Question Recommendation for 3y/o for mazdaspeed3

brelza

Member
Hey all, I been looking on target and walmart for a seat for my son who turned 3 the end of April. He's 32lb and 40". We had him in a sureride but my husband was in an accident so now we need to replace it since evenflo says to replace after any accident (even tho he wasn't in the seat). Insurance isn't putting $ towards the seat so we need something affordable that fits well in compact cars but is good for taller/thin kids. He doesn't ride in the car regularly but we need something as I'm not going to take my sureride out all the time.
If I can't find something that works good for him in that car (the sureride is an ideal fit for that car while other seats we have struggled with) I might just take my seat out, put it in the car and get a replacement for the 2011 sienna I drive--maybe a graco slim fit? WWYD?

EDITED: Wanted to ad my son was born with an airway issue so some recline would be great. It's not much of an issue at age 3 but we do end up with headbob when he falls asleep in the sureride about 50% of the time and we typically have someone in the car move his head to the side so he can breathe more easily.
 
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MelodyoftheForest

Active member
Are you wanting to RF or FF him? He has outgrown the SureRide rear-facing by height. The Slimfit is a convertible, which may not be the most practical choice if he is facing forward.
 

brelza

Member
Yes we did FF him a few months ago because he was too close for my comfort to continue doing RFing. Plus he can't be RF in my husbands car because of the size and my husband's height. I talked to him last night and he said to just get a seat for my sienna since he's comfortable with using the surefit and he can install/take out that seat with no issues (he's had many issues over the years) when he needs to. So what I need is going to be a FF harness seat.

What I was thinking is he has a sibling arriving in January. If I get the slim fit for him he'll use it until the little one needs out of his onboard35 (I think that is what we are getting him) infant seat. Hopefully that will be January 2021 and he'll be almost 5yrs and then I'd get him a harness/booster seat. If I go for the booster/harness seat now (which generally seem more affordable) and our little one needs out of the onboard35 sooner than we think, I'd rather pay out of pocket for a Booster than a convertible seat with no sale if it comes down to it. Or am I overthinking it? :whistle:
 

MelodyoftheForest

Active member
So in the long run you will need both a convertible and a combination seat.

Don’t worry, we all overthink sometimes! If it was me, I would get a seat for the child in front of me. Who knows what will be available in a year or 18 months that may fit your future needs better. It annoys the heck out of me when something comes out that I would have loved when I don’t need it! But depending on expiration dates, a convertible could be a good investment now and last a long time.

So what is your budget for a convertible and for a combination seat? Would you want to RF him in the Sienna only? If so the Graco Extend2Fit May work well for you. It has to be at a deep recline FF with kids under 40 pounds, so check the fit!
 

abigaylebelle

Active member
I'd recommend a convertible seat if you want more forward facing recline for him. Plus you would have the option of rearfacing him if you need to in order to get more recline.

If you prefer a combination seat the chicco myfit has multiple recline settings and should be a good fit both harnessed and boostered for a tall/thin child.
 

brelza

Member
Yes we will need both.

We are hoping to go as affordable as can be with the features we need (recline in HBB would be a huge bonus!) I have an expired booster I can trade in at target. We are trading 2 car seats in at walmart to put towards the infant seat we need; however, we do have 6...almost 7 children with 2 in college so easy on the wallet is best. kwim? We likely won't rearface him in the sienna because I need to have both doors accessible for school drop off/pick up and we have 6 other children (and sometimes car pool with sport team mates. We have an 8 seater sienna and have the 8th seat which we did have the sureride RFing (it BARELY fit) and it worked ok but I can't put another seat next to it. I can't rearch him RFing in the back seat so front facing passenger side for him and infant seat driver side for his new sibling and a booster in the back for the 8 y/o is going to be the typical set up. I'm headed to target for some other things. I'll look at the extend2fit when I'm there. Thanks.
 

brelza

Member
I was actually looking at the myfit online. I hope our store has it when I head over today so I can check it out. Thanks! I really don't think we'll end up going back to rear facing because of the set up and other people in the vehicle and my ability to get him RFing buckled in the 3rd row.
 

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