Help me decide ... Britax or Radian?

tsk_mum

New member
I prefer the way the Britax looks but would the Radian last me longer?:cool:

My DD is 10 months old - 17 lbs & 29 inches currently:thumbsup:
 
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joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Britax. Way easier to install in more cars, will last plenty long enough (till age 6 for most average kids, who can then safely move to a booster).

:)
 
Which Britax? I have a Radian, which I love for many reasons. But it has some quirks that make it difficult or impossible to install correctly in some vehicles, so I wouldn't buy one without knowing that it will install well both rear-facing and forward-facing in your particular year/make/model vehicle. I only hear great things about the Britax convertibles, though, regarding easy installation, comfort... well, everything really. ;)

I chose the Radian over the Britax convertibles like the Marathon, Decathlon, & Boulevard mainly because:

1. the price was much lower, and
2. the seat sits a lot lower against the vehicle seat; looks less like a "baby" seat (but then again, I bought it for my preschooler, not an infant).

You have a young infant, though, who will probably be rear-facing for quite a while yet. At 17 lbs. she is a petite thing, and won't be reaching that 33-lb. rear-facing limit any time soon. So I doubt that the low-profile of the Radian would be important. It sounds like a Britax convertible might be the better choice for you.

Good luck and have fun carseat shopping!
 

arly1983

New member
These were taken at 24 months, 34 lbs, 37 in.

Picture131.jpg

Picture133.jpg


I ended selling the radian because of bad installation other than that it was a good seat with lots of features. The Marathon is a super easy install. BTW, my little boy is off the charts for height.
 

AdventureMom

Senior Community Member
Britax! We have one that our son still uses at 4 1/2 yrs old. We recently purchased/returned a Radian b/c we could not get it securely installed in any vehicle that we tried it in. Others on here have had better luck, but many folks have the same problem...
 

supercrunch

New member
We went with a Radian because of price and because we just bought it recently for our 6 year old dd.

However, we recently inheritied a marathon and my 6 year old fits in that too at 39 lbs and 45".

If you can swing it, I'd say go with the Britax. It would definitely be better for a baby in the long run, and if you happen to have skinny kids who are all legs like mine are, it may last you nearly just as long as a Radian would.
 

all together ooky

New member
Britax! The Radian is nice IF you can get a good install. The Britax is just easier to install in most cars. And it just looks more comfortable. Those shoulder straps so close to the neck on the Radians would really bug me.
 

TxMomma

New member
These were taken at 24 months, 34 lbs, 37 in.

I ended selling the radian because of bad installation other than that it was a good seat with lots of features. The Marathon is a super easy install. BTW, my little boy is off the charts for height.

I would say so! He's the same size as my nearly 4yr old. I make tiny people :D
 

Splash

New member
Boulevard.

I LOVED the Radian, but could not get a decent install in the center of my vehicle. Outboard it would like it was manufactured with the vehicle (I still can't get over how amazing that install was), but I was not willing to use that particular seat outboard in my vehicle. I figured that if he HAD to be outboard, I wanted him in his Boulevard. At the very least in a seat that at least pretends to have some sort of SIP. The Radian has very shallow sides, not SIP by any means, even less than a Marathon or even a lowly Cosco seat. Center, that would not have bothered me. Outboard, I didn't want to do it. However, it IS an amazing seat.

Since your little one will be RF for so much longer (I assume you'll RF to the limits of the seat), I would go with a Britax. Much easier install FF and RF, and has a more adjustable RF angle and takes up far less space RF. And since you don't need to put it on a bench with other seats, the narrow size isn't really a selling point for you (it would have been for me, if I could have installed it well).
 

becca011906

Senior Community Member
I like the radian more b/c my older child doesn't see it as a 'baby' seat... she's almost 5 and still has a good 2 inches in it, only about .5-1inch in the britax converibles. i though it was better buy b/c it was much less in price (a big factor for us) and it has atleast an 1" of torso hight over the britax...

BUT again it has to fit well in the car. It fits very well in both my cars after much work! LOL Also i'm a tech and all though i havn't been very long i like to think i can make any seat work in any car evnethough i know that's not the case, i have gotten the radain into many many cars.
 

tsk_mum

New member
Well, I finally did it ... I ordered a seat!
I got the Boulevard in Shannon:thumbsup:
Thanks for everyones help:D
 

ThreeBeans

New member
I have the BV in Shannon too :thumbsup:


It's a much better choice than the Radian IMO. (I have both). The Radian is a GREAT seat that fills an awesome niche, but I have shed many tears trying to get an easy install :ROTFLMAO:

My husband's car....I quite literally cannot get a solid install with the Radian (2000 Dodge Stratus). The Wizard/Boulevard go in in under three minutes and don't move, quite a feat considering the Stratus' seatbelts don't lock.
 

Splash

New member
...quite a feat considering the Stratus' seatbelts don't lock.

Yes they do. All cars manufactured after 1997 have locking seat belts. They might not have ALR belts (in my experience, most Chryslers don't), but they have locking latchplates, which are actually much nicer for seatbelt installations, and would be GREAT for the Radian!

Sit yourself down and buckle up. Now try and pull on the lap portion of the belt. It'll be locked nice and tight. I actually really prefer these, because they lock on their own, so for parents who don't know to lock the seatbelt, nothing to worry about!
 

ThreeBeans

New member
Yes they do. All cars manufactured after 1997 have locking seat belts. They might not have ALR belts (in my experience, most Chryslers don't), but they have locking latchplates, which are actually much nicer for seatbelt installations, and would be GREAT for the Radian!

Sit yourself down and buckle up. Now try and pull on the lap portion of the belt. It'll be locked nice and tight. I actually really prefer these, because they lock on their own, so for parents who don't know to lock the seatbelt, nothing to worry about!

I can guarantee you, this car's seats are only ELRs, not ALRs. :) (Except for the middle seat which is of course just a lapbelt.)
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
I can guarantee you, this car's seats are only ELRs, not ALRs. :) (Except for the middle seat which is of course just a lapbelt.)

The lap portion locks, even if the shoulderbelt doesn't though..... I promise....if it doesn't it's either broken, or...broken... they really do have locking latchplates. You have to flip them sometimes to get them to stick, but it's law that they lock, and there'd be a recall (or class action lawsuit...) if they accidentally put non locking belts in a 2000 car.

:)
 

racesmom

Senior Community Member
I can guarantee you, this car's seats are only ELRs, not ALRs. :) (Except for the middle seat which is of course just a lapbelt.)

Just because the retractor on the shoulder belt is an ELR doesn't mean the belts don't lock. Look on the latchplate, flip it over and there's a bar that holds the lap portion tight. A 2000 Dodge would be required by law to have belts that lock in some way- I promise.
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/lockincss.aspx Look on your lap belt latchplate and see the latchplate on your lap/shoulder is the same/similar.

To the OP: I love the Boulevard! Enjoy!
 

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