Question What would you change about the Britax Frontier?

Kat_Momof3 · Feb 6, 2009

Sarah... thank you for coming here with this poll... we love to help in any way we can... and Britax is a company we all know and trust.... and I hate that I can no longer have a reason to own one.

I put I did not purchase a frontier because...

and then chose Raise harness height to equal that of Regent... at this point I would buy another nautilus over the frontier every time because the straps are equal in height and, while the frontier is not a narrow seat by any means and makes such a tall booster, it doesn't go wide like the SK Monterey for my super broad shouldered kid and with the other reasons I chose, it just doesn't have the taller top slots to give me a reason to spend that much more money

The buckle tongues slide down under the child and sometimes under the cover Not the worst offender reason, but not something I'm used to with a britax seat..... not really a reason to buy/not to buy... if it had the taller top slots and met the other issues, I wouldn't even care

The armrests feel weak - I'd prefer fixed armrests While I like that they can move for loading/unloading, I'd rather have them not be there at all (unless needed for booster use) or fixed... because they do feel weak... more like evenflo armrests that have never felt very substantial. I expected more out of Britax
Need to improve ease of installation

I love that you guys allow the longpath, so in a way you have resolved this, but latch installs still need to be easier... because otherwise latch in booster mode won't necessarily actually be doable.

cupholders aren't a buying factor for me... granted, I love a good one, but it's just not an issue.

I would love adjustable head and body wings for making them more custom fitting to the child, though.

Patriot201 · Feb 6, 2009

If the Frontier had a harness height equal to that of the Regent, I would have bought it in a heartbeat! Instead, I purchased a Graco Nautilus.

I will need another FF-only seat sometime in the next two years and would DEFINITELY consider a Frontier if the harness height was at least 20", if there was another crotch buckle fitting, and if there continued to be a cover that I like.

Mommypooh · Feb 6, 2009

I own 3 britax seats and I need an extra that can be used with all my kids, and I am choosing to buy a nautilus due to having the same harness height as a frontier, there is a cover that is not mesh and I hate mesh with kids, I have not installed one yet but if it is as difficult as my regent I really don't want another one like it. I will be purchasing a new seat in May for a vacation we have and I as of now will be purchasing a Nautilus from Graco.

I did play with one at babiesrus and had lots of issues with harness twisting and the buckles getting lost and I was trying it on 6 different kids. That was quiet annoying for me, and I would not want to do that daily.

monstah · Feb 6, 2009

I voted:
I DID NOT PURCHASE A FRONTIER BECAUSE…
Raise harness height to equal that of Regent

I have a son with a very long torso. He is under 3.5 years old and is using the top harness slots on a Graco Nautilus already. If the Frontier had harness slots as high as the Regent I WOULD own one.

I purchased the Nautilus over the Frontier mainly because of the reasonable price - knowing my son would grow out of it very quickly.

safeinthecar · Feb 6, 2009

Hi Sarah. I think it is a great thing you are doing seeking feedback here.

I own a Frontier and am overall very pleased with it, but there are a few issues that would make the seat fabulous if fixed.

Harness twisting. While most parents can be educated to be diligent about not letting them twist, children in the Frontier will definitely get to the age where they will be buckling themselves. I use it for my 7yo and it took her a long time to get the hang of the harness. She has been buckling herself in the Regent for 3+ years now, so is not exactly new to it.

Taller slots. *My* kids are the exceptions to the rule, in that they fit the harness height at 7 and 9.5 yrs old, however, my nephew would have outgrown the harness by height at just barely over 4. even if the Frontier had been available then, it would have made no sense to buy it, even though the lack of max weight limits and tall booster mode would really benefit him now at 9 yrs and 115#.

Ease of install. There's certainly a larger than normal learning curve involved with installing the Frontier.

and two other things I would like to suggest.

Make a pocket or something in the cover for the manual to be stored. It gets tangled up with the seat belt very easily with a LBP install.

Replace the screw with a codderpin or thumbscrew and attach it with a cord so it doesn't get lost or require a tool to install.

Sceason1972 · Feb 6, 2009

I love Britax seats - and really want to get a Frontier - but the install issues make me really hesitant. I LOVE the lock-offs on the other seats. I have a Honda so no Latch after 40lbs.

I know you said only the issues listed - but the mesh cover is a HUGE issue for me. My dd would love a pretty seat - but I want one with a quality cover. All 3 Britaxes I own have such great covers that hold up so well. For the price of the Frontier the cover needs to be of quality.

The bottom line is that to buy the seat it would need to hold up to the Britax reputation - it so far does not do that. If improvements are made then maybe it will be our next purchase.

skaterbabs · Feb 6, 2009

I finally broke down and bought a Frontier before Christmas. I'd held off until then because the harness height really doesn't compare with the Regent, and is even a tad bit shorter than the Graco Nautilus. The Frontier won out for us because of the height in booster mode, we don't really need the height in harness mode because we do have a Regent.

That said, we bought it because Joy is outgrowing the Marathon (5 yrs, 48 lbs and not sure of her height) and we want to keep her harnessed full time until her 6th birthday next fall. It would be nice if the harness height on the Frontier were more comparable with the Regent than the Marathon.

It definately is not an easy installation, however, so I'm finding myself moving the Regent from car to car, which is a little silly, but it installs better.

jsmom · Feb 6, 2009

Mine came in the mail today and I wish it had a plush cover! I knew it would have mesh when I ordered it though. Also, the harness height being raised would be awesome!

WhatAboutPuppy · Feb 6, 2009

I just purchased two Frontiers. I can tell you I wouldn't have even considered the Nautilus if these 3 things were improved:

1. Raise Harness Height... we're not here cuz we'd like to see them in a booster early.

2. The buckle tongues and harness hook and loop.
While I buckle his brother in DS1 buckles himself... it's his job. We were able to check his work when he was in a TB but now I find he can't finish the job himself because he's scrounging for buckle parts... Though if I flip up the armrests (which I love!) I can wrap his harness around each one to help with the next time we get in the car.

3. Ease of Installation.
I would not recommend this seat to my cousin because I know her install would be incorrect. I wrestled with this seat for darn near a half hour the first time. Now I've got it!! And I don't mind a tough install, might go so far as to say I like the challenge. But a lot of people don't buy this seat for that reason!!
What if the belt holes were to the sides instead of facing the car's seat back?

I'm so impressed with Britax, for reasons like this survey and being made in the US... maybe this is a portion of why they're more expensive??
I'm willing to pay for it.

mommyto4kiddos · Feb 6, 2009

We have the frontier and I don't like it because of the installation is hard, The buckle tongues slide down and I hate that and the straps don't tighten nearly as nice as the nautilus. We don't use the cup holders much so I can't even picture it. Oh I forgot, Make the cover like the other Britax seats. I love the other covers but not the frontier covers. I love plush so we can wash them when needed.

lovinwaves · Feb 6, 2009

I purchased 2 Frontiers and sold them quite quickly because:

Installation Issues

&

Buckle tongue sliding under my child

ketchupqueen · Feb 7, 2009

It most definitely needs new covers before I will consider it seriously. And I think the 80 lb. limit is laughable with the slots where they are, and may mislead some parents into misuse (or buyer's remorse!)

Mama Jo · Feb 8, 2009

I clicked that I was considering the purchase of a Frontier, but I have actually purchased one and am awaiting its delivery

I couldn't pick the option that I owned and used it, though because I haven't yet...

I had initially purchased a Nautilus, mainly because of the price and I thought the features were basically the same. I'm now buying a Frontier because my DD fell in love with it when we played with it at BRU.

Back when I was deciding between the Nautilus and Frontier originally, I had actually considered the Regent because of its high harness slots. If the Frontier had had harness slots that high, it would have sold me over the Nautilus for that reason alone. The reason I didn't go with the Regent was just because my DD is 5 and it didn't make sense to spend that much money on a seat I would end up needing to replace with a high back booster in a couple years. I really wish the harness slots on the Frontier were higher because I would like to keep her harnessed as long as possible, but it just didn't make sense to buy the Regent at this stage. She will definitely outgrow the harness by height before weight.

strollerfreak · Feb 8, 2009

I voted, I CONSIDERED BUT DID NOT PURCHASE...

and WEAK ARMRESTS...seriously after my other Britax seats this one just felt cheap & flimsy at the armrests, and I wasn't about to pay the Britax price for something that felt that cheap & flimsy...like others have said, if they are going to be there and are not cosmetic they need to be more substansial, if they are just cosmetic then I'd actually prefer to have them removed as my kids never use armrests anyway, and it makes it easier for the kids to buckle, and for 3-across situations.

and RAISE HARNESS HEIGHT TO EQUAL REGENT's...because the child that I was considering it for, only had an inch of torso growth remaining in the Frontier, yet had a whole extra set of harness slots in the Regent.

I also am slightly leery of the harness on it, as the webbing quality on the harnesses seems to have went south the past few years...it's soft now which may be more comfortable for the child, but it makes it more prone to twisting & roping which in the long run is a bad thing for most parents because they won't take the time to fix it. I'm not all that thrilled with the harness on my new Marathon...I've had the harness fold over and get threaded through the slots in the buckle tongs several times now, which I've *NEVER* had happen in any of my

whistle: way too many to count) other Britax seats.

Ali · Feb 8, 2009

We own a Frontier and a Graco Nautilus and have owned 2 MAs. We love Britax MAs, but are disappointed in the quality of the Frontier.

The straps on the frontier are so flimsy and several frontier owners I know said, "Britax cheaped out by making such flimsy straps." We loved our Marathons b/c the straps were so thick and never twisted. This is a huge downside when you are strapping kids in carseats till they are 6-9 yrs old.

Ditto that! The straps on the Nautilus are either thicker or the differing design of the buckle tongues decreases the twistiness on the Nautilus. The Nautilus also feels more sturdy when compared with the Frontier and the Nautilus was much easier to install.

seanandshawn · Feb 8, 2009

We have the seat and am quite happy with it! However, I totally agree with the straps being twisty and flimsy. It is always a chore to untwist them, which was never a problem on our roundabout. The cover hasn't held up so well, we have the red one, and it is all snagged, again not a problem in our other Britax seats. Wish that the plastic shell had more of the impact material (the styrafoam lining that is in the head.) Installation was a huge chore, but have finally figured it out, but it took way too much effort using the belt (We never take it out of the car

. Also a huge wish is the harness height to go up a little more. Armrest do feel flimsy, however they are holding up just fine to all my sons abuse, and will be helpful for him to see the buckle when he gets to the booster stage...
Thank you Britax for listening to my opinions, that is why I will keep buying your seats!

emandbri · Feb 8, 2009

strollerfreak said:
I'm not all that thrilled with the harness on my new Marathon...I've had the harness fold over and get threaded through the slots in the buckle tongs several times now, which I've *NEVER* had happen in any of my whistle: way too many to count) other Britax seats.

Wow, I wasn't aware that they started putting thinner straps on the marathon, that sucks!

Mine have good straps, they were made in May of 07 and 08. What is the date of yours?

Unregistered1 · Feb 8, 2009

I am a Frontier owner but currently using it in booster mode - I have, however, helped another local mom install her Frontier and the ONLY thing I really strongly disliked were the installation issues. She had a lap belt only so she couldn't use the LBP and we had a tough time getting it in SBP. The very top thing I'd like to see would be a change to the belt path to make it easier to install. It's just incompatible with too many cars and too many positions. The MA/BV/DC have such amazingly easy installs that make them perfect recommendations, I'd love to see that in the Frontier.

The only other thing I marked was to raise the harness height to equal the regent.

steph · Feb 8, 2009

I will be looking at getting a new seat for my son in his Dad's car and I wanted the Frontier but I am currently leaning towards the Regent because of the higher harness slots. Also the difficulty of installation concerns me as well.

Thanks for doing this!!!

abacus2 · Feb 9, 2009

I chose that I did not purchase because of the harness height and the installation issues. I would love, love, love to have a harnessed seat that would fit my 5 year old in harnessed mode and fit 3 across in my full sized car. Buckling a booster next to another seat is a pain; if I didn't have a Parkway I think it would be nearly impossible. My dd would fit currently in the Frontier, but I think she would outgrow the harness height within 6 months. I am very leary of the installation issues and wouldn't recommend the seat to others because of it. I have a car with non-locking seatbelts and love the lock-offs on my Decathlon; I'm sure the Frontier would be a serious pain to install in my car.

Question What would you change about the Britax Frontier?

What issue would you like to see addressed on the Britax Frontier?

I AM AN OWNER AND USER OF A FRONTIER AND WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE…

I DID NOT PURCHASE A FRONTIER BECAUSE…

I AM CONSIDERING THE PURCHASE OF A FRONTIER BUT HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT…

Improve cup holder design to open easier and/or close better

Raise harness height to equal that of Regent

The buckle tongues slide down under the child and sometimes under the cover

The arm rests feel weak – I’d prefer fixed (non-pivoting armrests)

Add a fourth crotch buckle position

Add hook & loop to hold harness in open position

Need to improve ease of installation

New member

Car-Seat.org Ambassador

New member

New member

Moderator - CPS Technician

New member

Well-known member

New member

New member

Senior Community Member

New member

CPST and ketchup snob

New member

Senior Community Member

New member

New member

Well-known member

Unregistered1

Guest

New member

Well-known member

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Sponsors

Forum statistics