Why a Britax?- Regent & Marathon

I have a 3 y.o. for whom I'm trying to buy a new 5 pt. harness seat. I was going to buy him a Regent, but when I went to Babies R Us, they had none. The sales guy told me the Regents have been recalled. Now I'm thinking I'm going to have to go with the Recaro Signo.

I then looked at the Marathon. I also have a 5 month old who I will soon need to get out of her bucket seat because of her length. After reading a huge number of positive reviews, I'd pretty much decided on a Marathon. But after seeing and feeling one in person, I'm not so sure. Someone please help me...

Why is everyone over the moon over Britax seats? They don't have much padding; they feel really hard. I then went over and felt the Triumph Advanced. It feels even cushier than the old regular Triumph (which we have for my 3 y.o.). I love the way the Triumph adjusts. It's very easy. We've never had twisted straps. It washes beautifully- in the washer and then in the dryer. Yet I see the big ole thumbs down on the Triumph on this site.

Is there something I'm missing about the Britax?

Britax convertibles harness to 65 lbs, tether rear-facing, have a tall shell & high top slots so kiddos can RF longer. It's extremely easy to install, it has built-in lockoffs. AND it has really cute covers

The Triumph Advance is nice It doesn't tether RF like Britax, nor does Evenflo perform side impact testing like Britax -- Britax is known as an innovator of the industry because they make the extra effort to perform continued testing to enhance the safety of their products ... while many other companies wait to recall based on real injuries The Regent was not actually recalled, though: it just has a new installation method change *Advisory*

• Consumer Notification: Regent Product Update
  
• Consumer Instruction Sheet: Regent Product Update
• Consumer Q&A: Regent Product Update

Only Britax, Recaro & Sunshine Kids allow tethering RF -- this enhances ride down to reduce crash forces upon the child & prevents a larger toddler/preschooler from impacting the vehicle seatback during typical "coccooning".... RF itself is soooooo important that even an untethered RF seat is much much much safer than a tethered FF seat (at least until about 2 years old: the "Newborn -- Preschool" page of my website explains in detail).

The best carseat fits the child, fits the vehicle & is always used correctly What is each child's actual age, weight, height? What is your vehicle year, make, model? What specific carseats do you have now? Do they often ride in other cars? Do you travel? What is your budget?

Also keep in mind that the cushy-ness is just for comfort - it doesn't provide any more safety. I've always found that the Britax seats are cushy enough, if not necessarily the most cushy, and the other benefits outweigh (for me) the extra comfort.

That said, there's nothing "wrong" with the Triumph Advanced, either. It just has different features, which make it easier to use for some people depending on their vehicle, their child, and their preferences, and harder for others.

The "best" carseat is the one that fits your car, fits your child, and will be used properly every single time!

Tiffany- Do you want me to answer those ?s? Would that help you help me? Or are you asking me to ask myself those ?s? Sorry...sleep deprived!

I posted a lot a couple weeks of weeks ago over on the Car Seats thread...trying to pick a seat for my 3 y.o.

We do a lot of long car trips (10-22 hour trips) and drive through the night, so I need a seat that's *really* comfy for both kiddos.

Tiffany- let me know! Sorry if I'm being dense!

I think the Marathons are comfy and cushy actually. Some covers are more plush then others.

I'm "over the moon" about Britax seats because they install quickly and easily, have RearFacing tether ability and have good harness heights/weight limits.

Hey, no worries -- yes, if you could share the answers to those questions it would help us help you I just browsed quickly through your other thread, but I'm about to sign off because we're tired, too The less we have to search through an old post, I think the easier it will be to answer this thread....

I always wondered the same thing - why everyone was so gaga over Britax. And then I was given a Marathon. NOW I get it. Do this - go to Babies R Us and first ask to install a Marathon floor model in your vehicle and then pick any other brand of convertible car seat and install it. That will show you one of the major differences. No matter which car I have put it in, it takes under 5 minutes, and once I'm used to a particular car, I usually get it in in under 2 minutes. Its SOOOO much easier than other seats. For me, its the wide open belt paths (where the seat belts goes through) I got so tired of scratching my hands trying to feed the belt through tiny holes my arms and hands didn't fit through. And the lockoffs are a lifesaver when installing in any car older than 1997, locking clips are a pain!
Another thing that makes for easier installation: the tether strap is easier to adjust. I found them pretty cushy, myself, too. Compared to the average Graco/Evenflo/or Dorel Safety1st Cosco seat.

That said: if my child were younger I would absolutely buy an Evenflo Triumph Advanced without hesitation. I already knew it would work in my car, b/c we had an original Triumph, and it has wide open belt paths, too. And the new Advanced version has 17" top slots and a 50lbs forward facing limit and 35lbs rear facing limit. The Marathon might last longer for some kids, but not all. My son has the same amount of growth room in both the MA and Triumph Advanced. He'll outgrow the Marathon LOOOONG before he nears 65lbs, so the Triumph Advanced work well since he'd probably outgrow it before he ever even hit 50lbs. Make sense? The extra poundage doesn't matter too much in my case b/c my son is not only big (41lbs) but tall (40inches) at 3 years old. The only thing I sorely wish the Advanced had, actually is 2 things: lockoffs, and harness pads. I realize its a no-no, but I would make a parental judgement call and likely choose to use a thin shoulder harness pad. The red tabs on the harness that help you move it don't look very comfortable. But I , too, LOVE the way the Triumph adjusts, the height being able to be changed without removing the seat is awesome, as is the knobs to adjust the harness. Ever since my son outgrew his original Triumph I have missed those knobs. I hate having to pull down on a strap and actually use some muscle to tighten his straps.
Amy

The TA looks like a comfortable, good seat at a great price. I haven't gotten to use one IRL yet, though. But I have just recently cleaned up my great-niece's two regular Triumph DLX's, and it made me appreciate certain things about Britax seats:

- Have to unscrew the back cover on Triumph to take cover off for washing. On a Britax, you can simply unhook the harness and pull the cover off.

- The Britax harness system is pretty straightforward. You can remove the harness straps if needed (of course, clean them only according to the owner's guide instructions!). You can also replace them with new straps, if needed. I'm not sure if this is possible with the Triumph.

I do like the concept of the "Infinite Adjust" harness on the TA, though...if I had that, then my DS and great-niece could use the same seat (not at the same time ); right now in the FPSVD, she needs the harness slot below his.

Thank you all! I really do love you guys. I tell everyone asking about car seats to come to this board because you are the most informative and extremely helpful bunch!

Tiffany-
What is each child's actual age, weight, height?

My 3 3/4 y.o. (turns 4 Dec. 27 of this year) is about 35 lbs, and 39 1/2". He has one of the old Triumphs.

My almost 5 month old (will be 5 mos on Tuesday) is 15 1/2 lbs right now and 26" long. I'll add a photo of her in her seat. I'm wondering if she's getting close to the height limit.





What is your vehicle year, make, model?

We have a Chrysler Town & Country Touring LX, 2005 year edition

What specific carseats do you have now?

Triumph for the 3 y.o. He needs a larger seat.

Grace Snugride for the baby (from my DS, manu. in 2003)

My 10 1/2 y.o. is taller than a lot of moms, 120 lbs...still rides in very back seat, uses shoulder strap.

Do they often ride in other cars?

They occasionally ride in my DH's car, maybe once every 2 weeks/month. Right now, he has an extra Snugride base in his car, and a Compass for the 3 3/4 y.o. (it makes the shoulder strap fit him really well, and he's very good about sitting safely...this seat is used only in pinch when he has to ride in my DH's car....my DS loves the seat)

Do you travel?

We travel a great deal- 20 hour drives to FL (each way) a few times/year. We go 10 hours at a time and often drive starting out at 2:00 a.m., so we need comfy seats for the kids to be able to sit for long periods of time and to sleep in (why I decided against the FPV). We also travel 9-10 hour trips to visit my family, again, during night, so we need kids to sleep. And weekly hour long trips to swim meets... I also have to take my oldest to swim practice 4 nights/week, and the little ones often fall asleep in the car. I like for them to be able to sleep in their seats for the hour + while my oldest swims. Reading time for me! So comfy seats for them to fall asleep on the 1/2 hour drive down....hour + wait, and 1/2 hour drive home.


What is your budget?
I want to buy one good seat that is going to be extremely durable (my kids are messy and very hard on things), of course safe, and as comfortable as can be. I think I can convince my DH to spend up to $250 *if* we get one seat each that will last a while.

DH and I are the only ones adjusting straps. Really, once the seats are installed, they don't come out unless I take the car to the car wash and undo them to clean underneath the seats. Normally we just always have whoever's driving take the minivan.

Our old Triumph goes in our minivan's leather captain's chairs really well. Doesn't budge.

I want something for the baby that will support her even now. The Marathon (while yes, the covers are cute) looks like she'd have too much side-to-side room for another year or so. The new Triumph Advanced, with the extra baby padding, looks like it would keep her more supported.

I didn't like that I could feel the hard shell of the Marathon by simply lightly pressing down. I know I wouldn't want to sit on that for 10 hours!

Sorry for the novel! HTH! TIA for any guidance!

Jane

For what it's worth, I've driven with ds1 for 10+ hours at a time--in relatively un-cushy carseats --first the century room to grow and then the cargo [cheapest model]--both had only the padding in the cover. He never complained about being uncomfortable due to the seat.

And we'd leave well before dawn too, and he'd sleep, no problem. Now he would get tired of being in the car...but that wasn't because of his seat, so, we made frequent stops, to get out and stretch.

The Fisher Price Safe Voyage Delux is a lot cushier than the seats I'm used to, and I can't feel the hard shell of that seat when I press down. I assume that the MA is even more comfy.

I'm not recommending specific seats, because I'm not good that that. lol

If your total budget is $250, you'll probably need to go with the Triumph Advance and the Apex/Biltmore. Or a Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe, but it's a watered down Marathon (made by Britax) so, if you didn't like the MA, you probably won't like the FPSVD. Also, our snugride wasn't very padded and our infants loved it anyway. How does the baby feel in the current infant seat?
We moved our babies to the Marathon around 5 months and 13lbs. They fit just fine and they are really tiny kids as you can see in my siggy.

Also, the Safety 1st Biltmore is on sale at Albee baby...
http://www.albeebaby.com/sa1stsibiboc.html
The Erin Marathon is only $209 if you change your mind...
http://www.albeebaby.com/br20macocars14.html
FPSVD
http://www.albeebaby.com/fiprsavodeco2.html
Hmm...can't find the Advance. I haven't seen it in person yet, but it looks fabulous!
Happy Shopping!

I'm pretty sure she's outgrown or very close to outgrowing that seat. Is that how far up she sits when she's buckled in, too?

I tried looking up the manual for the Snugride but I couldn't find the info (sorry, still on my first cup of coffee!) but I'm pretty sure the seat is outgrown when they have less than 1" of shell over their head. Someone please correct me if this seat is different!

It looks like there might *just* be about 1" at the top of baby's head -- I would hand down the Triumph to baby (unless it's expired?) & let bigger kiddo use the Compass temporarily....

I would also probably choose the Triumph Advance or Radian65 for baby's main seat (use the older Triumph as a spare in Daddy's car if it's not expired) & let bigger kiddo choose either the Apex or Radian65 Both fit airplanes well for travel & my daughter (the queen of comfort, BTW) doesn't complain about using her Apex for very long drives

I didn't like that I could feel the hard shell of the Marathon by simply lightly pressing down. I know I wouldn't want to sit on that for 10 hours!

Click to expand...

Where on the seat were you pressing down? I'm only asking because honestly, the MA is quite cushy, but if you felt it up on the side wings, it wouldn't feel that way. There is EPS foam lining the shell, which feels hard to the touch, but isn't necessarily uncomfortable (not like the shell itself would be, like on some other seats).

If you were pressing down on the seat portion itself, lift up the cover and look at what's there and see what you think . I know the TA has quite a bit of extra padding and that's what you want, then you'll probably be very happy with it. I personally wish it tethered RFing, since that is important to me, and there are so many reasons I'm "over the moon" about my Britax seats, especially my MAs, but that's after having a lot of very basic seats that I dealt with/struggled with for a long, long time .

I was anti-Britax before I came here. I thought they were just overpriced seats and didn't view them any safer than the other seats on the market. I was using a ComfortSport at the time and my only complaint with that seat is that it's impossible to adjust the harness in the RF position. I should say that I am definitely in the minority here and the ComfortSport fits my kids well. I'm probably only one of a handful that was actually able to use the seat almost to it's limits.

When my youngest screamed the entire time in her bucket seat, I couldn't take it anymore. I tried the ComfortSport and she hated it. After recommendations here, I went with the RA simmply because she was tiny and just seemed so dwarfed in the MA. I just liked the way she fit in the RA better. We installed the seat and it was truly love at 1st install. DH turned to me and said "get the girls packed and let's go. We're getting one of these for Kaylie". We immediately went out and got Kaylie the MA and I have to say, they are the easiest seats we have ever installed.

I also think they are really plush and comfy. My 4 1/2 year old loves her seat. I don't think I could go back to a non-RF tethered seat. That's a pretty big deal to me. And I'm certainly not going to lie, all of the great covers are a plus!

Amy

My younger DD is 5 months and I have a pic of her in my siggy--you can see how she fits in it. She's been in it since she was about 2 months old.