Hello all,
First, thanks for being such an awesomely helpful community!
My son will be four in September and is of fairly average, fit build (about 34-35 lbs and about 39 inches, depending on what that last growth spurt added!). He rides front-facing (was RF until last December) in a Diono Radian XTSL in my 2011 Toyota Camry (from which, by the way, the top tether seemingly cannot be removed!!! Gah. The U-bracket it hooked onto is too wide - none of us can jimmy it off!). He also rides FF in grandpa's ?2006? Honda Accord (4-dr) at least weekly, in a Britax Marathon, which it seems he'll outgrow sooner than the Radian.
I want a back-up seat for use by grandma/aunt (both have mid-sized SUVs like Lexus RS350/Acura MDX) on the rare occasions they might need it (haven't yet, would be some kind of an emergency), with the assumption the back-up could replace the Britax or his Radian when he outgrows them. Because it would be rarely used and I'm not made o' money, I'm thinking of buying a booster he could grow into.
I'd probably like one with a 5-point harness, for safety, but I'm not sure which would actually have a longer life (if needed?) than the Britax/Radian so I'm not 100% married to the idea of it having a harness.
I also like the head support he gets when sleeping in the Radian, especially on long trips (we drive 3-5 hours at least a few times a year), but maybe he would be fine without it in the booster because he'll be bigger by then...
What's the most bang for my buck, and what makes the most sense given this will rarely (if ever!) be used until he's outgrown one of his current seats?
Suggestions? Did I miss any key pieces of info?
Thanks!
Laura
First, thanks for being such an awesomely helpful community!
My son will be four in September and is of fairly average, fit build (about 34-35 lbs and about 39 inches, depending on what that last growth spurt added!). He rides front-facing (was RF until last December) in a Diono Radian XTSL in my 2011 Toyota Camry (from which, by the way, the top tether seemingly cannot be removed!!! Gah. The U-bracket it hooked onto is too wide - none of us can jimmy it off!). He also rides FF in grandpa's ?2006? Honda Accord (4-dr) at least weekly, in a Britax Marathon, which it seems he'll outgrow sooner than the Radian.
I want a back-up seat for use by grandma/aunt (both have mid-sized SUVs like Lexus RS350/Acura MDX) on the rare occasions they might need it (haven't yet, would be some kind of an emergency), with the assumption the back-up could replace the Britax or his Radian when he outgrows them. Because it would be rarely used and I'm not made o' money, I'm thinking of buying a booster he could grow into.
I'd probably like one with a 5-point harness, for safety, but I'm not sure which would actually have a longer life (if needed?) than the Britax/Radian so I'm not 100% married to the idea of it having a harness.
I also like the head support he gets when sleeping in the Radian, especially on long trips (we drive 3-5 hours at least a few times a year), but maybe he would be fine without it in the booster because he'll be bigger by then...
What's the most bang for my buck, and what makes the most sense given this will rarely (if ever!) be used until he's outgrown one of his current seats?
Suggestions? Did I miss any key pieces of info?
Thanks!
Laura
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