New to the board!!

Crystalline · Jan 21, 2010

Hey Ladies (and maybe guys)!

My name is Crystal (23) and I came across this forum because I have been looking for a convertible car seat for my DS.

When I was pregnant, I looked for months on the right carseat for us. I ended up getting the Chicco Key Fit 30. LOVE IT!

Now, DS is a few days shy of being 9 months old and is 22 lbs. He's a big boy and also in the 97% for his height. He's looking a little squished in there (but SO cute)!

Anyway, I thought it would be great to sign up and enjoy learning more about which carseat to go with. It's also nice to see other mommies so concerned for their child's safety!

OH! And DH and I have another little one on the way (15wks 3dys).

Carseats I am looking at:

Britax Marathon or Boulivard or Roundabout
First Years True Fit (NHTSA gave it a 5 star)
Graco Myride 65
SunShine Kids Radian 65

SO MANY!

babyherder · Jan 22, 2010

Hi and welcome! I'm a babysitter and was so happy to find this site when I started doing car safety research. Everyone is so helpful and I know the kids in my car are safer because of them.

Congrats on the future little one! Are you familiar with the research that shows rear facing until age 2 is 500 times safer than forward facing? And kids are safest if they stay rear facing until age 4. That said, all the seats your looking at except the Britaxes are great for rear facing kiddos for a long time. Just depends on which ones fit your child best.

firemomof3 · Jan 22, 2010

Hi and welcome

Congrats on your little one coming! For a convertible for your son I would look at the Radian, Complete Air and True Fit Premiere. What is the year, make and model of your vehicle?

Crystalline · Jan 22, 2010

babyherder said:
Hi and welcome! I'm a babysitter and was so happy to find this site when I started doing car safety research. Everyone is so helpful and I know the kids in my car are safer because of them.

Congrats on the future little one! Are you familiar with the research that shows rear facing until age 2 is 500 times safer than forward facing? And kids are safest if they stay rear facing until age 4. That said, all the seats your looking at except the Britaxes are great for rear facing kiddos for a long time. Just depends on which ones fit your child best.

HEY! Thanks for the warm welcome!

I knew the Britax wasn't too good for long term RFing but I know it's a good carseat.

As far as the age, yea. DH thinks I am crazy, but I said DS is staying RFed until he is @ least 2. Period.

Another issue I have which I forgot to mention is that I have a trailblazer. What fits?!?!

Crystalline · Jan 22, 2010

firemomof3 said:
Hi and welcome
Congrats on your little one coming! For a convertible for your son I would look at the Radian, Complete Air and True Fit Premiere. What is the year, make and model of your vehicle?

HI!

Thanks for the advice! I have a 2007 Trailblazer SS. I'm worried about the carseat having room to stay RFing.

monstah · Jan 22, 2010

:happy-wavehello: Welcome. And best wishes for your littlest bean!

I'd replace the Britax seats in your list with the Complete Air.

Hopefully you have some stores around you to get "hands on". I thought I would love the TrueFit but when I played with one IRL, I couldn't stand it.

(My own personal opinion.)Isn't the KeyFit the greatest seat? I love mine!

cookie123 · Jan 22, 2010

Welcome aboard

I'm Peg, gramma to 3, my dd#1's kids. My dd#1 is one of those car seat dropouts! She has given up and relies on me to make sure the seats are okay. So, I'm happy to meet another young mom interested keeping baby as safe as possible.

If you've been hanging around, you already know that your baby has outgrown the seat if the weight limit is met or if there is less than an inch of hard shell above his head - or her - forgot which, sorry!

If you plan to rear face to the limit of the seat, which is what is recommended - it is safer to rear face, the Britax seats offer the least amount of leg room of the seats you mentioned.

I would consider the True Fit Premiere, the Complete Air or the Radian. I personally like the features the Radian has to offer, like that it is low to the seat and has low sides making it easier to climb into for toddlers. I like the rear facing tether. A lot of hating or loving a seat is personal preference. No seat is the perfect one, imo. Each one has it's good and not as good points. Try out a couple at BRUS, and see what you like. Also, read here awhile if baby hasn't outgrown the seat already, and you'll get a sense of what different people like or dislike about different seats.

Cryssy Jane · Jan 22, 2010

Hey! I'm a 23 year old Crystal too!!!

Welcome to the boards, beware it becomes rather addicting

armywife12 · Jan 22, 2010

I've installed a True Fit and a MyRide RF outerboard in a Trailblazer but I can't remember the year. It was no older than an 06 though. Both fit fine and were pretty easy to install. I can't remember if I used the seat belt or LATCH to install them though...lol.
All of the seats you mentioned, with the exception of the Roundabout, will fit most children RF easily to their 2nd birthday. My personal favorites are the MyRide, True Fit, and Radians. If you go with a True Fit, I highly recommend the True Fit Premier over the regular one for the benefits of the anti rebound bar. I love my XTSL but it can be a tricky install and sometimes downright impossible in some vehicles. That is why it is recommended to try it out in your vehicle before purchasing so you can see if it is compatible. There is a thread on here called "Successfull radian installs" that has pages and pages of successfull installs in different vehicles.

romanoma · Jan 22, 2010

Welcome!

it is always good to consider what seat will fit your car and your child best. Once you know that, then you can decide what features you like the best.

The most commonly recommended seats here for extended RFing are the
sunshine kids radian
graco myride
safety first complete air, and
True fit

I listed those in my personal order of favorites. I am not a big true fit fan, but again, just personal opinion.

The radian wins my vote by far, with the caveat that it can be very hard to install in some cars. There is a whole thread here devoted to cars that will allow a radian to install, you can search that thread to see if your car and year is listed.
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=18235

After that, the myride is also a wonderful seat. It has a shorter shell, so it will not last as long for tall kids, and that is the only reason it is my second choice and not first. but it should get most kids to age 3 while RFing.

Both of my top 2 pics will also fit a newborn well.

If you live near a big baby store, seeing them in person can help a lot! The radian can be very hard to find, but the buy buy baby near me carries it.

HTH!! Good luck to you, you are going to be a very busy mommy!!

DahliaRW · Jan 22, 2010

As far as your current seat, it's outgrown by height when you son has less than 1" of hard shell above his head. If he's tall, that might be now. Or you may have a bit.

The radian, complete air, or true fit are all great seats for taller kids. The radian can take up a lot of room front to back in some vehicles, so you want to buy where you can return if it doesn't work out. You can install a convertible seat more upright than the infant seat as well, which will buy you extra room.

2BunniesMommy · Jan 22, 2010

Hi! Just wanted to jump on the welcome bandwagon. You have already gotten great suggestions and there is nothing I can add to them. I will just agree that you should to your best to get some hands on trying to see what you like best, what DS likes best, and what will install best for you. There is nothing like actually trying them out. I am another person who didn't like the Truefit once I saw it in person. Nothing wrong with the seat and so many people love it. It just isn't for me. Radians are picky about the rearfacing angle, so it is one that is important to try out.
If your DH thinks you are crazy, I have to ask, have you shown him any videos with rear facing crash tests?
There are lots out there, this one is my #1 fav. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRP7ynNI8mI&NR=1&feature=fvwp"]YouTube- Child Seat Safety[/ame] Maybe because I have 2 niece Madisons...

Congrats on your new little one on the way and yea! for finding this site and wanting to keep those babies safe!!!

Mae · Jan 22, 2010

babyherder said:
Are you familiar with the research that shows rear facing until age 2 is 500 times safer than forward facing?

It's 5 times more safe or 500 percent more safe. Not 500 times.

OP- Welcome!

You'll fit right in here, it's a great place! And congrats on the new baby! If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Remember, there's no such thing as a silly question.

Carrie_R · Jan 23, 2010

Welcome! I stumbled over here for a bit o' advice myself under a year ago... and then just never left. LOL! I seem to have discovered a passion for car seats I never realized I had...

Just to verify, my presumption would be you're looking for a car seat for your older DS, and you'll pass the Keyfit onto the newbie when he/she arrives, correct? (Congratulations, btw!)

I second the suggestions everyone has made. I have a MyRide and love it, and I just got a Radian and thus far I love it, too. It installed pretty easily in my vehicle, which is the exception rather than the norm, so I'm sure that colors my view. I have a not yet 3yo (dcb) who is 40lbs, and the Radian is the only seat that RFs beyond that -- to 45 -- so I'm glad it went in okay. I also have a TF, which I've tried very hard to love, but I have difficulty with the lockoffs. Many around here love it, though.

I think I've decided my personal RF goal is four. In addition to the video linked above, have your DH watch Joel's Journey on YouTube... that's the one that always reminds me why I spend my days crawling around RFing convertibles in the back of the van. (I'm a daycare provider and *4* of my seats are RFing!) If they have to turn earlier than that, I'm okay with 3, but if there's something safer available, why not use it?

If you're interested in RFing for the long haul, with a baby that size (he sounds similar in size to the baby I watch, who is 11.5mos and now 24-25lbs) I would highly recommend a Radian, if it fits your vehicle and your budget. I'm not sure where you live, but here our Buy Buy Baby carries them; I know there are a few stores out in Cali (not BBB) that do. If you're interested, you can check out the Sunshine Kids website. They have a product locator, but call the store before you visit since they may not carry the Radian at that location, just other SK accessories. The Complete Air & MyRide can be found at Babies R Us and some WalMarts. The TrueFit is mostly online only, but I believe our BBB had it as well.

You could also buy from a place online that has free return shipping, in case whatever you choose doesn't fit in your vehicle.

Is the Trailblazer the only vehicle you're getting seats for? Is there a secondary vehicle you need to get less expensive, more rarely used seats in?

autumnlily · Jan 23, 2010

stegmanc said:
Hey! I'm a 23 year old Crystal too!!! Welcome to the boards, beware it becomes rather addicting

So addicting, that I stayed around and became a Tech myself!

Welcome!

mommy-medic · Jan 23, 2010

Crystalline said:
Britax Marathon or Boulivard or Roundabout

First Years True Fit (NHTSA gave it a 5 star)

Graco Myride 65

SunShine Kids Radian 65

There are ratings for ease of use (getting the seat and the kiddo in and out, adjusting straps, etc). However- there are NO ratings that compare carseat performances to each other. They all either pass or fail. Those that pass make it to store shelves.

I would avoid the Britax seats- especially the roundabout. The roundabout has a short shell and only has a 40 lb limit. Britax used to have an excellent reputation for higher weight limits when every other seat only went to 40 lbs, but now many other seats pack a lot more bang for your buck. :twocents:

DahliaRW · Jan 24, 2010

mommy-medic said:
There are ratings for ease of use (getting the seat and the kiddo in and out, adjusting straps, etc). However- there are NO ratings that compare carseat performances to each other. They all either pass or fail. Those that pass make it to store shelves.

I would avoid the Britax seats- especially the roundabout. The roundabout has a short shell and only has a 40 lb limit. Britax used to have an excellent reputation for higher weight limits when every other seat only went to 40 lbs, but now many other seats pack a lot more bang for your buck. :twocents:

Though the roundabout50 is a decent seat (different than the old roundabout). But I agree, in general many non-britax seats are going to last you longer and are probably cheaper.

steph_s · Jan 24, 2010

Carseats I am looking at:

* Britax Marathon or Boulivard or Roundabout
* First Years True Fit (NHTSA gave it a 5 star)
* Graco Myride 65
* SunShine Kids Radian 65

Scratch the Britax Marathon, Boulevard and Roundabout, add the Complete air and your list is just about perfect!

I knew the Britax wasn't too good for long term RFing but I know it's a good carseat.

I'm going to have to debate Britax being a good car seat. Years ago yes they were top of the line, the thing is they haven't changed anything in terms of safety or stepping up safety in years while other car seat manufacturers have jumped light years ahead of them. The only thing you can guarantee from Britax is the high price tag on a mediocre seat. Add that to their forward facing testing and it's not even in my top 10 list of good seats! Also, there is no real point in purchasing a seat that won't last that long rear facing when their are other cheaper seats on the market that will last much longer and keep your child safer!

Thanks for the advice! I have a 2007 Trailblazer SS. I'm worried about the carseat having room to stay RFing.

Because of the way these seats are made they automatically give a decent amount of room to rear face especially when it comes to leg room. I know that the Radian, MyRide65, and Complete air fit outboard passenger in a 07' Trailblazer rear facing. Not a clue about forward facing or the truefit but I know rear facing those seats fit.

Crystalline · Feb 2, 2010

2mykids said:
:happy-wavehello: Welcome. And best wishes for your littlest bean!

I'd replace the Britax seats in your list with the Complete Air. Hopefully you have some stores around you to get "hands on". I thought I would love the TrueFit but when I played with one IRL, I couldn't stand it. (My own personal opinion.)Isn't the KeyFit the greatest seat? I love mine!

Aw, thanks!

Thanks for telling me about Complete Air! I haven't looked into it that brand. I don't think I have too much hands on except BRU Baby Usa.

Crystalline · Feb 2, 2010

cookie123 said:
Welcome aboard I'm Peg, gramma to 3, my dd#1's kids. My dd#1 is one of those car seat dropouts! She has given up and relies on me to make sure the seats are okay. So, I'm happy to meet another young mom interested keeping baby as safe as possible.

If you've been hanging around, you already know that your baby has outgrown the seat if the weight limit is met or if there is less than an inch of hard shell above his head - or her - forgot which, sorry!

If you plan to rear face to the limit of the seat, which is what is recommended - it is safer to rear face, the Britax seats offer the least amount of leg room of the seats you mentioned.

I would consider the True Fit Premiere, the Complete Air or the Radian. I personally like the features the Radian has to offer, like that it is low to the seat and has low sides making it easier to climb into for toddlers. I like the rear facing tether. A lot of hating or loving a seat is personal preference. No seat is the perfect one, imo. Each one has it's good and not as good points. Try out a couple at BRUS, and see what you like. Also, read here awhile if baby hasn't outgrown the seat already, and you'll get a sense of what different people like or dislike about different seats.

Thanks for the info! My little man is 9 months and in the 97th percentile for height. I need a car seat super fast! I am actually taking notes down since I am a visual person.

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