# I can't find a rear facing tether anchor point.



## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

We installed a Britax Roundabout in the outboard position on the driver's side of our 2006 Honda Odyssey but can't seem to find a place to tether it.

The footings of the front seats are encased in plastic covers, I guess so every thing looks pretty







. But now we can't find anything else that is bolted to the floor that the the tether strap could fit around.

We thought about where the seat belt for the driver's seat is bolted to the frame, but it is way over to the side, and it just seems unsafe to me. Would that be okay? Any other suggestions?


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## Ironica (Sep 11, 2005)

Can you pop the plastic covers off?


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## AfricanQueen99 (Jun 7, 2008)

We have a 2006 Honda Odyssey and the carseat tethers to the back of that seat - it's at the bottom.


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ironica* 
Can you pop the plastic covers off?

My husband threw a hissy fit when I suggest that the other day







. I think I might have to overrule him though.


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *AfricanQueen99* 
We have a 2006 Honda Odyssey and the carseat tethers to the back of that seat - it's at the bottom.

If you'er talking about the anchor point on the back of the backseat, that only works for forward facing tethering.


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## crazydiamond (May 31, 2005)

I have a Honda CR-V and have the same problem, so I know what you're talking about! I read on car-seat.org, though, that Britax has recently made longer D-straps available. I haven't ordered one yet, but I'm pretty sure the longer one would work. The one I have is only an inch or two too short. Definitely look into getting the longer one from Britax.

ETA - I have tried to remove the plastic casing, and that's a perfectly valid solution, but in my case its one huge piece so I'd essentially be talking the whole bottom of the seat assembly apart. I don't care to do that, personally, especially because I don't want to mess up all the airbag sensors and stuff. Maybe that's an unfounded concern, I don't know. So right now, my Britax seat just isn't tethered.


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## MacKinnon (Jun 15, 2004)

If you can't find anything to tether down to you can tether Australian method (scroll down), up and over the seat and down to the anchor point on the back. There is some interesting data from UMTRI that supports this method as the safest, although it is a PITA getting kids in and out!

You can use FFing tether points RFing. For instance, when DS is in my third row, there are tether points on the back of the captains chairs and we use those for the top tether. It is OK to have it be off centered somewhat.


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *crazydiamond* 
ETA - I have tried to remove the plastic casing, and that's a perfectly valid solution, but in my case its one huge piece so I'd essentially be talking the whole bottom of the seat assembly apart. I don't care to do that, personally, especially because I don't want to mess up all the airbag sensors and stuff. Maybe that's an unfounded concern, I don't know.

You and my husband think alike







. He just couldn't stand the thought of removing the plastic. He kept saying it would be rigged. I guess it would be to some extent, and it sure would look ugly. I wish they would just put a darn anchor there. Seems like it should be mandatory.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ilovemyavery* 
If you can't find anything to tether down to you can tether Australian method (scroll down), up and over the seat and down to the anchor point on the back. There is some interesting data from UMTRI that supports this method as the safest, although it is a PITA getting kids in and out!

Okay, besides being a PITA to remove the child, I don't understand how that works. I mean isn't the point of the tether to keep the seat form flipping...like toward the back of the car? So how does tethering it like that keep that from happening? Am I making any sense?









Anyway, the Swedish method on that same page looks interesting.


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

No, the point of tethering is NOT to stop it from flipping towards the back of the car. That's not a danger to children, it's just something that happens in a crash. The Austrailian method prevents the seat from over-rotating towards the floor, which reduces the chance of head injury.


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## lizajane30 (Mar 19, 2005)

I have d-rings to tether rear-facing on the captains' chairs, which were installed by the previous owner of our 05 Ody. If you go to car-seat.org and search "RF tethering in 05 Odyssey" you will find the thread I started where this tethering spot is discussed. There are also photos of what it looks like.

You do have to remove the plastic cover to get at this spot. If pops off and goes back on without damage, apparently (I never did so myself since the d-rings were already attached when we bought the van).

HTH.


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *an_aurora* 
No, the point of tethering is NOT to stop it from flipping towards the back of the car. That's not a danger to children, it's just something that happens in a crash. The Austrailian method prevents the seat from over-rotating towards the floor, which reduces the chance of head injury.

Okay now I am completely confused







. It seems the Australian method is designed to do just what you explained. But, it seems the other methods, the Swedish method or just tethering it to an anchor point behind the car seat like to where the driver seat anchors to the floor, would prevent what I was talking about. The different methods just seem to be putting opposite forces on the seat....at least to me. Does that make sense? My 5 month old keeps me from getting much sleep, so maybe my grasp on physics is a bit limited a the moment







.

Also, if tethering is done to prevent the seat from over-rotating towards the floor, is it even needed if the car seat touches the seat in front of it, which AFAIK Britax allows?


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## MissE (May 12, 2007)

@Riverscout: I know what you mean. I was assuming that, tethering the seat rf to the back of the passenger front seat, should prevent the seat from flipping toward the back in case of a crash. The Australian method would'nt do that. The seat would flip toward the back (at least from what I see)...while Swedish method would keep it from flipping.


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

No, the Austrailian method is the most effective one. The Swedish method is not unsafe at all, and provides a more secure install, but doesn't provide much safety benefit beyond stabilizing the top of the seat which can be helpful in side-impact crashes. Rebounding into the seat isn't dangerous, so it's not really a safety concern. In fact, the CPS freaks are divided into three groups--1) Swedish tethering is great and necessary, 2) it's ok but not necessary, and 3) Swedish tethering increases neck loads which can be dangerous for children, especially infants.


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## Treece (Apr 5, 2006)

Oh, great. Let's just add as much confusion as possible! LOL


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Treece* 
Oh, great. Let's just add as much confusion as possible! LOL









Sorry


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *an_aurora* 
In fact, the CPS freaks are divided into three groups--1) Swedish tethering is great and necessary, 2) it's ok but not necessary, and 3) Swedish tethering increases neck loads which can be dangerous for children, especially infants.

So I a did a bit more research online before going to bed, and I found this to be true. Everyone seems to have a different opinion when it comes to tethering and whether it is even necessary or safe and even it it is which method is best. I thought I was just supposed to tether behind the seat and that was that







. Anyway, this website has a very good summary of the issue.

SO basically, as it stands now, I think we are just going to leave well enough alone and not tether. I'm on the tall side so the driver seat is back pretty far and the car seat is braced against it (please no one come on here and post that there is conflicting info on this because I don't want to know







). It is installed per the manufacturers instructions, and I will have it checked at the fire station next week. That is the best I can do at this point.

Why in the world is this so freaking confusing anyway? I mean my husband and I are both a reasonably intelligent educated people, and yet we are having such a difficult time this whole car seat thing...all the different seats and options and install issues and compatibility issues, extended harnessing is safer oh no wait it's not, tethering is safer oh wait it's not, etc etc etc.







:

Sorry I got a little off track there.







Anyway, thanks everyone for your input.


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## mbhf (Jan 8, 2005)

I have an 06 odyssey as well. There is a bar under the driver's seat that is stationary. I was told that I could tether to that as long as I do not move the driver's seat around. The best solution, though, is to move the roundabout to the middle or passenger seat, and tether to the little table in between the seats, where it is attached to the passenger seat.


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## lizajane30 (Mar 19, 2005)

Sorry,I just realized that my instructions in my previous post would not take you to the thread I was talking about. Here is a link:

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.p...ear#post502970

I advise reading the whole thread, as there is some debate in the start as to whether it is an acceptable tether point but in the end it seems to be agreed that it is. When the d-rings are installed in this spot, the front seats can move back and forth with no problem.


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## riverscout (Dec 22, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *lizajane30* 
Sorry,I just realized that my instructions in my previous post would not take you to the thread I was talking about. Here is a link:

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.p...ear#post502970

I advise reading the whole thread, as there is some debate in the start as to whether it is an acceptable tether point but in the end it seems to be agreed that it is. When the d-rings are installed in this spot, the front seats can move back and forth with no problem.

Thanks for the link







. I couldn't find that page before.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mbhf* 
I have an 06 odyssey as well. There is a bar under the driver's seat that is stationary. I was told that I could tether to that as long as I do not move the driver's seat around.

That's how my husband did it when he installed the seat. I told him to undo it because I thought it had to be tethered to something that was bolted down. But the more I look into this whole thing, the more I think it would have been fine.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mbhf* 
The best solution, though, is to move the roundabout to the middle or passenger seat, and tether to the little table in between the seats, where it is attached to the passenger seat.

I saw some pics of that too, and I would try it, but my daughter's Frontier is in that seat which is in the currently moved towards the center. For various reasons, I don't want to move her.

This is all making my brain hurt.


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