Isofix Guide recommendations
 

Well lockdown has been "productive" in our family. We went in to it with one grandson, living some distance away and now have three. Two are quite nearby and there are "expectations" re child care and transport..... :ROFL:.

As a side effect the extended family has quite a collection of child car seats and some are coming our way.

I know my S8 has Isofix but studying the instructions for one seat that we're likely to use quite soon it mentions Isofix Guides - plastic surrounds to help with fitting and (maybe) protect the seats too?
A previous owner had child seats fitted, there are witness marks in the leather, and I know the mounting bars are pretty deep down (unlike our Volvo where they're very accessible).

So are all Isofix Guides much the same or can anyone recommend specific makes or designs/features that are best for a late FL D2? Especially one that is having all it's leather "revitalised" this month! :love:

Hi Andrew

Congrats on the expanding dynasty 👍

I used the Isofix in my FE and found that all the available guides supplied with seats are too ‘chunky’ to fit in the gap without damaging the seat. Audi sold specific ones for the d2 but I’ve NEVER seen any for sale. I’ll see if I can find the part number, as I’m sure I have an eBay search set up

I found the best option, with a ‘2 point’ Isofix with support leg into the footwell was to just be really careful installing the seat without guides. There is space to do it and you can feel the bars by hand on installing to make sure you’re lined up

Worth noting that Isofix has changed a lot over time. Any seat that requires a top tether can’t be fitted in the d2 (there is no upper anchorage in the car). For ‘baby seats’ and early forward facing you need a support leg into the footwell to prevent forward rotation in an accident. Maxicosi worked well for us, but our sprog turned 12 today so we’re a bit out of date! Once ours was using an adult seat belt we moved on to BeSafe which holds the seat in place with Isofix and offers slightly better protection in side impacts as a result. So very much depends on height and weight of children as to best options

I was involved in the development and regulation of Isofix BITD - something I’m very pleased to have been involved with

i fitted Isofix seats for the grandkids but didnt know about guides. The fixing points are deeply recessed but I didnt find it too problematic or damaging to fit. What I did fit were were seat protectors to avoid the seat bases damaging the seats and to collect the inevitable detritus which seems to collect around small people - even with a ban on eating in the car (which I was forced to overturn :-( )!!:ROFL:

Absolutely agree on the recommendation of a seat protector - we used an earlier version of this one:

https://www.besafe.com/en/product/car-seat-protector/

Helps stop the leather getting that 'squished' look that you can often spot in sales adverts for cars that've had baby seats fitted for a long time

Thanks for the tips folks. +++
The first seat to arrive is a Joie Spin 360 (0-18kg) which has a support leg but no top tether. :cool:
It didn't include any guides so I won't bother looking for any; the struts seem to extend a long way to help with installation so hopefully it will work.

Looks a decent seat that - I'd be slightly concerned about the height of the Isofix bracket above the 'jaw' in terms of how much upwards force that'll apply on the leather, but with the jaws fully extended it should be possible to trial fit without risking any damage, just to make sure.

I put the guides in the D4 and the Allroad. They are very chunky things and separate the upper and lower seat cushions quite a bit. So much so that I took them out of the D4 as I fear for how well the cushions/leather would "rebound" after we no longer needed them. Although they are staying in the Allroad, I'm expecting to see permanent rectangular apertures in the seat at a later date.

Regarding the seat protector, we initially bought one that went about 8 inches up the back of the seat. Foresight was on holiday that day. We've now replaced it with one that goes right up to the base of the headrest. It's surprising how far they can get their grubby little shoes up on your nice leather.

I'm using mine as a daily family car and have two isofix seats fitted. I've started to use Britax more so and wouldn't be without isofix for the older ones (when they start using the 3-point belt), it means the seat will at least stay in place when they get out.

I did have an issue with an isofix base early on as the jaws were too think to reach the anchors so had to secure it with the seatbelt instead. I've never used the guides either but have spare ones around as some seats supply them. They are rather chunky and with the seat protector in place the only real damage to the leather would be deep down under the backrest where it can't be seen anyway.