what do you think are the "worst" seats on the market?

Hi everyone, this is my first post on car-seat.org but I have been reading the boards for a few weeks. I figured I need an outlet for my car seat knowledge/general "chat" because my husband and friends are getting a little sick of hearing about it (in fact, the CSZ in my username stands for "car seat zealot," which is what a friend recently dubbed me after one too many car seat related FB posts, lol).

So here is what I'm wondering. I recently stumbled across the IIHS "best bets, good bets, not recommended" booster seat list. I noticed they do not have one for convertible seats (or infant seats). Now, I know you guys are not the IIHS obviously, but in your educated opinions, what convertibles currently on the US market would fall into your "not recommended" category? Not necessarily that they are unsafe, but that are uncomfortable, not user friendly, outgrown exceptionally quickly, fit many kids poorly, etc.

Let's limit your list to 3 seats. Go!

MissieCSZ said:

So here is what I'm wondering. I recently stumbled across the IIHS "best bets, good bets, not recommended" booster seat list. I noticed they do not have one for convertible seats (or infant seats). Now, I know you guys are not the IIHS obviously, but in your educated opinions, what convertibles currently on the US market would fall into your "not recommended" category? Not necessarily that they are unsafe, but that are uncomfortable, not user friendly, outgrown exceptionally quickly, fit many kids poorly, etc.

Let's limit your list to 3 seats. Go!

Click to expand...

Hi and welcome to the forums at car-seat.org!

The IIHS list is helpful when it comes to boosters because it is representing seatbelt fit. While there is still variance in vehicles and seatbelts, there are more things in common than there are when it comes to different types of restraints.

For example: A seat may fit well in 98% of vehicles, it may fit 98% of 3yr olds well, but may not fit a 6 month old well. How do you classify a seat if it is great for some kids and some vehicles but not perfect?

All seats have to meet the same minimum standards in order to be sold in the US, so all are considered equally safe.

Kids come in different sizes and builds, and parents move their kids from one stage to the next at different ages. We like to see kids rf'ing as long as possible - but maybe one seat makes a better choice for a ff'ing 3 yr old while another makes a better choice for a rf'ing 3yr old. It's impossible to contrast things like that and create best bets - and a seat being a good bet doesn't mean it's going to fit a given child/vehicle combo well because there are many more factors with harnessed seats than there are boosters.

You'll find around here that some seats are recommended more often than others, and that some seats are discouraged for various reasons. But while one person may strongly dislike a seat for one reason, somebody else may love it and recommend it to people all the time. The techs who are "in the trenches" working with seats and families on a regular basis, can all vouch for the variety of situations that simply wouldn't be able to be accounted for if the IIHS rating system for boosters was used for car seats.

When a booster ends up on the list of not being recommended, it's because it places the seatbelt in a dangerous spot on a child's body in most vehicles. When car seats end up on not recommended lists around forums, it's generally for reasons that are related to cost vs perceived value, ease of use, or length of use - and these don't necessarily reflect the safety of the seat if it fits the child properly and the parent installs and uses it correctly. There are some frequently recommended seats on the forum around here that are quite bad on the ease-of-use scale - but are well loved when used properly.

I guess I've gotten kind of long winded here, but bottom line is that while some seats may be recommended more often, even seats that aren't as well liked have their place, and there's really no way to standardize a seat rating the same way as giving "bets on belt fit" when it comes to boosters.

I hope you stick around the forum and get involved here. We love having new members and everyone here all shares a passion for child passenger safety which might ease some of the pressure off your hubby.

That's a hard question. It really depends on what situation the seat is going to be used in - the type of car, the child, RF or FF install, ERF goals, 3 across, every day use, travel seat, etc. Every seat is not right for every situation, so while they might get a bad review in a certain area, they might be well-suited for a different purpose! For example, I hated the Cosco Scenera we had for DD when she was a young toddler. It had little padding, difficult to ERF in, and I did not like the install at all. But as a travel seat or a budget "back up" seat? I think the Scenera would be a good choice, and I would never say it's the worst seat, even though it did not work for us at all.

The Alpha Omega seat with 40 lbs forward facing harness limit...so deceiving. Parents think they are getting a seat that will truly last them till their kid is out of a booster, but in reality it doesn't fit newborns well, doesn't rear face for that long, is outgrown forward facing in a hot minute, makes a terrible booster.

Phineasmama said:

The Alpha Omega seat with 40 lbs forward facing harness limit...so deceiving. Parents think they are getting a seat that will truly last them till their kid is out of a booster, but in reality it doesn't fit newborns well, doesn't rear face for that long, is outgrown forward facing in a hot minute, makes a terrible booster.

Click to expand...

I was going to say the same thing. Add to this list that it is often hard to install so there is one more reason why it's not a seat that is often recommended.

Phineasmama said:

The Alpha Omega seat with 40 lbs forward facing harness limit...so deceiving. Parents think they are getting a seat that will truly last them till their kid is out of a booster, but in reality it doesn't fit newborns well, doesn't rear face for that long, is outgrown forward facing in a hot minute, makes a terrible booster.

Click to expand...

Yep - hate those seats.

There are lots of seats I would never recommend to people, but that's because they won't last as long as others. I'd use a Comfortsport if it fit my car and child, but I'm not about to recommend it.

As far as issues we know about...
The transport Canada higher speed tests with the FF classic Marathons failing make me not want to use them forward facing. The SIP crash tests with newer seats that were discussed in the spring make me not want to use seats with little SIP (radian) in outboard positions. Neither of these seats I'd call dangerous, though.

I dislike the Costco Scenera but I recommend for a budget seat. I don't like the twisty straps, thin plastic shell and lack of padding.

There are seats I hate, I think everyone does, especially anyone who is into car seats is gonna have a list of seats they really don't like.

Personal opinions to follow (blah blah all seats pass the same standards installed used correctly disclaimer)

Infant seats-babytrend(doesn't fit small babies or big babies and begs for misuse) and peg perego (for that price it should fit small babies and be easier to install)

Convertible seats- aoe with 40lb limit (and all of them for the harmful booster advertising), eddie bauer scenera (same money coulda bought a longer lasting seat instead of a name on it or a second seat so it wasnt reinstalled all the time), comfortsport (doesnt even live up to the other budget seat standards)

Combo seats- summit (incompatible in some vehicles and harness outrown quickly), babytrend fastback and hybrid (difficult or impossible installs at an attractive price make me cringe)

Boosters- new evenflo one with 18" top belt guide

You are welcome to disagree with me and I understand some of these seats have been great fits for families here and that's great!

katymyers said:

There are seats I hate, I think everyone does, especially anyone who is into car seats is gonna have a list of seats they really don't like.

Click to expand...

Right, that's what I meant. I understand there's no overall best and worst, but what do YOU each not personally like?

If you want it narrowed down let's say for RF toddler use since ERF is big now

I hated my Cosco Scenera with the 35lb RF limit. Oh, I hated that seat. I almost chucked it down the driveway a few times. So hard to install in every car I tried it in. Flimsy. Hate. Eventually I threw it away.

I got a Cosco Scenera 40RF which I like better and isn't as hard to install, but the crotch buckle isn't out far enough so my son couldn't use it up to the 40 lb limit anyway because it pressed on his crotch too much when the harness was tightened.

I also have an Evenflo Triumph Advance 65 and it's ok... actually I really don't like it. I don't hate it but I don't like installing it RF because I almost always have to use a pool noodle under it to get the angle, it is hard to thread the seatbelt through the beltpath because it's narrow and hurts my hands, and then once it is installed it's difficult to turn the weird clicky harness adjuster knob because it's squashed into the seat. But anyway. We're still using it as a spare seat. I doubt I'll be able to use it long FF because the harness doesn't go very high. We'll see.

I have 2 Radians RXT's and I love them. I have only used them RF so far though.

MissieCSZ said:

Right, that's what I meant. I understand there's no overall best and worst, but what do YOU each not personally like?

If you want it narrowed down let's say for RF toddler use since ERF is big now

Click to expand...

Again, it's really hard to generalize. Most convertibles will get most kids to 2 RF, which is the limit for most people. If people want to ERF beyond that, there are seats that likely won't work, but that doesn't mean they're bad seats.

For example, the Coccoro is typically outgrown very early rear-facing, before 2 in many cases. Yet it's one of my favorite seats ever, so I hesitate to put it in the "worst" category. Is it a great seat for ERF? No, but that's not what its purpose is.

I hate the Graco MyRide - and I know over a dozen people IRL and oodles more online who it. I want to burn them all in effigy I hated mine so much. Sooo... it all just depends

LISmama810 said:

For example, the Coccoro is typically outgrown very early rear-facing, before 2 in many cases. Yet it's one of my favorite seats ever, so I hesitate to put it in the "worst" category. Is it a great seat for ERF? No, but that's not what its purpose is.

Click to expand...

Side note - every single time I hear / read / say anything along these lines, I give thanks that J2 is such a little kid. He's almost exactly 2.5 years old and has about 3/4" before he outgrows the Coccoro RF, and I might just cry. I bought it at 15 months and never expected it to last even to 2 (honestly I simply HAD to have it, it was my birthday present to me), so it's this lovely wonderful happy bonus that he still fits and I've had so much use out of it. I love, love, LOVE my Coccoro, and so does J2 - but yeah, I only recommend it with a really, REALLY long winded explanation of how it's a good chunk of money for a seat that won't last long at all, blah blah blah.

My personal answer to this would be as follows:
Infant seats: Evenflo Discovery, Rear adjust Snugrides and rear adjust Dorel seats, Baby Trend seats, Maxi Cosi Mico.

Convertible seats: 40lb 3 in 1s, any Dorel in 1s that have a non-removable base. Graco Comfort Sport and its clones. I know so many kids that are riding around in outgrown ComfortSports or that moved to a booster at 3 because of that seat.

Combination Seats: Cosco High Back Booster because of its ridiculously low limits and bad booster fit, all Dorel seats that have poor belt fit.

Booster Seats: Easy Car Seat because of deceptive marketing and poor belt fit.

monica-m said:

Booster Seats: Easy Car Seat because of deceptive marketing and poor belt fit.

Click to expand...

LOL, on first glance I thought this said "Every Car Seat," and I thought, "Wow, she's cynical!"

LISmama810 said:

LOL, on first glance I thought this said "Every Car Seat," and I thought, "Wow, she's cynical!"

Click to expand...

:ROTFLMAO: I read it quickly and saw "every" the first time, too.

My personal list is this so far: and remember these are HATE seats lol

Infant seats: Evenflo Discovery 5 (absolute least favorite, giant hunk of crap), Baby Trend (deceptive marketing among many other things), Safety 1st/Cosco/Eddie Bauer Designer 22, Graco Snugride 22
Convertibles: Graco Comfortsport, Safety 1st/Cosco/Eddie Bauer Alpha Omega and All In Ones
Combinations: Baby Trend Hybrid, Cosco High Back Booster, pretty much any Dorel seat can go here, Evenflo Chase

Maybe I am the lone dissenter.. But I really feel there is a certain, I don't know if it is danger but issue with posting about seats we don't like or are cheaper..

I just feel that each seat has its purpose and what if someone has one and is using it correctly and yet comes here and sees it called a piece of crap?

I don't know..

I agree with an above point that almost any seat will meet the need for someone, so there really aren't any "worst" seats.

However, I personally not a fan of a group of seats. That doesn't mean there is necessarily anything wrong with those seats, but for whatever reason, I don't like them for my car and for the children who I transport. Those seats are:

Evenflo Discovery 5
Cosco/Dorel Alpha Omega 40-pound version
Graco Comfort Sport
Combi Zeus
Evenflo Triumph/Triumph Advance duck
Graco SmartSeat
Sit n Stroll
Cosco High-back/Summit
BabyTrend Hybrid/FastBack
KidsEmbrace Carseat