Question Advice on a new seat?

Hello,
I have learned so much from the site every time I have had to buy a seat. Hoping you can help me now! Please note I'm in Canada.

My 8 month old son weighs nearly 20 pounds and when he sits it's about 17.5 inches from his head to the ground. He is about outgrown of the Graco SafeSeat (which we have loved). My 3.5 yo went directly from the SafeSeat to the Evenflo Triumph Advance, which we have also loved. She was able to ERF til age 3 because she is very petite and I would like to keep him ERF as long as possible too. Our budget is $150 for a new seat. Would you suggest buying him another ETA, or a different type of seat for his different body type, or buying the 3 yo a new seat (she is about 30 pounds)?? Just trying to get another good seat that will last and give us bang for buck! (BTW I hate the Cosco Scenera so please don't recommend it!!) Thank you for your wisdom and time! Michelle

PS

Sorry, forgot to mention...we have a 2009 Grand Caravan, so space really isn't an issue.

The Evenflo Maestro might be a good one for your daughter, if she is still petite. It goes to 47 lbs with the harness, but has a nice tall top harness slot. It also becomes a booster, though it doesn't last very long. You would need to get a highback booster afterwards yet. I think the only place that sells it right now is ToysRUs, though I could be wrong about that.

Can you measure from your son's top of the shoulder's to the bottom of his bum when he's sitting against a wall?

My suggestion would be to look into the True Fit. It goes on sale quite often at Zellers for $150. After taxes, that might be a little above your budget, but it will all you to keep your child ERF to 35lbs, then FF harnassed to 65lbs, with a top harnass height of 18".

I do believe it goes on sale at TRU as well, but not as often as zellers.

Otherwise, I agree, the Maestro looks like a good choice too!

I like both those options.

The EFTA will be creeping up on expiry at some point - it's 6 years for the EFTA (check the shell to make sure of the expiry date) - so try to keep that timing in mind as well as you consider options and who will get what seat when.

If you get the Maestro for DD, then once DS is almost 30lbs or is coming close to the 1" of hard shell over his head to outgrow the EFTA RF you can assess, depending on his age, whether you feel ok turning him around or want to look around for what else is available at that time (maybe with a >35lbs limit if he seems to need it). Who knows, he might slow down and still fit the EFTA at 3yo as well. The Maestro should give DD a bit more room in the harness by height than the EFTA to allow her to get to 40+lbs before she outgrows the harness, though if she is petite overall she might not need it. You can get the Maestro at TRU or at Zellers (well, you can at ours, anyway). And it's only $129+tax.

If you can find the TF on sale for $150 in time (Zellers has it on quite often), it would be a nice choice, allowing you to RF DS 5lbs longer without buying a different seat for him later (you could even re-RF your DD in that seat for another ~5lbs ).

I didn't like the TF as much for DS2 when he was smaller, the straps seemed to fit his round little shoulders so-so like they wanted to slip off - not everyone has this problem though. If you find that to be an issue then you could use it for DD until DS outgrows the EFTA RF, then either swap the seats back or buy something else for her then.

These both look like really great seats. Thank you for your advice.

DS is exactly 17.5" sitting against the wall. Still a little bit of room in the SafeSeat but not much!! Did DD as well and she is 21". I think (but you would be able to tell me for sure) that they are both like me, long torsoed and short legs. She is very petite framed and he is sturdy and chunky.

The EFTA was manufactured in April 2008.

Nothing on sale at Zellers this week. If I can get these kids to a scale I will weigh them and repost with that exact info if that changes your suggestions.

Thank you so much.

It does sound like DS is close to outgrowing the SS1 - I think the shell is 19" tall? (not that that is ever an exact indication) Just to clarify, we normally measure torso height as a sitting height from floor to top of the shoulder, where the straps would go, to see how seats might fit in terms of strap height. The sitting height to top of head is good to have to make sure there is enough height in the shell, but having the shoulder measurement helps more, at least for FF seats.

If you do get to a scale, try to weigh the kids with you and subtract your weight, this will be a more accurate measurement (since a scale might be off by even a few lbs and is sometimes less accurate at the lowest end of its scale, while the difference method will eliminate both these issues).

Ok, just reposting with their stats one last time.
DD-almost 3.5 years, 32 lbs and 13" from bum to shoulder top
DS-8 months, 20 lbs and 10.5 "

Thanks again, much appreciated!

I would recomend getting your son a TrueFit, or a Graco MyRide. They have very high shells, and higher weight limits (TrueFit is 35, and MyRide is 40), and correct me if I'm wrong, but both have the 1 inch rule as a high limit.

In a couple months, once you can get some money ahead, then maybe look at getting a Maestro, Chase, or Apex65 if you have head rests in your vehicle. These seats will allow you to continue to harness your daughter for a longer time

At 3.5yo and only 32lbs/13" torso you can pretty get anything you want for DD, or keep her in the EFTA until she can fit a booster at 40lbs minimum - hopefully she will get to 40lbs before she maxes out the top slots!. The EFTA has top slots ~16.5-17" and 47lb FF limit, so it should last her a good long time yet. Since this is the case, I would go ahead and just get a higher RF limit for DS since he is more likely to need it.

The MyRide and the TrueFit, as well as your EFTA, all go by the 1" of shell rule for a stated height limit.

The MyRide is a great seat but has a pretty short shell as far the newer HW seats go, though it's not bad, at ~24", with THS ~17". You would also be hard pressed to find it lower than about $180 on sale, if that.

The True Fit has an internal shell height of ~26.75" to top of the headrest, and THS at ~17.5". It RF to 35lbs and FF to 65lbs.

If you do use the EFTA to RF your son, it only has a 30lb RF limit and has an internal seating height of ~23.5".

(You could also consider a 3in1 if you found a good sale, but make sure that you get one that has a limit of 35lbsRF/50lbsFF as some are still being made and sold with 40lbFF limits and short slots. The 35/50 versions allow the use of the top harness position with the harness, giving a THS of ~16-17.5" (I can't seem to find a reliable value); the internal shell height is ~25" but the Canadian ones do still have a stated limit of 32" total standing height.... They typically make pretty horrid boosters, though, so please plan on NOT using it as a booster once the harness is outgrown. Some people dislike installing them as well, I think. They don't seem to get recommended much for these (and maybe some other?) reasons.)

As far as the combo seats, if you are looking at the Chase and the Meastro, I would typically say to just skip the Chase. The top slots on the Chase are about the same or a little shorter than the slots on the EFTA you currently have (I'm seeing ~15.5-16.8"); the Maestro has THS at 18". The Chase also makes a poorer booster than the Maestro.

Where are you located? If you decide on the TF, I might have a raincheck for a $150 True Fit (that needs to be used before January when it expires)... if you get in a bind before the TFs go on sale.

I thought I posted this already?? Sorry if its a repeat

Just the final word on kids' sizes....
DD-3.5 yo, 32 lbs and 13" from bum to tops of shoulders
DS-8 mo, 20 lbs and 10.5"

Yes, you posted this above. Snce you are not registered, your posts are being moderated before being posted, so there is a delay.

Wow, more to think about!

I am in BC so I appreciate the offer but I don't imagine they'd let me use your raincheck here!

I will keep my eyes on fliers and on the top of my son's head!!