Help me pick 7 (yes, 7!) new seats

Ugh, I can't believe I'm talking about buying 7 seats at once. There are only 2 kids involved, but 5 cars. Thanks in advance to anyone willing to follow all this and offer suggestions:

The kids:

DD -- 3 years, 35 lbs, 37 in
DS -- 6 mos, 18 lbs, 27 in


The cars:

'08 Volvo XC70 -- my car, most often used

'01 (I think) Subaru Impreza WRX -- DH's preferred car, great in bad weather, but often not available

'96 Lexus LS400 (retrofitted with tether anchors) -- our other car, used everyday by DH when the WRX is not available, and used occasionally otherwise

'00 (I think) Lexus LS430 -- In-laws' car -- they remove the seats when not in use, so easy installation is key. Used pretty infrequently, but they need their own seats. They are probably going to replace this car within a year or two, probably with another Lexus luxury sedan.

'00 (I think) Toyota Corolla -- My parents' car; seats generally stay in. Used pretty infrequently, but they need their own seats.


Current seats:

DS is in a snugride -- works for all cars, but we're thinking ahead to when he outgrows it shortly. I am a believer in rear-facing and harnessing far beyond the "minimum" recommendations.

For DD (FF) -- Our Volvo and Lexus both have Marathons. The WRX has a Comfortsport which she will probably outgrow soon by height. Both sets of grandparents have hand-me-down Roundabouts from my nephews -- great seats, but nearing expiration.


So, what do I do?

I figure with 2 kids and 5 cars, we need 10 seats. (Yes, we could possibly switch between our WRX and our Lexus, but I think we would prefer to buy extra seats rather than deal with the hassle of switching. Not sure, though.) We have 3 that we can carry over into this new configuration (2 Marathons and the ComfortSport). So I think that means we need 7. DH is wondering if we can continue to use the Roundabouts for infrequent grandparent use after they're expired, but I'm saying NO to that one.

Our Marathons could continue to work for DD for a while, or we could turn them back around for DS. I didn't LOVE the Marathon as a rear-facing seat because it is so big, but if that makes the most sense, that's what we'll do.

Due to the Nautilus' great reviews, I am leaning towards several of those...just don't know how many and for which cars. Many of you have given it high marks for ease of installation, but I have also heard it is REALLY heavy -- don't necessarily want to burden the in-laws with that because they take it out of their car all the time and bring it down to their basement.

So for the Volvo and at least one (if not both) of our other cars -- I am thinking Nautilus for DD. I'm thinking our existing Marathons can either stay in our cars for DS or go to the grandparents for DD. (By the time DD outgrows the Marathon, we might be able to use hand-me-down boosters from my nephews -- do boosters generally also have a 6-year life?). For DS in the grandparents' cars, I am looking for economical but safe -- which I think means either the Cosco Scenera or the Safety 1st Avenue -- provided that the in-laws won't have trouble hauling it up from the basement and getting a good install.

I also admit to knowing nothing about Britax's FF-only offerings, so please give details if the Regent or Frontier would make sense at all. Also, another basic question that I should know the answer to but don't -- what is are the criteria for moving from a high-back to a backless booster?

OH -- and one more thing -- I want to have at least one set of seats that we can easily bring on a plane. We don't travel much, and have nothing planned in the near future, but I would feel foolish having to go out to buy ANOTHER seat for next time we do travel. The ComfortSport has served us well in that regard, and that will be DS' travel seat -- but we need something for DD as well because we probably will fly SOMEWHERE within the next few years.

OK -- long enough post? Thanks in advance everyone -- this site seems like a wonderful resource with some very knowledgeable and supportive folks.

Since you need so many seats, I would suggest getting DD a Nautilus for each car she rides in. They are relatively cheap (about $150), easy to install, and will be the last seat you ever need to buy her. I would get her one for each car you ride in. You can also fly with the GN.

For DS, I would pass down all of DD's seats: the 2 Marathons and the Comfortsport. That leaves you with 2 to buy. I would definitely give the in-laws an MA, since they take the seats out when not in use, and the MA's are SOOOO easy to install. I wouldn't have the in-laws use the Rear-facing tether, though, unless you are positive they could hook it up, correctly, every time.

For the last 2 cars, I would either get 2 more Marathons (there's even a deal on this board that I will come back with the link to, for 2 Marathon's for $449), or I would try out a True Fit by Compass/the first years, or an Evenflo Triumph Advance. The True Fit has lock offs like the Britax seats do, and offers the most rear-facing leg room on the market. It runs about $180, but there are some deals on it right now. The EFTA runs about $130-$150, but has adjuster knobs on the front of the seat that can get in the way when trying to adjust rear-facing, so you would definitely need to try this seat out in the car it would be used in, before buying.

HTH!!

Here's the link to the Marathon 2-packs (you can mix prints): http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=63120

I will let the tech's handle what seats... But I would def. say Graco Nautilus' for your daugheter... Right now they are 122ish at walmart and amazon.com normally 159ish... I would grab those now....

Since you want something smaller than the marathon you could check out the true fit, it has a back that comes off so it would be smaller for a while.

For flying I would take the comfort sport and one of the nautilus.

Oh and some babies r us have a pink and gray nautilus that your daughter might like.

Okay... this is what I would do...

First, make sure you know the lifespan of the marathons.

But then... *new seats highlighted in red

Your car - Marathon for baby, Graco Nautilus for your 3yr old

Hubby's car - Graco Comfortsport for baby, Graco Nautilus for your 3yr old (when the comfortsport is outgrown, I'd get an Evenflo Triumph Advance or another Nautilus)

'96 Lexus LS400 (retrofitted with tether anchors) -- Cosco Scenera or Safety 1st Avenue for baby, Graco Nautilus for your 3yr old

'00 (I think) Lexus LS430 -- In-laws' car -- since they remove seats frequently, I'm going to say the Evenflo Triumph Advance Premier (the one with the easier type latch anchors... alligator style) and a Graco Nautilus (seriously, this seat is just way too easy to install)

'00 (I think) Toyota Corolla -- My parents' car; seats generally stay in. Used pretty infrequently, but they need their own seats. - Other Marathon and a Graco Nautilus


So... basically, I'd get 5 graco Nautili, one Cosco Scenera/ Safety 1st Avenue, and one Evenflo Triumph Premier.

The bigger and easier seats going in the cars that need them and/or are used more often.

Wow, unanimous support for 5 Nautili!!! That was kind of my initial thought, but didn't really let myself believe it.

So how easy is it to convert the Nautilus back and forth between the different modes? I realized that giving a Nautilus to my parents could also help them on the rare occasions they drive my nieces and nephews -- all different ages and stages.

Our Marathons are from '06, so they should last through DS' rear-facing years. Kind of disappointing, though, to probably not use the high-weight harnessing on the MA for either kid....could have gotten away with Roundabouts and not been so crammed.

I'll look into the other converibles you mentioned. Great suggestions, all --- thanks and keep 'em coming!

I'd get at least one Radian - you never know when someone will need three across and it's a breeze to travel with - you could use it for your oldest for travel and bring something smaller for your youngest for travel. The Radian could be used by either child now and will last your oldest a few years probably.

If it makes you feel better, you won't use the HWH capability of the Marathon, but you will use the added shell height when RFing. You can RF much longer in the Marathon than in the Roundabout.

HelpPlease said:

Our Marathons are from '06, so they should last through DS' rear-facing years. Kind of disappointing, though, to probably not use the high-weight harnessing on the MA for either kid....could have gotten away with Roundabouts and not been so crammed.

Click to expand...

Only thing I would add,

If the In-laws are not reliable at installing seats you may want to look at the Evenflo Symphony 3 in 1 instead of the Triumph Advance for them for DS, and a Safeguard Child Seat instead of the Nautilus for DD. Both these seats have self tightening Latch straps and are super easy to install. They are a more expensive, but will be able to be used in the in-laws car for a long time.

The Symphony can be DS seat rfing to 35#, then ffing to 40#, then you can switch him to the Safeguard, and put DD in the Symphony in booster mode (unlike the Cosco 3 in 1 seats, the Symphony provides a good fit as a booster.

I know it's not the cheapest solution but it gives everyone a variety of seats they can use for an extended time and gives you travel seats to boot! So what about:

'08 Volvo XC70 -- my car, most often used DD-REGENT/DS-ARTF (when dd outgrows rg she can pass it down to ds and she gets a dedicated hbb

'01 (I think) Subaru Impreza WRX -- DH's preferred car, great in bad weather, but often not available DD-FF MA/ DS-RF MA (sell the RAs and CS to fund carseats in other cars and use the MAs here since it is sometimes not in use but you will get to use the hwh for dd atleast )

'96 Lexus LS400 (retrofitted with tether anchors) -- our other car, used everyday by DH when the WRX is not available, and used occasionally otherwise DD-FF RN/ DS-RF RN(great full time seats, great for travel and great if you ever need to do three across!)

'00 (I think) Lexus LS430 -- In-laws' car -- they remove the seats when not in use, so easy installation is key. Used pretty infrequently, but they need their own seats. They are probably going to replace this car within a year or two, probably with another Lexus luxury sedan. DD-GN/ DS-EFTA PREMIER

'00 (I think) Toyota Corolla -- My parents' car; seats generally stay in. Used pretty infrequently, but they need their own seats. DD-GN/ DS-EFTA PREMIER