Page 6 | Putting 2yo in front seat of car???

dontcomeatme · 2025-09-06T22:00:57+00:00

I've discussed this multiple times on MN but we're at the end of our tether right now. My 2yo DS is severely travel sick. Has been pretty much since he was born, we could never drive for more than 40mins to an hour at max and he would projectile vomit. We had to forward face him at 2yo which we desperately didn't want to do but he was choking on his sick rear facing and being in the laid back position. We're now at the point where even a 20-25 minute journey is making him sick. We are washing the car seat that often we have bought a spare to use while one is in the wash, and as soon as one is clean the other is dirty 😭 I sit in the back with him primed with sick bags but it makes him hysterical just to look at them so I feel like I'm making him worse! We've been to the GP multiple times now but they just say its one of those things 🙄 I'm ringing on Monday and I want an emergency appointment with a different GP, this level of sickness isn't normal. It is projectile! Comes out of his mouth, nose, absolutely covers him. He goes grey and feels like sh*t for the rest of the day 😢 Do they prescribe anti sickness meds for kids or do we have to buy them? Most of the ones I've seen online are for 4yo plus and I'm hesitant to give him them. I am seriously contemplating putting him in the front of the car, with the airbags off. Is that insane? AIBU to think this is the solution?!?! He's 28months, 99centile height and weight. We seriously don't know what else to do! We've started walking and getting the bus everywhere just to prevent the sickness but this isn't sustainable, we missed a hospital appointment last week because the bus didn't come on time 🤦🏻♀️ Any suggestions at all? What worked for your DC? Can the doctors actually do anything ? Do you think front seat would help? It always helped me as a child but this was the 90s, my parents shoved me up the front without even a booster seat. Any advice is appreciated 🙏

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 11:24

BertieBotts · 07/09/2025 10:11

Joie Elevate R129 or Graco Eldura R129 is belt fitted and goes up to 21.5kg / 105cm on the harness, you can physically fit them into the harness longer, I am not sure if it's advisable to go over the height limit or not.

In fact, the Eldura manual and website explicitly says you can use it until the child's shoulders reach the highest position:

Website:

Your child can stay in harness booster mode as long as their shoulders comfortably fit when the harness is at its highest setting.

Manual:

DO not use the booster with the harness if the child’s shoulders are above the highest slots in the backrest or if the child’s weight exceeds 21.5kg.

The Joie manual says the same, but doesn't have the line on the website saying it's OK to use as long as shoulders fit.

If you use one of these seats, the belt path is fairly shallow, meaning there is a danger of what's called forward anchorage on the front seat in some cars, if you move the seat back too far. If the seatbelt anchorage points (where the two ends of the lap belt attach to the car) are physically further forward than the belt path in the car seat, the seat will be loose and it will be impossible to get it tight enough. If this happens, move the front seat forward just enough that the belt is anchoring the seat back and down firmly. You still want to have as much distance as possible from the dashboard. You can kneel into the seat to pull the belt tight, but you don't really need to because this seat has a belt lock off. So yes, push the child seat into the vehicle seat to get the belt nice and snug, but it's not friction fitted like some other seatbelt fit car seats, so there is no need to use your entire body weight. As long as all the slack if out of the belt, the seat itself doesn't move (that would be forward anchorage) and the lock off is tight, it's good. And then you want the harness as close to his shoulders as possible, if he is between two positions, choose the higher one. No higher than 2cm above the shoulders. When you strap him in, try to make sure that he sits upright with his bum to the back of the seat, and his shoulders resting on the backrest. If they lean forwards, they can sort of get stuck in a hunched over position with the belt pinning their shoulders away from the backrest, which means you'll have slack in the harness plus it will be uncomfortable for him.

Other than this some Peugeot cars have isofix + top tether in the front seat, maybe Citroen do as well?? It is a long shot but worth checking. If you have isofix + top tether, you could use Joie Bold or Joie i-Irvana Max, both of which are up to 25kg.

For seatbelt fit up to 25kg FF, Maxi Cosi Beryl is the best bet as said, although be aware the shoulder height is more restricted - it's about the same max height as Joie 360 Spin. It looks like it can still be purchased but I don't know how reputable the sites are that have it in stock. It fits using a base which separates from the seat itself, the base can be isofix or seatbelt fitted, and must be seatbelt fitted when the child is over 18kg.

If you are going to try RF, it doesn't make sense to have him in the front so in that case, I would remove the rear seat headrest, try to block view from side windows and give as clear a view out the rear windscreen as possible.

Show quote history

Thank you! Me and the OH are going to go through them all later and see which one would be better for us. Really appreciate the advice x

OP posts:

Mmr224 · 07/09/2025 10:27

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 10:14

Thank you this might be the winner! Might try it in the middle at the back x

Show quote history

We have these and love them, but we have the i-spin first and loved it too.

MissFahrenheit · 07/09/2025 10:26

I would definitely try the front. Although the back is safer in a crash, if he’s less likely to vomit in the front then for your situation he is safer as there are less driver distractions. As long as the seat is good quality and well fitted you are doing the best you can in the circumstances.

Needspaceforlego · 07/09/2025 10:20

Op check out the joie Fortifi too it might fit the bill.
Although I'd bow to Berties knowledge of car seats.

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 10:19

Candyflosscrochet · 07/09/2025 10:00

My sympathies op! I too have a travel sick child (although not quite to your extreme) but know how much stress it causes just trying to plan a journey!
My son was sick 30mins into a journey, but knew he felt ill earlier, which I hated the thought of.
We FF him in the front from 2 and it did help, even if it was to be able to stick a bucket under him!!
Acupressure bands did nothing. Small snack or no food was the same reaction.
Thankfully mist if our journeys are within 30mins, so avoided needing to take things further, we just dealt with it.
Now he's 4, he had tablets which so far, have worked well.
But an option we were looking at was travel sickness glasses. They have a rim of coloured water in the frame that is meant to equalize the eye-ear disruption. Might be worth a try?
Failing that, absolutely go back to the gp.
I would be pretty sure they should be able to precribe something. Remember there are huge variations in weight amongst children. My 4yr old is small (no more than 18kg), and medication is usually based on weight and use the age as average guidelines.

Yeah he is 17.8kg at 2 so quite a big lad, which sometimes does actually help regarding meds! X

OP posts:

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 10:17

Sadcafe · 07/09/2025 09:37

Would you need an exemption certificate if he’s in the front seat facing whichever way , as the law is quite clear that children under 3 should be in the back unless it is not possible for them to be in the back

Good point I will have to query this x

OP posts:

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 10:16

ShesTheAlbatross · 07/09/2025 09:34

We found piriton helped. It has to be piriton as that has the right sort of antihistamine that is in the same family as ones used as antiemetics. But it isn’t as effective as others that are actually used for sickness.

Go back to the dr. We’ve just had antiemetics prescribed for our 3 year old who is too young to take over the counter medicine. It wasn’t difficult, I’m surprised your GP is so dismissive. We just said we’d tried all at home/non-drug remedies, and she was getting distressed if we mentioned the car.
He did want to know her weight before he’d prescribe, but she’s only just 3 and is pretty small, so your son being 99th centile might meet whatever weight our GP was looking for (he didn’t tell us what weight she had to be, just that she weighed enough for him to prescribe it).

Thank you, that's what I'm hoping the GP will suggest x

OP posts:

PrimeVinegar · 07/09/2025 10:15

I came on to say if he is FF in the front you must keep the airbags ON (it’s only off for rear facing) - move the seat back as far as possible but otherwise airbags on. However I would normally defer to @BertieBottson matters of car seats and they have commented already and not said the above so… now I’m not sure. Maybe double check/consider this? Otherwise moving to the front in your situation makes complete sense.

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 10:14

intoFolklore · 07/09/2025 09:27

The Joie Bold R forward faces with harness up to 25kg, but you'd need to keep him in the back seat to use it. It's currently £120 in Argos too

Show quote history

Thank you this might be the winner! Might try it in the middle at the back x

OP posts:

BertieBotts · 07/09/2025 10:11

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:20

This is the issue we have with both DS. The 2YO is 17.5kg so just shy of the threshold, my 5 month old is already 12.7kg 🙈

Show quote history

Joie Elevate R129 or Graco Eldura R129 is belt fitted and goes up to 21.5kg / 105cm on the harness, you can physically fit them into the harness longer, I am not sure if it's advisable to go over the height limit or not.

In fact, the Eldura manual and website explicitly says you can use it until the child's shoulders reach the highest position:

Website:

Your child can stay in harness booster mode as long as their shoulders comfortably fit when the harness is at its highest setting.

Manual:

DO not use the booster with the harness if the child’s shoulders are above the highest slots in the backrest or if the child’s weight exceeds 21.5kg.

The Joie manual says the same, but doesn't have the line on the website saying it's OK to use as long as shoulders fit.

If you use one of these seats, the belt path is fairly shallow, meaning there is a danger of what's called forward anchorage on the front seat in some cars, if you move the seat back too far. If the seatbelt anchorage points (where the two ends of the lap belt attach to the car) are physically further forward than the belt path in the car seat, the seat will be loose and it will be impossible to get it tight enough. If this happens, move the front seat forward just enough that the belt is anchoring the seat back and down firmly. You still want to have as much distance as possible from the dashboard. You can kneel into the seat to pull the belt tight, but you don't really need to because this seat has a belt lock off. So yes, push the child seat into the vehicle seat to get the belt nice and snug, but it's not friction fitted like some other seatbelt fit car seats, so there is no need to use your entire body weight. As long as all the slack if out of the belt, the seat itself doesn't move (that would be forward anchorage) and the lock off is tight, it's good. And then you want the harness as close to his shoulders as possible, if he is between two positions, choose the higher one. No higher than 2cm above the shoulders. When you strap him in, try to make sure that he sits upright with his bum to the back of the seat, and his shoulders resting on the backrest. If they lean forwards, they can sort of get stuck in a hunched over position with the belt pinning their shoulders away from the backrest, which means you'll have slack in the harness plus it will be uncomfortable for him.

Other than this some Peugeot cars have isofix + top tether in the front seat, maybe Citroen do as well?? It is a long shot but worth checking. If you have isofix + top tether, you could use Joie Bold or Joie i-Irvana Max, both of which are up to 25kg.

For seatbelt fit up to 25kg FF, Maxi Cosi Beryl is the best bet as said, although be aware the shoulder height is more restricted - it's about the same max height as Joie 360 Spin. It looks like it can still be purchased but I don't know how reputable the sites are that have it in stock. It fits using a base which separates from the seat itself, the base can be isofix or seatbelt fitted, and must be seatbelt fitted when the child is over 18kg.

If you are going to try RF, it doesn't make sense to have him in the front so in that case, I would remove the rear seat headrest, try to block view from side windows and give as clear a view out the rear windscreen as possible.

Candyflosscrochet · 07/09/2025 10:00

My sympathies op! I too have a travel sick child (although not quite to your extreme) but know how much stress it causes just trying to plan a journey!
My son was sick 30mins into a journey, but knew he felt ill earlier, which I hated the thought of.
We FF him in the front from 2 and it did help, even if it was to be able to stick a bucket under him!!
Acupressure bands did nothing. Small snack or no food was the same reaction.
Thankfully mist if our journeys are within 30mins, so avoided needing to take things further, we just dealt with it.
Now he's 4, he had tablets which so far, have worked well.
But an option we were looking at was travel sickness glasses. They have a rim of coloured water in the frame that is meant to equalize the eye-ear disruption. Might be worth a try?
Failing that, absolutely go back to the gp.
I would be pretty sure they should be able to precribe something. Remember there are huge variations in weight amongst children. My 4yr old is small (no more than 18kg), and medication is usually based on weight and use the age as average guidelines.

Needspaceforlego · 07/09/2025 09:49

Sadcafe · 07/09/2025 09:37

Would you need an exemption certificate if he’s in the front seat facing whichever way , as the law is quite clear that children under 3 should be in the back unless it is not possible for them to be in the back

There is no law that says children under 3 must be in the back.

There is an exception to car seats that children under 3 may travel in the back of taxi or minicab without a car seat if no seat is available.
Which is an exception thats there for practical reasons (that many on MN don't understand)

BertieBotts · 07/09/2025 09:48

Sadcafe · 07/09/2025 09:37

Would you need an exemption certificate if he’s in the front seat facing whichever way , as the law is quite clear that children under 3 should be in the back unless it is not possible for them to be in the back

Not in the UK. The only part of the law which refers to this is the exception about carrying children without a car seat in an emergency.

Normally they are totally fine legally to be in the front, as long as they are in the appropriate child restraint for their age and size.

Rear facing seats are illegal to fit in front of an airbag, but if the airbag is disabled, then this doesn't matter.

HoneyPea · 07/09/2025 09:42

I haven’t read the full thread but DS has been the same since about 18months. We turned him FF in the back at about 2 (it didn’t make much difference apart from we could see that he wasn’t choking) Then started using Kids Kalms since 4.
We recently moved DS 6 to the front seat FF and he’s been better but the thing that has made a huge difference is headphones (music NOT stories). Apparently it’s to do with the signal between ears and eyes. Yesterday he actually did a 45min journey in the back of the car with his headphones on (no kalms) and he wasn’t sick.

Sadcafe · 07/09/2025 09:37

Would you need an exemption certificate if he’s in the front seat facing whichever way , as the law is quite clear that children under 3 should be in the back unless it is not possible for them to be in the back

Needspaceforlego · 07/09/2025 09:36

Op another option might be the middle seat in the back. Again with a clear view out the front and encourage him to look forward.

My friend does that with her LO a little bit older than your wee guy. Helps Mummy drive. Red light, amber, green light, left bend, right bend.
He's probably too young for the left / right thing but get him to count trucks, colours of cars, anything to keep him looking forward.

ShesTheAlbatross · 07/09/2025 09:34

We found piriton helped. It has to be piriton as that has the right sort of antihistamine that is in the same family as ones used as antiemetics. But it isn’t as effective as others that are actually used for sickness.

Go back to the dr. We’ve just had antiemetics prescribed for our 3 year old who is too young to take over the counter medicine. It wasn’t difficult, I’m surprised your GP is so dismissive. We just said we’d tried all at home/non-drug remedies, and she was getting distressed if we mentioned the car.
He did want to know her weight before he’d prescribe, but she’s only just 3 and is pretty small, so your son being 99th centile might meet whatever weight our GP was looking for (he didn’t tell us what weight she had to be, just that she weighed enough for him to prescribe it).

intoFolklore · 07/09/2025 09:27

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:24

This is what I'm worried about, I physically can't RF him it was 10 times worse !! X

Show quote history

The Joie Bold R forward faces with harness up to 25kg, but you'd need to keep him in the back seat to use it. It's currently £120 in Argos too

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:24

intoFolklore · 07/09/2025 09:22

Also worth noting, if he's 99th centile you may not be able to safely have him in a seat much longer unless you actually buy a 36kg RF seat. Most FF seats only harness to 18kg, and the very few that FF longer require isofix and a top tether point so can't be used in the front seat.

He's far too young to be in booster with seatbelt.

This is what I'm worried about, I physically can't RF him it was 10 times worse !! X

OP posts:

WhatICallMyUsername · 07/09/2025 09:23

CookiesAreForSharing · 07/09/2025 01:04

Motion sickness herbal stickers for behind the ear. These worked absolutely brilliantly for my very travel sick kiddo. Used them and literally no more sickness, not even once. A sticker behind each ear, and they were an absolute miracle. They smell quite herbally. I recall they have an age lower limit so check on that!

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B01JCVJYL8?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

I agree with trying these, only thing that worked on my DS!

intoFolklore · 07/09/2025 09:22

Also worth noting, if he's 99th centile you may not be able to safely have him in a seat much longer unless you actually buy a 36kg RF seat. Most FF seats only harness to 18kg, and the very few that FF longer require isofix and a top tether point so can't be used in the front seat.

He's far too young to be in booster with seatbelt.

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:22

stargirl1701 · 07/09/2025 09:03

Different car? Something low to the ground with sports stiffened suspension? I hate those SUV s with their soft suspension; it feels like you are on a boat!

We need the 7 seater and only just bought it, we can't afford to change it now x

OP posts:

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:22

CanadaNotAMum · 07/09/2025 08:59

Poor little guy and poor mum! If it helps, I will say that my motion sickness has gotten much better once I knew my triggers (although I am way past 2!) I spent years avoiding long car rides, but now I’m fine with those. The Dramamine will help, but make sure you give it several hours in advance. I think the packet says 2 hours, but I would suggest adding an extra hour (just from my experience).

And most importantly, again from my own experience, if the Dramamine works the first time, do another car ride with Dramamine within a day or two, and a few more within the next week. Yes he might be a bit drugged for a week, but if it works, it can help long term. He might fall asleep, but wake him up before you get home so that he knows he was in the car without puking, You want to get him into a routine where driving in the car without getting sick becomes the norm for him. Currently he associates the car with sickness, and I guarantee that causes anxiety which makes the sickness worse. Once he’s able to get in the car without seeming stressed, just pretend to give him the magic pill for a while and eventually he may forget about it,

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This is great advice thank you 🫶x

OP posts:

Original poster

dontcomeatme · 07/09/2025 09:20

BertieBotts · 07/09/2025 08:58

I did feel incredibly sick going in the back of the Citroen we hired on holiday. I don't know what it was about that car. I was fine in the front.

I know what you mean about "glidey suspension and brakes" but TBH all modern cars are like that. I don't think buying a 90s Ford Escort will do much for OP's concerns about safety!

In terms of safety BTW this sickness sounds so extreme that it is worth prioritising over RF and back seat position. He is over 2 and will be OK in an age appropriate seat with airbag deactivated. The only issue you'll get is if he's 99th percentile and you don't have isofix in the front, you'll get an issue when he gets to 105cm/18kg because there are no seatbelt fitted FF seats which go over both of these at once. If you can get hold of a Maxi Cosi Beryl, that would probably be the best thing for that - it was very well rated and totally seatbelt fit up to 25kg. But has been discontinued unfortunately. Probably the newest thing you might have a chance of finding, though.

This is the issue we have with both DS. The 2YO is 17.5kg so just shy of the threshold, my 5 month old is already 12.7kg 🙈

OP posts:

BirdBathSpaNowOpen · 07/09/2025 09:10

What car seat is he in? Have you always bought the same brand? I assume your spare is the same brand as the usual one.

It is just with you saying he is 99 percentile for height and weight this might play into it. His body position in that seat may be exacerbating the sickness.