Rear facing figment help ASAP!!!! Mazdaspeed3

Ladies I need help and fast please!!!! Anyone who owns a Mazda3 hatchback or even sedan I need help finding a set that fits rear facing. My 8 month old is 24lbs and outgrew his infant seat and we have a S1 alpha omega elite but it will not fit my car and we can not get it level according to the side level line. We can fit it a little better in my husbands VW CC but it is still not as level as it should be. We are going in a couple of hours to babies r us to find a seat that can fit a little better. Any suggestions or advice? I am really hoping to stick to finding a 3 in 1 style seat so we can get the most out of it. Anyone else have a car similar in size to a mazda3?

To be exact to my model it's a 2010 mazdaspeed3

I wish we could afford recaro because what better in a race inspired car than a race inspired carseat?

It might be okay to have the car seat more upright. I don't know about your specific seat, but sometimes the level line helps put the car seat at a 45 degree angle which is necessary for an infant. With an older baby who has head control, you can often put the seat more upright - to a 35 degree angle or so.

As far as other car seats to look at, check out the Graco Size4me, Evenflo Triumph 65, Graco MyRide and the Safety First Complete Air. All of these seats will last a long time both rear-facing and forward-facing.

3-in-1 seats are often not the best long-term seats. Some of the 3-in-1 seats (like the one sold at Costco) only have a 40lb weight limit and have short harness straps so they are outgrown by children who are too young to go in a booster seat. These seats often don't work well as booster seats either. The Radian is a 3-in-1 seat that we recommend to use both rear-facing and forward-facing, but it doesn't work well as a booster seat.

For now, find a good long-lasting convertible car seat that works well for your family. Then in 5 years or so, you can replace it with a good booster seat.

Melanie

Yeah, unfortunately there aren't really any seats that do all 3 things well. But dedicated boosters are relatively cheap, and you won't need one until your son is 5-6 years old. The seat you have makes an unsafe booster anyway.

How tall is he?

What is your budget?

A radian with an angle adjuster would probably be good. I don't know if BRU has them. Your seat is supposed to be at the level line. I agree with pp that 3 in 1s are normally not all they are meant to be. A nice tall, high weight convertible will last most kids a lot longer. The best thing you can do is find a seat that fits your vehicle and will keep your child rear facing as long as possible, ideally to 3 or 4 years. At 24lbs already, I'd look at 45lb rf limits which means Radian120 or RXT, Foonf, and Peg Perego. The Peg isn't all that tall though if your baby is tall. 40lb rf seats will last a decent amount of time and there are lots to choose from.

I had to come to this thread to see what "figment" in the title meant. I'm disappointed to see that either I can't figure it out, or it's a typo/autocorrect.

Anyway. My cousin has a Mazda 3 and they had good luck with a Britax convertible, though I don't know what other seats they tried. When you're trying seats at BRU (if it's not too late and you've already gone), make sure to read the manuals to find out how upright the seat is permitted to be. Some of the "level to ground" lines are just a suggestion, as is the case for Britax seats, and some are meant to be followed very closely, as is the case for Dorel seats (like your 3-in-1).

A MyRide or Headwise/Size4Me/MySize may work. Or the Peg convertible. Does BRU have it there? In Canada we have it online and possibly in some stores.

I have a 2010 Mazda 3 sedan. I've had a RF MA in the center and a RF Radian (pre-angle adjuster) outboard passenger side.

I just put a Radian in my sister's Mazda 3 (2006) sedan for DS to ride in. It is doable with the angle adjuster either behind the driver's seat or in the center. It can't touch the passenger seat due to airbags so the seat has to be really far forward to work. I also was able to fit a RFing MyRide in the center. I didn't try it in either outboard position though.

Definitely look for a seat that can be installed more upright than 45 degrees!

Thank you everyone for the wonderful responses, I am so sorry I didn't respond sooner I couldn't find the thread after I posted it. =P Thank you to a very nice member showing me where it was after I started a new thread.

Basically where I am at is my budget is no more than $200, I have done more research this morning and I believe what might fit my budget and my car and has the some positive reviews is the grace mysize70 from BRU. I also did read how our current seat really isn't recommended to be a booster in the end because of the quality so I am happy I learned that and I am not stressing over wanting another 3in1.

We had our son ride in the alpha elite last night and he loved it and was very comfortable at the angle we were able to get it out. He can hold his head up very well but we are still concerned about when he sleeps because he sleeps with his head down into his chest. We currently do not have the seat level to the ground as stated on the seat but when he did sleep he appeared to have no issue breathing so I'm feeling a little more comfortable with the angle.

All in all I am thinking I will go with the graco seat after I look at it in the store to be sure it is a seat I like. I appreciate the help everyone any continued advice about the seat I am thinking about getting would be great. Pictures even of anyone using the grace 70 in rear facing position?

My son rear facing at almost 4 years. It's a very tall seat! You might have to install it in the middle of the back seat to have enough room if you have a smaller car, just because of the angle. But if you go to babies r us you can try it out in your car first.