Britax or Diono? - Best convertible seat for tall infant in Mazda5

azohri

New member
I would love some help picking the best convertible carseat for my 4 month old. I've been searching the archives but feel like I'm going in circles. He's currently in a Graco Snugride 32 and has a bit of time left in it. He's 17 lbs and 27 inches. I'm trying to figure out which seat to purchase next so that I can watch for sales. He is currently behind the passenger seat in our Mazda5, and will probably stay there, so we need to choose something that will allow some foot space for front seat passengers. His two siblings are in a Frontier and a Recaro Probooster.

We've had almost all Britax seats in the past so I have mostly been looking at those or a Diono (with an angle adjuster once he can sit up unassisted, though I wonder if it will fit well without an adjuster). I'm looking at the Diono Rainer or a Britax seat with clicktight. It sounds like people also like the Graco Extend2Fit types? Any other suggestions or thoughts on which one to go with?

Cost isn't a huge factor, I want it to be as safe and comfortable as possible. We won't be swapping it out of this car or traveling with it much. This is our last baby, so passing on the seat we choose isn't a concern. If we are going to spend $300 on it it would be nice if it would go to a booster, but I'd rather find the best seat for the 6 month - 4 years range. The older kids might be done with one of their seats by then anyway.

Thanks in advance!
 
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wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
Hi there.

How old is your Snugride 32? It hasn't passed the date stamped on the underside?

The Diono fits without an angle adjuster, but it's a tight squeeze for the person in front. The Britax ClickTight and especially Graco Extend2Fit will fit there now without an issue.

All seats pass the same safety tests. They'll all do a great job of protecting a child, so that's the easiest part of choosing a carseat.

Wendy
 

lgenne

New member
A Diono with angle adjuster fits just perfectly, the seat in front can move all the way back.

But bear in mind that you shouldn't plan to use a Diono as a booster. It has a 50 pound minimum weight for booster use, but many kids outgrow it by height before they hit that weight. And the belt fit isn't great.

How long do you plan to rear face? If he's tall and skinny, a Britax will let you rear face longer than a Diono. If you like Britax, I suspect you'll have ease of use concerns with Diono, too.

You might want to check out the Extend2Fit 3 in 1 at Babies R Us. It will let you rear face longer than either of the other options, and has an easier harness adjuster than the regular Extend2Fit.
 

azohri

New member
Wendy, the Snugride recently expired. We had a carseat tech locally help us install it and he said it was fine to use it for these couple of months, since it's so close to the expiration. Thanks for the reminder - another good reason to upgrade sooner rather than later.

Igenne, we'll rear face as long as possible, hopefully to at least age 4. My kids are tall and sturdy, and tend to outgrow seats by height at young ages. I'll check out the Extend2Fit 3 in 1 - thanks for the suggestion!
 

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