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Help me protect my Jeep from my wife!

S

shotgun1976

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Oak Harobr
I have a problem. My wife says I have to many vehicles (not sure how that is possible), and is eyeballing the XJ for one of the ones to leave. Here is her reason, I have to small kids and with modern day car seats being as stout as some of the builds on here they won't fit in the back seat with the kids in them. The back of the front seats are right up against where my kids legs should be. I have been trying to get her to hold out until the kids are out of car seats but we are getting ready to move, so my precious XJ is on the choping block. Has anyone had a similar problem and what did you do to fix it, ie. different seats, modifications, etc. I am up for any ideas or suggestions except for getting rid of the Jeep or the kids. Thanks.
 
Sell the wife.

JK. Have you looked at maybe trading for a zj/wj? They seem to have a lot more space in the back.
 
Start a poll.

1. Sell the Jeep
2. Sell the kids
3. Sell the wife
4. Sell the wife and kids
5. Use the money to build a bigger Jeep and a case of beer.

Stukboy
 
Not sure what kind of car seats you have but if you're talking booster seat sized kids I'd look at a different kind of seat. I've got one that's just a seat base instead of the base and full back, and with it in the back seat there's plenty of leg room for a kid. Also booster seats are only used for shoulder belt style seatbelts to adjust the shoulder strap to the correct location so put one of them in the middle with just the lap belt if possible.
 
Sell the XJ, family is more important. Buy another XJ when the kiddos are out of car seats and can fit better.

my $0.02
 
I have 3 boys. Being very much into safty, we have our kids [Only 2 fit] in the best seats money can buy.. And Damn they where $$$$ $270 each!!!

Britax-

I am only able to find it at a couple of places, we also got ours online. Here is a link to the Regent by Britax at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000A1CLVA/


BUT they are also super sweet seats. Good up to 80# or until they are too tall to fit in the seat [ears above the top back]. Our oldest is 8 and he still fits and will likely untill his next growth spurt.

To the point.

One of the main reasons i like these seats [ we have 6 for the different cars in the family: Mine, hers, grandmas].

Is that the seat bottom is not elevated. When looking at the photo you can see that it rests directly on the bottom and therefor the legs rest natually and fit into the back of the XJ prefectly. I am 5'11", 195# and have the drivers seat all the way back and the oldest at 8 years old and 52# fits fine. Not Roomy! but safe and comfy!

Now i know this is a sstretch to assume anyone would be willing outright to spend that kind of $ on car seats for there children, but for us it was a no brainer. They are the best money can buy. I have had probly 3 or 4 seats before the britax. I allways scoffed at the price. Once i got them though. Total convert. Besides they are for your children right?? Bottom line is that studies have shown that even when most parents put there kids into a "booster" seat at 5+ years old. Or even worse let them sit in the front seat!!! That just like adults, a child is safer in a 5 point seat belt situation. Even up till 10+ years old!

Easier to install safer and more comfy. It brought life back to my XJ as it too was on the block even though the 3 rd kid kinda changed that all.

One thing i also did was take my XJ to the [a jeep] dealership and have the "Tether" attatchment points installed for free. THIS IS A MUST!!! NO CHILD SAFTY SEAT is Really a Safty seat without the Tether attatchment method in use! Yeah now i sound like an infomercail but this is something i committed alot of time, money and research to.

I am serious about my Car seats!!!!

Bottom line:


These are the only seats i recommend ever.

They are the only ones out of 4 seat tried that did all i needed them too.

They are awesome and actually fit into the XJ and are like racing seats for kids. I cant say it enough. They really fit! I had the same problem with all the other seats prior to these and they FIT !!


PS: they are built like tanks. Having dealt with alot of acar seats in my day they are "solid" and i mean solid as in 2" - 3" thick in most places not flimsy plastic etc.


The exact model we have is the Britax Regent.

http://www.britaxusa.com/car-seats/regent/

Shopping list:

http://www.google.com/products?q=Br...a=X&oi=product_result_group&resnum=1&ct=title
 
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I've had a Cherokee since 1994 and kids since 1989. 3 boys as a matter of fact (currently 21, 19 and 15), we've had an accident or two and more than a couple of cramped legs in the back seat. The only 'bad' thing that came out of it was 3 boys as ate up with Jeeps as I am. I even drug down my nephew with me.

My wife went through about the same thing 2 years ago, she traded her '00 XJ Classic for a '07 Liberty and she hates it.
 
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My issue with the Britax is the size. We looked at them too, but they are wide and do not fit well in an XJ.
We settled on the Safeguard Go, http://www.safeguardseat.com/go/index.htmand it has been great. The boy is a bit tall for it now, so we have switched to a regular booster. I will be installing a head rest and switching back to it soon. Now, obviously it won't work with infants, but it is also one of the few seats that will keep them in a 5pt harness over 40lbs.
 
Motornoggin said:
My issue with the Britax is the size. We looked at them too, but they are wide and do not fit well in an XJ.
We settled on the Safeguard Go, http://www.safeguardseat.com/go/index.htmand it has been great. The boy is a bit tall for it now, so we have switched to a regular booster. I will be installing a head rest and switching back to it soon. Now, obviously it won't work with infants, but it is also one of the few seats that will keep them in a 5pt harness over 40lbs.
Click to expand...


Glad to see that you serious too!

I loved the wideness and when installed with the 2 in the back there is about a foot inbetween them. Cant see how something less wide would help??

I disagree about the fit statement. Again out of the 4 seats tried. This is the best IMO Period.

since we couldnt fit 3 seats back there no matter how hard ive tried it works out fine...

As an additional thought: there is no "booster" function of the Regent. Boosters are a myth and should be treted as such, a child should be in full harness for as long as possible.
 
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Tell her that you are going to sell it, then put it on Craigslist for twice it's value. When it doesn't sell, blame it on the economy. Hope this helps.
 
shotgun1976 said:
.... I have to small kids and with modern day car seats being as stout as some of the builds on here they won't fit in the back seat with the kids in them. The back of the front seats are right up against where my kids legs should be. .... Has anyone had a similar problem and what did you do to fix it, ie. different seats, modifications, etc. I am up for any ideas or suggestions except for getting rid of the Jeep or the kids. Thanks.
Click to expand...

How old are your kids and are they sitting forward or rear facing??

I have a car seat in the middle and it's rear facing. I totally understand how there's lack of room. For some odd reason, I had the car seat behind the passanger seat for a short time and it was a tight fit. Whoever was in the front passenger seat just lived with the lack of knee space.

I know the space issue in XJ's with car seats SUCK!!! But I figured that I can live with it for a few years until it's safe and legal to not use the car seat anymore. My wife had mentioned that I should get another car and sell my XJ... BUT I put a kabosh (SP?) on that right away.

I just remind myself that's it's a compromise and that I'm willing to stick it out for another few years because I like my Jeeps sooooo much.. I wouldn't want to get another car...

By the way, I have 2 XJ's, a 55 Chevy, a 03 CBR Honda RR, and a 64 Chevy Truck... and the wife's car.. The only one that I'm will to give up is the '64 Chevy Tuck.. Here's my reasoning - They are all paid off and we're still making payments on her car (talk about putting an end to the converstaion in a heart beat :D ). I might dump one XJ if I can't get a newer engine in my '55. BUT they are ALL still paid off. ;)


souske said:
take the rear sea t out and make mounts to bolt the carseats in?
Click to expand...

shotgun1976 said:
I will probably be moving to CA, do you think they will allow something like that?
Click to expand...

This is ILLEGAL.. You can not modify any safety restraints in your car. I looked into it. Also, if you get in an accident and something happens to your kids, they will come down on you hard and may even get you for child endangerment. Plus, I wouldn't know how I would live with myself if my kid(s) got hurt because I modified their seats or belts.

Just my $.05

E
 
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