Several studies, based on real accidents, have shown that the risk of death or serious injuryin the event of a collision, was 5 times higher in children travelling facing the road (forward-facing) than those travelling in a car seat rear-facing (rear-facing). The Plus Testset up by an independent Swedish organisation, is the only test in the world to take into account the force exerted on the child's neck during a collision. This is a complementary test complies with European standards ECE R44 and i-Size (UN R129) which is carried out every year on several car seats at the request of the manufacturers.
What is Plus Test?
Sweden is renowned for having one of the highest levels of safety about transporting children in cars. This is mainly due to the fact that Swedish parents carry their children with their backs to the road until the age of 4, an age when children's necks are more developed and stronger than when they are younger. Created in 2009, the Plus Test (formerly T-Standard Test) is a joint development by VTI (Institute for Road and Traffic Research), NTF (The Swedish National Society for Road Safety), Folksam (insurance company), SIS (Swedish Standards Organisation), Volvo and representatives of baby car seat manufacturers.
Le Plus Test, which uses the latest generation of children's dummies (Q-Series) for its crash tests, is the only test of its kind in the world in which the forces exerted on a child's neck and spine in the event of a head-on collision are measured. The previous generation of mannequins (P-Series)used in crash tests, in particular to obtain European ECE R44 approvalPreviously, it was not possible to measure the loads exerted on the neck and spine. Although the the new European i-Size regulation (R129) or that tests carried out jointly by ADAC, TCS, Stiftung Warentest and ÖAMTC use the very latest generation of mannequins (Q-Series), the forces exerted on the child's neck were still not measured by these organisations. This is why some car seats, facing the road, score higher than others rear-facing car seats. However, if the load exerted on the dummies' necks were measured and taken into account in the scoring, the scores obtained by certain car seat models would be completely different.
In the event of a head-on collisionwhich is the most common type of collision in road accidents, the risk of cervical injuries increases significantly when children travel in a car seat facing the road. Several studies, based on actual accidents, have shown that the risk of death or serious injury in a collision was 5 times higher in children travelling in a car seat facing the road (forward-facing) than among those travelling in a rear facing car seat (rear-facing). Young children have a relatively large and heavy head. A baby's neck is not yet sufficiently developed to support its head. For a baby aged 5 months, the head represents approximately 25% of its total body weight whereas in an adult, the head only represents than 6% of its body weight. In the event of a collision, the neck of a child in a car seat facing the road is subjected to very violent loads which can be considerably reduced. travelling with your back to the road.
Rear-facing car seats offer better support for the head and neck in a frontal impact. On the other hand, in a seat facing the road, the head is thrown violently forward which can cause serious injuries. The forces exerted on a child's neck are so strong that car seats facing the road have no chance of passing the Plus Test.
Why is the most demanding test so demanding?
These are mainly three factors that make the Plus Test extremely difficult to achieve: Higher than normal speed, very short braking distance and measurement of the forces exerted on the neck of the dummy at the moment of impact.
- The test speed is higher than that used by European standards ECE R44 and R129 (i-Size). The car is travelling at 56.5 km/h instead of 50 km/h which generates significantly higher forces at the moment of collision.
- The braking distance is significantly shorter. When you combine a short stopping distance with a higher speed, the impact on the car seat at the moment of collision is more brutal and the forces exerted on the car seat are more violent.
- To make testing even more difficult, the forces exerted on the dummy's neck are carefully measured using sensors. For example, in a frontal impact, if the car seat exceeds 122 kg (or 1220 Newton) in terms of the force exerted on the neck, it will not receive Plus Test certification.
There are three ways of obtaining the Plus Test. Car seats approved according to European standard ECE R44/04 can be certified up to 18 kg for models using the ISOFIX attachment or up to 25 kg for models using seat belts. Car seats approved according to i-Size standard (or R129) can be certified up to 105 cm maximum. The maximum load tolerated for car seats authorising up to 18 kg (with the use of a Q3 test dummy of 14.5 kg) is 1220 Kg Newton i.e. a towing load of 122 kg. The maximum permissible load for car seats authorising up to 25 kg (with the use of a Q6 test dummy of 22.9 kg) is 1640 Kg Newton i.e. a tensile load of 164 kg. The limits used in the Plus Test were determined following analysis of thousands of road accidents over the years.
In this example, the maximum load measured at neck level in the car seat facing the road, was 1852 Newtons and far exceeded the 1220 Newton load limit. In contrast, the rear-facing car seat only achieved a load of 394 Newtonwell below the maximum limit of 4.7 times less force exerted. The difference is even more striking when compared with the images of the dummy at the time of the collision, as we can clearly see that the head is thrown violently forward in the forward-facing seat. It is important to specify that car seat manufacturers voluntarily submit their products for testing these tests and that they do not in any way replace those carried out to obtain European standards R44/04 and R129 (i-Size)but complement them. To distinguish them, PLUS TEST car seats are all a special gold label indicating that the seat has passed the various tests. It says the maximum weight or height category authorised by the car seat and its serial number.Given the difficulty of the test, only about fifteen car seats have succeeded in obtaining Swedish Plus Test certification. You can find full details of all the car seats tested at the official website of the NTF (National Society for Road Safety)the Swedish road safety organisation.
Which Car Seats Have Passed The Swedish Plus Test
To help you find the best car seat that has passed the Plus Test, we have compiled the full list of car seats certified to date in the table below.
Standard | Child's height / weight | Pivoting | Fixing system | Installation | VTI NUMBER | Prices | |
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R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | ISOFIX with strut or seatbelt | Rear Facing | VTI-0003 | |||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0005 | |||
i-Size (R129) | From 67 to 105 cm (approx. 6 months to 4 years) | Avionaut IQ base with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0023 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 125 cm (approx. 6 months to 7 years) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0037 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 125 cm (approx. 6 months to 7 years) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | ||||
Axkid One+ | i-Size (R129) | From birth to 125 cm (approx. 7 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0037 | SEE PRICE | |
Axkid One+ 2 | i-Size (R129) | From birth to 125 cm (approx. 7 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | |||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0008 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1/2 (Birth - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut | Rear Facing | SEE PRICE | |||
i-Size (R129) | 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx.) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0041 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx.) | Base Axkid Modukid | Rear Facing | VTI-0032 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Safety belts | Rear Facing | VTI-0018 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | ISOFIX with strut and tether straps) or seatbelt up to 18kg then seatbelt only up to 25kg | Rear Facing | VTI-0013 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0011 | |||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0002 | |||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0011 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0011 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | iZi Modular i-Size Base with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0017 | |||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | iZi Modular i-Size Base with strut | Rear Facing | SEE PRICE | |||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1/2 (Birth - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0010 | |||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1/2 (Birth - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0010 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 105 cm (6 months to 4 years approx.) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0025 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0027 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx.) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0040 | |||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | ||||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0009 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1/2 (Birth - 25 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0004 | |||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1/2 (Birth - 25 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0006 | |||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0007 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Safety belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0007 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0021 | SEE PRICE |
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i-Size (R129) | 61 to 105 cm (3 months to 4 years approx.) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0024 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0016 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | ||||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | IsoFamily i-Size base | Rear Facing | VTI-0036 | SEE PRICE | ||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0033 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | ||||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx. ) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0038 | |||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx. ) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0039 | |||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | VTI-0020 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | ISOFIX with strut or seatbelt | Rear Facing | VTI-0015 | SEE PRICE | ||
R44/04 | Group 1 (9 - 18 kg) | Belt with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0020 | |||
i-Size (R129) | From 61 to 125 cm (6 months to 7 years approx. ) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | SEE PRICE | |||
i-Size (R129) | 67 to 105 cm (6 months to 7 years approx.) | FamilyFix One base with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0012 | Scandinavian version of the Pearl Pro &. Pearl Smart but only with your back to the road |
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Group 0+/1 (Birth - 18 kg) | Rear Facing | VTI-0014 | |||||
i-Size (R129) | From birth to 105 cm (approx. 4 years old) | ISOFIX with strut | Rear Facing | VTI-0035 | Scandinavian version of the Nuna REBL Plus, but with its back to the road only | ||
R44/04 | Group 1/2 (9 - 25 kg) | Belt with strut and tether straps | Rear Facing | Identical to Britax Max-Way |
To assess their level of safety and reliability, each car seat is subjected to the following tests very strict specifications. Obtaining the More Test is a guarantee of maximum quality and an excellent way of getting to know the safest car seats on the market. When you want your child to travel with his back to the road for as long as possible, Plus Test car seats represent one of the best possible choices. Although some models allow you to travel with a child from birth, it is preferable to travel with a child from birth. give preference to the hull (or cosi) for baby's first few months, because these car seats are particularly adapted to their morphology and designed to meet to best meet their needs. Once your child is a little older, you can change seats so that you can continue to look after them. go to travelling rear facing while offering the best possible protection in the event of an accident.