Car seat in an Extended cab ranger? Concerns on safety?
Sunday, April 18th, 2010 at
12:53 pm
We are not preggo yet, but my husband has a Ford Ranger Pickup. It’s one of those with the backseat that has the fold-down seats. Obviously we wouldn’t be placing a car seat in the backseat, but I’m concerned about front seat placement. Has anyone had this issue before? I hate to ask him to sell it, unless it’s unsafe for a child. I don’t think it would be safe. It does have a passenger side air bag cut off switch though..what do you think?
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You are right, you can’t install car seats in those back seats – they’re called jump seats and not safe for anyone to use. If you absolutely must put a car seat in that vehicle, it must go in the front passenger seat with the airbag shutoff. But, it is not the safest vehicle for children to ride in. Pickup trucks in general get poorer safety ratings than other vehicles b/c of the small size of the cab. So if you don’t have to put a child in there – don’t. If you do, the front apssenger is the safest place for him. My stepdad has a Nissan Frontier, and b/c of that he almost never gets to take my son or my young sister anywhere with him – its just not safe. Also, installing car seats in trucks can be tricky, as well.
Thread about this very subject, with great answers from certified car seat techs:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=33867
If it has airbags in a total NO
But its really not safe to have him in a frontseat no matter wut. I see people doing it though
Thats just my opinion
I have an extended cab Sonoma with the fold down seat in back. I have the car seat in the front passenger seat, with the airbags OFF. That is exactly what the passenger side airbag off switch is for.
The vehicle manual should say to put it there – check that.
I do have my truck for sale, and will get a Blazer or the like when we sell it.
It’s not the best situation, but that is the safest place for it.
ETA: If the seat is the fold down from the side seat, it is most definitely NOT safe to put a car seat – there is no way to safely attach it. Again, check you manual.
Honestly the back is much safer, I know its tight back there, but I have been a Firefighter for 7 years, & the small extended cab pickup trucks are as safe in the back as the larger ones. The front seat however is not even with the air bags off. In the state of Fla., they will give you a ticket on your second warning & a court date on your third for child endangerment.
My hubby had the same kind of truck….we live in canada…..and when we brought the car seat in to be put in the truck by the police station they told us that they couldnt put the car seat in there because it is unsafe fo a child to be in there…….unless there is a middle seat in the front of the truck……so needless to say…….we had to buy anither vehicle!!!
*IF* you live in the US you can have a switch installed to disable the airbag (the dashboard one in addition to the side one) in which case it is safe for a car seat, though not as safe as the backseat of a car (in general) because in the front seat there is more chance of the engine hitting the seat. However I wouldn’t call it unsafe.
If you live in Canada if you beg, plead, get the right person at the government you can have it approved to get the airbag permanently removed, but not an on/off switch installed (sometimes Canada sucks, I love it mostly but sometime the govt seems to be nuts)