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.

 

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!

 

I was gonna say the same thing. I have no idea (unless I'm missing something) how the rear airbags can harm a properly harnessed child, especially a newborn rear-facing one.

 

i think cutting the wires wont work, cause i think if you cut the wires, itz just gonna disable the whole airbag system and will cause the airbag light on!

 

You mind telling my wife that I'll show her this thread then she should be convinced.

Once again thank you all.

 

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!

 

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..

 

I'm trying Guys I'm convinced but the littlw women still needs some convincing.

 

If she needs any more convincing on the safety of the 8 do some searches on the accidents people from this site have been in. There are some pictures of some VERY mangled cars that the occupants walked away from INJURY FREE!

 

God, yeah, those things are horrendously unsafe. Think of what a side impact would do right through those removable doors.

 

Might want to re-think your thoughts on that: I did a 2006 Jeep Wrangler just for ***** & giggles.. 4 Stars.. Cant complain about that, unless you need 5 stars?

http://www.safercar.gov/Index2.cfm?m...ecific+vehicle

 

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.

 

Maybe she just wants another car? From my experience, you can't convince a woman through logic. A woman's logic is her intuition and emotion.

- ducks -

 

That's it I need to put my foot down

 

Doooooeeeeeeeet!

 

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....................

 

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.

 

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

 

^^Pretty cocky for someone with no children.

 

I'm just summing up everything in this thread in which u all have said

 

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.

 

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

 

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.

 

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

 

I have the same prob with the stroller. I bought a smaller one in red to match my car(Sears). Works great and fits!!