Best car seat for my small frame daughter?

U

Unregistered

Guest
Hi There! my daughter is incredibly tiny. She is 18lbs. and is 31" tall and is 2 years old (yes, we've taken every imaginable test and she is simply small everything is fine!). I had the britax marathon that a friend gave me but it just seems so big for her. I'd like to find something better also not so hard to put in and out of the car as we change for her belt level. She still has to be rear facing since she isn't 20lbs yet. Also, I have a Toyota RAV4 2007 and I also have 5 year old next to her (another plus to finding a smaller car seat)
Thank you so much!
Sincerely,
Vivianne
 
ADS

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
The Marathon is a fine seat, and rear facing you don't need to uninstall when you change the harness height. Just loosen the harness and do it while the seat's installed. Also, how often do you change height? It should be once a year or so. Not often.

My older daughter was 21 pounds at two years old and she fit great in the Britax Wizard, which is the old Boulevard, so the same shell as the older Marathons. I had no problems at all with her in it.

Your daughter should stay rear facing to well beyond 20 pounds, ideally. Even small she should stay rear facing until about four years old. Big kids, too. :) That's the NHTSA recommendation, though she is above the AAP's bare minimum to forward face of two years old.

If you want something narrower and smaller you could look at the Diono Radian with angle adjuster, maybe a Combi Coccoro. But otherwise most seats are about the same width as the Marathon (roughly 19") and so I don't know how much you'd get from something different. Maybe a Graco Size4Me that doesn't have a rethreading harness? Or another Britax?

The seat you got from your friend; it's not expired, not been in a crash, not had a recall, never been checked as baggage on a plane, and never had the harness washed? And you trust this friend with your child's life?

Wendy
 

jjordan

Moderator
The newer "generation" of Britax seats (Marathon 70, Boulevard 70, Pavilion 70CS, Advocate 70CS) come with an insert that might make the seat seem cozier to you and your dd. My dd is a little smaller than yours and I really like the way she fits in a Pavilion (even without the insert). I agree that the original marathon can seem a little sparse.

Like Wendy said, a Radian is a narrower seat, but honestly I think you might have the same feeling of "big-"ness that you have in your current marathon. There's not a lot of cushioning to "fit" around the little skinny kids (although it does come with inserts that might help it seem more suited to her size).
 

crlbrns1

New member
I LOVE my britax boulevard 70 CS for my 2.5 yr old niece. She is also small sized at 25ish lbs and 33 inches. I got the seat for her just after she turned two and outgrew her infant car seat - she was about 20 lbs. She also loves riding in the boulevard which is good since she rides in my car several times a week! I love love the way her seat fits her with the deep sides and head protection cradling her. She can easily climb in and out of the seat too. I find it a breeze to install rfing in my car (I am currently using latch). I can easily adjust the harness height rfing - tho I don't need to since the only two kids that ride in it the seat are about the same height and since the harness has to be below their shoulders I can leave the harness at the same slot! My nephew who is 18 months and about 31/32ish inches tall and 22/23ish lbs just started riding in the boulevard about once a week and it fits him great also!
 

thtr4me

New member
I have smaller kiddos, but not as small as your DD. My 20mo is about 23lbs right now. He fits amazingly well in the Boulevard, and I don't think will outgrow it RFing until at least 3-4yo. I also have a used Combi Coccoro on the way to replace a seat that broke. That might be a really good option for you as well. My DS2 has been in a Boulevard since about 4mo. He was in the old style Boulevard until this summer, and has been in the Gen 2 Boulevard since. Both the current Boulevard and Marathon have no-rethread harnesses, so it makes adjusting the height a breeze.
 

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Forum statistics

Threads
219,656
Messages
2,196,896
Members
13,530
Latest member
onehitko860

You must read your carseat and vehicle owner’s manual and understand any relevant state laws. These are the rules you must follow to restrain your children safely. All opinions at Car-Seat.Org are those of the individual author for informational purposes only, and do not necessarily reflect any policy or position of Carseat Media LLC. Car-Seat.Org makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis. If you are unsure about information provided to you, please visit a local certified technician. Before posting or using our website you must read and agree to our TERMS.

Graco is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org! Britax is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org! Nuna Baby is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org!

Please  Support Car-Seat.Org  with your purchases of infant, convertible, combination and boosters seats from our premier sponsors above.
Shop travel systems, strollers and baby gear from Britax, Chicco, Clek, Combi, Evenflo, First Years, Graco, Maxi-Cosi, Nuna, Safety 1st, Diono & more! ©2001-2022 Carseat Media LLC

Top