Britax Diplomat vs Boulevard Dilema which one to choose???

[Mommy2Three]

Can't decide which one would be better suited for our family...

We've got a 3 yr old (this week) whose 36inches/92cm tall and has a sitting height of 12inches/31cm who is currently sitting in a Eddie Bauer 3 in 1 forward facing (no idea how much she weighes at the moment but she's not a big girl)...we are going to stop using that Eddie Bauer car seat all together and are thinking of getting a Britax Frontier for her? Good idea for her age? :confused:

Then here is my real issue/dilema... We've got twins who are almost 1 (in two weeks time) and who are currently in Graco SnugRides, which they will outgrow in length very soon. They are 18lbs if that, and both are 28inches/71cm tall, and have a sitting height of 10inch/25cm.

Now my question to you all is...do I go for the Britax Diplomat or the Boulevard. I'd like to be able to use the car seats for quite a while...now would the Boulevard take me until they go into booster seats? Or would I have to get them Frontier type seats anyways?? If so then I'm leaning towards the Diplomat and save myself some cash...since we are going to be spending over a $1000 here anyways, Oh my!!!:twocents:

Now I really do like the Britax brand...they seem to have a good reputation and safety ratings, husband is big on car safety!!

Oh, and we drive an 06 Honda Odyssey where the twins are in the two seats in the second row and my 3 yr old is in the 3rd row on the driver side.

Thanks in advance for your help....I hope you guys have some input for me here...I've been on the site since yesterday when I found it, and you all have some great info and tips here!! But with the info overload I'm really just more confused than ever!! :dizzy:

[snowbird25ca]

To answer your original question first, if you're spending the money on a Britax seat I would absolutely skip the Diplomat and go with the Boulevard. The diplomat will be outgrown early - before the EB 3in1 seat that you're currently using by close to 1" torso height. You'd be lucky to make it to 30lbs since your kiddos are light and you'd definitely have to replace them before the twins were big enough and old enough for boosters. Since you have a mini van and space isn't an issue, I have no doubts at all about saying go for the BLVD if those are the 2 choices.

What is your reason for wanting to move the 3yr old out of the seat she's currently in? Based on your measurement it sounds like she's not that tall in the torso and likely has over a year of growing room in it yet. While I like to buy new seats as much as the next person, if the one you're using right now works fine, I wouldn't replace it right now given that you're already looking at a good chunk of change for replacing the twins' seats.

If you are going to replace the 3yr olds seat, then the Frontier would be an ok idea. She's a bit on the petite side for her age, so I would double check that she's definitely over 25lbs. My dd was just 29lbs at that age and she was 38" tall. Definitely on the long and lean side, but depending on your dd's build and proportions it's definitely possible she's not over 25lbs by that much. So I'd want to double check that before saying to go with the Frontier. Another option you could consider is the Nautilus. It also converts to a booster afterwards and has harness slots as high as the Frontier.

Britax has a good reputation, but we have no proof that their seats are actually safer. The safest seat is the one that fits your child, installs well in your vehicle, and that you find easy to use correctly every time. Almost every convertible carseat available for purchase now has energy absorbing foam, which is what I consider to be one of the most important measuring sticks in comparing *potential* protection from one seat to another. Other things that can be compared by parents visually are the depth of the shell, and if it's rigid. A deep and rigid shell is going to provide more protection than a shallow and soft shell. Again, most of the seats you'd buy have deep and rigid shells, so you'll find a lot of seats measure up equally in that regard.

Do you have stores around you that carry any of the Britax seats? I'd make that your next step truth be told. Take your kids in and sit them in different seats and see what you think.

Oh, and depending on when you bought the seat for your 3.5yr old, check to make sure it wasn't involved in the adjuster strap recall that affected a lot of the 3in1 seats manufactured between end of Nov 2003 and Dec 2005. http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/safedrivers/childsafety/notices/2007p05/menu.htm If your seat was manufactured during that time period, take a look at the adjuster lever and the adjuster strap. If the strap is narrow (approx 1" wide,) and the adjuster lever is half smooth and half horizontal ridges, then it's one that was recalled and you'll need to get the recall kit.

Hope this is a good starting place. Feel free to register to the site and in about a day or so your posts won't be moderated anymore. Registration is free and easy, and your name/email isn't passed around anywhere so you're not going to get a bunch of spam. :thumbsup:

[Mommy2Three]

Thanks for your info :D

And I've almost decided to go for the 2 Boulevards for the twins and am still contemplating the Frontier for the 3 yr old.

What I do not like about my Eddie Bauer 3 in 1 is that the harness doesn't seem to extend very far to get her in and out....and like I said she's not a big girl. I also don't get to tighten it as much as I'd like when I put the strap...maybe I'm doing something wrong?? This is our second Eddie Bauer- and the first one seemed to work much better than this one...it bugs me every time I have to put her in it. But eventually we will get a second car so we will keep it for that one, to take her to and from pre-school.

Also are my choices Boulevards and Frontier good choices for comfort? We make pretty long trips (6hrs plus) to visit back home, and want the most comportable seats I can get, they do take some naps on the trips. Are these my best choices??? Sorry, now it looks like I haven't decided after all LOL!!