Boosters with deepest SIP

MyTwoSons · Jul 24, 2013

Background: My 5.5 yr old is currently in a FR85 on the second row short-bench of an '01 Caravan, with the bench shifted to the passenger side so there is an even larger than normal space between him and the side of the vehicle. We are probably going to be purchasing a Ford Flex in the next few weeks, and our configuration will have him outboard which is right up against the door in this vehicle, totally opposite of what I'm used to with him. Seeing him so close to the door when we test drove was making me twitchy!

We were planning on booster training soon, so I am searching for the boosters with the most SIP in the torso and around the head. Obviously how he fits in them is the most important factor, but I want to try out the ones that have the most structure between him and the door first. I'm thinking Vivo, Monterey, maybe Harmony Folding Booster? What others have SIP on steroids? And bonus points to someone who can put them in order of ones that are the deepest (front to back) on the sides!

TIA for helping this twitchy Momma

Dorothy · Jul 24, 2013

I can't sort them by dimension, but I wanted to add the Recaro ProBooster and Britax 2013 Parkway to your list. I'm sure there are others, but those spring to mind readily for me. HTH

jacqui276 · Jul 24, 2013

The Monterey and Vivo were going to be my first suggestions, but they've already made it on your list.

Some others that seem to have a decent amount of SIP are the turbobooster with safety surround, the peg perego booster, the oobr, and the boost air protect.

momtoo3 · Jul 24, 2013

How big is your son? I think the Vivo and Monterey are the deepest...the Vivo has a deeper headrest, the Monterey has deeper side wings but both have awesome SIP. The Vivo fits smaller kids better than the Monterey.

Here is ds3 in the Vivo a few months ago. He was about 34 pounds and 40-41 inches.

And ds2 is 65 pounds and 53 inches and still fits in the Vivo but is on the last click.

If you have the money to spend and don't need a super tall booster the ProSport combination seat has the deepest sides and headrests of everything I have played with. Besides the Kiddy CruiserFix Pro (which has decent SIP but is not the deepest) the ProSport in booster mode is my favorite booster and we have owned almost all the boosters out there.
Not in Booster mode but here is ds3 in the ProSport. He was between clicks on the harness height at the time of the picture and this was in the next one up:

bnsnyde · Jul 24, 2013

Our Oobr was sooo shallow. I didn't realize how shallow until my child sat in it. So I wouldn't put that on my list for deep SIP.

The Recaro Prosport in booster mode is my favorite. It won't fit kids as they get super tall, but it's great now for my 7-year-old in our spare car. He is sort of tall, too.

MyTwoSons · Jul 24, 2013

momtoo3 said:
How big is your son? I think the Vivo and Monterey are the deepest...the Vivo has a deeper headrest, the Monterey has deeper side wings but both have awesome SIP. The Vivo fits smaller kids better than the Monterey.

Thank you for the comparison and the pictures! Will def send some rep your way. DS1 will be 6 in five months, is 39lbs and probably 42inches (guessing on that at the moment). I plan to keep him harnessed for the most part for quite awhile yet, but want to start gradually training him with a booster.

momtoo3 said:
If you have the money to spend and don't need a super tall booster the ProSport combination seat has the deepest sides and headrests of everything I have played with. Besides the Kiddy CruiserFix Pro (which has decent SIP but is not the deepest) the ProSport in booster mode is my favorite booster and we have owned almost all the boosters out there.

bnsnyde said:
The Recaro Prosport in booster mode is my favorite. It won't fit kids as they get super tall, but it's great now for my 7-year-old in our spare car. He is sort of tall, too.

Yes, I would love to have a Prosport for booster mode, but as understanding as my husband has been with me buying seats as well as keeping DS2 rf, I think he would have a cow if I bought one just to use for that purpose!

bnsnyde · Jul 25, 2013

You would get a ton of use from it. You could harness, then booster, even.

My husband doesn't really pay attention to seat function, lol. For example, for him to notice that gee, there was a harness here that's taken out, and so maximizing the value of the seat isn't happening here since wife is just using booster mode. That's beyond him, lol.

momtoo3 · Jul 25, 2013

With your ds being small, I would go with the Vivo. Ds3 is small too but close to your ds's size. He will be 5 in Sept. We are booster training now because he frequently rides with family that can't harness correctly. He does amazingly well on trips less than an hour. The Vivo is a really nice seat for booster training because the shape of it helps remind them how they should be sitting.

momtoo3 · Jul 25, 2013

If it helps to see a more current picture, here is ds3 today. I just measured him at 41.5 inches (with rain boots on

) and 36 pounds (without rain boots on.)

You can see how the Vivo cradles them better in this picture than the one upthread with the fleece on.

Athena · Jul 25, 2013

Wow, he's tiny. If you're worried about SIP, I thought I'd read that harnesses provide better SI protection.

Athena · Jul 25, 2013

Dorothy said:
I can't sort them by dimension, but I wanted to add the Recaro ProBooster and Britax 2013 Parkway to your list. I'm sure there are others, but those spring to mind readily for me. HTH

Now that you've said his stats, the Parkway would not be an option. I think it's a 40 pound minimum anyway and is barely narrow enough in the shoulders for my 51" DD. Turbo with SS?

MyTwoSons · Jul 26, 2013

momtoo3 said:
With your ds being small, I would go with the Vivo. Ds3 is small too but close to your ds's size. He will be 5 in Sept. We are booster training now because he frequently rides with family that can't harness correctly. He does amazingly well on trips less than an hour. The Vivo is a really nice seat for booster training because the shape of it helps remind them how they should be sitting.

I am really liking the looks of the Vivo. Thank you for the updated pic as well; it helps to see a similarly sized child in it. And he is such a cutie, by the way!

Athena said:
Wow, he's tiny. If you're worried about SIP, I thought I'd read that harnesses provide better SI protection.

Yes, I agree.

He will most definitely be staying harnessed in his FR85 for a long while yet (probably at minimum a year) under most driving circumstances. However, due to some situations that might arise during the next year, there is the potential for an out of the ordinary scenario to crop up. If that does happen, I would feel better knowing that he has had some booster training and has learned the rules. My plan was to keep his FR85 installed in our vehicle, but also have the booster in there too that we could "train" him in around the neighborhood and/or certain times when we are driving around post.

wendytthomas · Jul 26, 2013

Just keep in mind that there are no standards for SIP. The Monterey, for instance, requires support from the car behind it. So who knows how reinforced the headwings are. Maybe all seats are like that and Diono is just more conservative, maybe they make headwings that won't withstand anything. No idea. Just something to keep in mind. It makes sense that more between child and door is good, but there are no guarantees.

Wendy

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