Has anyone used a NextFit Forward Facing?

I was helping a mom with a Subaru pick out a convertible, and the NF was fantastic RF. We thought, hmmm, how's it gonna look FF? And it was not good... the seat came so far forward (deeep sides...yay for SIP) and the doorway was so small (not like the gaping minivan door I'm used to!), that we couldn't figure out how it could be easy to load a kid into the car FF. (Her kiddo was just outgrowing the infant seat, and was not there for us to try out).

Can anyone comment if they've got this seat and in what cars they've tried it, and what size kids they've had climb in there? Hard? Easy? No big deal?

I'm pretty sure that mom subsequently ordered a Radian after I told her how low profile it is

I am interested in hearing about this too. We noticed these issues when we tried it out in our car, but figured they were non-issues since we plan to move DD to a combination seat when it's time to FF. I figure around the time that DD gets to 4 RF is when we will (fingers crossed!) have a second child that is ready to inherit whatever convertible we have. Plus, if the kiddo gets to 40 lbs in the Nextfit, then it's standout feature (easy installation with LATCH) will be useless since you start having to do belted installs. Our plan is to move our first kid to a Frontier 90 (or whatever is considered the easiest combo seat to install with a seat belt in The Future).

I can't actually answer your question (don't you love it when a reply starts like that?), but I will say that the small doors on our Subaru makes for difficulty in loading kids, in general. Moreso for RF than for FF, though, since by they time they are FF they are big enough to climb in themselves.

Also our Subaru is a '97, so assuming the one you dealt with is newer, the specifics of the "small door" problem might be different.

They're usually able to get in the seat on their own. So you just have to adjust the harness.
It has lock-offs when latch is no longer used!
I still went with a Radian but wish I kept the Nextfit as a spare

jjordan said:

I can't actually answer your question (don't you love it when a reply starts like that?), but I will say that the small doors on our Subaru makes for difficulty in loading kids, in general. Moreso for RF than for FF, though, since by they time they are FF they are big enough to climb in themselves.

Also our Subaru is a '97, so assuming the one you dealt with is newer, the specifics of the "small door" problem might be different.

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Yeah, it was the newer bigger Subie, and I still thought, man, the kid would need to be Flat Stanley to fit around the sides of this seat. The Symphony wasn't too bad, since the sides weren't so deep, even though it's still relatively bulky.

Maybe it would be a good incentive to RF to the max, so the kid is big enough to load him/herself by the time they go FF?

I've found anything that convinces the parent it will be easier for them is often more persuasive than convincing them it is safer for the child. And that's not because they don't care, it's because they think their chances of being in a crash are slim to none, and are stuck on the daily hassle of buckling everyone up. It's a major factor in why so many transition to boosters way too early.

Minnesota said:

Maybe it would be a good incentive to RF to the max, so the kid is big enough to load him/herself by the time they go FF?

I've found anything that convinces the parent it will be easier for them is often more persuasive than convincing them it is safer for the child. And that's not because they don't care, it's because they think their chances of being in a crash are slim to none, and are stuck on the daily hassle of buckling everyone up. It's a major factor in why so many transition to boosters way too early.

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This is why I only look at rear-facing features when considering a convertible. I figure if I can find the seat that meets my needs rear-facing, I won't be tempted to turn them around. I want rear-facing to be the easier, more convenient option.

What subaru? I use the nextfit ff for a low tone kiddo in both my impreza and the Sienna. I HATE the Radian ff in my impreza, it is by far one of the more difficult installs I've done. It loosens up after all the hard work to get it in as well. Outboard isn't terrible but still difficult but center is extremely rough.

Here's in the van, I'll have to look for a photo in the impreza since we primarily use the van right now.

I haven't used the Next Fit but the high sides on it are a no go for me. Same as the Graco trio. I do think loading forward facing would be an issue. Also every photo I've seen of kids in them, the kids look really packed in there very snug. I don't like that! It must bother my claustrophobic side!

We use a nextfit FF for DS3 as our main seat.... it replaced our beloved Truefit, and that's saying a lot bc i have tried everything under the sun and always went back to the TF. The nextfit though definitely won me over..... its no big deal for loading FF. I do drive a Sienna, but its the seat i give to grandparents as well when they transport him. They drive various cars, all sedans, all midsize or smaller. Its never been an issue at all. He just climbs in and stands in front of the seat(if its installed outboard). Then he either scoots his bum up onto the seat and gets buckled in. If its installed center he just climbs on the seat and over the side.

I do hate the radian, like truly with a passion hate it and only used one reluctantly when i HAD to due to space in a tight 3 across, but quickly got rid of it.

I'm really not sure what the big deal is with loading FF kids into a high sided seat in a sedan or smaller car...... its truly not difficult at all. In fact RF is trickier than FF. Sure if you are bending over and picking them and up such i could see how hitting their head or your head could be an issue, but that's not necessary at all. Any child riding FF whose parents are heeding your CPST advice i would think would be old enough to climb in and stand in front of their seat unassisted with zero issue. Then they can either scoot up onto the seat or mom/dad can just help them up into it slightly.... i don't see it being an issue at all. It never has been for me.

Oh and Peg M went from a VERY wide seat (TF) to the nextfit and prefers the nextfit. Granted his is a narrow child, and E who is my broader child prefers a wider seat, but even with E there is no "squishing"..... just an FYI. But i get that it can appear that way.

HTH!

The NextFit, FF, in an outboard position in my Civic is NOT fun. There is so little space for the kiddo to scoot around that it is almost impossible for any child who is of appropriate age for FF to fit. I had to let the kiddo crawl through the front seat into the back in order to have enough room to get in his seat. :thumbsdown:

It's not that I'm super anti-bulky/tall seat, it's just that this seat was literally shocking in this car. It's the first time I've ever wanted to get out a yardstick and compare how much door space the kid has to climb in. And does something like this spur parents to move to a booster sooner? One of people's biggest complaints is that seats are 'too big' and they can't wait to move to a booster (even when their kids are in something I consider relatively low profile, like the Nautilus, or with a small base for easy buckling next to it, like a Britax). Most of my days are spent listening to complaints from non-carseat savvy people and there's only so much I can do in a 2 minute interaction. I love online people who will go out of their way to make as much accommodation for their kids to stay safe as they can afford, but it ain't happenin' in real life, kwim?

I feel like this is a seat that requires a runway. Hard to explain. Even RF in my car in the outboard position, now that my kid is independent about getting in and out, it's like it is this giant wall of seat, boom, right there. It's not just the dept of the seat, it's also the fact that it's pretty much a sheer wall from base to seat, no where to get a foot hold and work around like in a seat with a base that goes in like a Britax, if that makes sense. I can see it being problematic in a sedan because even though if you ripped the door off the car, there'd be the exact same amount of room in front of the seat ff as there was behind it when it was rf, the way the door opens in a sedan cuts into the access path. And most people aren't in the habit of ripping their doors off every time they get in the car. Def. better suited to minivans but even in my minivan the shape/depth makes for an odd set-up. If I could put the seat in the middle it wouldn't seem so insurmountable to the kid but it won't install in the middle of my van RF (issue is with van not with seat). So the next best bet is he scoots under neath the seat and climbs up via the middle, or enters from the other side and scoots across his brother's seat and the middle seat.

It is an oddly insurmountable seat. It's extra odd because when your kid is in it it doesn't look THAT deep but there is so much going on behind the seat with this fancy sliding harness and all that overall it's got this oddly unexpected egg shaped appearance from the side.

It's an awesome seat but as one review on amazon says, it's easy to install the seat in the car, not so easy to install the kid in the seat. Hopefully it is just an oddity you get used to over time? Cuz I tried it and ruled it out but am probably getting another one now because we need to replace a seat in my husband's car and my son just really, really loves the nextfit.

It's almost like they designed this seat that works awesomely if you only have one kid and can put the seat in the middle of your car but not everyone has one kid and not everyone can put this in the middle. I think a lot of the glowing reviews on this seat come from first time parents of a kid who just moved out of the Chicco bucket who can't see the warts that come out when you try to use it with an older kid. The usefulness with an older kid is more theoretical than actual IMO - it's got some quirks for older toddlers and up.

Doesn't the element have a door on one side that opens backwards? Or maybe both sides? I bet it would be a good seat FF in that car. Or some old 50s car with suicide doors, if anyone does car cruises lol.

YinzerMama said:

It is an oddly insurmountable seat. It's extra odd because when your kid is in it it doesn't look THAT deep but there is so much going on behind the seat with this fancy sliding harness and all that overall it's got this oddly unexpected egg shaped appearance from the side.

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Just had to compliment you on your word choice of "insurmountable" -- it made me laugh and laugh! :spit:

I've had it in the center of my van. Head bashed my 2 yr old for a few weeks