With 4 young children (all in car seats) we do a lot of car seat installs at our house. We’re constantly having to take seats out, put them back in, reconfiguring our van seating arrangement, etc.. If you’ve ever dealt with car seat installs before, you know that they can be time consuming and, well, basically a pain!
We discovered early on (7 years ago) that installing a car seat using the LATCH system (LATCH stands for Lower Anchors And Tethers for Children) tended to be the easier than trying to install with a seat belt. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes it would still take 5-15 minutes to get a good install using LATCH, but it was relatively easy.
As we had more children (and thus more car seats in our vehicle) there were instances when using LATCH was not an option, either because our child had surpassed the weight limit (the combined weight of your child and the car seat should not exceed 65lbs) or there were no lower anchors located where we wanted to install the seat using LATCH.
Switching over to an install using the seat belt was met with a lot of frustrations for us. Sometimes the seat just would NOT install tightly. Other times the only way it would install tightly resulted in the seat leaning to one side. There were days my husband would spend nearly an hour, sweating it out in the minivan while he tried to get the car seats installed correctly. I know he dreaded when I’d ask him to reinstall a car seat.
If you need to install a car seat using the seatbelt and have also been met with frustration, this post is for you!
I am going to tell you today about a line of car seats from Britax that will revolutionize the way you install a car seat with a seat belt. It is SO easy! It’s called ClickTight, and it’s brilliant! The first time my husband installed a ClickTight seat in his truck, he came inside just moments later full of praise for this seat.
Where have these car seats been all my life?
Why didn’t we get one of these sooner?
I LOVE this car seat. It is the best one we’ve ever had! We have to get more!
I’ve honestly never seen the man so excited over a piece of baby gear/kid gear. He couldn’t stop talking about how amazingly simple installing a seat with ClickTight was. You see, with ClickTight, installing a car seat with the seat belt will take you less than 3 minutes. You’ll have a tight install, and there is no sweat or fighting with the car seat to get it in just right. Installing a car seat with ClickTight and your vehicle’s seat belt is even EASIER than using the LATCH system and installing with the lower anchors.
Let me show you how easy installation is with ClickTight. For this post, we’re using the Britax Frontier ClickTight (G1.1).
Installation
- Position the Britax firmly against the back rest.
- Release the ClickTight system and feed the seat belt through and connect. In the case of our ClickTight, the release is on the seat back. In newer models, the ClickTight system uses a “key” positioned on the front of the seat.
- Press down on the ClickTight system to lock into place. Double check for movement along the belt path to verify correct installation.
- Secure and tighten the top tether.
- You’re done!
Seriously, that’s it!
No more loose, imperfect installations. A safely secured car seat is nearly guaranteed! As I mentioned before, the newer ClickTight system utilizes a key that is a even easier to use than the release on our model. An example of this system can be viewed below!
With ClickTight, installing a car seat with the seatbelt is no longer a frustration in our home. If you want the assurance that you have a properly installed car seat every time, the ClickTight is a fantastic option. It doesn’t matter who the installer is or if they have been properly instructed on car seat installation. You’ll know your child is seated safely and securely! It’s one less thing you have to worry about as a parent!
To learn more about Britax car seats and their ClickTight line, visit their official site here. If you have questions about their range of baby and kid products, you can connect with them through their website contact form or through their Facebook page. You can purchase Britax ClickTight seats at Amazon.com and look for them in stores at your favorite baby gear retailers.
Brianne
Wednesday 2nd of August 2017
I'm so into this post and these car seats! We've already spend a fortune on Diono Radian RXT's for our 3 for 2 vehicles, but man is install a pain. We have a forward facing 4 year old and 2 rear facing 19 mo olds. Can you advise which of the Britax are good for 3 across? We have a 2010 4Runner, if that helps. When I saw your last post about the Click Tight, I did a little research, but it didn't appear the Britax were on the 3 across list of seats that fit most vehicles. Thanks!
Janessa
Sunday 6th of August 2017
Yeah, that is the only drawback I have found to the ClickTight seats unfortunately. In my minivan, we still have our Radians so we can have 3 seats in a row across the back. We try to get them installed and then not install them unless absolutely necessary. We use the ClickTights in my husband's truck because he only ever has one or two of the children with him if he drives that vehicle. We also use the ClickTight seats when they need to ride in a friend/family member's vehicle.
I am REALLY hoping that Britax will work on designing a narrow ClickTight seat soon! I will for sure share when they do!
Mia
Sunday 30th of July 2017
As a grandparent, one of the challenges I have is getting a good fit with the car seats. I usually have to have help from my children to do it so this would be fabulous.
Chrstie Heckler
Sunday 30th of July 2017
Thanks for such great tips!
Rosie
Saturday 29th of July 2017
I haven't had to do this, but this sounds so good. I would be concerned about asking sales people, etc. how to do it, as sometimes they don't really know. She does look snug and safe!