Which 5 point booster??

dianne9106

New member
I was in a car wreck in my DH's car this past week. Fortunately, my DD was not with me and myself and baby (I am 8 month pregnant) was fine. It was a side impact collision on the drivers side to the pillar and rear door. The jury is still out on whether it will be totaled or not.
So, in my DH's car I had our Graco Nautilus in there -it's the pretty one from BRU in Mariposa. Well, I am currently shopping for another one to replace it with and I am undecided. I was not that impressed with the Graco - my DD is not that huge - she will 4 in JAN and weighs about 34-35 lbs dressed and is over 36 inches (not sure on the height). But I really didn't see her lasting in the Graco until the max limits.
Our other seat in my van is a Frontier and we love it! The only down side to it being that it is a pain to move from vehicle to vehicle. My DH was driving my van when I had the wreck and we had a friend pick DD up from preschool, but she didn't know how to install our Frontier, so ended up using a neighbor's seat. Even when DH picked DD up, he didn't get the install just right! And DD will be staying with another friend in JAN when I have the baby - so we want to leave a seat for them.
So - here are my options and thoughts.
1) Get another Frontier
2) Get another Nautilus (it is slightly easier to loan)
3) Maybe order a Radian 80
4) Try the new Evenflo Generations 65 (looks simple to use and move from car to car)
5) or Get the insurance company to pay for a nice seat, then I buy a cheaper Cosco to loan and have as a convertible back up.
** I am not worried about getting a seat that I can pass on to the new baby once she is out of her bucket. While I do like the MyRide 65 - it is whacking huge and will likely not give any room in DH's next car or very easy to loan. **

Thank you so much for your feedback and Help!
 
ADS

Maedze

New member
WRT 'lasting to the limits'....can you explain further? The Graco Nautilus actually has a top harness position a hair taller than the Frontier. It's highly unlikely that most children will reach 65 pounds in the Nautilus (let alone 80 pounds in the Frontier). That high weight limit is built in so that solid or overweight children can also be harnessed longer.

Because your daughter is on the petite side, the Nautilus will actually keep her harnessed far beyond what is need for safety's sake. She'll probably still fit in the harness at 7 or 8. There's really nothing to be worried about there.

The Generations has substantially shorter top harness position than the Nautilus, and doesn't convert to a good booster the way the Nautilus and the Frontier do.
 

Kat_Momof3

New member
if your dd was not riding in the seat, you can also save the chest clip, straps, and buckles... (for if you ever have an incident of her throwing up in the new one, you'd have a cover, straps, and be able to change it out while the other set is being cleaned.

I'd get another Nautilus because it is a lot easier to install... and you obviously need a seat that others can install properly.
 

dianne9106

New member
So no love for the Radian 80?

The Nautilus is a decent seat and extremely easy to install. I do prefer the Frontier to the space that DD has in it, she can cross her legs (thus the seat is dirty) and really likes it.

I am kind of leaning toward getting another Frontier and then picking up a back up convertible to use when she goes to other places or someone needs a loaner.
 

Evolily

New member
Most people here won't suggest the radian 80 for a forward facing child, unless it is a 3 across situation. The harness is shorter, it has more installation issues, and just isn't a good investment for an older forward facing child.

Now, if you want to get a radian 80 and rear face, by all means, do- she'll probably last a year or so rear-facing (as long as she doesn't have a super duper long torso). Otherwise I wouldn't bother.

I'd go with the nautilus. Your child isn't going to use the nautilus OR the frontier to the weight limits unless she becomes obese in the near future. She'll probably outgrow both by height around or before 50 lbs. She'll last in the nautilus a little bit longer, but not much, by height.

Good luck!
 

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