Car seat expiration

[boneheaders]

This shows that plastics DO break down. It's very cold wear I live so the car seat would be exposed to extreme cold while sitting in the car and extreme heat in the summer...Just replace it after 5-6 years, unless you have the Diono Radian RXT which expires in 10 years due to its steal frame.

[u235sentinel]

I'm curious why the car seat is backwards and NOT properly placed as parents have been instructed by the car seat companies :D

[winstonian88]

This is totally meaningless. Even if you buy into the expiry idea, they have to show the same test with a new seat to show if there's any difference. How do we know the new seat would perform better? Useless.

[robertmacdowell]

Hold on there. If this was legit, shouldn't they also have tested a brand new car seat (similar model) under the same conditions? Shouldn't they have shown "before" pictures of this car seat showing how you couldn't tell it was gonna break? Shouldn't we have seen "after" photos of exactly what failed? Hey, WAIT A MINUTE... the video was obviously "obtained" and only the poster claims it has anything to do with expired seats. /skeptical

[badboy37]

Please tell me there is more than one freaking video as proof that car seats are bad after six years!

[ISmashYoDadHead]

One dead little bastard lol .

[MarTrose8]

OK so what do you do with your expired car seat?

[Lizwsw]

@MarTrose8 Several times a year Babies "R" Us has a carseat trade in. You can bring in your expired seat and get a discount on a new one.

[Callahbz]

UV rays break down the plastic. Has anyone ever seen sun bleached plastic? It works the same way with carseats.

[TheUTViper]

People are reading a lot into this video. Where are the specks on the test? How will a new seat perform under the same conditions? Without this information the video is nothing but propaganda.

All car seat manufacturers I spoke to claim that the expiration date is a safety measure based upon wear and tear assumptions for the belt and not the plastic. They are very conservative and are specked around a worst case scenario.

Buy a new seat if you can't access the risk, not just because it's old.

[lizzilove86]

How do we know this is an expired car seat?? it would have been better if they showed the expiration date then did the test and also did the same test with a new car seat...I would like to see a video like that! I will never use a exoired car seat buit Im just saying.

[Digitaizen]

Well, cheap car seats sure expire, but about the video: I see that belts fail but not the actual car seat itself. I concur that belts not only expire they can easily degrade just being in a heat. I had a few belts stored in a garage (Texas) and after a year I could easily tear them apart with not much force applied to them, even a kid could do it! So, belts do fail cause they are made of plastic fibers that are susceptible to heat. Actual car seat itself - don't ask me. May be so.

[abbielynn84]

@Digitaizen - The belts didn't fail. Watch closely. They rip right through the shell of the seat. The plastic shell broke and the harness went right through.

And Britax seats are not cheap. They're pretty pricey. And over ten years ago, they were the "it" car seat to have.

[Marika50]

@Digitaizen I agree with you on belts... I got 1988 station wagon, the driver's and pasinger seat belts move automatically and i can tell that the pasinger seat belt is not going to last much longer

[scipfy]

A steel frame would last.

[boneheaders]

@scipfy

The Diono Radian RXT is made out of a steel frame and has an overall expiration date of 10 years. Britax seats expire in 6 which are made out of plastic. Keep in mind though that the Radian is very heavy and would probably be a pain to switch to different vehicles daily. But the Radian is a very narrow car seat so you could fit a three across with it.

[Owensmum775]

Not only do the carseats break down a lot to where they are unsafe around 6 years..but safety standards change, there are recalls and safety notices. there is a reason why we dont use those infant carseat from the 80s anymore or the kind of carseats that have the bar thing that drop down.. Its called safety.. newer carseats tend to be safer because the engineers and scientists find new ways of keeping your child safer. I NEVER use expired or close to expired carseat. Its just common sense

[stagoidus]

How do we know that this wouldn't have happened with the brand-new car seat? This video, by itself, doesn't prove very much. To really show the harm in having an old seat, they should have simultaneously had a new car seat to show if there was any real difference.

[slik056]

As an engineer, I can tell you it all depends on the treatment of the car seat and the quality with which it was made. A well designed car seat made with quality plastics should be good for FAR better than 6 years. I don't buy that logic "the toy in the sun falls apart". Fact is, if your car seat breaks from exposure to the sun you have a lawsuit as the plastics are usually protected by the cover, and not to mention there are plenty of plastics designed for UV exposure.

[ainodmelvado]

Everyone seems eager to say "it's not worth the risk" without having read whatever research is available. I would be eager to see research on more expensive seats, say $150 & up and if they were stored mostly inside. Could they last 15 - 20 yrs??? It would be nice to have more data than just 6 yrs. I personally bought a more expensive car seat & it was inside more than not & I live in a milder climate. I'm sure it would be more than 6 years but to say that would make people think you're cruel.

[armorcav98]

hmm... now that I've seen the transportation canada videos of the harness breaking loose on a NEW Marathon- this video seems kind of meaning less!

[MommyJessica1]

those seats were recalled and fixed though.

[umothra]

The only videos I see from transportation canada were test conditions that EXCEED normal testing standards. This test above does not exceed testing standards. The tests you speak of were accidents that most people wouldn't survive at all! let alone a child in a car seat.

[ainodmelvado]

@armorcav98

where did you see this?

[kasiara2000]

your car seat may still be ok after its experation date if it was say kept inside unless in use but do you want to risk your childs life on the chance that it may still be ok? i wouldnt.

[whattheheck1000]

Imagine my old car seat I sat in as a toddler. It's like 15 years old now. I bet it's thrown away lol

[tomsaari]

Why don't they just expire the whole car? I don't care if you have a 1 year old car seat or a 7 year old car seat, when your car was built in the 80's or early 90's...

[BoAFan149]

because cars aren't made of plastic

[wiggin56]

@BoAFan149 They are actually made of a type of plastic. They're made of fiberglass, not metal anymore.

[umothra]

because cars are made of STEEL. The structure of the car is not made of plastic. Car seats with steel inside do last longer. There is one booster that never expires because it is a solid steel structure. It is Recaro Start

[sallymoon519]

@umothra

The manual for the Recaro Start states to discontinue use 8 years after manufacture date due to deterioration, so it DOES expire.

[haasker07]

what if the seat is about 7 years old, but has only been in a car, i.e., exposed to the elements for no more than a year? It's been in our closet the rest of the time, in a humidity and heat controlled environment.

[sallymoon519]

@haasker07

It is best to err on the side of caution when it comes to a child's safety. If it is past the manufacturer's determined expiration, it is technically illegal to use since it would be going against the manufacturer's guidelines.

[robertmacdowell]

Age alone does not ruin plastic. Rough handling and exposure to the elements does. This can happen at ANY age (of the seat :)

In my opinion there's no substitute for just inspecting the seat very carefully. You know what plastic looks like when it's sun-baked, deteriorated or cracked. Inspect it when it's new, inspect it anytime you bang or drop it.

[umothra]

you can't tell when plastic isn't safe. Also plastic becomes brittle from the moment is is created. It is degrading the moment it is done being created. Elements do make that process faster but keeping it inside doesn't stop the process. The seats STILL expire even if locked in a closet.

[robertmacdowell]

The expire dates are worst-case, presuming the car seat lives in the car. You agree storing indoors lengthens life. I say, a LOT. Yes, I know mine is a minority view, but don't just thumbs me down because of that. THINK and research.

It's wrong to tell poor families to spend vaccine money on a car seat they don't need. Many other things could help their child more, not least parents showing financial intelligence.

[umothra]

who the heck said that vaccine money should be spent on a car seat. There are programs for low income families to get NEW safe car seats for a very minimal amount of money in my area they get new seats for only $10! They just have to take a car seat class. It is not smart to use an EXPIRED car seat. It is a dumb thing to do and very very unsafe. Riding in the car is the most dangerous thing our kids do EACH and every day.

[MythicMMM]

sun exposure is not all that breaks down the integrity of plastic. cold and heat do it as well ). unless that expired car seat was sitting in a humidity and temperature controlled place till it got past it's expiration date it is toast.

[mom2alyntimmy]

I'm in total agreement. A car seat left in a car for 6 years is going to see major temperature differences. Also, not all plastics are the same. Nor are all car seats made from the same type of plastic.

[luvbeingluvd]

It's not just the UV rays it's the EXTREME heat and cold that occurs in the car that causes the plastics to break down! Do some research on car seats and you'll understand more as to why the makers of the seats say after 5-6 years you need to replace the seat to avoid injury or death.

[Simwookiee]

This video is a real eye opener. I know it changed my husband's mind about reusing our expired car seat after I pleaded with him that we needed to get a new one.

[PapoosesCPST]

I share this video with parents during my safety workshops. This is an all too important aspect of carseats that many parents are not aware of.

[hgfrjkgfjjj]

lol? hte set belt saved the kid mutch

[NicolaMonk]

the video is demonstrating car-seat expiration... the car seat is old, the plastic is brittle, and the car-seat failed.

[ksera05]

In case anyone is wondering, this footage was originally seen on GMTV and is of a 10 year old Britax seat.

[Wedington317]

forgot to add that once a car seat has been in a car that has been in a car accident, "THAT CAR SEAT IS ALSO TRASH!!! EVEN IF IT WASN'T DAMAGED IN THE WREAK...CAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW IF THERE IS A CRACK HIDING SOMEWHERE!!" It's not worth it!!!!

[kaelancer]

Thanks so much. I send this video to people who don't believe me when I tell them that carseats do expire for a good reason.

[anjomi1986]

I also like to show others this video. People often think that it is a marketing ploy so companies can sell more seats. Well folks, here is your proof! Plastic REALLY does break down over time!