Seeking Suitable Convertible Car Seat

I love my britax boulevard. It was pricey, but I got it on closeout online and it was not so bad. I had a 5 month old 18-pounder, so I understand needing a new seat!

The reasons I got it - #1 safety - it has great reviews about its safety and the side impact "wings" on the sides are great. #2 - Its also good until they go into a booster seat. I can't remember the weight and height limits, but they were big enough so that I won't need another seat until he's in a booster.

HTH!

Hi E.,
My husband and I are in the same boat with my 7 month old...she is 20 pounds and I cannot carry her in the infant car seat anymore. We bought the Britax marathon. It has the HUGS system, LATCH system, and the 5 point harness. It goes up to 65 pounds and is convertible. My doctor liked this brand. I like it has only been about a week. It is a little pricey...but t=right now a lot of places are having sales any you can get it with no tax and no shipping charge. Any questions just write me a note!

About me: SAHM used to teach Kindergarten. First child.

Britax Marathon - I would recommend it without any reservations. We have 2 of them and LOVE them. They wear so well (after 3 yrs they look almost new), are comfortable and easy to install with Latch. We also have an Evenflo in a separate car, but the Marathon by far is better. And if you look at reviews, you will see that Britax is always near the 5-star rating.

good luck!

By convertible, I assume you mean you can install it forward or rear facing... or do you mean you want one that can be used as a booster? The Marathon can not work as a booster.

E.,
I am a HUGE fan of the Britax. They are a little more pricey, but worth it in my opinion. I personally invested in the Britax Roundabout. Each of us has our favorites. It is rumored that Britax is going to be having a sale at the end of the month. So keep an eye out for it. Also, if you go over to Consumer Reports, you can find some stuff on theit site about the seats and ratings of each. If you really want some info, you can head over to ivillage and search the Car Seat boards or go to www.car-safety.org. One site a HIGHLY recommend is http://babycheapskate.blogspot.com/ If you scroll down the blog, there is a post about the Britax and how much people are paying. This is an AWESOME site based out of Atlanta, but moms all over right in to tell the deals they are getting. It is also a free site to join on. Hope this helps.

Our son was always huge (10 lbs at birth and 20 by 6 mos) We had to stop using a pumpkin seat by 4 mos because of his length. We bought the Eddie Bauer Car Seat. It can be used while the child is still in infant (backwards). It can be flipped for forward facing to 45 lbs and then be converted to a booster with a back for up to 90 lbs I think. We loved it, and bought 2 so we each had one in our car. We plan on using it for baby #2 also. Hope it helps.

Hi E., I am with a lot of other moms here. Britax is the way to go. I have been through a few car seats in the last 2 years....I had and envenflo triumph. When I first got it I loved it....until my daughter through up in it. You cant remove the straps to clean it....so I tried to spray it out in the shower and the was too hot apparently and the foam that protects them just came out....nice huh? After doing a ton of research, Britax is the best in comfort and safety. A lot of there car seats have high weight limits and true side impact protection. Look at there website and watch the videos....you will be sold. They are a bit heavy....but do you really want a light weight car seat to protect your little one.
good luck...
T.

We have three young children and at least twice as many car seats. After our second was born and we were expecting our third we finally decided to invest in a Britax Marathon car seat. We only wished that we had done it sooner. I have no complaints. The straps are very easy to adjust so you can accomidate bulkier clothes easily and ensure that no matter what they are wearing the straps are just right to ensure safety. It has all kinds of great features--velcro to hold the straps back while you put the little one in, padding around the straps so they don't cut in to baby's neck or give burns as you snug up the straps, very comfortable, well padded, easy to install, and it goes up to 60 or 65 lbs. It is more expensive but deffinatley worth the investment especially if you plan to have more. Good luck.

E. - I love our Triumph car seat, it sits up nice and high (as my little one grows though, I keep konking his head on the ceiling of our car when I put him in. Guess it's time for a mini-van or SUV huh?

We have two Cosco Alpha Omega seats (one in each car) and we love them. They are pretty long when you have them rear-facing, so in compact cars you may have to put it in the passenger seat instead of the middle, but as soon as your child turns a year old you can turn it around and put it in the middle. We have a Taurus wagon and didn't have a problem, but we had to put it on the passenger side with our Saturn (compact car). The Alpha Omega seats are very easy to adjust-you can recline them by just pulling a lever, and my daughter is very comfortable in them. These seats truly do grow with your child. My daughter is 28 months old, very tall for her age (about the size of a 3 year old), and she still has plenty of room. She didn't "drown" in it when she was little, either. If you travel, they fit just fine in the smaller planes (i.e. Comair's CRJ's). When the seat gets dirty you can pull it apart and wash all the fabric pieces in the washer. The first couple times pulling it apart (or installing it) you need to look at the instructions, but after that, it's a piece of cake. You also never have to take the seat apart and rethread it when your child grows. You just pull up on a bar in the back, and in one second, you're done. As far as safety, they are rated very highly. They turn into a booster seat as well, so you can save money and space by not having to buy three seats. Oh, they don't have those annoying puzzle buckles, either- I can't stand those! Easy to use, but not so easy that my 28 month old can figure out how to get out! Good luck!

We had Cosco Alpha Omega convertible carseats, and we loved them. I recommend them to everyone.

The Britax are the best! I believe they are rated the safest. They are a little pricey, I think that we payed around $275 for ours. The cool thing about them is that you can use the forward or rear facing and they are easy to get in and out. Babies r us has them but they did not have the color I wanted so I looked online and and got the one that I wanted and for a better price. Once I ordered it I received in about 3 days.

I love our Evenflo Triumph car seat. It's so easy to install and use. My favorite part is that it is really easy to adjust the straps, so going between big coats and spring jackets is a snap. We've used both the latch and the belt and were able to get it in nice and tight. The top tether is a breeze to adjust - nothing like our other Eddie Bauer toddler seat, what a pain. Also, Consumer Reports rates it just as high as the Britax, but it's much cheaper.

look into any of the britax brand seats. you can get on the website, and compare all of the convertible seats that they offer. your son sound very big for his age though, so you may consider looking into a seat like the britax regent. it is not a convertible so you would have to wait until your son is between 10 and 12 months old, but the regent has the tallest shoulder to hip hight of any seat iv'e found. many limit out at around 14-16 inches, and my two year old niece has already outgrown this limit. all of the britax seats are priced higher than some (about 250 dollars) and are a bit large, but they are the only seats that currently offer true side impact protection. i have owned a marathon, witch is a great convertible seat, and just got a regent and a large booster for my one year old and my 5 year old. remember when shopping that many states, including Kentucky are trying to pass a law that your child need to be in a five point harness until age four, so get a seat that can accomidate a tall, or large 4 year old since you dont know how big your son may be.

Hi E., I just swtitched by 7 mo. old daughter to the Britax Roundabout a month ago. I found it easy to install (with the latch system) and easy to get her in and out. The way the straps fit is a different from the Graco Snugride...the middle strap between their legs is short and not adjustible on purpose. Also, you don't hear a "click" until the second strap is buckled into the middle restraint.

Why we went Britax:
Consumer reports rated the Britax Roundabaout and Evenflo Triumph as the top 2 convertible car seats. My sister in law first tried the Evenflo Triumph, but a piece of the foam broke off after only a few months. When she contacted the company they refused to replace anything under warranty. She then went with the Roundabout which she felt was a much sturdier seat. Her son pulled off a piece of foam from that seat and Britax replaced it for free no questions asked.

Why we went Roundabout:
I first tried the Britax Boulevard which goes up to 65 lbs and has the side impact protection but felt it was too big for our car ('08 Highlander). It was also very heavy which would be a problem when we take it on plane trips. However, Britax did just come out with a smaller version of the Blvd with side impact protection.

Hi E.- I have been looking for the last 2 months for a convertible carseat. I'm a 1st time mom. My 11 month old is small -- 17 1/2 lbs and 28 1/4 inches. My mommy friends either loved britax or didn't. And either loved triumph or didn't. I found a wonderful clerk at Babies R Us today -- who didn't try to sway me one way or the other, but pointed out the features of all the carseats.

I ended up paying for 2 Britax Marathons -- since we both drive my daughter to the babysitter. I had 2 15% off coupons -- so saved myself 80 bucks. (FYI - they are giving the coupon books away now (I was there today) and inside there were 2 15% off coupons starting 2/25).

I was able to buy an insert since she is small - but will be able to use this one for a long time to come. Worth the investment to me.

The Britax Roundabout is a top choice in the book 'Baby Bargains' - the best bang for your buck.

I love the Britax car seat. They are a bit on the pricey side but it is so worth the money. We bought a Eddie Bauer seat to use for my husband car and we absolutely hate it! The britax is very easy to use and I much prefer moving that one between cars than the E.B. The latch system on the britax is so easy to use. We are in the process of buying a second one for our 2nd child. Like I said so worth the money also Target has them on sale right now. We have the Marathon and it hold up to 65 pounds. Hope that helps you out!

I have to disagree with alot here. My dh and a neighbor are both car seat techs and will tell you that Britax is a waste of money. ALL car seats have to pass the exact same safety standards to be put on the market..so their $300 seat is no safer than the $40 Cosco Scenera.Yes, you may find more comfort in their added "bells and whistles" like HUGE side wings and padding but that don't make it safer, just bulkier. I had a Graco for my son that I paid $100 for and it was perfect. It had side wings (although no as huge as a Britax) and was super easy to install and adjust. My friend bought the Britax Marathon for her son and ended up returning it since he cried over and over in it and she had a hard time installing it in her SUV and it didn't fit at all in her dh's car. Also, the Regent is forward facing only and you want your son to be rear facing as long as possible. It is now recommened till at least age 2. While the law is 1 yr AND 20lbs to turn forward, that's not necesarilly the safest. We just put my son in the Graco Nautilus that is just $149. He'll be in this till out of seats around age 8. It harnesses to 65lbs with 18" top harness slots, then makes one of the best belt positioning boosters. Unfortunately for you, this is foward facing only so you have some time before a seat like this would fit your needs.
Babycenter also has a wonderful car seat safety board and once knowing your car, son's age and weight, and your budget, they can direct you to a seat to fit your needs.
Good luck!

Dear E. and all other interested Moms,

I know that a lot of what is listed below is going to rave rave rave about Britax being the best. I wanted to offer you another way of thinking about car seats. First, there is the safety issue.

Second, why not consider how toxic a carseat is, and whether it might be affecting your child's health? There have been a lot of articles linked to research that suggest the flame retardants found in many household items (including car seats!) could be absorbed by our precious babies' skin and potentially manifest through some serious long term health problems.

The website
http://www.healthycar.org

offers opportunities to search by type of seat, model and gives you best/worst in class breakdown options too.

www.safbaby.com notes from this:
"The very best choices for car seats/boosters (when it comes to lowest toxic concern) are:

* infant: Graco SnugRide Emerson and Evenflo Discovery Infant Churchill
* convertible: Cosco Scenara 5-point and Eddie Bauer 3 in 1 Convertible Montecito
* boosters: Evenflo Big Kid No-back Gold Dust and Britax Parkway Express

A note to the consumer: Just because one model of a specific brand is rated as the least toxic, does NOT mean that every model of this specific brand is rated the same way."

I have a large baby and invested in the Eddie Bauer Montecito when we had to upgrade to front facing. So far, although it doesn't seem to have a lot of padding and stuff, it does the job and keeps him snug.

I have a Britax Decathalon and love it, my daughter is now two and we have been using it since she was aabout 9 months. I like it because it will go up to 65lbs. I do know that Britax is the only(at the time of purchase) that test their car seats at 65mph impact. Another reason that I choose this one over others.

Good luck

We recently moved our just-turned-three daughter out of a Britax Roundabout that we really liked. We had to move her out b/c she hit the weight AND height limits for the seat (she is 40 lbs and 40 inches tall). The Roundabout was very easy to use: the straps never twisted and it was easy to pull them nice and tight against her. Also, easy to get a very tight fit in the vehicle. We thought it was a great seat. We now have her in a Sunshine Kids Radian 65 (65 for 65 # forward facing weight limit). We would have put her into another Britax, but we want to keep her in a 5-point harness for as long as possible, and the only Britax that would have worked long term (with her height) is not approved for airline use (We couldn't even go with the Britax Marathon, because she is too tall for it -- it only accommodates a seated shoulder height of 16", whereas the Radian accommodates a seated shoulder height of 18"). So, we went with the Sunshine Kids Radian 65. We like it a lot. It has a cool design in that it is narrower than other seats (can fit three across in the back seat!) but actually has more shoulder room (is wider inside than other seats). Oh, it rear faces up to 33 pounds, which is great since you should rear face your child past one year/twenty pounds (the American Academy of Pediatrics says one year and twenty pounds is the MINIMUM and recommends keeping kids rear facing as long as possible). I took it to be inspected at AAA and they were impressed with the seat and with the VERY tight fit we got using LATCH. The seat does not budge. It was $200, so not cheap, but... check it outline. It gets lots of great reviews. Hope this helps.

I second (or maybe third?) the vote for the Alpha Omega seat. We have a 4-year-old and an 8-year-old, and we still use the seats we bought for them as boosters. They've been in and out of cars, adjusted for size, pulled apart and washed, and all the other torture you can put a car seat through. They've held up wonderfully.

We started out with a pumpkin shell just to have something to carry the girls in when they were really tiny, but went to the A/O from there, and REALLY like them.

I have to go with the majority here E.... I invested in the Britax Marathon almost a year ago and I LOVE IT!! It literally takes 2 or 3 minutes to install if you have the latch system in your vehicle. Once installed, it doesn't move an inch! It is quick and easy to install, it is really nice looking, my daughter enjoys sitting in it, and most importantly it is very safe. The Britax is definately worth the investment.

Hi. I understand about changing the car seat early. My son weighed about the same your son did when he was that age. (He's 13 months and weighs 31 pounds). Before I bought another car seat, I read online at Babiesrus.com and Amazon.com to see what readers liked the best.

A mother said she had a Britax Marathon carseat. She said she and her two sons were involved in a car accident. She and her eight year old son were injured. The car was totalled. She said her baby in the Britax car seat was not injured in any way.

That was enough for me. So I bought the Britax Decathlon cuz the seat had more cushion than the Marathon. Another reason why I bought this car seat...Because my son weighed so much, I wanted a car seat that I could keep for awhile. Rear facing is up to 35 pounds and front facing is up to 65 pounds.

Hope this helps.

S.

We have the Britax Roundabout and love it. It got really good ratings on Consumer Reports - that is why we bought it. It is better than the Marathon in crash tests, fyi. Plus the Marathon is really big.

We put my daughter in it when she was 6 months old. She cried and cried in her infant seat and the first time she rode in the Britax she stopped crying. Facing the back it has an extra harness to keep it from moving and then facing front the latch system gets it really secure. We love it and will buy one for our son when he gets big enough, too.

Best car seat in the world - Britax. They have 3 or 4 lines of seats, however, we bought the one that lasts with the child til they are 4. OUr daughter started using it at 6 months ....safest seat I have ever bought. It is a little more expensive....but worth it because I never had to buy another one.