Please help me choose

Hello,
I would love some help choosing new seats for our growing family. DS1 is just turned 3 years old, 37.5 inches tall, and weighs 28 lbs (tall and thin). He wears size 3T shirts (for arm length). DS2 is coming next week.

We currently have the following seats:
Graco Snugride 22 (which the baby will use until he outgrows it)
Safety 1st Guide 65 (DS1 is currently on the second harness slots from the top)
Britax RA 55 (currently using the top slots with about an inch of space above his shoulders)
Safety 1st Scenera LX ( our grandparent/travel seat, currently on the top slots with a bit of room left to grow)

I'm trying to plan ahead so that I can get the seats I need at a reasonable price over the next year, since I'll need a few for when I return to work next year. We have grandparents who babysit, and so I'll need seats for both kids for 2 sets of grandparents, as well as new seats for DS1 for our cars. I plan to pass down the RA55 and Guide to the baby when he outgrows the Snugride, and use the Scenera for one grandparent car for the baby.

I'm going crazy with all the options and wondering how I can get the best for our dollar as well (we are in Canada).

I think I've narrowed it down to these options, wondering your thoughts:

For DS1 - for our primary cars, I think I'm going to go with Britax Pioneers (I love the ease of use of the RA), but I'm also considering either a Nautilus or Evenflo Securekid LX (significantly less expensive, so if there aren't any huge advantages of the Britax over one of these, I would go that way).

For DS1 grandparent cars - I think an Evenflo Maestro would be my best best, but we also have the Chase LX, which is quite a bit cheaper. This would be used only a couple of times per week and only for very short drives. My concern with the Chase is that it might not last as long, I think it has shorter harness slots and a lower weight limit? We travel by air quite a bit, and would like one of these seats to be our travel seat, so something lightweight and airline approved would be best.

For DS2 I'll likely just get another Scenera for the other grandparent car. I think by the time he outgrows it DS1 could go into a LBB.

Our cars are a 2004 Toyota Rav4, and a 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe. The grandparents drive a Toyota Matrix (2014) and a 2005 Lexus RX330.

Thank you so much for your help!

FYI, the Pioneer's ease of use is not great. The installation is rotten in most vehicles I have put it in.

You might look at the Evenflo SureRide for a budget/spare. It fits from birth better than the scenera (or that snugride 22 you have), lasts almost as long as the pioneer forward facing (longer than the nautilus or securekid) and is budget-priced even in Canada.

The chase harness is the same as the maestro and securekid, just a lower limit. It's the same basic shell design, different weight limits.

Since you have a bit of time, I would wait on a sale on the Sureride at Best Buy. I agree with Ketchupqueen -- it's a great spare seat that would work for either child. It's a good bet it will be on sale for Black Friday or Boxing Day. Usually around $70 or so. For a primary seat, the Nautilus is nice. You can look for that one on sale too. Sometimes there are clearance ones at Superstore.

That's a lot of seats to buy! I agree that the Sureride is a great inexpensive option to try for both children. After the Britax you are accustomed to, you might find it not as user friendly, with straps that tend to be rather twist-y. The Nautilus is also a good choice as a long lasting, inexpensive harness-to-booster for your older child (it's forward facing only).

I was at Superstore today, and they had the Nautilus on sale for $143. Great price! I didn't check the manufacture dates, though. They were the beige/green cover.

Thanks so much for the advice - I think I'll probably get the Nautilus then for the primary seats for our older son, since it sounds like it should last him awhile, and the price point is way better than the Pioneer - will keep my eye out for sales in the new year.

For the grandparents, the SureRide sounds like a better option than the Scenera for sure (is it relatively small front to back when rear facing? It will only be used RF when the baby is older, over 1 yr). Also, any comments on it as a travel seat? If I get Sure Rides for my older son as well, is it likely to get him to booster age where he would need only a low back booster? I had just thought maybe a combination seat like the Chase would avoid me having to buy more boosters down the road, but I'm not opposed to getting a LBB if needed. Looking at the limits for the seats, I was a bit concerned that he might exceed the height for the harness before he hits 40lbs, so the sure ride I think should alleviate that (does that situation happen often?) .

Thanks again!

The SureRide usually takes up about the same space front to back as the Scenera even though it's taller.

Forward-facing it fits many kids past seven. The Scenera is often outgrown before 4, and almost all kids outgrow it before 5. Yes, for a travel seat it can be followed up with a backless booster by almost any child, because it lasts so long.

The Maestro costs more than the Titan65 (Walmart version of the Sureride) and almost as much as the Sureride and has lower harness slots. And if you can get the Best Buy sale, the Sureride will be about the same price as a Canadian Scenera! With a tall thin child, you might not be able to use the booster function of the Chase or Maestro much anyways. By the time he's 40lbs (the booster minimum) he'll probably be almost too tall. Booster mode in those seats doesn't adjust and is about the same height as the top harness slots. You could get a Sureride soon (I will be VERY surprised if they don't go on sale in the next month or two), and see if you like it as a primary seat (and therefore grab a 2nd), or if you just want to use it as a spare and get something else for your car.

The Canadian Scenera has low limits too - 32" tall for RF so if you plan to use it RF past a year it won't buy you a lot of time

The SureRide is 40lbs/40" for RF which is significantly taller

Boosters are inexpensive for the most part so buying a dedicated booster when the time comes isn't going to be an issue.

The Nautilus is a good fitting highback & low back booster so that's one booster down right there

So I think it will be 3 Sureride/Titan65s and 2 Nautilus for us will keep my eye out for sales over the next year (looks like the titan only has a 6 yr expiry, so will try to get them a bit closer to when we need them). Thanks again for all the input!

Keep an eye on the Vancouver Island Techs FB page. They post Canadian sales every Friday.

https://www.facebook.com/VICarSeatTechs?fref=ts