Baby Dilemma
09-24-2007, 12:33 PM
#51
im pretty sure mazda engineers already thought of this. and further to the point, your girl will sit in a hard shell car seat that will further protect her. i wouldnt worry about it all.
mazda knows what they are doing. the rx8 has high safety standards. im pretty sure infants in car seats are taken into account.
mazda knows what they are doing. the rx8 has high safety standards. im pretty sure infants in car seats are taken into account.
09-24-2007, 01:02 PM
#52
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When I babysit my buddy's little baby girl and have to go for a ride, she's safely tucked behind my driver seat in her baby seat and I really don't see how she could be struck by the airbag deploying especially considering how the baby seat "centers" her in the seatand keeps her there very tighly if you've secured the seat correctly.
The only way I could see her getting in contact with the airbag would be a MAJOR collision where the car would distort enough under impact so that her position in the car would change. That would probably mean the seat or the metal rod securing it broke. In that case, I REALLY REALLY prefer the airbar to deploy and give her some minor skin burns from deployment (worst scenario) than having her hit the door or window directly.
When I carry kids around, I always take the 8 instead of my other car just because I want to have those big brakes at the 4 corners and those 6 airbags all around in case something happens. I don't think the 8 is "unsafe" enough for you to actually change cars over this. If this is really the reason, go get a Volvo. Those things are built like TANKS... and I mean it... like 3in by 3in steel reinforcement bars in the B-pillars (my dad owns an S60).
my 2 cents!
The only way I could see her getting in contact with the airbag would be a MAJOR collision where the car would distort enough under impact so that her position in the car would change. That would probably mean the seat or the metal rod securing it broke. In that case, I REALLY REALLY prefer the airbar to deploy and give her some minor skin burns from deployment (worst scenario) than having her hit the door or window directly.
When I carry kids around, I always take the 8 instead of my other car just because I want to have those big brakes at the 4 corners and those 6 airbags all around in case something happens. I don't think the 8 is "unsafe" enough for you to actually change cars over this. If this is really the reason, go get a Volvo. Those things are built like TANKS... and I mean it... like 3in by 3in steel reinforcement bars in the B-pillars (my dad owns an S60).
my 2 cents!
09-24-2007, 01:10 PM
#53
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While not a great photo of the bags I do not see how a kid in a child seat is going to be hit by an air bag in a way that whould hurt. Your concerns are not valid. Mazda is also only going to say to you that the RX-8 meets all mandated safey requirements. Anything more would be a risk for them legally.
09-24-2007, 05:25 PM
#55
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Keep the car the way it is. I have had my daughter in my car since she was a year old and there has never been any issues.
1. An infant carseat sits low and laid slightly back so it would miss your child completely. Not to mention that you leave the carrier arm upright so if it WERE to hit something, it would be that arm.
2. When your child hits a year or so old, she will then go into a sitting upright childseat. I have one that has comes out a little by the childs head, kinda like our seats form around us. She leans her lil head on there when she gets tired, anyway, that would also help deflect the airbag, though I don't think it would even come near her.
Good luck with what you decide, but I'm a mom and I completely approve of the 8.
Plus the doors are very convenient.
1. An infant carseat sits low and laid slightly back so it would miss your child completely. Not to mention that you leave the carrier arm upright so if it WERE to hit something, it would be that arm.
2. When your child hits a year or so old, she will then go into a sitting upright childseat. I have one that has comes out a little by the childs head, kinda like our seats form around us. She leans her lil head on there when she gets tired, anyway, that would also help deflect the airbag, though I don't think it would even come near her.
Good luck with what you decide, but I'm a mom and I completely approve of the 8.
Plus the doors are very convenient.
I'll show her this thread then she should be convinced. Once again thank you all.
09-24-2007, 08:25 PM
#56
It's a Cavalier
devildog, hey man, I'm beating a dead horse now, but I was where you are 4 years ago, and I get the dynamics of the little woman with her nesting instincts raging. 
Man up, dawg! Don't let yourself or her be "one of those kind of parents." The kind that child proof their homes from top to bottom, remove everything, lock down every cabinet, and have a rubber cover on everything that doesn't have rounded corner or is remotely hard. 
Guide and teach, don't just prevent.
Point is, keep your RX8, don't cut any damn wires, and don't think twice about it. In a couple of years, I bet you'll look back and say, "what the heck was I worried about?"
Just my thoughts... Congrats on the baby!
Man up, dawg! Don't let yourself or her be "one of those kind of parents." The kind that child proof their homes from top to bottom, remove everything, lock down every cabinet, and have a rubber cover on everything that doesn't have rounded corner or is remotely hard. Guide and teach, don't just prevent. Point is, keep your RX8, don't cut any damn wires, and don't think twice about it. In a couple of years, I bet you'll look back and say, "what the heck was I worried about?"
Just my thoughts...
Congrats on the baby!
09-24-2007, 09:09 PM
#57
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Devildog, I had my best friends daughter from 3 months on in the back seat of my 8 on a regular basis. Never did it cause a problem. You also have to consider how car seats are designed within themselves. I drove like I normally drove and spirited when the need came for it, adjusting to traffic and such. You mentioned driving differently with your wife in the car and that is expected to a point. However don't let your worry overpower you to the point where you are over compensating and lose focus on your driving skills. First babies are hard first pregnant wives are hard too....there's no manual, and you can only learn from reading and listening to others advise, but the responsibility is huge and I understand your worries......I'm a mom, raised three, and half the neighborhood as well. All you can be expected to do is your best....and the rest will fall into place. If you don't want to get rid of your 8, then my advice is to keep it.. My only problem was a stroller....but you do have another vehicle..
09-24-2007, 11:33 PM
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http://www.safercar.gov/Index2.cfm?m...ecific+vehicle
09-25-2007, 10:17 AM
#62
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The side curtain airbags do not deploy with the same force nor nearly as far as a side or front airbag. Actually your daughter in a properly installed child seat would be more safe as in a side impact her head would hit the cushioned side of her seat and never come in contact with the curtain itself (unless you have a massive impact on the side she is on either way she is safer with a bag than without).
Side curtain bags are to help with a passengers head hitting the side glass. Children have a 4 point harness in a child seat and won't move nearly as much as someone using the 3 point seatbelt.
Your wife's fears are unfounded. I bought my 8 when my son was 3 and daughter was nine months and rear facing. I wouldn't have bought it if it was unsafe for my children.
Side curtain bags are to help with a passengers head hitting the side glass. Children have a 4 point harness in a child seat and won't move nearly as much as someone using the 3 point seatbelt.
Your wife's fears are unfounded. I bought my 8 when my son was 3 and daughter was nine months and rear facing. I wouldn't have bought it if it was unsafe for my children.
09-25-2007, 12:14 PM
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09-25-2007, 12:40 PM
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09-25-2007, 01:05 PM
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Devildog......Have your wife read what we have posted, and make her own decision....Neither of you can live your lives with the what if's because you will not be living it, just going through the motions....you two need to just come together and trust your own judgement. Learning that will help you in every decision that you have to make with your daughter. Believe me, deciding on what kind of car to drive her in is the least of your worries....................
09-26-2007, 10:45 AM
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doesn't seem to me a rear-facing car seat will work in an 8, unless you and the baby are the only two people in the car, and the car seat is behind the front passenger seat, with the front passenger seat cranked all the way forward.
Last edited by sonicblue6; 09-26-2007 at 10:59 AM.
09-26-2007, 10:55 AM
#68
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to sum it all up, keep the 8, your baby is going to be fine in it, the bag will not blow in ur baby's face, her little seat will protect her, she will not be harmed.........
done
done
09-26-2007, 11:22 AM
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It's a little tight on the passenger but not bad. Don't plan on putting someone over 6' in the passenger seat until the baby is forward facing.
09-26-2007, 11:34 AM
#72
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WOW!!! really funny I found this thread....being that I just found out my lady is expecting (5 days ago)
Haha in the same shoes OP...was actually considereing the BMW 3 series
Haha in the same shoes OP...was actually considereing the BMW 3 series
Last edited by Derex'8; 09-26-2007 at 11:37 AM.
09-26-2007, 12:19 PM
#73
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Welcome to the club, by the way I tested the 335i copue and it was great. Maybe in a year or two but for now I feel safe with my 8.
09-26-2007, 01:01 PM
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Another concern
I actually drove my 1 month old infant son (he was in the NICU before that) home from the hospital in the back seat of my 8. The infant car seat works very well, just don't expect to have someone sitting on the passenger side since the passenger seat needs to be moved up quite a bit to make room for the rear facing car seat.
One other concern is the stroller. My stroller *barely* fits into the trunk of the 8, you may want to shop around to see which one fits.
Having said all these, I'm actually selling my 8 to a friend of mine since I have now 3 children and my wife told me to get a car which can carry the whole family
Have been checking out the MS3 and the CX-9 recently....
Jasper
One other concern is the stroller. My stroller *barely* fits into the trunk of the 8, you may want to shop around to see which one fits.
Having said all these, I'm actually selling my 8 to a friend of mine since I have now 3 children and my wife told me to get a car which can carry the whole family
Have been checking out the MS3 and the CX-9 recently....Jasper
09-26-2007, 01:06 PM
#75
I have the same prob with the stroller. I bought a smaller one in red to match my car(Sears). Works great and fits!!
I actually drove my 1 month old infant son (he was in the NICU before that) home from the hospital in the back seat of my 8. The infant car seat works very well, just don't expect to have someone sitting on the passenger side since the passenger seat needs to be moved up quite a bit to make room for the rear facing car seat.
One other concern is the stroller. My stroller *barely* fits into the trunk of the 8, you may want to shop around to see which one fits.
Having said all these, I'm actually selling my 8 to a friend of mine since I have now 3 children and my wife told me to get a car which can carry the whole family Have been checking out the MS3 and the CX-9 recently....
Jasper
One other concern is the stroller. My stroller *barely* fits into the trunk of the 8, you may want to shop around to see which one fits.
Having said all these, I'm actually selling my 8 to a friend of mine since I have now 3 children and my wife told me to get a car which can carry the whole family
Have been checking out the MS3 and the CX-9 recently....Jasper