Question Best Convertible Car Seat for Mazda 3 Hatchback

I'm looking for a recommendation on a convertible car seat for my 2006 Mazda 3 hatchback. My 7 month old son is already 25 pounds and has a long torso. He has outgrown his Chicco Keyfit. We tried a Combi Coccoro, but found that we couldn't get a secure fit and his head is already within an inch of the back of the seat. I'm looking for a car seat that will fit both the baby and our car. Thanks in advance for your suggestions and advice!

Bumping this up for you.

If his torso is that long that he's outgrowing the Coccoro at 7 months, you definitely need a tall seat - that limits your choices a lot. I'd go with a Diono Radian, Safety 1st Complete Air, or a Maxi Cosi Pria. All have a tall shell that should get him to a safe forward facing age, and have 40 pound rear facing weight limits as well (the Radian R120 and RXT have a 45 pound limit).

I haven't put either of them in your specific vehicle, but with an angle adjuster the Radian should be fine.

I do want to ask - if your son is just now outgrowing his Keyfit, how is he also outgrowing the Coccoro? I agree that the Coccoro might not be the best long-term choice for a big long-torsoed infant, but I do think it has room beyond what the Keyfit offers. My daughter is just now outgrowing her Keyfit, and she's only into the second slot for the harness on the Coccoro, with plenty of headroom.

Unless you were using the infant insert with the Coccoro? That's a big thick wedge and I can see that making him almost too big for it. But you don't need that with a baby as big as he is. Despite what the label on the insert says - that's a stupid typo.

Hi there!

I have a 2005 Mazda 3 4 door. I've happily put a MyRide, a Triumph, and Britaxes in this car. Britaxes aren't my first choice for tall kids--they'll be outgrown by height before other seats. My new Coccoro seems to fit great in this car (with a seat belt installation), but I agree that it's not a good seat for a bigger kid.

I bought a Radian for my great big guy, and while it is indeed one of the best seats for tall kids, it wasn't the best seat for my car. This was pre-angle adjuster (and the angle adjuster is not supposed to be used for under 12 months though some people find that rule negotiable). I can't keep the Radian from over-reclining in my car--it *might* be at 45 degrees, but my older kid wanted it more upright, and when he was heavier it over-reclined. You can't push on the passenger seat in this car because of the advanced airbags. The radian is doable behind the driver's seat, but as we have two differently sized drivers, that wasn't an option for us, and it didn't fit through the seats in the middle for us, either (but we have tall drivers). So my kid rode behind the passenger seat with the seat all the way up (and unusable) for a while, then we bought him a MyRide, and he rode in that until he outgrew it.

If you look at the Complete Air, be sure to try to get one with a dual angle line on the side--if it must be installed at the angle that's for littlier kids you'll have the same problem with the front seat that I did with the Radian.

There's some nice Mazda 3 convertible photos in this thread: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=210811&highlight=Mazda and I put some here, too: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=210700

my friend has a 2008 Mazda 3 hatchback. I have a radian and honestly I don't like it in that vehicle. The other person has to kiss the front dash. Have you thought to try out a True Fit?