Question Britax Parkway SGL vs. Frontier 90 as HBB

alwaysamama · Jul 25, 2014

Any thoughts on on the Britax Parkway SGL vs. the Britax Frontier 90 when it is used as a high back booster?

We are trying to decide if we should buy a designated booster vs. a combo seat to delay the booster decision for our 5.5yo, 47.5lb. DS as one of our seats is expiring in October.

happiness-and-balance · Jul 25, 2014

The shoulder belt guides on the FR are a little smaller than those on the PW which can cause the shoulder belt to not retract properly in some (not all) vehicles, and the FR has a tendency to not fit small children well as a booster. If your child is booster-ready (I.e he can sit still for the entire car ride, bum in the back of the seat, without leaning over or moving out of position) then I'd buy him a dedicated booster.

alwaysamama · Jul 25, 2014

Thanks Angela! Wishing I had a booster to train him in for a while before making the final call on this. He is riding in a Diono Radian RXT that we could try as a booster, but the minimum for booster is 50lb on that. That is the seat we need to pass down to our 3yo DS by October. Thankfully, he is very aware of car safety so I suspect he will booster train pretty quickly.

happiness-and-balance · Jul 25, 2014

If he is very aware of vehicle safety and will follow rules you set out for him then he should be fine

Making him "in charge" of his safety in the car and making it a big deal to be in a booster seat may also work. When you arrive at your destination, try keeping a pad of stickers in the car and reward him with one when you get there for sitting properly so that he learns how big of a deal it is to be in a booster.

SafeDad · Jul 25, 2014

Britax should still be sending the SecureGuard clip to Frontier 90 owners who use them for a booster age child. That resolves the issue of ideal fit in some vehicles for kids closer to the 4 year/40 lb range. I'm thinking that the Parkway SGL would save you a lot of money though, and is just fine for a child of that age and weight.

I think you may find the shoulder belt guides to be somewhat problematic on the RXT once your child is at the minimum weight. The routing is not ideal and can cause the belt not to retract, so if the child pulls on the belt or squirms, it could possibly be left too loose before a crash.

alwaysamama · Jul 25, 2014

happiness-and-balance said:
If he is very aware of vehicle safety and will follow rules you set out for him then he should be fine Making him "in charge" of his safety in the car and making it a big deal to be in a booster seat may also work. When you arrive at your destination, try keeping a pad of stickers in the car and reward him with one when you get there for sitting properly so that he learns how big of a deal it is to be in a booster.

These are very helpful tips! We decided to borrow a First Years HBB from my brother's family - not expired and I know the history - to give him some practice and he did very well for the first ride - and is very proud of himself.

alwaysamama · Jul 25, 2014

CPSDarren said:
Britax should still be sending the SecureGuard clip to Frontier 90 owners who use them for a booster age child. That resolves the issue of ideal fit in some vehicles for kids closer to the 4 year/40 lb range. I'm thinking that the Parkway SGL would save you a lot of money though, and is just fine for a child of that age and weight.

I think you may find the shoulder belt guides to be somewhat problematic on the RXT once your child is at the minimum weight. The routing is not ideal and can cause the belt not to retract, so if the child pulls on the belt or squirms, it could possibly be left too loose before a crash.

Good to know about the SecureGuard clip. That was one of the things I was wondering about and is a feature I like. We are definitely leaning toward the Parkway over the Frontier, although I am wondering if another booster would do just as well for even less money, something like a Turbobooster.

alwaysamama · Jul 25, 2014

Here is what I posted on another thread but I couldn't attach the photos here for some reason.

http://www.car-seat.org/showpost.php?p=2776728&postcount=4

SafeDad · Jul 25, 2014

alwaysamama said:
Good to know about the SecureGuard clip. That was one of the things I was wondering about and is a feature I like. We are definitely leaning toward the Parkway over the Frontier, although I am wondering if another booster would do just as well for even less money, something like a Turbobooster.

Any of the boosters on our list would be fine:

http://carseatblog.com/carseatblogcoms-recommended-car-seats/

Even a backless booster is fine, provided your vehicle has adequate head restraints.

Question Britax Parkway SGL vs. Frontier 90 as HBB

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