OT: need help/have ? about seating child in front seat of car

[branv]

I'm a non-parent so I don't want to make a dreadful mistake. Can you parents help?

Due to some circumstances, I have to drive my 3 nieces about 2 hours away. I have a new Honda Accord with the front/side airbags. The problem is that the youngest two need to be in a car seat, so the nearly 11 year old cannot fit into the back seat. She is 5'3" already! (same height and shoe size as me...oy!)

I've read the warnings about putting children into the front seat, but if you must you should turn off the airbag? Obviously, it's preferable if an adult is in an accident that they have an airbag. My question is: since she is the size of an adult, would it actually be better to leave the airbag on and her seat position all the way back? Or is it just a flat "no children under 12" should use airbags. Just dunno if the real determination is size. I just want to make things as safe as possible.

Goodness...how do parents do this every day.

 

[Hahawillis]

Have you read the manual for the car? Usually it will state the height and weight limitations of the seats with air-bags.

 

[mylightshines]

Your new Accord should have sensors in the front passenger seat that knows if a person is under a certain weight (I think 70 lbs). So the air bags should turn off automatically. There's a light that says it's off. It always turns itself off if my dog in the front passenger seat !!

I would definitely put the 11 year old in the front seat and put the two car seats in the back.

 

[branv]

Your new Accord should have sensors in the front passenger seat that knows if a person is under a certain weight (I think 70 lbs). So the air bags should turn off automatically. There's a light that says it's off. It always turns itself off if my dog in the front passenger seat !!

I would definitely put the 11 year old in the front seat and put the two car seats in the back.

It is so typical that I own a car and don't even know the features When I bought a Taurus in 1998, I drove it 3 weeks before I found out the middle front area flipped backwards and turned into a cup holder/console

Thanks for the info!

 

[kctwinmommy]

Another thing is to have her push her chair back as far away as she can, then she won't be near the airbag if it happened to deploy. Although it sounds like she's a pretty decent size, so I wouldn't be too worried. I'm sure she's bigger than some adults that sit there, based on what you've said. But it's great that you're at least thinking about it, so many people don't think about the older ones. Hopefully you've got that fancy sensor thing - what a great idea!

 

[disneysteve]

Understand that the warnings aren't just based on size, but on body development. The bone structure in a child isn't the same as that of an adult, even if they are the same height. So an 11-year-old is still a child in that sense.

That said, I agree with the others. Put her in the front seat, slide it back as far as it goes, make sure she is wearing her seatbelt and drive carefully.

Our DD is also a big 11, 5-foot-2, taller than DW. She has been in the front seat a couple of times when circumstances dictated it.

BTW, be sure the carseats of the younger kids are properly installed. Even many parents get this one wrong and don't have the kids properly secured.

 

[barkley]

check the law for any state you will be driving in. some states have passed laws that disallow anyone under the age of 13 from riding in the front seat of a car with passenger air bags (active or inactive) (i live in one). you might also want to check with your insurance company. i know that we have coverage based on our cars having air bags-if we deactivate them we risk not being covered in the event of an accident (not your major concern i'm sure-but it's good to know).

 

[disykat]

Although my 12 year old still rides in the back - he is just about 5'1", in your situation I would put the 11 year old neice in the front.

I'm also glad to hear there are other people out there following the safety guidelines for their older kids!

 

[Hannathy]

My DD and her friends have all been riding in the front since 11 if not sooner. When they got bigger than me I didn't worry about it. Everyone on my street has allowed their kids in the front from about 11 on. Your niece is 3 inches taller than me and probably weighs more and I'm sure she won't have the seat all the way up either!

 

[barkley]

having been in a minor accident wherein the air bag deployed on me i have to say that if the safety is the same between the front and back seat, and the back seat is available-i'de much rather be seated there.

while i had no injuries from the accident, i had whelts and bruising that lasted over a month. the highway patrolman who responded as well as the e/r staff said i was lucky in that i did'nt do what most people do (if they can anticipate the impact)-throw either of my arms up. the said that in a minor accident where one deploys the most common injuries are broken arms and noses (and when the person is of small stature-broken ribs) .

 

[Leofoenget]

I'm a non-parent so I don't want to make a dreadful mistake. Can you parents help?

Due to some circumstances, I have to drive my 3 nieces about 2 hours away. I have a new Honda Accord with the front/side airbags. The problem is that the youngest two need to be in a car seat, so the nearly 11 year old cannot fit into the back seat. She is 5'3" already! (same height and shoe size as me...oy!)

I've read the warnings about putting children into the front seat, but if you must you should turn off the airbag? Obviously, it's preferable if an adult is in an accident that they have an airbag. My question is: since she is the size of an adult, would it actually be better to leave the airbag on and her seat position all the way back? Or is it just a flat "no children under 12" should use airbags. Just dunno if the real determination is size. I just want to make things as safe as possible.

Goodness...how do parents do this every day.

My new van has a light that says "passenger airbag off" which is wonderful because I have had to have my 3 year old in the front seat for one reason or another.

How do we do it everyday??

We keep the carseat in one place and try not to move it around, but yes it's a big pain in the carseat..........

 

[Jaklackus]

You sure you don't want to rent a minivan for the drive? lol

I think your best option is putting her in the front seat and pushing the seat all the way back. You could always use the center seat belt in the back(if you have one and the car seats are small enough) to avoid the under 13 laws ...but it would be a super tight squeeze in a Honda and one child will be face forward without the protection of the front seats.

 

[jessica52877]

I have a 2005 Honda Accord and can easily fit between 2 car seats in the back. I am about 5'3" and weigh 120 lbs. I would much prefer to put a child in the back like that a little tight. It is also nice to rest your head on the carseat. There is about 10, maybe 12 inches of room in between seats.

You should have the sensor in the front though, and as others have said, have the seat back as far as possible if that is the option that has to be used.

 

[writersblock42]

Your niece is bigger than me, so it should be fine.

 

[branv]

Thanks so much everyone for the wealth of information! I knew you'd be of great help

 

[ELLE-TN]

I too recommend checking the state laws. Here in Tennessee you have to be over 12 to ride in the front. Of course you have to be 9 before you can get out of a booster. My daughter was in fourth grade and still riding in a booster.... Now she is a seventh grader and still having to ride in the back.

 

[pamluvsdisney]

I am so glad that others put their 11 year olds in the back. My daughter is always complaining about it. "Everyone else my age gets to ride in the front."

True, I know that I constantly see as young as 6 or 7 year olds riding in the front seat around town. Lots bouncing around unrestrained in the back seats as well. Makes me sad and mad.

Not in my van. My DD11 only rides in the front when I have to transport my niece and nephews too.

OP, I think your niece is OK for the front. My daughter is only 4' 6" and 70# and she is nearly 12.

Pam

 

[gottaluvdis]

Our DD10 rides in the front occassionally, but she is 5'4" tall (only about an inch shorter than me) and she weighs 115 lbs. She's much larger than a lot of older ladies I see driving around. My front airbags automatically turn off if someone is less than 84 lbs. She's been larger than that for a while. That being said, her seat is all the way back, she always wears a seat belt, and I put her in the back as often as possible.

 

[ceecee]

My 11 yr old is still in the backseat as well. She is 5'4" and 115 lbs, which is the same size as I am. As an EMT I have seen and heard of too many bad accidents which could have been prevented had the child been in a seat PROPERLY installed. I saw an infant seat facing forward in the parking spot next to me, there are warnings all over the seats (it was a newer one) some people are clueless. One time a 3 yr old got thrown out of the seat because the straps were too loose (buckle was still buckled) that'sa common problem. Another problem is "we were only driving a few miles down the road and I thought it would be okay". I never drove anywhere without DD in her seat and she thought the car actually wouldn't run unless she was buckled in until she was around 6! Better safe than sorry....off my soapbox!

 

[mamalle]

I agree with you ceecee. Im kinda in shock reading some of these replies but then I again Im a ER nurse and dh is a paramedic/firefighter. Both my kids know it will be one long day before they sit in the front seat of either my van or dh's SUV. I dont care how much they gripe about sitting in a car seat or why cant I sit in the front like my friends? it aint gonna happen. I recently took a trauma class that is showing higher incidences of torn/crushed esophagus in kids that are not properly positioned in a carseat with a seatbelt. dh has had quite a few kids he has trauma alerted with blunt force traumatic injuries sitting in the front seat also. Its a rule with us and if there isnt enough room or carseats- then the kids do not come along with us- no matter if its down the rode, etc.. Im not going to take the chance.