Hi all - I am hoping that your good advice will help me make an educated decision! We are leaving for vacation soon and need to buy a second car seat for the plane ride and need one that will also be comfortable for a 2-3 hour drive from Orlando to Naples. (We will be at Walt Disney World for a few days and then driving to see my in laws for a day or two so not a lot a "driving" time!) Also this second car seat will be in my car as a back up in case my husband cannot pick up the kids in time. We currently have a Grace Nautilus 3-1 in his car...
I just read some reviews on Target.com and am deciding between the Graco SportsComfort and the Cosco Scenera. Both had their pros and cons of course and I will probably purchase one this week. Both are on sale! Also, I am not looking to purchase another expensive car seat since this one will be our "back up." Any helpful advice and suggestions would be much appreciated! Thank you! :)
Thanks for all of your replies! We ended taking our Graco seat w/us and had no problems on the plane or w/our rental car! But boy was it heavy carrying through the airport! :-)
We have the Cosco Scenera as a back up in my husbands truck. They haven't been on a long trip with it so I'm not sure how comfortable they will be, the padding is pretty thin. It is nice and light though and gets great reviews. We also have Britax car seats as the kids primary seats. They are way more comfortable but are heavy for traveling. We got our Senera for like $45.00 on sale.
We have both those seats you mention (though my kids are 4 & 5 years old so they are not real new) and given the choice between them I like the Comfortsport better in terms of padding/comfort, though kids do outgrow it faster as others mentioned. We got the Scenera just as a backup and it worked of course, but very minimal padding and features...great for a very inexpensive backup seat. You didn't say how old your child is, but have you considered the next stage up in car seat? Is your child forward facing yet? The booster with 5 point harness I think is a great backup seat since it works for a child 20-100 pounds. I like the Graco CarGo seat for this. I like the Graco CarGo seat better than the Comfortsport or Scenera. I'm not a big fan of Cosco's latches/buckles overall. I like Graco's for their simplicity and convenience.
even though it's only a backup, you don't want to buy a cheap seat because your child may outgrow it before you even need it as a backup, which would be more of a waste of money than paying more but actually having time to use it. IMO.
i didn't realize this... but my older daughter was very tall, and she outgrew her Comfort Sport by her SECOND birthday!!! By height, not weight... which is just as important, and not as well advertized. I believe the harness strap height of the comfortsport was 14 inches, as opposed to the nautilus you own, is probably more like 18 inches. That's a HUGE difference in the length of time you can use this seat, know what I mean? Because that is a 5 inch difference in torso height, not even overall that the kid could use it... equaling YEARS longer to use the seat.
We had both, the Graco Snugride when she was an infant that was pretty nice, we got a base for each car since we werent sure who was going to pick her up at daycare every day, and the bases weren't too expensive. When she outgrew the infant seat we got a Costco forward facing, one for each car, and they've been nice, also. We're looking at upgrading to a Costco booster, one of the ones that has a removable back for when she gets older, just because her feet are touching the back of the front seat in her current car seat. Darn long legs. :-)
The Comfortsport is a huge waste of money. most kids outgrow it by their 2nd birthdays in height! It has the shortest shell on the market and the top harness slots are a full 3-6" SHORTER than other seats on the market for less money. Most car seat experts call it the 'crappysport' for those reasons. They are so not worth they money!
you didn't say how old your child is ,but since his full time seat is a Nautilus, I'm guessing your child is over 2/3 yrs old. The Scenera fits most kids well to age 3-4, so you should check your child in the seat at the store before buying it. my oldest outgrew the Scenera at age 3, my youngest was able to use it to age 4 as our travel seat. It will harness to 40lbs and the top harness slot is ok. So check yoru child before buying.
The Nautilus can be taken on the flight, so instead of buying a new seat your son can't use for long, bring the Nautilus and strap him right into the airplane like the car. He will be more comfortable, and you will have a seat when you arrive at your destination.
NEVER check a car seat. The damage done to a car seat while stowed with luggage under the plane is the same that is sustained in a collision in the vehicle. The seat will not be treated with care, it will have bags and other luggage thrown on it, and it will be shifted and thrown around during flight. NEVER CHECK A CAR SEAT!
So bring his seat, strap him in on the flight and bring it in the rental with you. FAmiliarity is great while on vacation, nad he will be safe. No extra money spent. But if you do insist on buying another seat, avoid the Comfortsport. The Scenera is great, but again try him in it before buying it, and DO NOT CHECK IT WITH BAGGAGE! bring it on the plane.
Not sure whether you are wanting info on infant or convertible seats, but I had a Graco infant seat. I had the larger version (I'm not sure which is which but one is quite a bit bigger than the other) that came in a travel system, and it was a beast. It was heavy and bulky and didn't fit well in public places. So I would get a smaller carseat next time, but otherwise I was happy with it. I did some research when I was looking to get a convertible, and I checked the Consumer Product recall website: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prerel.html and just kinda compared which carseats had the most recalls. I would not use a Costco, Eddie Bauer, or Doral carseat (all the same company) just because of the shear number of recalls they had in comparison to others. I don't know anything about them personally except for that. This is another website I used also: http://cpsafety.com/default.aspx along with the consumer reports website.
*Edit*
Ok, you were editing your question as I was answering. :) So now knowing what you are looking for more specifically, I can't really help you except to tell you to check those websites out. All carseats are going to be considered safe, so if there is any way to bring your child in to sit in them both, that is probably your best bet to find the most comfortable one. Every seat fits differently based on height and weight of the child.
