When a Britax G-3 is outgrown RF, how much longer typically can they FF?

This question obviously has a lot of factors to consider....but I am trying to get an idea of how much time a child has left FF when it is outgrown RF by both weight & height.

Stats.... Elliot is 4.5yo, 38in, 34lbs. He has an eyeballed 3in or so left before the top of the shell. The headrest position on his BV is even with the top of the shell.

Problem.... His Dad bought a car seat without any feedback from me and it has a 35lb RF limit. I am looking to get that replaced as I really don't care for it, but I sucked it up and dealt with it since he was RF anyway. His Dad needs more 'ease of use' features such as non-twisty straps, easy harness height adjustment and mechanism to adjust harness straps. He NEEDS these features.

Elliot is with his Dad 8hrs a week. That includes a 30min x 2 drive on the interstate. I have told him that his seat needs to be replaced and need to decide what he should get so he doesn't get another crappy seat.

Elliot really needs to be RF through our Wisconsin winter for sure. He'll be 5 in July and I guess at that point I will be okay with him FF in his Dad's car.

Vehicle.... early 2000's model Saturn sedan.

Elliot trails along the 0%ile on both height and weight on the growth chart so he should have some good time left in the Britax, but I don't want to turn around and have to get another seat a year or two later.

Not sure if I should get him another Britax convertible, just go ahead and FF him in the Frontier or try to get my Radian XTSL installed in his car and buy a new seat for my daycare kids.

Not real great pictures of him in his Britax, but an idea of how he fits. Also pics of the Chicco NF and Pioneer 70 from a few weeks ago.

If I could find a killer deal on the Chicco I am sure I would be getting that.

Pics didn't attach to the first post

Good grief...

To answer the original question, I would guess that most kids might have 2-ish years of FF after outgrowing a Britax RF.

As for the bigger picture, there is no way I would buy a convertible to RF a 4.5 year old child unless there were special needs involved. So I would definitely just get a Frontier if you're looking to replace what is currently in dad's car.

Id only get the frontier if you really love it. With 0% hight, you'll never need it. Id use your RN and get a sure ride for day care kids. The sure ride had nice tall top slots that will last your son forever, if you want FF him in it.

Although, the FR has cup holder's, lol....

Kel said:

Id only get the frontier if you really love it. With 0% hight, you'll never need it. Id use your RN and get a sure ride for day care kids. The sure ride had nice tall top slots that will last your son forever, if you want FF him in it.

Although, the FR has cup holder's, lol....

Click to expand...

Yes, that's a good point. Of the options you listed I'd go with a frontier, but really, there are any number of FF harnessing seats that would be fine.

Yes, he does have special needs. One is that he has a growth disorder that causes the rate at which his body ages to be much slower. At 4.5yo his body age is somewhere between 2-3yrs old. So that means his skeletal, nervous, etc systems are younger than his actual age which is the cause of him being so small for 4.5yo. I guess I posted that info on another thread this morning. Thought for sure I included it! Sorry!

For a better understanding, here are his length and weight charts from the first two years. See where his length and weight leveled off? That is when things changed for him and his growth slowed. He wasn't ever on the growth chart until he was 4yrs old. The other picture is of Elliot and my niece. He is 38mo and she is 16mo.

Currently we are waiting for his MRI on the 15th and he is undergoing genetic testing in January due to his various issues. Anyway, this is why it is so hard to decide...

I can understand why you want to rf him. He's a mite! I'd find a good deal on a MA70 or even a classic MA. That would get you what you want. Or what about a RA50? Less expensive, more leg/height room, non twisty straps.

If he is still fitting in the seat at 38" with 3" to grow, is he really leggy? My not quite 36" 2yo is almost maxing out a g3 britax rf. Might affect what seat is a good suggestion.

At 34 pounds he's about too heavy for a classic MA, unfortunately.

If you already have a radian I would probably just go with that and use something else for the daycare kids.

I'm pretty sure the G2 convertibles have the same shell as the G-3 convertibles, right? If so, our 3.5 year old outgrew our Boulevard 70s RF by height at around 2.5 years old. She's now almost 3.5 and is on the second-highest harness position, so realistically I think we could get at least another year or two out of the seat FF.

I got a photo of the space above his head while we were out today. Seems to be about 3". Haven't been able to actually measure it though.

We had the Ma70-G1 before the BV70-G3, they do have the same shell. It saved his life and saved him from injury when a semi hit us on the interstate. www.rearfacingrocks.webs.com

It was about 2 yrs for us, from rf limit to ff limit, when installed in the upright position.