Child Seat Indents

[M_D129]

I’ve searched and searched..and searched..

I haven’t seen anything on the forum or online, for dents formed in the seats, by child seat bases.

I’ve attached a picture of mine, from a Chicco Keyfit30 base I’ve had installed for almost 6 months. I’ve removed it here and there, for passengers, but never for more than 12 hours..as I drive baby daily.

I know many here will point to using seat covers, and the like, however, this child seat base explicitly states for it not to be used in any other fashion than directly onto the seat. Additionally, I have read numerous articles, stating how seat covers can render a car seat or base, unsafe

I really just want to understand if anyone has seen a similar thing, and whether the seat eventually came back to form, or if I can expect to need to replace this particular portion of the seat before trade in.

Thank you all, and for those that will criticize, do your worst.

 

[640k]

I’ve searched and searched..and searched.. I haven’t seen anything on the forum or online, for dents formed in the seats, by child seat bases....Thank you all, and for those that will criticize, do your worst.

...you must suck at searching...

dealing with carseats & white interior?

Car seats. Looking for potential solution

Child proofing your Model 3?

the long of the short of it is, there are mats you can purchase that will protect your seats. or, you know, use a beach towel.

 

[M_D129]

...you must suck at searching...

dealing with carseats & white interior?

Car seats. Looking for potential solution

Child proofing your Model 3?

the long of the short of it is, there are mats you can purchase that will protect your seats. or, you know, use a beach towel.

Thanks for replying. You certainly were exactly the type of person I expected.

I did in fact read those articles, and every solution presented was seat covers. None had any real insight into the long term effects, or possible relief the cushion would experience. As I mentioned in my post, this is not approved for my child seats, and furthermore, is unsafe in general practice, unless specified safe for that carrier.

I was hoping for more constructive information, pertaining to the specifics I asked about, and for actual experiences. I tried to include all of that, including the expected replies in my post to alleviate exactly this kind of reply.

Thanks again!

 

[640k]

Thanks for replying. You certainly were exactly the type of person I expected.

I did in fact read those articles, and every solution presented was seat covers. None had any real insight into the long term effects, or possible relief the cushion would experience. As I mentioned in my post, this is not approved for my child seats, and furthermore, is unsafe in general practice, unless specified safe for that carrier.

I was hoping for more constructive information, pertaining to the specifics I asked about, and for actual experiences. I tried to include all of that, including the expected replies in my post to alleviate exactly this kind of reply.

Thanks again!

welcome to the internet, buddy. seriously, you asked for it so i delivered. you said you searched, but didn't find any results. it has been expressed that child seats/boosters will leave indents that may or may not go away. the real issue is going to be the longevity of the cushion itself and not the fabric. i drove with two car seats in two different cars and each responded differently. one with fabric, the other with leather. they were both semi-permanently indented due to the seats.

get a cover, use a towel or just don't worry about it. personally i think it's dumb those seats are manufactured in a way that can damage your vehicle's interior, but if that's what is required to keep kids safe, than i guess it doesn't really matter. lucky for me, i got rid of my baby-carrying vehicle and replaced it with the Tesla. now all I have to worry about is dirty cleats and sticky fingers.

 

[M_D129]

welcome to the internet, buddy. seriously, you asked for it so i delivered. you said you searched, but didn't find any results. it has been expressed that child seats/boosters will leave indents that may or may not go away. the real issue is going to be the longevity of the cushion itself and not the fabric. i drove with two car seats in two different cars and each responded differently. one with fabric, the other with leather. they were both semi-permanently indented due to the seats.

get a cover, use a towel or just don't worry about it. personally i think it's dumb those seats are manufactured in a way that can damage your vehicle's interior, but if that's what is required to keep kids safe, than i guess it doesn't really matter. lucky for me, i got rid of my baby-carrying vehicle and replaced it with the Tesla. now all I have to worry about is dirty cleats and sticky fingers.

I do hate the internet, and most people on it, which is why I avoid social media.

I appreciate you sharing your past experiences, with varied materials. They really do design car seats in a way that you’d think would be better served conforming you the seat in some way. Perhaps I’ll have to start developing one with a squishy yet durable exterior to absorb bumps and shocks, and play nice with car interiors.

Granted with my limited ability to search the internet properly, I’m sure it exists and I’ve missed it.

Perhaps I should’ve saved the Tesla for after the baby was grown up, but figured the safety, and AWD were perfect selling points to Mama Bear.

 

[640k]

I do hate the internet, and most people on it, which is why I avoid social media.

I appreciate you sharing your past experiences, with varied materials. They really do design car seats in a way that you’d think would be better served conforming you the seat in some way. Perhaps I’ll have to start developing one with a squishy yet durable exterior to absorb bumps and shocks, and play nice with car interiors.

Granted with my limited ability to search the internet properly, I’m sure it exists and I’ve missed it.

Perhaps I should’ve saved the Tesla for after the baby was grown up, but figured the safety, and AWD were perfect selling points to Mama Bear.

you could always hold out hope for a wrecked tesla and replace the rear seats. i'm sure they exist!

 

[M_D129]

you could always hold out hope for a wrecked tesla and replace the rear seats. i'm sure they exist!

Not a bad idea. I have some time, I just hate to pour money into a trade in, when the Cybertruck comes.

 

[kev1n]

i purchased my Model S with the older real leather seats from a person that had a baby seat. the imprint of the baby seat went away by itself after a few months

 

[BluestarE3]

I can't see how using a towel under and behind the child seat can be unsafe. The seat is mechanically secured in place via the LATCH system. Unless the towel is rolled up in a thick wad, there is no wiggle room with the addition of a towel because the child seat is still compressed firmly against the car's seat bottom and back. However, as a parent, you do what you feel is right for your children.

I had a child seat in my Model 3 for a week and the indentations relaxed after a day or so. But I used a towel, so the creases weren't as sharply defined as in your photo.

 

[Nogasmn]

I’ve searched and searched..and searched..

I haven’t seen anything on the forum or online, for dents formed in the seats, by child seat bases.

I’ve attached a picture of mine, from a Chicco Keyfit30 base I’ve had installed for almost 6 months. I’ve removed it here and there, for passengers, but never for more than 12 hours..as I drive baby daily.

I know many here will point to using seat covers, and the like, however, this child seat base explicitly states for it not to be used in any other fashion than directly onto the seat. Additionally, I have read numerous articles, stating how seat covers can render a car seat or base, unsafe

I really just want to understand if anyone has seen a similar thing, and whether the seat eventually came back to form, or if I can expect to need to replace this particular portion of the seat before trade in.

Thank you all, and for those that will criticize, do your worst.

View attachment 520666

Hello, fellow Minnesotan. I bet once it warms up those indents will get a lot better. If you want to speed up the process a bit try turning on the rear seat warmers for that seat. I had a car seat installed for a few months as well and once removed the indents improved.

 

[M_D129]

Hello, fellow Minnesotan. I bet once it warms up those indents will get a lot better. If you want to speed up the process a bit try turning on the rear seat warmers for that seat. I had a car seat installed for a few months as well and once removed the indents improved.

Thank you! I appreciate you sharing your experience! Exactly what I was hoping for!

 

[ohmman]

Thank you! I appreciate you sharing your experience! Exactly what I was hoping for!

I have a 6-year-old Model S and a 4-year-old Model X. The S has leather, so it may not be the best comparison, and the X has synthetic. Both cars had indentations from child car seats, the S having it worse because of the shape of the seats (the back bench has a pretty thick bolster on the edge that took the brunt of the car seat pressure). My kids are both out of car seats now, and there's no sign of damage from multiple years of indentations on either car. I think the real concern would be the padding underneath, but it seems to have recovered. On my S I didn't use any seat pads. On my X, I did, but mostly because we have the white interior and I imagined a Skittle or something getting mashed between the car seat and my white upholstery.

Good luck.

 

[N54TT]

I’ve searched and searched..and searched..

I haven’t seen anything on the forum or online, for dents formed in the seats, by child seat bases.

I’ve attached a picture of mine, from a Chicco Keyfit30 base I’ve had installed for almost 6 months. I’ve removed it here and there, for passengers, but never for more than 12 hours..as I drive baby daily.

I know many here will point to using seat covers, and the like, however, this child seat base explicitly states for it not to be used in any other fashion than directly onto the seat. Additionally, I have read numerous articles, stating how seat covers can render a car seat or base, unsafe

I really just want to understand if anyone has seen a similar thing, and whether the seat eventually came back to form, or if I can expect to need to replace this particular portion of the seat before trade in.

Thank you all, and for those that will criticize, do your worst.

View attachment 520666

The issue with seat dents is not new nor specific to Tesla. It will happen in any car. The whole debate regarding seat protectors is also nothing new. The manufacture explicitly states not to use other than directly onto the seat for legal reasons, because they can’t say what seat protectors might result in the tethers being installed improperly.

My kids are now 14 and 10 and lived through my use of seat protectors lol. IMO if you use a seat protector that doesn’t change the angle of the seat/base, and allows proper installation of the tethers....there’s no issue.

That being said chances are the seat will come back to form. Might take some time, might take sitting in the sun for a while on a hot day or two or three....or might not fully come back to form. Again not an issue specific to Tesla. From what I remember, it took a while for the indents to become less noticeable in my parents Audi. Regardless...unless you have holes in your seats I doubt it would impact what you get at trade in.

 

[TyH2009]

I've had a car seat base (son is almost a month old) in my car now for about a month and a half and I have a seat cover/protector on it. Everything seems tight still so I'm not quiet sure how it wouldn't be as safe as no cover. *shrugs*

 

[M_D129]

Thank you to everyone that replied. I appreciate the experience with denting in your seats, and what your experience has been after the fact.

I also appreciate the input and experience with seat protectors. Perhaps this relatively new dad is being a bit too cautious!

Thanks again TMC community.

 

[BluestarE3]

I've had a car seat base (son is almost a month old) in my car now for about a month and a half and I have a seat cover/protector on it. Everything seems tight still so I'm not quiet sure how it wouldn't be as safe as no cover. *shrugs*

I attribute this warning to the lawyers. Seat manufacturers don't want to get sued if a kid gets hurt in an accident. They have no way to ensure that someone using a seat cover isn't doing it unsafely. For example, if the cover being used is a think pad or cushion, it may prevent the child seat from being cinched tightly against the car's seat, which may then allow the child seat to bounce around in case of an accident. So, they have to take a binary stance and tell people never to use any type of cover.

 

[BluestarE3]

Perhaps this relatively new dad is being a bit too cautious!

It's good to be cautious. After a while, you'll figure out when and how much caution is needed (especially by the time kid #2 comes along ).

After hauling two kids and now two grandchildren around in car seats, one thing I do recommend is always giving the child seat a tug just before buckling your kid in to ensure it's latched. There are times you take out the seat to accommodate an adult and then replace it, or you may have to move a seat from one car to the other if there's a change in who has drop-off/pick-up duties for the day. When you're rushed or frazzled, you may just drop the seat in the car for now, fully anticipating that you or your spouse will secure it later. If later you or your spouse forgets that it's not previously secured, that would not be good. Making it a habit to always give the seat a tug before putting your child in will avoid that risk.

 

[DKM3D]

Thank you to everyone that replied. I appreciate the experience with denting in your seats, and what your experience has been after the fact.

I also appreciate the input and experience with seat protectors. Perhaps this relatively new dad is being a bit too cautious!

Thanks again TMC community.

I had similar problem with my everflo seats creating indent. Only difference was that my indent was on the headrestrain. Tried using the same seat protector that I used in my previous car that had fabric cloth instead of faux leather along with adjustable headrestrain did not help much. I'm currently using a couple of layers of black towel with neck protection cushion to provide additional padding.

On the same note spoke to service tech that came to look at other issue, he suggested to use a steamer over a towel placed on the surface. He said that's what they do in service center for similar problems.

 

[M_D129]

I had similar problem with my everflo seats creating indent. Only difference was that my indent was on the headrestrain. Tried using the same seat protector that I used in my previous car that had fabric cloth instead of faux leather along with adjustable headrestrain did not help much. I'm currently using a couple of layers of black towel with neck protection cushion to provide additional padding.

On the same note spoke to service tech that came to look at other issue, he suggested to use a steamer over a towel placed on the surface. He said that's what they do in service center for similar problems.

View attachment 521357

I appreciate the experience shared, and the tip!

I’ll try that out!

May have to look into a towel of sorts to spread the force of those two weird little nubs, in the seat base.

Will be good practice for when the Cybertruck is carrying two baby seats!

 

[DKM3D]

May have to look into a towel of sorts to spread the force of those two weird little nubs, in the seat base.

Also check this water proof seatcover, they provides non slip backing.