Z4 and baby seats?

[gazrobbo]

Im trying to hold onto my Z4, but I have a baby on the way, due in Feb. We are selling the other halves car to get a baby wagon of some sort.

but reading throught all of the recomendations for baby seats after they can face forwards is confusing:

1)some say to never use a baby seat in the front

2)some say to check the distance the airbag comes out, with the vehicle manufacturer

3) some say to just put the seat as far back as possible

do many of you use the Z with baby seats?

I wont be using it very often as we will also have a baby wagon, but I would like to know its safe.

or is it all just thealth and safety gone mad as usual?

 

[Mowflow]

This just so happens to be my area of expertise

1)some say to never use a baby seat in the front
Others say it's fine.

2)some say to check the distance the airbag comes out, with the vehicle manufacturer
Probably depends on your child seat but my sons head is roughly at the same height and distance from the dash as my wee grannies. If it's dangerous for him then it must be dangerous for her. You don't hear manufacturers saying "this car is only intended for drivers over 5'5" tall".

3) some say to just put the seat as far back as possible
I do this purely because it's easier to get the child in and out with more space in front.

do many of you use the Z with baby seats?
Yes. Looks nice and comfy.

We use a Maxi Cosi Priory for our 2 year old and have been using that since he went into a forward facing seat. It has fitted perfectly in the 5 cars we have owned in that time and the nipper seems to be happy enough sitting in it even on long journeys. I have no issue with putting him in his front facing seat in every car I've had and would even put him in the front in his rear facing seat since the car I had then had an airbag deactivation switch.

You will hear loads of advice and recommendations and the laws in every country seem to be different but at the end of the day the best rule for it is the same as anything else in life, follow common sense.

You can be as safe as you like but at the end of the day your child will eventually exploit a gap in the measures. My son has recently worked out how to escape from every carseat and pram we put him in. At least if he's in the front when he does this I can stop him. In the back he's out and jumping about before you know what's happened.

 

[tomscott]

Does your Z have the air bag disable button?

 

[gazrobbo]

cheers Mowflow, great advice/experience

mine doesnt have the airbag disable button, cant believe its not standard! :thumbsdown:

 

[Mowflow]

Neither does mine which is why my 3 month old daughter (rear facing seat) never travels in the Z. You only need to disable the airbag for rear facing seats as the bag going off could obviously fire the child into the seat back face first. The sticker on the Z advises about the side airbags and the acceptable height of a child in a seat. I was a little worried about these but once my son was in the seat I could clearly see that the child seat raised him to at least the height of a small adult. His seat is reclined in those pics.

In mainland Europe I believe they insist that a child is in a rear facing seat until they are 4 years old. It's a ridiculous and unworkable regulation. Most 4 year olds are too big to fit in even the biggest car in a rear facing seat unless they dangled their legs over the parcel shelf. It's bad enough trying to force a 2 year old into a forward facing seat let alone a 3 or 4 year old into something more awkward.

If you decide you want to have an airbag deactivation switch I believe you can buy the parts from BMW for about £60 and the wiring is already in place. At least it is in my car as I discovered when I removed the dash trim recently.

 

[domsz4]

i thought all cars have it. im fairly sure my t reg focus had it. isnt there a key operated switch on the side of the dash on the passenger side that will disable the airbag?

 

[bigdog]

There is a key operated switch on mine. And a weight sensor that deactivates the air bag when seat belt is used and not enough weight is on the seat.

In the US. If you do not have a deactivation switch. You can not place a child seat in front of that airbag.

 

[Mowflow]

Deactivation was standard on American cars and I believe the deactivation light that they have is also a legal requirement in the US.

I believe it was an optional extra (still is on a lot of the latest BMWs in the UK). My car is a 2003 and the dash has the indentation for the key operated deactivation switch at the end. I recently removed the side air vent to wrap the dash and discovered that the wiring is all there for the switch with a simple plug for connecting.

The parts to retro fit can be bought. There is a thread on here that provides a link to the parts and the part numbers. if you search for "airbag deactivation" you will find it.

 

[the gill]

My lad is now 5 weeks old and I was in the same dilema as you. Luckily I have the baby pack option (airbag off and isofix on the passenger seat). We have gone for a Maxicosi Pebble car seat which will fit fine with the seat belt but not with the Isofix base (Maxi Cosi Family Fix). He'll only be in the Z4 occasionally (not been in it yet) as we have other cars. The width between the bolsters on the seat are an issue for many car seats so don't buy a seat without trying it first. Congratulations BTW - I'm loving being a dad and I was putting it off for years.

 

[Taz]

last meet i went to i could only see 2 cars with the air bag disable feature so i think it must be rare in the zed

 

[tgurske]

My 14 month old rides in my Z4 with me sometimes. The car seat clips on just as it does in my Merc SUV, and the airbags turn off properly.

Some people say that its' not safe but I would rather be in an accident in my Z4 than in a crappy toyota Prius (with hundreds of pounds of battery acid in them) and nobody has any issues with a car seat in those.

 

[pog451]

My daughter (now 3,5, then 2,5) has been in my Z since I got it - In a Maxi Cosi priori to begin and now in the next model up. I dont have the airbag switch-off (and so not the ISOfix, which would be cool) although Id be happier with it - I got hold of a switch on Ebay but for the life of me cant find the lamp. My 2004 3,0 has the wiring pre-installed so it should be a plug and play (and a drill and nibble) if I find one.

Im not too bothered without though

BTW: Its NOT required to have rear-facing seats to age 4 in Europe except in Sweden.

 

[pog451]

i thought all cars have it. im fairly sure my t reg focus had it. isnt there a key operated switch on the side of the dash on the passenger side that will disable the airbag?

On the E85 (and I assume E86) its an option on non-US cars. US ones had it as standard AFAIK. There used to be a retro-fit kit available (for the switch, you'd have to swap the seat to get ISOfix) but they seem to be out of stock everywhere.

 

[pog451]

There is a key operated switch on mine. And a weight sensor that deactivates the air bag when seat belt is used and not enough weight is on the seat.

Im not sure that is true, but anyway an empty childs seat is more than enough weight to trigger the occupancy sensor. The Maxi Cosi Priori is fixed by seatbelt anyway, but the model I currently have uses the belt to secure the child, so I have to clip it in even when my daughter isnt in the seat.

 

[Mangozac]

Some people say that its' not safe but I would rather be in an accident in my Z4 than in a crappy toyota Prius (with hundreds of pounds of battery acid in them) and nobody has any issues with a car seat in those.

They're Li+ batteries so there is no battery acid

Passenger airbag disable must have been an option here in Oz too as I've not seen any with it. The spot where the key switch mounts is obvious though.

 

[Georgio]

I have three kids under 5 and they've all travelled in the Zed using the Junior BMW child seat, the one that has the chest bolster.

This is an ISOFIX forward facing seat though and I've always made sure the passenger seat is as far back as possible; helps not having footprints on the dash as well. At this position they are further away from the front air-bag than an adult would be so I feel it is completely safe even if the air bag were to deploy.
Which brings me onto the point that you would want the air bag to help cushion any impact so I would feel uneasy if an air bag were disabled.

The biggest problem I have with taking the kids is more their fighting as to who's turn it is to travel in my car.....

 

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A slow day in the marketing department?

 

[mr nurburgring]

Both my boys have gone in the Z4 since front facing seat was used.
Just push the seat all the way back.

 

[Ilogik]

Hey bit of a thread revival, and looking for a usable car seat for my E86 coupe, it has M sport seats, would this have Isofix points or would it be standard belt fastening. Thanks.

 

[RMB]

I Think it depends on model year. You should be able to see them if you have them I assume. (I haven’t got them). Do you have the passenger airbag off option too? This will be important I guess.