Having an additional family member means a lot of changes. In the transportation department, this means purchasing a new car that will fit the baby and all the baby gear. Before heading out to the showroom and getting the first car offered by an eager sales associate, arm yourself with the following helpful tips.
Conduct Thorough Research on Safety Ratings
If there is one tip that must be taken to heart, it is this. There is no shortage of resources that offer reliable and recent safety ratings on cars. It is imperative that new parents be armed with these safety ratings when dropping by a car dealership.
Two of the most reliable places where new parents can get safety ratings are the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. These organizations offer useful information based on crash tests.
Consider How Much Space Your New Family Needs
Does a car offer enough space for more than one child? Will it accommodate a growing family beyond a single offspring? When buying a new car, first-time parents will want to consider the space they need.
Aside from having seats for their child and future children, they will also want to think about the typical amount of cargo it can hold, such as the stroller and bags with the baby’s things. On top of those, the typical items that a family transports in a vehicle must also be considered, such as groceries, luggage, and other odds and ends.
Trucks Will Work But Need Good Protection
For some growing families, a truck may be the best and only option. Perhaps the vehicle will also be needed for work, not just for family transportation. In this case, there are many ways to make a truck more family-friendly.
One way is to choose a newer model with higher safety ratings. Another thing to consider is to make upgrades, such as getting slip-proof floor mats available in the market today . A good floor mat will protect the car from spills and getting dirty.
Take Your Car Seat to the Car Dealership
This is a crucial step that new parents should not skip when purchasing a family car. Before they even think about choosing a new vehicle, they have to buy a car seat first. Again, safety ratings for car seats should be greatly considered. Once the car seat is purchased, they can take said seat to the dealership and see how it fits in the vehicle that they are considering getting.
Does the vehicle accommodate the car seat properly? Is the car seat easy to install? Is getting the baby in and out of the vehicle easy? Can the carrier be removed from the car easily? These are important questions that can be answered by taking a car seat to a dealership before buying a vehicle.
Take the above steps seriously, but most of all, take note of the car’s LATCH safety restraints. The LATCH safety restraints refer to the Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children. This system offers maximum safety for children in car seats.
New car models sold in the United States should have at least three tether anchor systems, but it’s still essential to ask about the LATCH system at the dealership. Better safe than sorry.