We checked with our local fire department about the car seats and their tight fit. Apparently in our city you can no longer stop by any fire station and ask them to check your car seat installation. However, they do have a car seat checker. She works at the fire department administrative offices and part of her job duties is to ensure safe car seat installation for those who stop by and request it. She checked out our car seats and said they like to see at least one to two inches of space between the top of the car seat and the back of the front driver seat or passenger seat when the car seats are rear-facing. The reason for this is because, in the event of an accident, it is better to have some room for all the seats to move a little bit front-to-back to help absorb the impact. This means the car seats move a little up and down not side-to-side. There should not be any movement or as little as possible of the car seat moving from side-to-side. If there is movement side-to-side or ample movement up and down, this can pose a danger to the baby and you should definitely have someone doublecheck your installation. As a result of our visit we are comfortable that we can still use our Yaris with the car seats but only one of us should drive the car when the babies are riding along. Me. Since J is 5'8" the driver seat pushes up against the car seats when she drives. With me, at 5'2" there is the one to two inches of space. So, until it's time to turn the car seats front-facing, in about two years, or until we get a bigger car, I will be the designated family driver. J doesn't really like my driving. She says I drive too slow and cautious. If she thinks I drive too slow and cautious now, I wonder what she's going to think once our three babies are on board.
