putting a child seat in my 88 XJ

[wgregt]

In my 88 XJ Limited, I only have the OEM lap belt, which I can barely slide thru a car seat to hold it in place. And there's no where to clip the "latches" like most newer cars have.

Wondering if anyone has added a tether point somewhere for the long strap? Is this even possible? There's nothing in the back of the seat at all.

Have you made any other mods to allow this to work better?

 

[Phil]

Are you looking to daily drive with this or tow to a trailhead?

May affect input.

I haven't put killer in the stupid buggy thing yet.

 

[Cottontail]

In the later models, they have the OEM latch system hooks mounted in the cargo area, bolted to the roof just in front of the hatch. Might be worth digging around a junkyard to see if you can find a set and retrofit them to your '88.

 

[devildog0]

It'd have to be a pretty late model. I had an '00 and now have a '97 and neither have the newer style anchor points anywhere in the Jeep.

I've had no issues using the standard lap belt in the middle of the back seat. Not sure how your kid's seat is designed but mine has the base that the carrier snaps into. Plenty of space and the lapbelt holds it down just as well as the teather points do in my wife's Honda Pilot.

I guess you could always flip up the seat and drill thought he floor pan and install some teather points. Make sure you reinforce properly if you go that route though so they don't pull though the sheetmetal not sure how thick it is right there.

 

[Cottontail]

Mine is an '01.

 

[bjoehandley]

It would have to be a 2000-2001 model, that's about when I heard of car seats coming out with those and when I was still working for Toy's "R" Us at the time. Apparently even newer cars have additional loops build into the floor at the base of the rear seat too, didn't know about that until we put the car seat for the little guy my Sister babysits in my Chrysler 200 and she showed me that they existed. All of these need to be firmly attached to the unibody and be made out of very solid, sturdy materials to boot.

 

[devildog0]

Cottontail that is very interesting place for Jeep to put them.

bjoehandley- The wife's pilot has the tether points at the base of the seat as well. They work very well and super easy to use. Though the lapbelt would be just as easy on the XJ.

 

[Cottontail]

Our WJ has integrated LATCH points in basically the same location. It is an '04. The ones in the XJ are a little more basic.

 

[bjoehandley]

The upper LATCH point isn't bad on that generation Avenger/Sebring/200, as it's under a rotating plastic cover on the package tray, unfortunetly, the ones at the base alot harder to get at since the lower cushion stays put and and folding the rear seat back down does nothing but make things more difficult and you have to reach through the "gap" between the seat cushions to get at those LATCHes. These new ones seem extra stout though from what I saw 15 years ago when these first appeared!

 

[Anak]

I've had no issues using the standard lap belt in the middle of the back seat.

+1

The car seat held in place with just the lap belt is still a substantial improvement over the no-restraints-at-all which many of us survived.

 

[kmanxj5050]

I run mine down behind the seat to an eye bolt i put through the floor, and then on the passenger side to the cargo tie down. I don't see how the ones on the roof help? Having them run down to the floor helps suck them down to the seat bottom and into the back of the seat.

 

[IslanderOffRoad]

In the later models, they have the OEM latch system hooks mounted in the cargo area, bolted to the roof just in front of the hatch. Might be worth digging around a junkyard to see if you can find a set and retrofit them to your '88.

I was wondering what those were

 

[Phil]

I run mine down behind the seat to an eye bolt i put through the floor, and then on the passenger side to the cargo tie down. I don't see how the ones on the roof help? Having them run down to the floor helps suck them down to the seat bottom and into the back of the seat.

The LATCH point at the back of the roof is a great place for the top tether, to keep from obstructing the cargo area when using a forward facing seat. It is only there to keep the seat from rotating forward.

 

[Cottontail]

Yeah, that seat is SOLID when latched in the back and snug with the shoulder belt. It isn't going anywhere.

 

[devildog0]

In the tuner community they wind up using those top latch points in cars for racing harnesses a lot haha.

 

[wgregt]

It'll be a somewhat daily driver (whenever I have a wee passenger, that is.)

Here's another couple questions...I've heard/read that there is a Jeep TSB (#23-029-08) that talks about there being a dealer-installed tether point for the child seat tether strap. The part ($60) is free and the install is free. Good deal, right? I think I got the seat nice and snug, so the only thing I need now is that tether ring/point. Yes, I initially tried to hook it to one of the cargo D-rings in the floor of the cargo area, but they pull the child seat either left or right, depending on which one I use. And the close rings and the far rings all work the same. This thing needs to be in the center somewhere in order to work.

And yes, I need it, according to the car seat maker and the state and the highway child safety seat folks. Oh...and the mom, I suppose as well.

The TSB says the kit/retrofit is good for 1989-1995 (I think...I know the 1989 starting year model is right) vehicles only. So, mine doesn't apparently make the cut. Which means Jeep won't install it, even if I pay for the labor.

The "anchor kit" is either part number 5003422AC or 500342AB. I wish I knew what was in this "kit", but no dealers I spoke to today (probably about 6 total) had any idea what was in it, or had ever heard of it, or had ever seen one/installed one.

I was also trying to find out HOW to install it. Is it a D-ring (or similar) that bolts to....the cargo floor? If so, does it only bolt into to a certain location, or can I put it anywhere?

Or does it bolt to the roof somehow (my preference, b/c that way I can USE the cargo floor without having a strap cut across it. Also, I can keep my OEM cargo tray without having to cut a hole in it.)?

Or maybe it bolts to the bottom edge of the open cargo door, so that I can use it with the door closed, and don't have to cut into the tray either, though it will probably fold the edge of the tray down?

All of this...I don't know. Since no one has ever seen one, I don't even know if I can put it on my 88 model, since apparently it's not listed in that TSB as fitting my model. Thing is, they didn't change this thing much in...20 years? Esp. the early years...why would it fit an 89 but NOT fit an 88?

I don't know, b/c no dealer has one to pull to see the instructions for the install, and no one has ever installed, according to dealers I called.

So...if you have a tether anchor point in your XJ, or have seen one, and know what it is, how it goes in, and where it goes, fill me in. Have photos? I owe you a beer sometime.

Oh...I also saw the photos posted earlier in this thread, but...can't tell what I'm looking at. Top? Bottom? Is that the inside of...the cargo door? I'm...confused as to what/where that is exactly.

 

[Cottontail]

I posted the pics. I'll take more. I'm at the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion this weekend so if I can post from my phone I will. Otherwise early next week.

 

[bjoehandley]

'89 could be the cut off point, and/or the dealer employee was being lazy. I talked tosomebody when I was still at TRU and was rather roughly told that those tether points like your XJ came with would not be sufficent to secure the car seat and proper ones needed to be installed in those vehicles.

 

[wgregt]

I posted the pics. I'll take more. I'm at the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion this weekend so if I can post from my phone I will. Otherwise early next week.

That would be great, thanks. And hopefully that's your XJ in the pics?

 

[GSequoia]

Actually the early model kit bolts to the floor near the spring hanger. It comes with instructions. I have a set of two I haven't yet installed (and one of the kids is already out of the car seat!).

If you're going to keep the Jeep consider retrofitting to a 1990 - 1996 rear seat belt set (shoulder), too. Once the kid grows out of the forward-facing carseat they will need a booster seat. All booster seats require a shoulder belt. Currently when in the big Jeep I put Sebastian in the front passenger seat with his booster and Charlotte in back, I need to do the retrofit before Charlotte grows out of the carseat.