An update on baby car seats for Land Rover Defenders for anyone else lucky/unfortunate enough to drive one
When I originally posted this thread I realise I hadn't actually understood with my own eyes the true extent of the problem ... because I'd never used or bought a baby car seat before in my life. Until yesterday (when I did buy one) they were just accessories that other people had in their (saloon) cars, to prevent small, annoying aliens from pulling the drivers hair.
But now I do understand.
I summarise, for other readers, with Defenders, the problems and possible solutions.
The short wheel base Defender generally only has front seats - either 2, for passenger and driver as with a normal car, often separated by a storage box, or a larger passenger seat which can accommodate 2 passengers side by side next to the driver, if they squash up and if the middle passenger rests their feet on the gearbox hump.
I had hoped that a baby car seat might be able to be accommodated in a middle passenger seat at the front (and we had asked the LR garage to fit a middle seat, which we don't have at the moment) - but once I tried a few car seat models for size I realised this would be impossible - they need a whole passenger seat to themselves. There's no way an adult driver, an adult passenger and a baby car seat could all fit in the front area in one straight line.
One option, as previously discussed here, is to move the bulkhead (the steel brace behind the front seats) backwards so that a middle passenger seat accommodating a baby car seat could fit in, slightly behind the other two seats. But the height of the vehicle means it would be awkward to get the baby/seat in and out from this position, even if you could fit the seatbelts correctly.
Nope, the only short term option was to buy a car seat to fit the main passenger seat and to assume the passenger parent would sit in the back if two-parent journeys are to be made.
What car seats fit? All three of the following:
*Graco Logico S (with or without base)
*Maxi Cosi Cabriofix (with or without base)
*Britax First Class (however in the rearward facing position, in the front seat, this seemed much too big, given the height of the vehicle - the driver would have a dinosaur riding beside him)
We went for the Maxi Cosi on a base because taking into account the height issue it seemed the easiest to get in and out (it was also the lightest).
However, this is not the answer for the longer-term. Even coming back from hospital I will have to either ride in the back or (if medical necessity dictates I can't climb up there) travel in a separate car behind
There are two longer-term options:
- Install sideways facing 'proper' seats on the benches in the back (but this means that someone always has to ride sideways!)
- Trade the short wheel base in for a long wheel base, which has two rows of forward facing seats in it.
If anyone reading can think of any other options, do let me know!
NB Halfords staff to be praised for their knowledge and patience as we faffed around in a North London car park yesterday morning.