Seat belt doesn't lock -- help!

[Eliz_n_Abi_s_Mommy_Karen]

Okay, so we've arrived in Korea safely. We took a "minivan taxi" home from the airport, and the stinkin' thing didn't have seat belts, just one long padded bench across the middle, upon which were perched me, my mother-in-law, my 3-year-old (4 in January), and my 21-month-old! (Minor vent... now onto my real issue)

Anyway, we got to my IL's place safely, and this morning my husband and I went out to install our 2 car seats into their car. We get in and discover that the seat belts in the back seat don't lock. So how do you install these two car seats? One's a MA and the other's a FPSVD. I've got them both FF (the car's too small for RF although that's what I'd prefer!), and the seat belts are threaded through the car seats, but since they don't lock, the car seats are very liable to just flop around in the back seat. How do you install them? Is it good enough to just strap them in, tighten the lap portion as best as I can, and call it a day?

[o_mom]

The MA has a built in locking clip. On the side where the top of the shoulder belt comes out of the seat you will see it - it either looks like a big 'chip clip' (old style) or a lever. Thread the seatbelt so that it is in the lock off, tighten the lap portion as much as possible, then let the shoulder part retract all the way and close the lockoff. It should hold it tight. If you have your manual, it is explained in there.

The FPSVD is going to be harder since it doesn't have lockoffs. You should have gotten a locking clip with it and the manual should have instructions on how to install it. There are also good instructions here: http://www.carseatsite.com/lockingclips.htm

Let us know if you have any more questions!!

Good luck! :-)

[Eliz_n_Abi_s_Mommy_Karen]

We used the locking clip for the MA. One of the locking clips is broken (flimsy!) but we installed it so that we can use the un-broken one. Whew! I still feel like I can slide the seat belt around even with the clip closed.

I don't know where the locking clip is with the FPSVD... In fact, I am pretty sure I left it back at home, since I've never used/needed it in the past. In the absence of THAT, what options do I have? Is it still "safe" to have the car seat strapped in?

[o_mom]

For the MA, make sure you are getting the belt very tight before you close the locking clip. Kneel on the seat and pull up on the shoulder portion at the latchplate to get the lap part good and tight. Then keeping tension on the belt so the lap part doesn't loosen, feed it back toward the retractor and then close the clip. It should get it pretty tight.

For the FPSVD, I'm not sure what to tell you. Did you look under the cover in the little storage wells for the locking clip? Sometimes they are tucked down in there - in the curve of the seat behind the child's butt. Do you have a top tether anchor available?

[Eliz_n_Abi_s_Mommy_Karen]

Hrm. I'll take a look at the FPSVD again for the locking clip. I don't think there's a top tether anchor available.

[Joolsplus2]

Ay yi yipes!
I'm halfway tempted to tell you to take the rearfacing belt lockoff off the Marathon and use it in place of the locking clip for the FPSVD....What happens in a crash or hard braking is that the the seat flies forward a good long ways before the retractor kicks in, so just tightening the belt without some sort of pre-crash locking device isn't really going to help much in a crash. (I mean, better than nothing, yes, especially if there's any way at all you can put it RF and brace it against the front seats).

Any Korean BRU's that might sell locking clip type devices? (In other countries, they may look more like the Britax lockoffs just there in a package, like a chip clip)... or buy a carseat just for that trip?

One tech instructor that O-mom and I know suggested possibly flipping the latchplate once or twice (ie, install tightly, unbuckle, twist the male side around to hold it tight, then re buckle)... we don't know if that works, but if it does seem to hold the seat in tightly, it's better than nothing.

:/
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Leah.aspx

[Eliz_n_Abi_s_Mommy_Karen]

Well, my older one weighs 35 pounds... maybe I *could* RF both of them and brace them both against the front seats?

I have no idea where I can buy a car seat or accessories thereof here in Korea. The culture here is such that although there *is* a car seat law, it's hard to enforce since most people just take taxis, buses, and subways almost everywhere, and taxi drivers ESPECIALLY would be the least patient about "wasting" two minutes to thoroughly install a car seat, when in their minds they're already perfectly safe drivers who never ever crash.

That sounds like a great idea to flip the latchplate around. In theory it sounds like it'd hold the strap without loosening as easily. Hopefully we won't have to test that dang theory.

I think what I'll do then is RF Abi in the center seat (that one's seat belt doesn't have a retractor, just a buckle that you pull tight, much like the American ones), and FF Eliz behind the passenger seat and twist the latchplate around a couple of times. I've got another question, but I'll post it in another thread.

THANKS SO MUCH, YOU GUYS! :*

[Joolsplus2]

Um... if you have a manual belt, you put the FP in that position, and then put the MA in the non-locking belt position and use the lockoff. Assuming they fit in those positions next to each other, you then have NO problems :)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Leah.aspx

[Neatfreak]

Are there any department stores that cater to ex-pats in your city?
We recently moved to Bangkok (where the seatbelts don't lock, either, and top tethers are a dream), and some of the expensive department stores import strollers and car seats (and their accessories) from Europe and Japan. Is there anyone with young kids whom you could ask?

[Eliz_n_Abi_s_Mommy_Karen]

Okay, so this is how we ended up solving the situation. We have the FPSVD RF'ing in the center seat. The belt is manual, so we were able to get it in pretty tightly. The MA is FF in the right seat. Since the belt doesn't have a retractor, we used the lockoff clip, but it's not very tight at all, so we folded over a little bit of the belt inside the clip so that it's tighter. Additionally, we twisted around the latchplate a couple of times before clicking it into the buckle, so that the length of the lap portion of the belt is more or less fixed. The combination of these two measures in addition to the lockoff clip I hope will be sufficient. Of course, I hope to never have to test this theory.

Anyway, the ILs have just purchased a brand-spankin'-new car and it's got LATCH, so we'll probably start using that after the weekend, once they become accustomed to driving that car.