New booster laws and 3 in back seat conundrum!?

Question

We have a jeep cherokee. -Cannot, repeat, cannot buy a new car right now. We're dealing with layoffs and can barely get by as it is. A new booster law is going into effect in one month in our state requiring us to fit 2 boosters and an infant seat in the back of a jeep cherokee, (or a geo prizm). How the heck are we going to do this? We also can't spend $500 plus dollars for new "radian" car seats. Do the "ride-safer-vests" do a good job? Would they even be legal and who would I ask that? Right now my oldest is using a harness system in the middle -it tethers to the back of the jeep and goes over his shoulders. Any ideas? I'm not comfortable squishing them in there so much that they are not positioned right.

Answer 1

You will never hear anyone accuse any of the law makers of having any common sense, but the law is the law and must be obeyed.

If you can't afford the new seats or another vehicle, how are you going to afford tickets for breaking the law?

Answer 2

Here are some links that could be better to answer this question.

http://www.car-safety.org/

http://www.carseatdata.org/

http://www.cpsafety.com/default.aspx

http://www.cpsc.gov/

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

http://www.safekids.org/

Also if you can use one of the car seat tech locaters that is on some of the links they can help you figure out what would be the best.  It would also help to have the ages and weights  of your kids.

Answer 3

The Ride Safer Travel Vest is a great, safe option! And yes, it is legal. It takes the place of a car seat/booster. What system  are you using now? You said he's in a harness system in the center? If it is NHTSA certified, then it also counts as a seat, and you shouldn't sweat it.

If you need two boosters & an infant seat, look for narrow boosters. The Graco Turbobooster is fairly narrow, as is the Evenflo Big Kid.

Three across in a Cherokee shouldn't be that hard to accomplish. You should easily be able to fit 2 boosters outboard & an infant seat or convertible in the center.

Answer 4

I have checked all over and it tells me different things and what you will need to do is call your local fire department and ask them, they are there to help people out with these types of questions and good luck.