New Member... several questions... in the market for a new seat - help!

I hope someone with experience can explain/give their opinions to help me with some questions

I need to purchase a new seat for my 2 year old son. We also have a 6 month old, but he will be moved into his brother's current seat (an evenflo triumph advance). Both kids are RF and I would like to keep my older son RF for as long as possible. We have a 2006 Altima and a 2012 Sonata. Both of my kids are on the tall side so this is a consideration. My older son is very skinny though while my younger one is a chubster I am waivering between getting a radian120 or one of the britax models.

I like the idea of any seat that is going to carry me through to 40lbs rearfacing and last long when we do turn FF. I have heard the radian is a difficult fit RF, and unfortunately, it is an hour drive to check one out in my area. I will do it if I get good feedback about them on here though. Otherwise, I was looking at the britax models but not sure which one is the right one for me. I will have to purchase two seats, as my husband and I each have the kids an equal amount of time with our work schedules and shifting seats constantly is something I would like to avoid. I will put out the money now for a more expensive seat, as long as it will be lasing me a long time.

I have one additional question. I have been reading on here about this RF tethering. What does this mean? I feel like there is something I should be doing but am not? This makes me nervous. Any input would be great.

TIA!

JC

I have and love a Britax Marathon 70. However, if your kids are super long torsoed, the Britax seats may not be your best bet. My very tall DD outgrew our Marathon 70 right at 2.5 or so. My 12mth old is using it now and he is pretty short, so has tons of growing room. As much as I love my Britax, I don't think I would buy one for a tall 2yr old that you want to continue to rf. That said, I am not a huge fan of Radians, although many love them. Your 2yo could rf for a long time in a Radian and you can get an angle adjuster for it to make it more upright, thus giving more front to back room. You might also consider the Peg Perego Viaggio or the Graco Size4Me. Both are quite tall for rearfacing and forward facing.
As for tethering rearfacing, only the Britax convertibles, Radians and the Combi Coccoro allow it. I really like that feature, but seats without it are still perfectly safe. There really isn't an actual research that says it's better. For me, it's more of a feeling that it's safer, KWIM?

If your 2 year old is tall, particularly in the torso & you want to keep him RF, I would cross of the new generation of britax seats. The shell is much shorter than the classic version. My DS outgrew it RF at 22 months old. If you do want a britax, you could look at the classic marathon that they sell at target. It's shell is taller. I would check out some of the other seats that the PP mentioned as well.

Thanks for your thoughts.

I am open to suggestions for other seats... I was worried that the britax shell might not work but I am also not familiar with the measurements I would need. I can measure his torso exactly so I know but how long is too long for a britax?

Any other opinions on the radians and the car types we have or thoughts in general. It does seem like a lot of people use them but I hear good and bad like anything I guess. I just want a seat to last.

And headwings.... love em or hate em?

If you are buying for your older, skinny son, consider The First Years True Fit. It's RF weight limit is 35lbs, but it has a very tall shell and top slots. It fits like a glove in the '06 Altima (what DH drives) both rear and forward facing. The MyRide also fits nicely, so the Size4Me probably does, too. You just have to push into the seat back a bit instead of just down.

I had a Radian...I know it was easy FF in the Altima. I know I tried it RF, but now I can't remember how it was. I think it was fine, and installed pretty upright.

lovemy2kidstw said:

If your 2 year old is tall, particularly in the torso & you want to keep him RF, I would cross of the new generation of britax seats. The shell is much shorter than the classic version. My DS outgrew it RF at 22 months old. If you do want a britax, you could look at the classic marathon that they sell at target. It's shell is taller. I would check out some of the other seats that the PP mentioned as well.

Click to expand...

I just wanted to point out that the new Marathon 70 is ONLY 1 full inch shorter (23.5") than the previous model, the classic Marathon 65 (24.5"). With the headrest extended up all the way (think of forward facing time), it adds 4 more inches (27.5"). Plus, the seat's internal shape is a bit rounder and deeper. For most kids, this doesn't make a huge difference in rearfacing time. But for longer torsoed kids, Britax haven't really been the longest lasting rearfacing seats in several years. The Radians, True Fit, Complete Air, and even our Triumph Advance will all last longer for height, b/c their shells are a lot taller (Radian/TrueFit/CA) or a bit taller (ETA). My long torsoed son outgrew our Britaxes rearfacing at 27 mos. He'd have had a lot more time in a True Fit or Radian. He lasted a few more months in our ETA rearfacing.

henrietta said:

I just wanted to point out that the new Marathon 70 is ONLY 1 full inch shorter (23.5") than the previous model, the classic Marathon 65 (24.5"). With the headrest extended up all the way (think of forward facing time), it adds 4 more inches (27.5"). Plus, the seat's internal shape is a bit rounder and deeper. For most kids, this doesn't make a huge difference in rearfacing time. But for longer torsoed kids, Britax haven't really been the longest lasting rearfacing seats in several years. The Radians, True Fit, Complete Air, and even our Triumph Advance will all last longer for height, b/c their shells are a lot taller (Radian/TrueFit/CA) or a bit taller (ETA). My long torsoed son outgrew our Britaxes rearfacing at 27 mos. He'd have had a lot more time in a True Fit or Radian. He lasted a few more months in our ETA rearfacing.

Click to expand...

The headrest doesn't count as shell. I don't want to confuse anyone.

I am checking into the seats PP mentioned...

I like the Complete air from what I am reading as well as the Size4me... I like that the size4me goes to 70 FF but I am not sure if I will be moving him to a booster before this anyway?

Regardless if I go with either of those seats (opinions welcome) instead of a radian, I will be in the market for a booster in the future since those seats don't convert right - but then again I will probably be able to pass them to my younger son at that point.

Ugh... I know they have the complete air at local stores but I had never heard of the size4me so I don't think that is as readily available for me to check out.

I'm starting to obsess too much...

oh my one concern with the complete air are the reviews with site difficult RF install... any comments on that? Also some complaints about the recline angle RF but I don't think I should have a problem with my 2 year old with that...

The Complete Air is made by Dorel, who insists that the "line is level to the ground" no matter what. They have made some new seats with dual level lines, but I don't think we've seen any on the Complete Air. Now, as a parent, I would ignore that with my own kids, as Dorel has said they pass at a more upright angle. As a tech, I can't tell a parent to do that.

The Size4Me is new, so may not be readily available yet. No kid is going to get to 70lbs in it. It will be outgrown by height way before that. The people who have gotten their hands on one seem to really like it.

For the most part, most kids don't make it to the upper weight limit in the new high weight seats. They are mostly all outgrown by height before weight, except by kids on the upper percentiles, and even then, it's unlikely.

You can figure out the CA install. If you need help, just come back here. Many have experience w/that seat, and we can walk you thru it all.

As for whether seats convert to a booster, please do not worry about that at all right now. Many new seats will come out b/t now and then, most "3 in 1" seats make really poor boosters and aren't recommended AND they don't last long as boosters anyway, so you'll still need to buy a highback booster, or at least a low back one. And very safe easy to use boosters can be bought for less than $50-100.

hths

Thanks guys for responding... so here is where I was at. I wasn't thrilled with the installation videos I watched on the CA with the towel rolling up, and I also wasn't thrilled with the 40" height limit with the size4me (I would feel compelled to have to turn him when he hit the 40" which could come sooner rather than later).

So I went back to the radian. I ordered it from Kohls (I always have coupons on hand!) and it was Kohl's cash (so awesome for anyone who shops at Kohls and knows about Kohl's cash!). I didn't take the time to drive the hour and some to try it out. I am going to get it and see and can always return it to my local store. I'll post when I get it to let you know how it works out! Oh I opted for the r120 and just ordered the angle adjusters in case I need them... I hope it works!!

JC

JKC said:

Thanks guys for responding... so here is where I was at. I wasn't thrilled with the installation videos I watched on the CA with the towel rolling up, and I also wasn't thrilled with the 40" height limit with the size4me (I would feel compelled to have to turn him when he hit the 40" which could come sooner rather than later).

So I went back to the radian. I ordered it from Kohls (I always have coupons on hand!) and it was Kohl's cash (so awesome for anyone who shops at Kohls and knows about Kohl's cash!). I didn't take the time to drive the hour and some to try it out. I am going to get it and see and can always return it to my local store. I'll post when I get it to let you know how it works out! Oh I opted for the r120 and just ordered the angle adjusters in case I need them... I hope it works!!

JC

Click to expand...

Graco actually just changed their rule about a 40 inch height limit. Here is their announcement on their blog:

http://blog.gracobaby.com/2012/08/1...4me-70-car-seats-have-extended-height-limits/

If you don't end up liking the Radian, then you might take a look at the Graco Size4Me70. I have been pleased with the ease of installation on every Graco seat I have had, and can't wait to see this one.