Chicco Nextfit Installation and Cleaning Instructions
This guide will teach you how to install and adjust your Chicco Nextfit car seat and how to remove and clean the fabrics. Let's dive right in!
How to Install the Chicco Nextfit Car Seat In Rear-Facing Position With the LATCH System
- 1Squeeze the recline adjustment handle at the foot of the seat.
- 2Pull the seat forward to adjust to the reclined position.
- 3Place the Chicco Nextfit car seat on your seat in a rear-facing position.
- 4Check to ensure that the Nextfit car seat base is flat on the seat. It should not be blocking the car's buckle.
- 5Look at the side of the Nextfit car seat with the position bubble. Check that the bubble is in between the two lines indicated "Rear Facing." If it is not between those two lines, adjust the seat properly.
- 6Check to ensure that the overhang at the edge of the car seat does not go beyond 3 inches of the vehicle's seat. If you have a Chicco Nextfit Max, there is a line on the base titled "Rear-Facing Maximum Overhang" for guidance.
- 7On the sides of the Nextfit car seat, you will see LATCH connector storage compartments. Remove the LATCH connectors straps.
- 8Loosen the LATCH connector strap that says, "Pull first," and the super cinch LATCH labeled "Pull second" are both loosened as far as possible.
- 9Pull each strap toward the foot of the Nextfit car seat into the blue rear-facing openings available on each side — close LATCH compartments.
- 10Find the LATCH anchor bars available in your vehicle's seat and attach the connectors to the bars.
- 11Locate the strap that says "Pull first." Pull it up as much as possible.
- 12Locate the super cinch strap labeled "Pull second" and pull down.
- 13Check that the Nextfit car seat is secure by attempting to lift it and move it side to side. If it moves more than one inch, it is not secure and should be tightened further.
- 14Double-check the bubble to ensure it is still in between the correct lines.
The following video offers a visual for these steps:
How to Install the Chicco Nextfit In Forward Facing Position
Before you turn your Nextfit car seat around, check to ensure that your child meets the minimum height and weight requirements. These requirements are set in place to provide optimal safety for children.
There are two separate ways you can install the Nextfit in a forward-facing position: with the LATCH (lower anchors and tethers for children) system and with the seat belt from your vehicle.
Installing With the LATCH System
- 1Find the top tether storage compartment on the back of the Chicco Nextfit.
- 2Open the storage compartment, squeeze the adjuster button on the strap, and pull down to loosen it.
- 3Unhook the tether clip before closing the compartment.
- 4Squeeze the adjustment handle at the foot of the car seat while pushing the back of the seat into an upright position.
- 5Put the Chicco Nextfit on your vehicle's seat facing forward.
- 6Slide the tether clip and strap between the seat and the headrest of your vehicle's seat.
- 7Ensure that the base is flat on the seat and that the vehicle's headrest does not interfere with the car seat's headrest.
- 8Check the bubble indicator to make sure the bubble falls between the two lines marked for the forward-facing position. Readjust the car seat if the bubble is not in the correct place.
- 9Find the LATCH storage compartments on each side of the car seat and pull the LATCH connectors out.
- 10Loosen the LATCH connector strap that says, "Pull first," and the super cinch LATCH labeled "Pull second" are both loosened as far as possible.
- 11Pull each strap toward the back of the Nextfit car seat into the forward-facing openings on each side that are indicated in red.
- 12Close LATCH storage compartments.
- 13Find the LATCH anchor bars available in your vehicle's seat and attach the connectors to the bars.
- 14Locate the strap that says "Pull first." Pull it up as much as possible.
- 15Locate the super cinch strap labeled "Pull second" and pull down.
- 16Find the tether anchor on your vehicle's seat. It should be on the back of your seat, close to the bottom.
- 17Clip on the tethering hook.
- 18Pull the strap as tightly as possible.
- 19Grab your Chicco Nextfit car seat at the belt path. Attempt to move it back and forth and then side to side. If it moves more than an inch, it needs to be tightened further.
- 20Double-check your bubble indicator to ensure the car seat is still in the right position.
You can view the following video for a visual of each step.
Installing With A Seat Belt
- 1Find the top tether storage compartment on the back of the Chicco Nextfit.
- 2Open the storage compartment, squeeze the adjuster button on the strap, and pull down to loosen it.
- 3Unhook the tether clip before closing the compartment.
- 4Squeeze the adjustment handle at the foot of the car seat while pushing the back of the seat into an upright position.
- 5Put the Chicco Nextfit on your vehicle's seat facing forward.
- 6Slide the tether clip and strap between the seat and the headrest of your car's seat.
- 7Ensure that the base is flat on the seat and that the vehicle's headrest does not interfere with the Nextfit's headrest.
- 8Check the bubble indicator to make sure the bubble falls between the two lines marked for the forward-facing position. Readjust the car seat if the bubble is not in the correct place.
- 9Loosen the harness, unbuckle it, and lift the headrest panel behind it.
- 10Unsnap and pull down the backrest panel.
- 11Pull the vehicle seat belt through the belt path at the back of the car seat that is indicated in red.
- 12Pull through to the forward-facing opening on the other side.
- 13Snap the seat belt into place.
- 14Push down on the seat of the Nextfit while pulling the seat belt as tightly as possible.
- 15Continue pulling the seat belt while sliding it into the Lock-Off section on the side of the car seat. Always use the Lock-Off that is on the opposite side of your vehicle's seat buckle.
- 16Snap the backrest panel back into place before folding the headrest panel back down. Be sure that no straps or buckles are left behind these panels.
- 17Find the tether anchor on your vehicle's seat. It should be on the back of your seat, close to the bottom.
- 18Clip on the tethering hook.
- 19Pull the strap as tightly as possible.
- 20Grab your Chicco Nextfit car seat at the belt path. Attempt to move it back and forth and then side to side. If it moves more than an inch, it needs to be tightened further.
- 21Double-check your bubble indicator to ensure the car seat is still in the right position.
This video can provide additional insight.
How to Remove Chicco Nextfit Zip Cover
- 1Unbuckle the harness and find the tab on the crotch strap pad.
- 2Push the tab through the buckle, and pull it completely out of the harness buckle.
- 3Remove the crouch strap pad.
- 4Unsnap the bottom of the seat panel.
- 5Find the zipper tab at the top of the back of the seat.
- 6Unzip it completely from the car seat.
- 7Pull the seat panel off by removing it from the harness release button.
- 8Push the buckle through the seat.
- 9At the headrest, begin pulling the seat panel up and off of the seat.
You can see how to remove the zip cover in this video:
How to Clean a Chicco Nextfit Car Seat
There are two ways to clean the Chicco Nextfit car seat. You can spot clean with mild soap and water. You can also machine wash by following these steps:
- 1Remove the zip cover.
- 2Machine wash on the delicate cycle with cold water.
- 3Only use mild detergent — no bleach or harsh chemicals as they can destroy the zip cover.
- 4Hang the fabric to dry.
- 5Replace all fabrics prior to using the car seat again.
The video in the previous section provides a quick explanation of washing the zip cover. This video provides a more in-depth explanation of cleaning the entire car seat.
The following video gives additional instructions on removing and replacing fabrics to prepare for washing.
Chicco Nextfit Manual
For additional information on the use, care, and maintenance of your Chicco Nextfit car seat, you can download the manual for any model at the following link:
Growing up I was a carefree male going about life like there was no tomorrow. Naturally, I ‘grew’ up, settled down and started a family.
Going from an independent carefree male to a family man was somewhat of a U-turn and required a lot of learning. Luckily for me, my wife works in education and has always been the shining light always ahead of me on all factors kids related.
Initially, my wife didn’t have a driving license (luckily this has now changed and it does make life easier), and all things car related were my task. Child locks were the obvious starting point which lead me down a rabbit hole.
So far we have personally tested dozens of convertible car seats and have owned five despite neither of our kids having reached the age of 5! Simply put, a car seat can be great on paper, work great on trying out but can fail on you in real life.
This is why I have put together this website – to help inform and educate you!
Of course, as I mentioned above, at the end of the day your experience will be the best test so I’d love to hear your experiences and feedback in the comments.
To contact me personally, please do so through my contact page.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Peter
P.S. If you click a link on my site and end up buying a car seat on Amazon, I’ll get paid a small commission (or as the Amazon lawyers put it: “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases”)
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