need input on new seat for older son and safety of car vs. minivan

I have two sons, 25 months and 2 months old. Right now, my older son is in the Britax RA. My plan is to put my 2 month old in the RA (he will soon be too heavy for me to carry in his carrier car seat anyway) and get a new seat for my older son. My older son weighs about 30 lbs. I was thinking of getting the Wizard for him when it comes out.

What do you think? Would this be a good safe option (younger one in RA and older one in Wizard) and how long do you think the Wizard will last my older son? Are there other options I should consider? Also, looking ahead, I'm thinking that by the time my younger one outgrows the RA and is ready for the Wizard, that my older son will be ready for a booster.

Also, I am wondering how much safer we would be in a minivan. We are currently in a 4 door Toyota Camry. I have had trouble comparing safety data for it versus, say, a Toyota Sienna. I am starting to worry, now that my younger son is closest to the door, about getting hit by one of the big SUVs. However, in a minivan I guess both my sons would be seated near the side. My husband has been pushing for a minivan just for comfort and now I am thinking perhaps it would be safer for us as well. Just hate to start up with a car payment again! Any input/opinions/technical advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks in advance! Kim

sounds like a good plan on handing down the carseats

if your older ds is only 30 lbs right now at just over 2 yo, i bet the wizard will last him a long while. he may outgrow it by height before weight.

the only other thing i would consider if i were you is a husky IF you don't do any airline travel AND you are not put off by the size. although it doesn't have the side impact features of the wizard, i am quite happy with the deep sidewings that it does have. looking at the pics darren posted of his kiddos in the wiz, i would say that right now my 3.5 dd's head is almost as well protected and her torso is perhaps better protected. this of course will change as she grows taller and her head will become less protected.

since we don't fly (no $$ LOL) and i'm ok with the size...judging by how well my dd doesn't fit in my ds' advantage convertible, i'm happy with my choice to get her a husky instead of a marathon or waiting for a wiz. for her, i don't think she'd fit in it more than a couple more years. your ds is smaller than my dd was so i think the wiz would last him longer.

perhaps the thing to do would be buy the wizard now for your older son and then think about getting him a husky when your younger ds outgrows the roundabout? although by that time your older one may not like the idea of another 5 pt harness......?

re the car vs minivan......in general, i believe current minivans are safer due to a little more height, a little more mass, and a little more room between the occupants and any point of impact. minivans with side curtain airbags are definitely safer in the event of a side impact...which it seems you are concerned about.

i'm still driving my kiddos around in a tin can, a ford escort LOL so i KWYM about not wanting that car payment back!

i'm trying to hold out and my goal is to get a van in 2 years. i know, my kids will be older and more crash tolerant then...but they will have friends they'll want to bring along on day trips so the van will be more important then for that reason.......

if i had all the $$$ in the world, i'd be driving a van but i don't.....

having your kids in 5 pt harnesses, properly installed and used correctly, is right now the gold standard of child passenger safety....the only improvement you could make right now without buying the van would be to have your older ds rearfacing as well...which you may already be doing, i can't tell from your post. he has about 3 lbs to go, though, before you'd have to have him forward facing.

it's a personal choice.