Sell me on the Maestro

glockchick

New member
Who has one and loves it?

The lack of shoulder pads and continuous harness are making me not love it, but my other options are GN an FR and those are a bit more expensive. I need two. :eek:
 
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T4K

Well-known member
I'd like to know, too! I'm thinking about buying one for DSD this summer. She'll never reach the 50 lb harness limit and I really like the narrowness just in case of a 3-across situation. She'll be thrilled about the cupholders and the girly cover.
 

hrice

New member
I just bought one for a friend. It's a great little seat. Crazy easy seat belt install too!
 

Jillybeans5

Active member
I just bought one last week and I like it a lot more than I expected too. I normally don't like continuous harness either but this on doesn't bug me, maybe since it is an older, more cooperative child sitting in it. We also don't have the head slump issues that we had in the Nautilus in our 3rd row. I love that I can fit a narrow booster beside it too.
 

pepsicola

New member
We have one and it's GREAT! My daughter is 2 and has this seat (she's forwards in one car). Don't worry about the harness pads, I used a pair of old (but cute!) infant socks and they work great. I thought I would hate the continous harness, but actually I now prefer it because you can just leave them at the needed tightness and pull them over the child. This is especially nice when other people who are not car seat savvy are using it. Also it's super easy to install. It takes me less then a minute with either latch or seat belt, and it has a high belt path so it makes seat belt installs easy. We have the Culver cover from Burlington Baby Depot, it's black/grey with light blue highlights, it's really pretty and soft. The cover is thick and my 2 year old has never complained when riding in it. Our car's back seat is pretty sloped and the Maestro fits it perfectly and allows enough recline that there's pretty minimal head slump. I would highly reccomend this seat! And you can still get a 20% off coupon from Burlington if you sign up for email updates. Killer deal!(www.burlingtonsignup.com). The only bad thing I can think of is that in the manual, it says that your child may be safer in booster mode if you don't have a top tether in your car, so my personal feeling is that it has a lot of head excursion without a tether. Other than that, awesome seat! Sorry for the long reply, lol!
 

gigi

New member
I LOVE mine. I recently took it to the UK and had to install it a bunch of times with the locking clip, even that was easy. It is easy to travel with (light), comfortable for my son ( almost 4, 40", 16" torso, just under 40 lbs), and EASY to install.

I sold my Britax seats and now have this and the EFTA. This one is much easier to get my son into and out of.

I do wish it had strap covers and the new evenflo chest clips are very annoying to use IMO, but the harness isn't a problem bc I rarely adjust it.

I would have happily paid much more for a less bare bones seat (especially one with strap covers and moving headrest), but none seemed to fit where I wanted it to fit. Strap height is great. The straps are close together but I haven't had complaints yet.

Despite what I've read here, though, it has a 6 year expiration, not 8.
 

Mommy2Marcus

New member
I have one & it is absolutly a GREAT little seat for the price. It is super super easy to install, super easy to use, has tall top slots, a good weight limit for most kids & makes a great booster. In the end I am absolutly thrilled with it. I wish it had been out when I bought the Gen65 so I could have bought it sooner.

Also as for the continuous harness, I really was kind of worried that I would hate it. However it has not been an isue for us. It is easy to get the straps uneven, but just as easy to get them even again. So I would not rule it out b/c of the continuous harness before really trying it. In the end I even swapped it out to be his main seat over the Nautilus.

I also like how it sits lower on the car's vehicle seat than the Nautilus as well. Marcus loves the cupholders. Never an issue with install in any of the vehicles I have used it in. Deffinatly go for it. :twocents:

ETA: When I called Evenflo about it they told me that it was indead good for 8 years from the DOM even though mine only says it is good for 6 years. Also if you read the manual, it tells you that it is good for 8 years in the very back on one of the last 2 pages. So, it deffinatly has an 8 year life span.
 

Jillybeans5

Active member
Oh, I also like that I can see over it when I look through my rearview mirror since it is in the center of the 3rd row in my yukon xl. I couldn't see over the Nauti.
 

mytwobugs

New member
:yeahthat:I like ours and DS2 likes it also. I bought it as more of a temporary seat for DS2 when he reached 40# (now 4 1/2 yr) to use waiting for DS1 (6 yr) to pass down the GNs. Unfortunately DS1 much prefers to be harnessed than in the booster because he doesn't have to remember to stay in position. (I don't have the heart to kick him out of the GN when we can make it work with him in it) It has worked out well because as others have said the Maestro is a great little seat. DS2 is happy in it and has never pushed to get to use his brother's seat. The straps are spaced well so they don't bother his neck at all and the lack of pads is not an issue. It is light and has been a great seat for airline travel. It is narrow and (unlike the GN) if we need to get 3 people in the back of the civic we can use it, a RSTV and an adult (not small:eek:). The belt path is nice and high which helps for the install in our '94 Subaru with insanely long stalks. As far as in harness mode it really is a "mini-me" of the GN and 1/2 the cost.
 

wvmommy007

New member
I bought one for my cousin last June. It was stamped to expire in 2018. I have installed it a few times, and it is so easy with LATCH or seat belt. 3 y/o cousin seems to like it, and even shared his extra cup holder with his sister. :) Although I won't need one for quite some time, it would be one of my top picks for DD, as she is light with a long torso. It really is an awesome seat for the price.
 

autumnlily

New member
It is a great seat for the price. And, I too love that we can see over it when it's installed.

My 5 year old however HATES it. The thigh straps are set so close in and she like to wear dresses and then it becomes a big ole mess of tears. She however is very sensory motivated... the straps certainly don't bug my nearly 3 year old twins.
 

turtlemama

New member
I have one and I love it too. My 6 year old fits at the top slots and my 4 year old is only on the second slots. The only problem for me was the chest clip, but I made the parental decision and took it off and now have no problems at all with it. Both kids were comfortable in it, but I will be switching it to my DH's car since DS1 wants to ride in the TF instead.
 

gigi

New member
I have read on this board that you can buy an old-style Evenflo chest clip and put it on. I have bought one from BRU and now am just waiting to motivate myself to call Evenflo to verify this is acceptable (because the package on the clip mentions several seats but not the Maestro).

I have an old style clip on my EFTA and it is more annoying than the Britax chest clips (because you have to squeeze JUST right or it gets stuck) but much better than the new Evenflo ones (which take two hands and that doesn't work for me...I like to unclip from the front so my son can climb out by the time I get to his door).
 

glockchick

New member
Would you pick it over the GN or FR85 if price was no object?

This is for a 35 lb 3 year old and a 40 lb 4 year old.
 

pepsicola

New member
Would you pick it over the GN or FR85 if price was no object?

This is for a 35 lb 3 year old and a 40 lb 4 year old.

For the 3 year old I'd still pick the Maestro.

I'd pick the Frontier for the 4 year old only because it'll definitely be the last harnessed seat you'd need, but would it fit in your car?
Otherwise I would stick with the Maestro unless you think you'll need the 65lb harness of the GN.
 

gigi

New member
Would you pick it over the GN or FR85 if price was no object?

This is for a 35 lb 3 year old and a 40 lb 4 year old.

I would and did. Both of the others were too big and onerous. I almost went frontier, but the install issues and the massive size put me off it. Plus, my son liked the Maestro a lot and it puzzles better with the infant seat I'm getting for my baby on the way (so hopefully kids can sit next to each other).
 

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