a bigger cab or take the time to work on your rig!

 

[78Bronco]

A hardmounted seat could do more harm because the child would accel/decel faster in a shorter distance. If something did happen your childs life is at stake, your insurance won't cover anything to do with injury or death and thus who assumes liability. It is just a bad idea.

 

[shortbus4x4]

I would say look for a crewcab now or SUV and utility trailer because kids just keep getting bigger and taking long trips with jr. in the middle gets old real quick.

 

[Buliwyf]

Why not just disable the driver and passenger airbags and keep jr. in the middle on the seat using the normal seat mounting methods?

 

[dirty Bakers]

Car seats ar overated but required by law. Check your local laws and regulations. Did you know car seats are not tested by our government. All they do is force people to purchase bigger vehicles. Why can't we have child seats that are not hard with mor padding and a lower center of gravity. Don't get me wrong I use them but it doent mean I have to like the quality and performance.

 

[shortbus4x4]

Car seats ar overated but required by law. Check your local laws and regulations. Did you know car seats are not tested by our government. All they do is force people to purchase bigger vehicles. Why can't we have child seats that are not hard with mor padding and a lower center of gravity. Don't get me wrong I use them but it doent mean I have to like the quality and performance.

Yes. I hate car seats but they are required by law and they also make good sense because most seatbelts don't keep little kids secure in a crash. I hate the design of most of them and they are pretty darn uncomfortable on long trips.

 

[SChandler]

How many of you guys have ever looked at how your seats are mounted in the cab? Most likely it's 4-3/8" dia. bolts through the floor of the cab with a nut and washer on the underside. The only thing hard-mounting the child seat is going to do is reduce the shock absorption that happens through the seat cushioning. Accel/decel rates in an accident aren't going to be changed because a seat belt is designed to lock up solid as soon as excess accel/decel is detected to keep you in your seat. I say, build a padded platform form out of an old bucket seat base, mount the seat base (drill new holes for the brackets and reinforce the floor with an extra layer of sheetmetal at the new holes), keep the existing middle seatbelt and strap the seat down to that. If you want more utility from the seat, build a narrow back for the seat and have an upholestry shop add some foam and a cover to it.