# Retrofit Latch System or Dealer Install?



## ramama (Apr 13, 2007)

Well, we have a 98 and a 00 car. Neither have the latch system. It hasn't really been a problem until now, but DD1 is now 40 lbs and has to move to a new car seat. We still want her in a harness, but all the higher weight-limit harness seats require, at a minimum, a top tether, which neither of our cars have. So we're at a loss.

Has anyone had a latch system installed by a dealer? How much did it cost? Is it as safe as factory-installed?


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## Erica09M (Jul 28, 2008)

We had 2 top tether anchors retrofitted by our dealership. The first one was free, the second one cost us like $15. We only have 1 forward facing seat right now, but in a couple years when our younger daughter is forward facing, it will be nice to have the anchor already installed.

Completely safe.


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

LATCH cannot be retrofitted. You may be thinking of top tether anchors which in many cases can









If you give me the makes and models of your cars I can tell you how to get it done and if there are any fees involved


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## rachelsmama (Jun 20, 2005)

I had three tether anchors installed in my brother's car and it cost $75 Canadian. I think he was overcharged, but it was nice to finally be able to install the seats properly.


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## lizziebits (Sep 3, 2007)

We had our 95 Volvo retrofitted with tether hooks.

It costs about $100 for two. From what I understand, the car had come with a place where hooks could be installed, they just hadn't been installed at the factory.


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## Erica09M (Jul 28, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
LATCH cannot be retrofitted. You may be thinking of top tether anchors which in many cases can









If you give me the makes and models of your cars I can tell you how to get it done and if there are any fees involved









Yes, I was referring to top tether anchors. I should have specified in my post. I'll go back and edit


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

Actually the only HWH seat that requires a tether is the Regent, and only after 50 pounds


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## ramama (Apr 13, 2007)

Thanks, mamas! Bummer that the latch cannot be retrofitted. Doesn't seem like it should be any more difficult that installing new seatbelts.

BTW, we have a 98 Toyota Camry and a 2000 Nissan Pathfinder (where would a tether even go on that one? I don't know)

I was looking at the True Fit convertible car seat and it said that it requires a tether, but if it doesn't, then I am beyond happy because then I don't have to worry about this whole thing at all


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Additionally, LATCH in most cars is only good up to 40lbs. anyway, and then you're supposed to move to a car seat belt installation.


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## ramama (Apr 13, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SubliminalDarkness* 
Additionally, LATCH in most cars is only good up to 40lbs. anyway, and then you're supposed to move to a car seat belt installation.

That's crazy! I didn't know that. So, when a child is in a booster with a belt positioner, the seat belt is supposed to hold the kid AND the seat in place? That's nuts!

Obviously, I need to spend more time around the "family safety" board. LOL


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

I had the top tethers put in my car (99 honda accord), I think each one cost ~$30. I had the middle one done first then the two on the sides a couple months ago before DS2 was born (figured I might as well get both in so I could put seats wherever I wanted them)

ETA: Oh and yeah, definetly count me in the group of wondering how the heck booster seats are supposed to stay in place!!


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ramama* 
That's crazy! I didn't know that. So, when a child is in a booster with a belt positioner, the seat belt is supposed to hold the kid AND the seat in place? That's nuts!

Obviously, I need to spend more time around the "family safety" board. LOL

No, that's not nuts. Vehicle seatbelts restrain 250# men adequately. They're plenty strong enough to restrain a 50# child. A belt-positioning booster does exactly that -- it positions the vehicle belt safely and correctly on the child. Some boosters have additional features, but the main purpose of a belt-positioning booster is to position the vehicle belt so it can restrain the child.

There are a few boosters that LATCH, but ones that aren't designed that way shouldn't be LATCHed. They will do what they're supposed to do just fine.


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ramama* 
That's crazy! I didn't know that. So, when a child is in a booster with a belt positioner, the seat belt is supposed to hold the kid AND the seat in place? That's nuts!

Obviously, I need to spend more time around the "family safety" board. LOL

Oh goodness! Belt positioning boosters are NOT installed into the car! That's incredibly dangerous. The child just sits in the booster seat and then buckles into the car.


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *chickabiddy* 
No, that's not nuts. Vehicle seatbelts restrain 250# men adequately. They're plenty strong enough to restrain a 50# child. A belt-positioning booster does exactly that -- it positions the vehicle belt safely and correctly on the child. Some boosters have additional features, but the main purpose of a belt-positioning booster is to position the vehicle belt so it can restrain the child.

There are a few boosters that LATCH, but ones that aren't designed that way shouldn't be LATCHed. They will do what they're supposed to do just fine.

The boosters that LATCH are only to be LATCH-ed when the child is still in the 5-point restraint. Once they move from that, the seat itself should not be installed. Just for clarification's sake.


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

No, there are boosters that can be LATCHed in booster mode:

Sunshine Kids Monterey
Clek Oobr, Olli and Ozzi
Cybex X-fix (coming soon)
(and those are dedicated boosters, no harness ever)

and

Graco Nautilus
Britax Frontier
(combination seats that can be LATCHed in booster mode)


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *chickabiddy* 
No, there are boosters that can be LATCHed in booster mode:

Sunshine Kids Monterey
Clek Oobr, Olli and Ozzi
Cybex X-fix (coming soon)
(and those are dedicated boosters, no harness ever)

and

Graco Nautilus
Britax Frontier
(combination seats that can be LATCHed in booster mode)

I stand corrected, but gosh, that sounds like a bad idea to me....


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SubliminalDarkness* 
Additionally, LATCH in most cars is only good up to 40lbs. anyway, and then you're supposed to move to a car seat belt installation.

The only manufacturer with a 40 lb limit is Honda; most others are 48, and Subaru is 60.


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *an_aurora* 
The only manufacturer with a 40 lb limit is Honda; most others are 48, and Subaru is 60.









I was told that unless the owner's manual explicitly states the limit, you're supposed to assume 40. Is that not correct?


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## bobandjess99 (Aug 1, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SubliminalDarkness* 
I stand corrected, but gosh, that sounds like a bad idea to me....

I'm saying this not in a mean way, but I think you do not understand how a booster works or what it does. (this includes a number of other posters as well)
A boosters purpose is to "boost" a child up to the correct height, such that the vehicles seat belt fits them properly. If the booster has a highback, it might also provide some degree of side impact protection, but that is not a primary purpose.
This is why we generally recommend harnessing children well above the minimum 4 years old and 40 pounds...because once you move from a harnessed seat to a booster, then YES, the only thing holding your child in the car is the vehicle seat belt. I meet a lot of parents who, for whatever reason, seem to think that a booster seat does.. more? than that. It doesn't. By taking your child out of a harnessed seat, you are saying "yep, my kid is big enough and mature enough to be restrained in the vehicle by a vehicle seat belt. " A booster seat isn't a "carseat" in the typical way of thinking....it is essentially, a phone book your kid sits on so they are taller, period. Granetd, we've come a long way since the phone book, and they are made of quality materials, the belt guides help assure a good belt placement and fit, and can help disperse some of the crash forces by acting like "false hips", and highback boosters can provide a significant amount of side impact protection with things like headwings, but really, the main purpose is still just to make the child sit up higher, like an adult, so the vehicle seat belt fits them the way it is supposed to. A child in a booster is just being restrained by a regular old seatbelt, albeit hopefully a better-fitting one.

Also..i wanted to say that i believe an aurora forgot a seat..the britax Frontier also requires a top tether after 65 pounds..the issue is that the top slots are not high enough such that many kids will ever get above 65 pounds in it, they will outgrow it by height first, but technically, a child over 65 pounds in a frontier is required to have a top tether as well.


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## SubliminalDarkness (Sep 9, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *bobandjess99* 
I'm saying this not in a mean way, but I think you do not understand how a booster works or what it does. (this includes a number of other posters as well)
A boosters purpose is to "boost" a child up to the correct height, such that the vehicles seat belt fits them properly. If the booster has a highback, it might also provide some degree of side impact protection, but that is not a primary purpose.
This is why we generally recommend harnessing children well above the minimum 4 years old and 40 pounds...because once you move from a harnessed seat to a booster, then YES, the only thing holding your child in the car is the vehicle seat belt. I meet a lot of parents who, for whatever reason, seem to think that a booster seat does.. more? than that. It doesn't. By taking your child out of a harnessed seat, you are saying "yep, my kid is big enough and mature enough to be restrained in the vehicle by a vehicle seat belt. " A booster seat isn't a "carseat" in the typical way of thinking....it is essentially, a phone book your kid sits on so they are taller, period. Granetd, we've come a long way since the phone book, and they are made of quality materials, the belt guides help assure a good belt placement and fit, and can help disperse some of the crash forces by acting like "false hips", and highback boosters can provide a significant amount of side impact protection with things like headwings, but really, the main purpose is still just to make the child sit up higher, like an adult, so the vehicle seat belt fits them the way it is supposed to. A child in a booster is just being restrained by a regular old seatbelt, albeit hopefully a better-fitting one.

Also..i wanted to say that i believe an aurora forgot a seat..the britax Frontier also requires a top tether after 65 pounds..the issue is that the top slots are not high enough such that many kids will ever get above 65 pounds in it, they will outgrow it by height first, but technically, a child over 65 pounds in a frontier is required to have a top tether as well.

No, I get it. But I guess in my head, in an impact, the booster seat would essentially move with the child within the seatbelt.


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SubliminalDarkness* 
I was told that unless the owner's manual explicitly states the limit, you're supposed to assume 40. Is that not correct?

It's not incorrect







But, it is extremely rare for a vehicle manual to state a LATCH limit. That's why the LATCH Manual exists--it's a reference guide for techs to check and find the limit of the LATCh bars.


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## Ironica (Sep 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SubliminalDarkness* 
No, I get it. But I guess in my head, in an impact, the booster seat would essentially move with the child within the seatbelt.

Well, yes, it would. So the cushioning and protection it provides stays with the kid through more of the impact.

Otherwise, the headwings stay behind, while the child's torso flies forward. That doesn't do much good if there's a secondary side impact a moment after a head-on one.


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