Pondering new seats... Input?

I need 2 seats for DS1 and I'd like to have 2 seats available for DS2 as well but this is not required. Here is the current set up:

DS1 - 38 lbs, 5 y/o, 15" torso
FF RNXT (old 35 lb model) - Using 2nd from top harness slots - Primary vehicle
FF MR - Using top harness slot - Secondary vehicle

DS2 - 28 lbs, 22 m/o, unsure of torso but info below may help with guessing
RF MA (old 30 lb model) - Expires Sept/2011 - Primary vehicle
RF Scenera (new 35 lb model) - Using 2nd from top harness position (this also works for his torso height FF on an airplane).

I'm trying to decide what seat I need to buy next. I will need a new seat by Sept to replace the expiring MA. DS2 is pretty much AT the 1" from top of shell on the Scenera and it no longer fits DS1's torso. I am fine with it sitting on a shelf for a while until DS2 can again use it when he's turned FF.

The plan would be for DS2 to get the RNXT or MR (or both) in the next few months. So I'm either looking for 2 combination seats for DS1 or a combination seat for DS1 and a convertible for DS2. I'm not sure if I should also be considering a dedicated booster (in the secondary vehicle) for DS1. My stomach does flips at the thought of a booster and I'd prefer to keep him harnessed until his risks of injury are substantially lower.

For those who practice EH, what is your goal for harnessing? Is it age, height, weight based or is it solely based on maturity beyond minimums?

ETA - We travel by air a few times a year. Seats that I can install on the planes and haul around with us are ideal. I do have a folding trolley we currently use so I'm not worried about weight (too much). Also, the seats in my parents' van have very low seat backs. IMO, not safe for an adult to travel in but we don't have a lot of choice. That's one reason I really like the RX for DS1 since it's a steel frame, I feel better about his safety in their vehicle.

Why not a Nautilus for DS1 and possibly a booster for the second car. Pass those seats down.

I'd get two combination seats or one combination seat and one booster. You've got two great seats for rf so I'd use those for your YDS. Your older DS I'd look at the Nautilus and/or the Maestro.

I agree, if you're not having any more children, then you seem to have enough convertibles. Maybe get a Maestro (for using on the plane) and a Nautilus (because your 2nd will maybe need the extra weight). Or just get a Maestro for now and see how long you can make it with the 2 lbs you have left in the MA. Could be that DS1 is ready for a booster by that time.

My kids are all bigger than average, so my harnessing goals have to do entirely with maturity + ability to sleep properly in a booster. By the time they can sleep upright in a booster on a 4+ hr trip, they're a good 50", 50lbs and over 5yrs.

All good points. Thanks!

Another thing I can do is, DS1 still fits the MA FF (has a 48 lb limit) so he can use it until it expires in September if DS2 needs one of the other higher RF weight seats to RF for longer.

Trying to decide between the FRXT and the GN for DS1 then for the primary vehicle. I think I'm comfortable with the idea of the Maestro for travelling and the secondary vehicle too.

I guess my only concern is the low seat backs in my parents' van. Is the Maestro okay for use with no upper head support? The seat backs end somewhere around the neck on an average adult.

LittlePeanut said:

I guess my only concern is the low seat backs in my parents' van. Is the Maestro okay for use with no upper head support? The seat backs end somewhere around the neck on an average adult.

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Bumping... Anyone? Can the Maestro be used where there is NO head support? I had another look and the RNXT when installed is approx 4-6" ABOVE the top of the van's seat back.

If it can't, then I may have to use the RN for DS1. Are any combination seats built with similar steel frames? Which ones can be used when the vehicle is lacking headrests? Any boosters that allow for use without headrests?

I would pass down the MR and Radian now. Like others have said, these seats are good RF seats so pass them down and look ahead.

Use the MA FF for DS1 until it expires - he is not legal to booster yet so don't buy a dedicated booster for sure, unless he gains 2-3 lbs by September. If he's anything like my kid it might take him another year or more to gain those 2 pesky lbs! If he hasn't gained by then, get the Maestro. This gives you 8+ months to wait and see wrt his weight gain, maturity, and delays the $$ being spent.

You can then travel with the MA and Radian, both travel well especially if you are not concerned by weight.

For the other vehicle, get a FR or Nauti (or Maestro if you prefer). I don't think it matter a whole lot which one - which do you prefer? Does he sleep in the car a lot? My DS1 has headslump issues in the Nauti so we use it in the vehicle he rides in less. Not sure on potential for headslump in the Frontier. The Frontier you could use for the full 9 years in the low-seat-back vehicle if needed while the Nauti would not have that option at 6yrs, but I don't think that's a big factor since vehicles may change or you could always use other seats there.

I am almost sure that the Maestro does not require the head support behind it. I recently asked about that and only Dorel branded seats were brought up:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=155153

LittlePeanut said:

For those who practice EH, what is your goal for harnessing? Is it age, height, weight based or is it solely based on maturity beyond minimums?

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Forgot to answer this.

My main goal for EH personally was just to get my kid to 40lbs so he could be legal to booster - he was not 40lbs until recently - well past the harness height limit on the AOEs we started out with 6 years ago.

In general, though, I think the biggest goals need to be minimum size requirements fo the booster and maturity. All the boosters I've looked at list the child minimums of 40lbs/4yo/40in so those should be the bare minimums.

I like to go a couple of lbs over 40, especially for a main seat, to have a safety margin and in case they get sick and lose weight.

The maturity ties in closely with age, so I don't like to see a child <4yo in a booster as they are unlikely to have the impulse control. I think for many kids around 5yo they could be ready, but it totally depends on the child. I know one child who has a laid back personality and is a rule-follower who was fine at 4yo in terms of sitting (this is not that common). He was also well over 40lbs and he has had a booster in grandmas car for over a year (rides in a Nauti and a Radian in the main vehicles). I also know a couple of kids who at ~7yo are still highly unlikely to be able to stay put in the booster properly despite the best of intentions.

Personally, I always dreaded the idea that my preschooler would throw a tantrum over something and we would be stuck on the side of the road because I could not reason with him to stay in the seat. DS1 does not have a consistently easy going personality. I got a booster for him right at 40lbs but he was also 5yo and had seemed to make great strides in the few months before in terms of maturity and his grasp of safety and impulse control (ability to sit, stand in lines, etc.) (I was also hoping to replace the harnessed seat to reduce number of not-quite-right installs in the GP's cars when they reinstalled, so we did as soon as I was sure he would sit well and knew how to buckle in and snug the belt. Luckily in the case of carseats, he is a bit obsessive/compulsive like his momma, so I know he will not wear his coat or ride in a loose harness/belt, haha.)

mommycat said:

I am almost sure that the Maestro does not require the head support behind it. I recently asked about that and only Dorel branded seats were brought up:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=155153

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That's what I needed to know. If that's the case, I've pretty much made my decision on having a Maestro for secondary and travel and the FRXT for the primary vehicle. If I can find a great sale price on the Maestro, I may consider picking up another so I can leave it at my parents' place since I think DS1 (who is now 5 y/o) would be okay to use the lapbelt on the airplane without his car seat. That way we'd just have to lug DS2's seat about and there would be a seat for DS upon our arrival :thumbsup:

I rarely see a sale on the Maestro, but I think one just started at TRU for $99. :twocents:

http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=10886785&prodFindSrc=search&foreSeeEnabled=true