Graco Nautilus Question

Both my parents and my in-laws have versions of the Cosco High Back booster carseat. DS is 3.5 years old and getting close to 40 lbs, which is the limit to which they can be used with the 5 pt harness. I am not comfortable with him using them as boosters at his age even though he doesn't ride with them all that often. I was thinking of suggesting that they get Graco Nautilus car seats since they harnes to 65 lbs and can then be used as boosters after that. I'm hoping they won't have to buy new seats after this, but is the Nautilus a good booster? DS is average height and weight for his age. Would this be a good seat for him as a 5 pt harnessed car seat? Would it be a good seat for him as a booster when he is older? Would this most likely be the last seat they would need to buy for him? Are there any other better options for him? Thanks!

Your son would definately have quite awhile left in the Nautilus harness. My 8 yr old neice who a little tall for her age if just barely too tall. There are several members here who are still using the harness at 6, 7, 8. I haven't personally used it as a booster yet, but it has gotten good reviews from those that have. Also it has been approved as a Latchable booster which is a plus. I would say as a back up seat for grandparents it is a great choice.

Andrea

Does your child fit in the Cosco High Back boosters? The top harness slots are REALLY low, so I would worry that his shoulders are above the harness slots.

I think the Nautilus sounds like a good option for you (as long as it fits in your vehicle, of course). It would make a much better booster than the Coscos PLUS it will allow your cild to stay harnessed for a while still.

Patriot201 said:

Does your child fit in the Cosco High Back boosters? The top harness slots are REALLY low, so I would worry that his shoulders are above the harness slots.

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I'm not really sure. Thanks for letting me know they are low. I'll have to check that if he is still under 40 lbs (we don't have a scale at home, but our younger DS had a well baby check up this week. I'll weight the older one while we are there)

The Nautilus does make a pretty good booster (IMO Even better now that it can be LATCHED in HB booster mode). It's pretty comparable to the TurboBooster, but a tad shorter at the maximum height of the belt guide. In grandparents cars it may be the last seat you'll need.
I personally will be following the Nautilus with another dedicated, taller high backed booster in our every day car, because we don't have side curtain airbags, and I'd like to keep the side impact protection as long as possible. That being said the Nautiluses will be the last seats we will buy for DHs vehicle. :twocents:

I love the Nautilus, and I think for a 3.5yo just approaching 40 pounds, it's a great choice. :thumbsup: My daughter is approaching 7 years old and is in the 97th percentile for height for her age, and even she still barely fits the Nautilus harness. Incidentally, she was too tall for the Cosco highback booster's harness between 2.5-3 years old, before she reached 40 pounds.

Most parents are aware of harnessed weight limits on carseats, and some even pay attention to the stated height limits in the manuals or on the stickers on the carseat, but what most parents don't know (because it's only stated in obscure locations in the manual) is that when the child's shoulders go over the top harness slots, the seat is outgrown by height even if the child is still below the stated height or weight limits.

This means a long-torsoed child will outgrow harnessed seats by height before a short-torsoed child, even if those two children are the exact same standing height. So do double-check your son's seated height in the Cosco highback boosters, and if his shoulders are over the top harness slots, he does need new seats immediately. If he's got a little room and he's still below 40 pounds, you've got a bit of time to breathe and shop.

Does anyone know the height of the top slot on the Cosco seat? I tried to measure DS's seated height, but I think he may have been slouching a bit.

Nifferous said:

Does anyone know the height of the top slot on the Cosco seat? I tried to measure DS's seated height, but I think he may have been slouching a bit.

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It's 15".

So if I measured him at 14", then he should be ok right? It would be really great if we could get through our visit next month and wait to buy something new after that.

I think you should be fine since he measured an inch below what the seat it. FWIW... not sure how high the graco cargo slots are, but my DD who is over 3.5 and under 40lbs still fits great in the cargo. They look like the same kind of booster/ convertible.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong though. Never measured the harness on the graco cargo.

Just looked up the cargo and I'm wrong... looks the the cargo has fairly high top slots.

Sorry about that! I still think your son should be fine since you measured him at 14 and there are 15 inch slots. That's a fair amount of wiggle room in case he was slouching when you measured him.