uk car seats

[Unregistered]

Hi, we live in England.
I have a 34lb 38" 3 year old daughter. She is currently in a nania convertable carseat FF. She has nearly outgrown it. I need a new one for her that will last a while. I would like a 5 point harness until at least 4-5 years and if possible to recline as she still sleeps in the car but that is not a necessity. Also no dearer really than around £100.

I also have a 3 month old son, he is currently 13 lbs and in an infant carrier, I will be lloking soon for a convertable carseat soon for him as he is getting to heavy to carry around!

Any suggestions, Thanks

[mommytojoshmadty]

Hi,
No seat in the uk harness past 40lbs - so once your daughter hits that point - its a booster regardless.

That said, at only 34lbs she has another 6lbs to go before needing a booster - that could be ages away.
I have a 5 year old who is 34lbs and my daughter is around 28lbs at 3.

Both are currently in Recaro Young sports

Lovely and comfy and turn into booster once over the weight limit. has a slight reclinea and both look comfy when they fall asleep.
A doddle to install in all the cars i have tried, and the covers remove and wash great.

We have 6 of them (guess we love them!)
2 in my car, 2 in hubbys car and 2 in grandparents car.

The other one we looked at was the Britax Evolva Ultra - does the same thing and turns into a booster at 40lbs. But it was a nightmare to install, either too lose, or just did not fit in all the cars we would have needed it in. You would have to try in your car and check to see fit. - halfords is good for this, that is where we went.

For your son, I would go with a car seat that has the ability to rf him for longer then turn ff.

In the uk, not many options for that and the only one i have owned is a Britax First Class which is great. Rf to 29lbs.

Others are :-
Concord Ultimax
Graco Junior Mini
Nania Spider, Driver, Maxim, Sprinter
My Child Remi Travel Basic
Jane Racing
Recaro Polaric (rf only)

Hope this helps? Where are you based, I am South Manchester.

[Unregistered]

Hi, thanks for replying.
I can't believe none in the uk harness past 40lbs!

I'll go to halfords at weekend and check out the seats you suggested. She's a while off the weight limit but her head is over the shell of the one we've got now, she's really tall for her age. Do you know if toys r us help you install as I've got some vouchers for there.

We're near you, in Bolton. I start uni in Salford next year so we might be moving to Salford, not sure yet!

[Adventuredad]

Hi there,

One alternative for you would be to buy a Swedish rear facing seat which can keep your child rear facing until 25 kg. (55 lbs). This way she would be far safer than any forward facing seat. Most kids here in
Sweden sit rear facing until age 4-5 and then move straight into a belt positioning booster. Downside for you is price is much more than 100 gbp. The Swedish seats are of course certified or use in Europe (ECE R44) and are becoming more popular as people find out about them and their great benefits.

In Europe, including Sweden, we don't keep older kids harnessed for a simple reason. It's not considered any safer by the leading car seat safety experts over here. The steps over here are infant seat, rear facing until age 4-5, and then a good belt positioning boster with nice SIP. I know everyone looks at the youtube videos of harness vs. booster an think it's so much safer harnessed since the child barely moves. That's also the greatest weakness because of the weak neck muscles in children. People also forget that BPB have some other benefits except for pure crash testing that also improve safety in the long run.:twocents:

I think your daughter is way too young for a booster right now, it has more to do with age than just body weight. I can understand your frustraton about finding seats, UK is not doing well in helping parents with car seat safety.

Your best option might be to get a seat that harnesses until 40 lbs and then use it as a booster as previous poster mentioned. Don't freak out about the safety part, a child is about as safe in a harness as in a good belt positioning booster.

If you need hep in getting a Swedish rear facing car seat, please let me know. It will be way more than 100 gbp but far safer.:twocents:

Nice weeekend