booster advice please

My kids are going to be driving in my dh's truck more when I go back to work. So we need to install some restraints for my kids.

I have three boys, 1 yo, 6.5 yo, and 9.5 yo. My 6.5 yo is 47" and 45lbs. My 9.5 yo is 52" and 60lbs.

We drive a 1997 Pontiac Grand Am. I currently have the baby in a rear-facing Roundabout in the middle (it has only a lap belt so I cannot use the boosters in the middle), my 6.5 in a high-back turbo booster, and my 9.5 in a backless turbo booster. This car does have the head rests in the back seat.

We also have a 1998 Dodge Ram Truck. We are buying another Britax for the baby (probably a Boulevard) so we can have a carseat always installed in the truck. There is also an Evenflo (it is expiring soon so we have to replace it) booster my 6.5 yo uses when he is in the truck. The truck only has a lap belt in the middle also, so the carseat will have to stay in the middle.

So I was thinking of getting a couple backless turbo boosters for the truck but the seat does not have head rests. My 9.5 yo passes the seatbelt test in the truck but his ears extend beyond the back of the seat. He does not pass the seat belt test in the Pontiac. So then I thought about the parkway or high-back turbo booster. I found the parkway on sale so they are basically the same price as the Graco within a few dollars. Oh, I could also get the star-comfy riser.

I am also trying to figure out the safety of backless vs high-back boosters. Some sites say the back is only necessary if there are no head rests. Other sites say the back improves safety in side impact crashes. Then a different site said the backless boosters were safer. So I am totally confused at this point.

My 9.5 yo should still be in a booster, correct?
Which is safer, backless or high-back?
Which booster do you like the best, turbo or parkway?

TIA

We've had both the Turbo & Parkway -- the Parkway adjusts taller & the kids all found it slightly more comfortable, plus easier to buckle without the armrests I really really wish I'd compared the Recaro to the Parkway You might want to check out the Recaro line of boosters & see if you can get actual seat height measurement fully extended & compare the Recaros to the Parkway -- Recaro is pricier, but my kids prefered it to the Parkway (heavy, but sooooo soft & it's the only company that uses EPS foam in the hips/torso as well as the head).

There are basically 3 kinds of boosters: backless, highback without head support & highback with head support. Highback without head support is no better than a backless if the vehicle has headrests -- if it doesn't have headrests then the backless is not recommended. Highback with head support is my favorite kind because the head wings help to keep kiddo properly positioned & I especially like the deep head wings with EPS foam for side impact protection (but this isn't so important if the vehicle has side curtain airbags where the child is sitting or if the booster can be used in the center seat). However, there is no crash data that reveals just how much safer deep head wings with EPS foam is -- it's just something that intuitively makes sense to have a bit off added protection "just in case"

As long as a person fits the limits of the booster it's a great idea to use it (I fit the Intera backless & would use it in a heartbeat if I had to drive the Sunfire, LOL!) -- especially so for your child & a highback booster since the vehicle seatback does not extend up behind the top of the ears! As she grows, though, you might think about a safer family vehicle?

Your 9 yo is probably too tall for the back on the TB, I would suggest the PW. We're in the process of buying 2 PWs to replace our TBs because our boys are too tall for the TBs, but neither of our vehicles have headrests (and they don't meet the 5 step test anyway.)

Yes, you NEED highback boosters if the tips of the child's ears will be over the top of the vehicle seatback/headrest.

Highback boosters are not necessary if there is adequate head support, but they do provide some level of side impact protection, while backless boosters do not. So in my opinion, it's always better to have highback boosters. Backless ones are nice for travel/carpool, but for an everyday seat, I firmly believe a highback is the best choice.

The Parkway adjusts the tallest of all the highbacks, so I'd go with that. My 5-foot-tall, 105-pound 12yo sister fit the Parkway when I tried her in it.

Thank you for the replies. I am going to get the parkways for them. I am thinking about getting 4 now that I've read the responses. 2 for my pontiac and 2 for the truck.

Do the graco turbo boosters have head support?

We are planning on purchasing a new car next year. I am hoping to get a Honda Odessy. We sold my Subaru Outback last week, I now it was a much safer car but the car payments were killing us. So this is only a temporary situation with these old cars

The Turbos are available as high-backs, however they are nearly 5" shorter through the torso than the Parkways.