Can you fit a car seat in the back? Is there a passenger side airbag disabler?

 

This link proves there is plenty of room in the rear. Safest spot for a child is in the back, even if you have an 05 or later.

 

I believe the passenger side airbag is disabled automatically based on the weight of the passenger.

 

We have no problem putting a Britax Roundabout car seat in the back of our MCS. Our son absolutely loves riding in our MCS. Check out the following link for more discussions on car seats:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=68576

 

I didn't know this until my niece came to visit and we needed a car seat installed:

Your local fire department should have someone who has been specially trained to install car seats. I took my MINI to the station and the guy spent 30 minutes tweaking and adjusting the seat until it was perfect. They will do it for free and you will KNOW that it has been done right.

 

I fit a Graco Snugride and a forward-facing seat just fine. I'm also 5'5" so the seats are pretty far forward. The rearward-facing baby seat just touches the back of my seat, and the forward-facing kid can kick the passenger seat.

 

I've never had a problem putting my kids' seats in the back. Never tried the front, as I have a pre Jan build '05.

 

I don't think we get the front seat air bag disabler in the US... But I have an 02 and don't know about the newer ones.

Matt

 

On Jan '05 and later builds, there is a sensor in the seat that will disable the airbag based on the weight of the passenger...

Except that if you put a car seat in the front seat you will need to tighten it down significantly... Tight enough that with combined weight of the child and the car seat you'll put enough pressure on the seat that the airbag would be on...

There is no way to get an airbag disabling switch installed in the US.

 

My 06 MCS definitely came equipped with a sensor. My 23 month old likes to play in the front passenger set while we're sitting in the garage and pretend we're driving down the road. I belted him in once and turned on the key to see what the sensor would do. Per the sensor light the airbag was disabled based on his light weight. I didn't test however if the combined weight of the car seat and my son would still disable the airbag. Personally I would still opt to keep my child's car seat in the rear just to be safe.

(Note: I DID NOT drive the car without my child properly restrained in his car seat located in the back seat.)

 

Remember though, it's not just the combined weight of the child and the seat that you have to take into consideration... It's also the continuous pressure that would be exerted on the seat by a securely mounted carseat. We're talking a seat that is torqued down so that it's movement is minimal... It's not just the weight of the car seat and child, but the extra pressure on the seat from securing it in place.

 

Point taken. Just one more reason to keep my son's car seat in the rear!

 

it's to keep it from going off if you have some small items there, or if the person in the seat is leaning forward, and is too close to the airbag for it to safely deploy. To get a real car seat in there, you'd have to get the disable option that offered in Europe. Appearently, we in the US are too stupid or have too many lawyers to be trusted with such empowerment.

Matt

 

Our first weekend drive we popped in the car seat for Junior and it fit just fine. It's a forward-facing seat. The deep back seats seemed to work well and gave Junior the room he needed for his legs to stick out. I'd recommend getting a pad for under the seat so it doesn't bugger up your seating surfaces though.

 

Doc,

A quote from page the 2006 MINI Owner's Manual.

"Exception for the front passenger seat - Should it be necessary to use a child restraint system on the front passenger seat, the front and side airbags for the front passenger must be deactivated. Otherwise, there is significant risk of injury to the child if the airbags deploy, even if the child is seated in a child-restraint system. Your MINI Dealer will be glad to advise you."

Hmmm...sure sounds expensive to me. Doc, you're probably right, why trust the parents of the child to make intelligent decisions about the welfare of said child when you can reduce your corporate liability and make money at the same time?

 

Put the seat in the back. Don't put it in the front. The airbag is hazardous to the child in a car seat.

Just saved you a bunch of $. You can paypal me half at your earliest convenience!

Matt

 

Tell you what rather than go through the hassle of paypal I'll donate your half of the money I saved to my son's college fund. Thank you for your generosity!

 

welcome!

Matt