ok to use LATCH in middle seat?

I suggest checking the manual for this. I would myself, but it's in the car downstairs and i'm too lazy to go look

 

The safest position for a single child seat is the middle position rear facing in the second row. It is closest to the center and furthest away from the sides of the vehicle that may crumple as a result of impact collision. You can safely use the middle LATCH locations for a child seat. Most compact cars only come with a pair of LATCH in the backseat. This doesn't come from me. This comes from the police officer at my new parents training class.

Here is the Britax in my PiP and the Recaro in my Hyundai Sonata. My two-year-old doesn't fit the Britax rear facing and the Recaro blocks my view substantially in the PiP front or rear facing. So I keep the Recaro rear facing in the Sonata and the Britax goes front facing in the PiP. Don't forget to lay a towel down on the seat. Kids can be dirty.

 

The CHP officer that checked my carseat installation gave us a failing grade for using latch in the middle. Since it has not been tested, there is no guarantee that it is as safe, he said. I figured I would measure the distance between latches and see how different the middle position is -- I suspect it is just fine, in reality. That said, my car seat is installed on one side -- it leaves more usable room for a backseat passenger that way. So many things to consider. I think I install the carseat more firmly & therefor safely using latch, so I probably would still use it in the middle position.

 

Interesting. Looks like our two police officers differ in recommendation. I just came back from lunch with wife and two brothers. This can only happen in one car with the child seat installed in the middle. I'm sticking with the middle position.

 

That is what I would do too!
I believe it is safe, and was just passing on what the guy said.

 

btw, in case it's not obvious, the reason you want the seat in the middle is to protect the kid as much as possible in the case of a side (t-bone) collision. the middle position is the farthest away from the side of the car. rear-facing also makes sense so that in case of severe front or rear-end collision, the kid doesn't go flying out through the front seats.

 

A bit more information:
1. "While LATCH makes it easier to properly install car seats in vehicles, it's important for parents and caregivers to know that securing a child seat with a seatbelt is equally as safe — and they have the flexibility to use either system," NHTSA administrator David Strickland said in a statement to Edmunds.com.
NHTSA officials are researching LATCH use in the rear center seat, Strickland said.
(from a 2011 edmunds article: here)
2. Carseat lady and others are on the cautious side about this. Several places, including this article, mention that you should measure the distance between the inner anchors in the center position. If the carseat manual specifies a certain range (Britax says 11-20 inches, I think) then you can check to see if the measured distance meets the carseat specs. This makes the best sense to me. Here is the carseat lady article.

 

My wife and I took a child safety class and they told us to use the seat belt system for middle seat mount and latch for the side. We currently have our child safety seat on the side using the latch.

 

I am very interested in this. Have others encountered a similar situation during inspections? We are expecting our first in February and if the latch locations in the center are within the seat manufacturers recommended dimensions I will latch in the center. From what I see just glancing and not measuring it looks like not any more than a three inch difference in width max.

 

The carseat lady article says " If your vehicle is made by one of the manufacturer's listed below, you CANNOT install your child safety seat using the lower anchors in the center of the backseat--NO EXCEPTIONS! Use the seat belt to install the child safety seat in the center instead."

Toyota is listed as one of those manufacturers (with an exception for some big SUVs).

The Car Seat Lady - The LATCH System

-Kim

 

The question is why? If liability is the reason I could care less, I want to know the facts that say why it wouldn't be safe. The "latch system" are simply a anchor system only thing that would change between the center seat and the outboard seats are the angle that the seat would attach to the anchor points. Plus the center seat back.

 

I don't know why - but as you decide what to do, have a look at the actual latch by peering in when you have the seat back partially folded down. I *think* it looked like each latch is attached to it's "partner" latch, so that the two latches you attach to on either said are actually part of a single piece. To simplify, something like a bar with a loop on either end: O________O
If that is correct then it does makes sense that attaching in the middle position would not be equivalent at all.
The forces on the bar that holds the latch loops onto the car would be quite different with the car set pulling only on one side. I suspect that the result wouldn't be much different except in a serious crash. The seat is probably safest in the middle, held in place by the seat-belt rather than by latch. How much safer we don't know - your call as to what to do:

^...........^
|...........|
|...........|
|...........|
O___________O

vs.
................^....^
.............../......\
............../........\
............./..........\
O___________O............O___________O

 

I see what your saying, I will have to pull stuff apart and take a look at their design.

 

Report back on what you find please.

That said, why bother? We know that a seat installed properly with a belt is just as safe. Why not just go that route?

 

We will likely never know why, except that Toyota says so.

As indicated previously, the federal requirements dictate a standard spacing of anchors. In many vehicles, "borrowing" the innermost anchors to use in the center would result in a non-standard spacing. It's possible that some auto makers simply state not to do this, just so they don't have to test it that way. Or, perhaps they are concerned that people would be more likely to attach two adjacent carseats to the same anchor. Or maybe they actually tested it and found a problem? Unless Toyota is forthcoming, which is unlikely, you could essentially be playing roulette with your child. Most likely, it would work fine, but is even a small chance worth the risk when you could simply use a seatbelt for a secure installation instead, as zhenya and delrey suggested?

Starting in 2014, the NHTSA is moving away from the LATCH system anyway, in part because many automakers have refused to make the anchors strong enough to allow their use with heavier children and carseats. Every carseat that meets 2014 updated federal standards will now include a label with a maximum weight limit for use with the LATCH system. This limit will essentially be 65 pounds, less the weight of the carseat itself. This won't affect many seats when used rear-facing, with the exception of some very heavy models like the Graco SmartSeat. It will affect most forward-facing models, however, like the one mentioned in the original post. The quick summary is that if your child is over 2 years old and ready to be forward-facing, you might as well just get used to installing their carseat with the seatbelt system anyway.

Even for now, you may well decide you prefer your infant carseat in an outboard seating position. While some older studies did indicate a lower risk in the center seat, the reality is that children who are riding in correctly installed and used rear-facing child restraints are extremely safe in any appropriate rear seating position. Most notably, rear-facing seats have been shown to provide exceptional protection in side impacts. In addition, since the studies on center vs. side locations were conducted many years ago, side impact protection on both vehicles and carseats has improved considerably.

I would have no problem placing a rear-facing child in an outboard seating position. This can offer much easier loading and unloading of an infant carrier. Plus, many moms and dads like that they can see the infant better at a stop, particularly if no one else is riding along in back to monitor a tiny infant. This can be important for newborns, especially low birth weight infants that may have breathing issues. In the event that the carseat was installed too upright and causes the baby's head to flop forward, it could lead to a breathing obstruction if it is not observed. The downside is that installation in the outboard seat can take up legroom from the front seat passenger if a tall occupant regularly rides there. Especially in a compact car like Prius!

 

Use of inboard lower anchors from the outboard seating positions
(center seating use)
The lower anchors at the center of the second row rear seat are spaced
18 inches (450 mm) apart. The standardized spacing for LATCH lower
anchors is 11 inches (280 mm) center to center. A child seat with rigid
LATCH attachments cannot be installed at the center seating position.
LATCH compatible child seats (with attachments on belt webbing) can
only be used at this seating position provided that the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions permit use with the anchor spacing stated.
Do not attach a child seat to any lower anchor if an adjacent child seat is
attached to that anchor.
WARNING: The standardized spacing for LATCH lower anchors
is 11 inches (280 mm) center to center. Do not use LATCH
lower anchors for the center seating position unless the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions permit and specify using anchors spaced at
least as far apart as those in this vehicle.


Graco 's manual states it does not recommend using latch farther apart than 11 inches.