Why I sent my Recaro Como Back to MFR TWICE!

[gillysmommy]

I figured that I would post this here because maybe some of you have seen this too. And for those of you shopping for a seat, here's some food for thought.

I bought the Como and LOVED it. I used it for about a week and then bad stuff started to happen.

Basically I would loosen the straps to get my daughter out, and something would cause the harness to come apart from the metal coupler plate in back! Which meant I had to uninstall the car seat, put the harness back together then reinstall. (In 95 degree weather in the vet's parking lot with the dog overheating, and my 19-month old bouncing all over the car.) Then it did the same thing 2 days later.

I called Recaro and they sent me another seat right away. But 2 days later it did the exact same thing, two more times.

I have decided to give up on the seat. Even though it is really nice and seems safe, I can not guarantee that I can keep re-installing safely when I'm not in optimal conditions. I'm afraid that I will miss something, and that will be the one day someone runs over us.

Recaro claims they can not duplicate my problem, but I think there is obviously an issue since it has happened 4 times (twice rear facing and twice forward). I have a Decathlon that I have used for over a year, and that has never happened.

Oh well, back to the drawing board!

	Rear Facing Car Seats A rear-facing seat is one in which the infant faces the back of the car. Always install a rear-facing seat in the back seat of your car. This is the safest position for an infant. NEVER place a rear-facing seat in the front seat of a vehicle with passenger airbags.

	Britax Decathlon - Click for more info Like its predecessors the Britax Roundabout and the Britax Marathon, the Britax Decathlon is built around two core ideals: safety and comfort. Its easy to see that the Decathlon is comfortable: it's loaded with a 3-position crotch strap, patented HUGS harness system, plush (and washable!) seat cover, belly pad, removable toddler head pillow, and an infant positioning system for newborn babies. These features provide a comfortable, adjustable fit as your child grows - all the way from 5 to 65 pounds.

	RECARO - Click for more info With over 100 years of company history and long standing experience in vehicle seat construction RECARO knows how to make long journeys a pleasure for the whole family. Materials, design and technical highlights ensure a pleasant journey for adults and children alike. RECARO uses its strength as the premier mobile seat manufacturer to engineer an innovative line of products for your children. No other manufacturer can apply experience from production vehicles, commercial vehicles, and race cars to design toward the comfort and safety of children.

	RECARO Como - Click for more info The RECARO Como convertible car seat is an excellent choice for parents who want a high quality, long lasting car seat for their growing child. Thanks to its 5-70 lbs weight capacity, forward or rear-facing convertibility, and adjustable harness and headrest, the RECARO Como may be the only carseat you will ever need. The Como convertible child seat is a safe and comfortable seat that features RECARO Side Impact Protection (SIP), plush microfiber fabrics, and a thick adjustable headrest.

[Papooses]

Oh that is so disappointing & frustrating Did you have a CPST take a look? I suggest reporting it to NHTSA > https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/Consumer.cfm

[gillysmommy]

No, I did not have it looked at when it fell apart. But it was installed correctly. Recaro does have the seat in their engineering office looking at it and scratching their heads. Seems like you can't make it fall apart unless you actually have it installed in a car.

I will report it to NHTSA for sure.

I was quite disappointed as well. I really loved the seat.

	RECARO - Click for more info With over 100 years of company history and long standing experience in vehicle seat construction RECARO knows how to make long journeys a pleasure for the whole family. Materials, design and technical highlights ensure a pleasant journey for adults and children alike. RECARO uses its strength as the premier mobile seat manufacturer to engineer an innovative line of products for your children. No other manufacturer can apply experience from production vehicles, commercial vehicles, and race cars to design toward the comfort and safety of children.

[Papooses]

I sincerely do not mean to offend, but the misuse rate varies between 80-98% with an average of 3 misuses in 4 out of 5 carseats How can you be sure it was indeed installed/used correctly if it wasn't checked?

[gillysmommy]

I did have it checked when it was installed.

You had asked if I had it looked at, and I did not take it back to the tech to look at it when it fell apart. I thought that was what you were asking.