How to remove back from graco booster seat

I have a seven year old who is 47 inches tall and 46 lbs. We have a graco booster seat. I am wondering if the back of the booster seat is a safety issue (It seems that most of his friends have removed the back at this point). When is it safe to do this? Thanks, Susan P

It's a safety issue in so much as it's 70% safer to have it on, provided a child fits.

You'll remove the back when his shoulders go above the red guides at their highest height. Usually between 8-10 years old.

Do you have the screws in the armrests?

Wendy

In my opinion, the back stays on until the child no longer fits in it- to me 7 is still young for a backless, but my 6 yo isn't even IN a booster yet so she will likely be at LEAST 9 before a backless is in her future!

The high back gives the side impact protection, so in a crash the child's' head and neck is protected, whereas it's not in a backless.

HTH!

Our car seat arm rests look like the ones in the photo. Are there screws we should have in there too? Is there a website with the actual "70% safer" study that I could refer to. I would love to show it to some friends who have removed the backs of their kids seats (because the kid wanted to remove it) and whose kids tease my kid for still having it on. Their understanding is that the seatbelt has to come across the kids shoulder in the right place to be safe "my kid is tall enough." Thanks so much for your feedback.

See the flat screw head at the end of the red arrow, just above the little hooks where the armrest connects to the booster? Those screws.

At Piper's school (in Fremont, here in Seattle) you'd think Graco threw up every time there's a field trip. Turbos everywhere. And 80% of them have no screws. It's so bad that I've gone around with a screwdriver screwing some in. I order them from Graco. I've got more coming now and I'll put out a baggie and a flier to tell people to check for screws. Apparently I need a better photo, though, if it's not obvious.

http://www2.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/...tory/09-13-2005/0004106173&EDATE=Sep+13,+2005

" * The risk reduction provided by booster seats in side-impact crashes
varied by booster seat type: 4-to 8-year-olds riding in high back booster
seats were at a 70 percent reduction in injury risk, while those in backless
boosters did not experience a statistically significant risk reduction as
compared with seat belts alone."

There you go.

Wendy

I will check for the screws. What do they do exactly? Thanks, Susan

The armrests are what holds the lap belt down in a crash. The screws hold the armrests in place.

Wendy, just because I *know* the Turbo has the screws, I knew what the picture was. But at first glance, it looks like notches where the back might snap into... Maybe it's just me tho. LOL

Yeah. That's the best picture I could find, though.

Wendy

Aside from the benefits already mentioned, the back of the booster provides two other things:

1. Head restraint. Depending on your vehicle, it may not provide adequate head support for a child in a backless booster. The child needs to have the vehicle seat or a vehicle head rest supporting the head to the tops of the ears in order to use a backless booster.

2. Sleep support! It's not as common for a 7yo to fall asleep in the car as a 4yo, but it's still a safety issue if the child gets tired on a longer-than-usual trip and slumps to the side.

Screws:

If you are thinking to yourself, "What screws?" -- click here, you can see what I'm talking about. You can also click on that picture in the link to see it bigger. You can go ahead and call Graco or go to Graco's website -- the Replacement Parts search and put in your Model Number and Date of Manufacture and they'll send you free screws (you only need two) if you have lost yours from the original packaging and do not have them currently installed.

It's essential that the screws are put into place. :thumbsup:

It's a safety issue in so much as it's 70% safer to have it on, provided a child fits.

I don't see where you get that 70% from Wendy?

This is quoted from the 2009 AAP Journal that published the study.

This study reconfirms previous reports that BPB seats reduce the risk for injury in children 4 through 8 years of age by studying a greater percentage of children aged 6 to 8 years than previous studies. After adjustment for potential confounders, children who were aged 4 to 8 and using BPB seats were 45% less likely to sustain injuries than similarly aged children who were using the vehicle seat belt. Among children who were restrained in BPB seats, there was no evidence of a difference in the performance of backless versus high-back boosters. On the basis of these analyses, parents, pediatricians, and health educators should continue to recommend as best practice the use of BPB seats once a child outgrows a harness-based child restraint until he or she is at least 8 years of age.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/124/5/1281