Booster advice... Evenflo Spectrum?

rin2809

Active member
Hi everyone! I am hoping to find someone who has had some hands on experience with the Evenflo Spectrum HBB, I haven't been able to find one in stores to really get a look at it. Does the belt glide smoothly through the upper belt path/loop of the high back booster?

I am currently engaged in a daily fight with our Evenflo Procomfort Rightfit booster because the guide is an evil straight line with a peg to keep the belt in place. If even the tiniest part of the belt gets under the peg, it won't retract back like it should. I am forever fixing the blasted thing each time my kiddo gets into the car! So I am in the market for something new... well, actually 2 new seats (he is using a Nautilus in HBB mode in our minivan that needs to get passed back down as a harnessed seat for little brother).

My original thought was the Graco Turbobooster with Safety Surround (we have the Nautilus with Safety Surround and like the extra protection), but when I saw the Spectrum, I got intrigued. It has the extra side protection for a lower price, but I worry that I will have the same belt issue with it that I have with the Rightfit.

We are leaning toward a seat with more protection for our minivan used for travel and a regular Turbobooster for my car since he is only in it for the 2 miles to school each day. But to throw a wrench in things, saw that regular Turboboosters are going to be cheap on Black Friday, so I am wondering if the extra side impact protection is even worth it...

In other words, I'm more confused then ever! Any advise would be greatly appreciated!
 
ADS

lgenne

New member
I have a brand new one in my living room. It hasn’t made it into a vehicle yet. I could take pictures tonight if you want to request specific angles, or I’ll have actual experience next week.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
In some vehicles the belt tends to get stuck in the guide on the Spectrum. It's very vehicle-specific. Actually, the whole problem is more an issue of belt geometry than anything.

I don't know what your budget is; the Kiddy Cruiser 3 and Maxi-Cosi Rodifix are both good choices for seating positions with problematic belt placement that gets stuck; the Cruiser 3 is even tall like the Spectrum. But both are expensive.
 

rin2809

Active member
If you can get a picture of the top belt path, that would be awesome! And any opinion once you start using it would be great.

We are trying to keep the budget on the lower end. The highest we are thinking would be about $75 for the upper end.
 

rin2809

Active member
The vehicle that is giving me grief is a 2007 Kia Spectra, outboard behind the passenger. He is only in that car for about 4 miles a day to and from school, so thinking I will replace the Rightfit with a Turbobooster.

Our other seat for him is in a captain chair in the middle of a 2006 Ford Freestar minivan. I hadn't thought to try the booster we have in the van (because it is such a pain in my car), but if belt pinch depends on the vehicle, maybe that would be a solution without vying 2 seats.
 

lgenne

New member
We actually got it in the minivan today (2013 Honda Odyssey, passenger side 3rd row) and it worked great for us. I’ll try to grab a picture in a bit.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
The vehicle that is giving me grief is a 2007 Kia Spectra, outboard behind the passenger. He is only in that car for about 4 miles a day to and from school, so thinking I will replace the Rightfit with a Turbobooster.

Our other seat for him is in a captain chair in the middle of a 2006 Ford Freestar minivan. I hadn't thought to try the booster we have in the van (because it is such a pain in my car), but if belt pinch depends on the vehicle, maybe that would be a solution without vying 2 seats.

You may want to try. Looking at your Kia, the issue is probably that the seatbelt comes from the seat cushion behind and the position of the belt vs. belt guide is causing the issue. If you have a store like buy buy baby where you can try out different boosters, you may want to try before you buy to see what works with the geometry of your belt.
 

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