Graco Recalls 25,000 Car Seats


Graco is recalling more than 25,000 car seats because of possibly faulty restraints, according to reports Wednesday, May 24.

The recall affects the Graco My Ride 65. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced in a statement that the unit does not meet Federal Motor Safety Standards.

The 25,494 seats affected were produced between May and August 2014 and have the web coding of 2014/06.

Model numbers are 1871689, 1908152, 1813074, 1872691, 1853478, 1877535, 1813015, and 1794334.

“In the event of a serious motor vehicle crash, the harness webbing restraining the child may break resulting in a child not being properly restrained,” the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in the statement. “In the event of a crash, the child seat webbing may not adequately restrain the child. As such, these car seats fail to conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 213.”

Concerned consumers are urged to contact Graco consumer services at 1-800-345-4109.

To remedy the recall, the company is providing replacement kits that include new restraints.

“During a test of the individual harness restraint component, the webbing on certain My Ride 65 convertible car seats did not meet federal requirements for breaking strength,” Graco spokeswoman Danielle Clark said. “Out of an abundance of caution, Graco is notifying consumers who may be impacted and is providing, free of charge, replacement kits with new harness restraints and installation instructions. While waiting for a replacement kit, consumers may continue to use My Ride 65 convertible car seats.”

The recall also affects 1,393 car seats sold through Graco’s Canadian division. Models affect in Canada are 1910553, 1910552, and 1910395.

Reportedly, faulty Graco car seats have drawn dozens of complaints to the traffic safety administration over the past four years. The investigation into those complaints by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Defects Investigations were opened in 2013 which resulted in three prior recalls in 2014.

Feb. 7, 2014, Graco recalled almost 3.8 million car seats made from 2009 through 2013. Affected in that recall were Graco’s Classic Ride 50, My Ride 65, My Ride w/Safety Surround, My Ride 70, Size 4 Me 70, Smart Seat, Nautilus, Nautilus Elite, and Argos 70.

A month later, Graco recalled seats manufactured from 2006 through 2014. Those were the Argos 70 Elite, Ready Ride, Step 2, My Ride 65 with Safety Surround, My Size 70, Head Wise 70 with Safety Surround, Nautilus 3-in-1, Nautilus Plus, and Smart Seat with Safety Surround. Each was recalled because of reported difficulty in unlatching the unit’s harness buckle, which became stuck in the locked position even when the release button was pressed.

“On June 27, 2014, Graco submitted a second DIR (Defect Information Report) recalling 1,910,102 RFI (Rear Facing Infant) car seats produced with the QT1 buckle,” a NHTSA report reads. “This DIR also stated that Graco would conduct a Customer Satisfaction Campaign (CSC) to replace the Signature and QT3 buckles used on the non-recalled RFI models for the useful life of the car seat (seven years from the date of manufacture).

“Under the CSC, users of the non-recalled car seats can obtain a replacement buckle, free of charge, should they have a concern with their buckle. In addition to the approximately 6.1 million recalled car seats, the CSC covers approximately 2.3 million RFI car seats. Please see safety recall 14C-004 for additional details of the recall and CSC.”

Founded in 1942 by Russell Gray and Robert Cone, Graco Metal Products manufactured machine parts for more than 10 years before the company’s engineers presented the founders with an idea for an automatic baby swing, which it released in 1955.

The Graco swing was the gold standard in baby swings for more than three decades, before the company released the portable play pen Pack N’ Play in 1987. Graco started making car seats in 1998, the year it was acquired by Rubbermaid.

The Graco SnugRide became the best-selling infant seat on the market, followed by a traveling system that coupled a car seat with a stroller. A string of innovative products followed, such as the TurboBooster, Nautilus 3-in-1, highchairs, and products manufactured under the Baby Jogger brand.

[Featured Image by Bruno Vincent/Getty Images]

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