Advice on new seats for trip please!

lili · Mar 6, 2013

Hello,
I have 2 daughters, 2.5 (RF in Britax Advocate) and nearly 5 (FF in Britax Advocate). I LOVE the Advocates and while I know no seat can be deemed "safer" than another, after testing out other seats, I really feel NOT so comfortable with the quality differences between Britax and some of the cheaper seats......

So this makes me a bit nervous to buy a "cheaper" seat, but at the same time, I don't want to spend $300 on seats that will be taken on our trip (airplane, Westjet - and rental car) and then used as "extra" seats (and I want to feel comfortable enough to use it as an extra seat when we get home).

I need advice for seats to consider. And if there's a seat I can use after we are done with the Advocates for my oldest, I'd be happy to spend more money. I think she has awhile, but I actually should check the height limits.....

My oldest is 33 pounds and 41 inches tall. She's SUPER skinny, but average height. I'm very confused about what seat to consider for her.

My youngest is 29 pounds and 38 inches. I was thinking of the Scenara, but I'd love to keep her rear facing on our holiday and on the box I looked at today, it said it can only RF up to 32 inches????!!!! That seems odd to me. And it felt so "flimsy" to me :-(

I'd love advice on seats to consider. Thanks in advance!

Oh - and I'm in Canada!

Brianna · Mar 6, 2013

It's very possible that the flexibility of cheaper seats like the Scenera translate to better crash results than rigid seats like Britax- we don't know, there's no reason at all to feel uncomfortable using any seat as long as you're using it properly

I would go with an Evenflo Maestro for the older child- it is the lightest seat to travel with. The seats that would last after your Advocates are outgrown would not be pleasant to travel with. The Evenflo Tribute is similar to the Scenera, but I believe it has a higher numerical rear facing height limit. It might already be outgrown by a 38" child though. How much room does the 2.5 year old have above her head in the Advocate- measured to the shell(not the movable headrest) like this? http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=30201

lili · Mar 6, 2013

OK, thanks for the reassurance. Interesting point about flexibility..... someone needs to actually do this research.

Anyways, it does sound like the Evenflo Maestro is a good option for my oldest. I'll have to keep an eye out for a sale - do they ever go on sale in Canada?

And now to figure out a seat for my 2.5 year old, that she can rearface in..... she does have a couple inches above her head to the shell, I think. It all depends on the "angle" measuring by...... I did look at that thread and think I am measuring correctly. But it's strange..... my oldest RF'ed in an Advocate until she was 4. And my 2.5 year old is already getting tall for it, with only a couple of inches there. :-( Maybe I should buy another seat that will keep her rearfacing when she grows too tall for the Advocate - are there any that have taller "height" limits?

Brianna said:
It's very possible that the flexibility of cheaper seats like the Scenera translate to better crash results than rigid seats like Britax- we don't know, there's no reason at all to feel uncomfortable using any seat as long as you're using it properly

I would go with an Evenflo Maestro for the older child- it is the lightest seat to travel with. The seats that would last after your Advocates are outgrown would not be pleasant to travel with. The Evenflo Tribute is similar to the Scenera, but I believe it has a higher numerical rear facing height limit. It might already be outgrown by a 38" child though. How much room does the 2.5 year old have above her head in the Advocate- measured to the shell(not the movable headrest) like this? http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=30201