Combination seats: Britax Frontier..are there any other suggestions?

U

Unregistered

Guest
Hi,

I posted a question before the Christmas Break and reading all the responses i made the decision to keep both my kids RF...now, my girl is just about 3 yrs old...and my wife is going back to work...we also have a yr old son

my question:

I have to purchase two new car seats for my daughter...i will be FF her...everything i have leads to the Brithax Frontier...i have two Advocates right now and they are working out great.

It looks like the Frontier may be the last seat i will have to purchase...

Does anybody have any other suggestions?

thanks
 
ADS

Chila88

New member
I'm not a tech, but a Frontier owner. I have my 3.5 year old daughter riding in one, and when I was making the decision about which combination seat to purchase, the other commonly recommended one around here seemed to be the Graco Nautilus....and still is. I believe the harness height is a little lower on the Nautilus, but in most cases it is totally adequate.

I chose to go with the Frontier over the Nautilus as a number of people seemed to have head slump issues with the Nautilus (their childs head falling foward when they fall asleep). That was a big enough issue for me to choose the Frontier.....and i have been very happy with it!

That said....if I needed a secondary combination seat for our other vehicle I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a Nautilus since it is signigicantly cheaper. For everyday use though....I'm very happy I chose the Frontier.

Hope that helps a bit....
 

Keeanh

Well-known member
Are there any budget constraints? I'm guessing no, since you have Advocates ;). The Frontier is a great seat, if you've made the decision to FF your daughter. It will be the last expensive seat you need to buy. At some point you may decide to (or need to) put her in a no-back booster, but those are around $15.
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
Thanks, that does help.

It does seem like many people do pick the nautilus on this site and claim it is just as good for a lot cheaper than the frontenier.

I did some checking last weekend...and the prices were: $269 frontenier; $210 nautilus...a $60 difference...

I sat my daughter in both and she had no complaints over either of them

They both look like great car seats...but, we did like the ease of use of the frontenier...

I know it's not official...but the side impact protection of the frontenier does look better too

We did decide on one of each as teh nautilus was on sale at canadian tire for $189

I brought it home and realized that the last stage (booster seat) does not have a high back like the frontenier.

We heard that the high back on a booster seat is safer

I'll do a bit more research...but i might return the nautilus for two fronteniers...$80 more for a high back and overall better chair might be worth it

best advice i ever received was on this forum in december...i was thinking of the advocate or less expensive seats...one person told me...if it's worth it and the cost is $100 more...if the seat lasts for five years..that's $20 more per year...not that much when you look at it that way

any other comments would be appreciated.

cheers
 

amyd

New member
The Nautilus does have the highback booster stage included. Just like the Frontier, you remove the harness and use the seatbelt through the booster belt guides. The Nautilus just goes one step further than the Frontier to become a backless as well. Backless boosters are not unsafe, just should not be used too early. Some children can go directly from a highback booster to the seatbelt alone, but many still need a backless to position the lapbelt properly even after they have outgrown the highback portion (occurs when the child's shoulders are higher than the shoulder belt guide's highest position. A backless is a safe & appropriate choice for a child who is 7-8 years old and are quite convenient to have for situations like carpooling, school field trips, etc.
 

Lemonade

New member
Like Amy said, the Nautilus does make a high back booster and a no back booster. Frontier just a high back. The frontier does have a 9 year expiration on the entire seat, where the nautilus has 6 years on the harness and 9 on the booster parts. Since you have another child to hand down seats to, this may be important to you.
I've owned both and the Frontiers just fit my kids better. My son complained about the lack of crotch space in the Nautilus. He has so much space in the Fr but already looked cramped in the N. And their heads always looked like they were pushed forward in the N. I know the N is a great seat, but it just did not work out for us. We are happily in love with our frontiers. (My daughter was turned FF at 2 years and both kids are in them.)
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
Thank you for the information on the nautilus...that is helpful...

it sounds like most people prefer the frontier

if the nautilus has the high back i may still go with that for one car and the frontier for our main car.

does anybody know of any sales in the mississauga/toronto area for the frontier?

cheers
 

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
I actually prefer the Nautilus. It's an easier to install seat overall than the Frontier and since you end up removing the frontier from both vehicles to change the harness height anyways - and you don't change harness height on the Nautilus all the often, I don't really find any difference in ease of use.

My daughter used the Nautilus until she moved to booster full time, and now my son is in it. It's the only one of my seats that has been in constant use since purchase.

My daughter didn't get head droop in the Nautilus but did in the Frontier. My son gets mild droop in the Nautilus but it's not as bad now that he's fallen asleep in it a few times and has figured out how to position himself when he starts to fall asleep.

The Frontier is a nice seat and we may end up with one at some point because my ds has a monster torso, but I do really like the Nautilus and have never had any problems with it.

It's really a matter of what you guys like and what works best for you, but I'd have no worries about keeping the Nautilus if it works for you. It's a good solid seat. :)
 

canadiangie

New member
I think having one of each is great. :)

The reason I went with the frontier over the nautilus is because I have an almost 5 yo who weighs around 33lbs but just keeps getting taller and taller. Having the tallest top slots available is important, as I think she just might need them at this rate.

I don't know of any britax sales happening right now, but Ben at Snugglebugz is awesome. You could email his store site, or if you become a registered user here you could private message him directly. His screen name is Dadofthree I believe.
 

Keeanh

Well-known member
Ben at Snugglebugz is "DadToThree" (pretty sure, anyways).

The Frontier & Nautilus are both good seats. The reasons I chose the Frontier were: 1) I hadn't heard many complaints about head slump 2) One of my children has a long torso for her age 3) Since I plan to use the Frontier harnessed for the full 9 years, it would be cheaper per year for the Frontier
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
Thanks everybody,

I almost fell of my seat when i saw $199...but, yes i am in Canada so i can't purchase it...

Still like the reveiws coming

and, if there are any sales that people know about in the mississauga/Canada area it would be appreciated...

cheers
 

hipmaman

Moderator - CPST Instructor
My dd is a bit older than 3.5 yrs old and around 35lbs (I think) and I opted for the Frontier. No issue with fitting her in either (although I like her in the FN better since it seems a bit roomier) or fitting the Nautilus or Frontier or either seat in our Odyssey. But I like the 9 yrs expiration date, the higher top harness slots (since she'll be harness as long as the seat allows) and my 5 yrs old nephew who visits once a year can share the Frontier as long as he needs it.

If you are buying 2 Frontiers, you should contact Ben/Snugglebugz.com or dadtothree on this forum to see what he can do for you. The closest Snugglebugz store to you might be Burlington (new store is in Milton) but shipping is free if that is easier since you already tried the seat out.
 

TechnoGranola

Forum Ambassador
Where are you finding the Frontier for $269? The Canadian Frontier XT is currently $299. Just want to make sure you're not looking at U.S. sites or possibly an older model (I can't recall if we had a model called the "Frontier" before we got the "Frontier XT"? anyone?)

I've got both a Nautilus and a Frontier XT coming. The Nautilus is for our vehicle as the Frontier can't be installed with the short belt path and for the life of me, I cannot get the long belt path to reach. Plus it hangs off the front of the seat funny and gives DD less leg room in front of the seat. The Nautilus installs very nicely in our vehicle.

The Frontier XT will be used in my parent's vehicle. The Nautilus was easier to install in their vehicle, but the Frontier could be done with long belt path and my dad has enough strength to push the Frontier down and get the long belt path done up. I would not be able to do it in his vehicle. He preferred the lower sides of the Frontier XT for his vehicle and since he's able to install it just fine (even if it's more difficult than the Nautilus) I went with what he wanted.
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
Thanks, i will give snugglebugz a call...i'm west end mississauga so probably just a hop step and jump

canadian tire had or may still have the nautilus for $189

macklems in Toronto has the frontier for $269...i'm just assuming it's the 'xt'..but i will ask tomorrow

cheers
 

mommycat

Well-known member
The frontier does have a 9 year expiration on the entire seat, where the nautilus has 6 years on the harness and 9 on the booster parts.
Just want to clarify that the Nautilus has 6 years on the harness AND the highback booster section, and 9 years just on the backless seat section.
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
I tell you this site is full of good information! the expiration date is good information

I phoned Macklems today and they are selling the 'xt' for $269...i think i will be picking one up.....mind you i haven't contected snugglebugz...i'll do that first

cheers
 

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