Baby seats

I've owned FF and currently Cali as daily drivers. Facing backward will be an issue for both cars. As for facing forward, we have used diono radiant xt car seats. They're safe, slim, and fit perfectly into FF and Cali.

 

For rear facing I used a combi coccoro convertible in the middle of the rear seat. It sat on the hump in the middle. I used a small ratchet tie down strap with the latch hooks and it was solid. This actually let us do rear facing without losing and passenger or drive seat space. Top cleared up and down easily. One catch is that you really need the top down to put your child into the seat. I'm actually looking for a forward facing seat now. I liked the diono since it has a small footprint but the seat is too tall and interferes with the top. Would love to hear over suggestions. On rear facing, this was the only option that allowed two adults and the baby to be in the car at the same time.

 

I have no issue with the diono height at all

 

The Diono R100 does not fit, too high. Search the forum, all the info is there. I use a Combi Kobuk seat instead.

 

FFs are a royal pia to get baby seats and boosters in - so much so that I put my kids in the front seat with a booster than turns the airbag off. accessing the rear seats are a huge pain and you have to be 5 ft to drive comfortably. I'm 5"10 and I wldnt be able to drive with an adult in the rear seat behind me.

 

exactly what I was thinking!

 

while I'm pretty cavalier with certain aspects of child safety (compared to my wife ....processed cheese and drinking from the garden hose , IMO I would not do this. And my parents put my sister and I in the back of a 1981 corvette all the time

 

Keep in mind that at least for our car seat there are certain angles the seat should be at for certain child weights. As such just because you can get a rear facing seat in car X does not mean its installed correctly if it also needs to be at a certain angle as well. I specifically held off buying a mondial cab until our little one was close to being able to be in a forward facing legally and we could all fit in comfortably.

Keep in mind a rear facing can go in the front seat if the airbag is disabled...at least here in MN

 

OK - maybe I"m being a buzzkill. Aside from being a car geek and freak, I've been racing long enough and also continue to maintain my paramedic certification - the latter keeps me somewhat current on what happens in car accidents.

First off, it's illegal anywhere in the US to affix a child seat of any sort anywhere other than an approved "seat" - so if you mean you're mounting it in the center passenger position in the rear seat of a BMW, and are using seat belts (eg. ratcheted to get it tight)....ok. If you're mounting it in the center of a Cali or FF, I'm not sure HOW you're doing it, but at a minimum it's illegal and I cannot imagine how you mount the tether straps safely.

The Unfortunate reality of using kids seats in exotics (to include Ferraris, Porsche 911's) is 1) if it's a rear facing infant seat, you're going to probably lose an additional seat (eg. rear facing Porsche seats will only fit in rear seat of Cayenne or Panamera or Cayenne - or passenger seat of 911). Most "good" rear facing seats also use a reinforcing foot that extends out in the footwell.

For forward-facing or boosters, when mounted properly, they do limit the rear travel of the front seat ahead of them. For my wife, she's short enough that everyone has leg room. For me, not so much. Absolutely use the ISOFIX mountings, much much better than the seat belt anchor method. Knowing a few folks with Cali's, a toddler who can climb in and buckle up by themselves (and checked by an adult) is do-able with a Cali roof up. If not, roof needs to come down to make sure. Just IMHO.

As for airbags, the best solution alternative to not having a BabySmart seat is the deactivation transponders, just make sure they are actually functional on your car.

FWIW - for all my "negativity and attitude" above, the most fun I had in our GT3 and current F-cars is bringing the kids along for the ride. Our girls are older now, and I'll admit even when taking them in the 355 I'm leery given that I know the 355 isn't as "safe" as the FF/F12/458.

Good luck, hope you find something that works, but by all means, make sure that safety is put way ahead of usability.

 

Was not aware that it had to be installed on the seat. It did fit well though(angle, height and zero slack) but probably wouldn't advise it knowing what I know now. I thought it was acceptable seeing other people install car seats on the middle bench even if there was no middle seatbelt and I've seen Porsche owners install seats on the rear bench. That was my fault for not verifying. My daughter is forward facing now but it's been hard trying to find a forward facing seat that fits well in the car without eating up too much space. The roof had trouble clearing the diono radian and other five point harness seats are too deep. Thanks for the people posting correct info. Wouldn't want others doing something that was unsafe.