Recaro baby seats in Canada

[arctics]

Hi Guys,

I searched for this, and found some older posts about Recaro seats not being legal in Canada, however, I've heard otherwise elsewhere. Does anyone know if they can be used here now, and if so, where to purchase locally?

[MacGyver]

I don't know where this "elsewhere" that you speak of is, but Transport Canada is quite clear from this bulletin on their website that seats not sold in Canada are not legal for use within Canada unless they bear the Canadian National Safety Mark: http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/child...07c09/menu.htm

[arctics]

thanks, but that doesn't answer my question ... do Recaro baby seats fall into this category? Are current models now being legally distributed in Canada?

[Rehan]

As of January 2008:

I called Recaro USA the other day and asked about their seats being available in Canada. The rep I spoke with told me that they are beginning the Cdn certification process at the end of this year and their child seats should be available in Canada sometime next yr (2009). When asked which models of their seats would be available in Canada she said "all of them". So good news if we can wait till next year. All Recaro models will be available in Canada.

Source: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=31655

You should call Recaro USA and get an update.

[rems]

Hi Guys,

I searched for this, and found some older posts about Recaro seats not being legal in Canada, however, I've heard otherwise elsewhere. Does anyone know if they can be used here now, and if so, where to purchase locally?

the 09 RX8 R3 come with Recaro seats and they're sold in Canada

[Rehan]

the 09 RX8 R3 come with Recaro seats and they're sold in Canada

Considering that this is the Parenting forum, I think the OP is asking about Recaro child safety seats rather than their 'racing' seats for grown-ups.

[arctics]

yeah, I'm enquring about the Recaro Child safety seats.

Haven't had a chance to call Recaro USA yet, but I'll post my findings when I do.

[arctics]

-----Original Message-----
From: Gayle Anderson [mailto:childseat@recarousa.com]
Sent: Thursday, August 7, 2008 1:23 PM
Subject: RE: Canadian distribution

Unfortunately, we do not have Canadian approval at this point. Hopefully by mid 2009 we will start this process.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Best regards

Gayle Anderson
Customer Service Associate
RECARO North America Child Seat Division

[Rehan]

Thanks for following up, arctics.

[Tha Darkness]

-----Original Message-----
From: Gayle Anderson [mailto:childseat@recarousa.com]
Sent: Thursday, August 7, 2008 1:23 PM
Subject: RE: Canadian distribution

Unfortunately, we do not have Canadian approval at this point. Hopefully by mid 2009 we will start this process.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Best regards

Gayle Anderson
Customer Service Associate
RECARO North America Child Seat Division

Well, we are 4 months away from 2010! Any updates on Recaro selling in Canada?

[encinc]

Unfortunately, we do not have Canadian approval at this point. Hopefully by mid 2009 we will start this process.

Getting approval for car seats to be sold in Canada is slow. If they only started the process in mid-2009 (and that is assuming that they started the process when they hoped to), then I wouldn't expect to see the seats on the shelves until next summer at the earliest.

Too bad, because Recaro are nice seats!

[GunnerX]

Getting approval for car seats to be sold in Canada is slow. If they only started the process in mid-2009 (and that is assuming that they started the process when they hoped to), then I wouldn't expect to see the seats on the shelves until next summer at the earliest.

Too bad, because Recaro are nice seats!

Nice seats for adults usually does not mean the same for kids. I would rather go with a company that specializes in baby car seats like Britax.

[oneframe]

Any update on Recaro Child Car Seats in Canada? It's 2010.

[mercedesgl2010]

Spoke to a rep today at Recaro USA. They wont be launching the carseats in Canada due to the redtape and expense of getting certification. So I guess we can only yearn for one. I am off to buy a Britax tomorrow

[snowbird25ca]

Spoke to a rep today at Recaro USA. They wont be launching the carseats in Canada due to the redtape and expense of getting certification. So I guess we can only yearn for one. I am off to buy a Britax tomorrow

It actually most likely has more to do with them not passing standards on the Canadian bench. Perhaps we will see them show up once the test bench changes. (Legislation that in some ways aligns our standards more closely with the US is supposed to be in parliament right now.)

Contrary to what manufacturers would have you believe, there's not actually that much red tape involved if they already have the correct test bench assembly and the right family of crash test dummies. That is where the expense is - not in obtaining a National Safety Mark # from Transport Canada. Recaro originally claimed that the seat was developed to meet both FMVSS and CMVSS standards, but when the seat got closer to hitting the market, the story changed. So either the seat didn't pass when they were doing the testing, or they couldn't justify the expense of the 2nd bench and family of crash test dummies. I'm guessing it's the former - I don't know how a company could say the seat was designed to meet standards in both countries if they didn't already have the test bench assembly for Canada during the engineering and design stage.

From what I've seen the seats haven't actually become that popular in the US anyways. They sit up on high bases and don't seem to offer a lot of room for a growing child. Rear-facing it is very difficult to get kids in and out of the seat in small vehicles, if not bordering on impossible because of the high base.

So we're not really missing out on anything by not having them here. I initially was quite disappointed, but as more reviews on the seat came out on them in the US, the disappointment faded very quickly.