How do you chose your primary seat?

jinmz7

New member
Just curious, if you have more than one seat per child, how do you chose which one you use as a primary seat and which is a back-up or for a secondary car.
 
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mimieliza

New member
Well, we picked the most expensive seat with the most features as the "primary" seat, but since I've gone back to work, DH and I drive her around equal amounts. She is in a Britax Boulevard in my car (FFing) and an EFTA in DH's car (RFing). We also have a Roundabout that is in her sitter's car because it is very easy to install with LATCH, and the sitter has to take it out and put it back in each week.

ETA: another consideration for us is RFing weight/height limits and space for leg room. She outgrew the Roundabout RFing by height a long time ago, so that is the seat for the sitters car, she is only there once a week (FFing of course). She is FFing in the Boulevard because she was getting close to the weight limit (33 lbs.), and it was getting difficult to maneuver her into it RFing. If she spent significantly more time in my car, I would have moved the EFTA to my car to keep her RFing, but as it is, she spends equal time in both cars, so it doesn't really matter.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
In our case, our primary seats are the only ones that will fit in our car. ;)

When we get a second car, the ones that will go in my car will be the ones that are easiest to use in the seats they go in for the kids that will ride in them, and that said kids are most comfortable in. If they're more comfortable in one that's a bit more difficult to use, we'll probably use the more comfortable one, since I'd rather they be comfy and I have a bit more difficult time getting them in or whatever.
 

solmama

Active member
Currently our primary seats are the ones that fit best in our vehicle and the ones that our children are the most comfortable in (Regent and Truefit). My ds' secondary seat(Radian) takes up lots of space, rf, and we just couldn't fit it in our primary vehicle that way. My dd's secondary seat is a booster (in dh's car), and since she so rarely rides there it hardly gets used. She prefers the comfort of her "lazy girl" seat (Regent).
 

Baby D

New member
We have a Marathon and a Diplomat. Both were free to us. We put the Diplomat in my car because it is smaller and the Marathon in DH's truck because it is bigger. DS is in both cars equally. We have a Roundabout in the sitter's car since he only rides with her once a week.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Mine match in pairs in each car :love:

No, seriously, I try to put the most safe seat in the least safe car...the one that has curtain airbags gets the seat without headwings, for example, while the older car gets the seat with headwings for just that hopeful bit of extra protection.
But there are also other factors for us, like we have to get three kids in a Ford Escape, so sometimes I just have to put the skinniest seats in I can make work.
 

emandbri

Well-known member
I really like the ease of use of the marathon and rear-facing tether so that is what Elizabeth is in.

Benjamin outgrew his marathon. I was planning to get him a frontier or nautilus but I don't really like the frontier and the nautilus is all gray so I put him in the radian as his primary seat. I hadn't considered that before because I was afraid the gray straps with the brown cover would bug me but I've gotten used to it.

Daniel was in a parkway but I bought a monterey hoping Jacob would fit in it but he didn't. I put the monterey in Brian's car since it was red and gray and didn't match mine but Daniel liked it so much that I'm put it in my van anyway.

Jacob is in a cosco prospect because it is the widest booster out there, he wouldn't fit in anything else.
 

Pixels

New member
Well, when we had an infant bucket and a convertible (ComfortSport, free from our health insurance company), we used the infant seat as primary, and the CS was a spare, because we liked to take the bucket inside with us.

Now, we use the bucket in DH's car, because when we go to our friend's house, we like to take it inside with us so it's warm for her when we leave (that way we don't have to mess with coats, we have a cover). She has gotten too heavy for me to carry around, so I don't use the bucket in my car any more. I use a Radian in my car. The third car that she is in is a Honda Fit. That car has very little room for a RFing convertible (The CS barely fits at 30*), and there's no way a Radian would fit unless the front passenger's seat was folded forward and unusable. Also, the seat is uninstalled and reinstalled almost every time, so ease is a factor.

So for us, convenience and which seats fit in which vehicles. I think the important things to consider are which seats fit in which vehicle, safer car gets less-safe seat, ease of use for a frequently-moved seat, and other convenience factors, in that order.
 

vonfirmath

New member
The primary seat is in the car that is used the most often.

When we had both a Safeseat and a Marathon in use, the MArathon was installed in the van and the Safeseat in the Saturn SW2 (this was in the midst of switching seats. We didn't want to have to buy two convertibles when we were getting rid of one of the cars so we continued to use the Safeseat in the car we were getting rid of -- I regret getting rid of that car!). So the seat used depended on the car.

At the time, the station wagon was the car the baby primarily rode in, so the Safeseat was the primary seat. When we got rid of the Saturn, his primary seat became the Marathon.
 

LuvBug

New member
Well I have 2 of the same seat... and then a booster. They booster only gets used when absolutely necessary. Pretty simple here. I would figure out which seat fits better in which car and go from there.
 

mominabigtruck

New member
Personally, I don't buy cheap seats:eek: I consider all my seats to be of equal quality and safety so I pretty much choose based on what fits where.
 

Pixels

New member
Personally, I don't buy cheap seats:eek: I consider all my seats to be of equal quality and safety so I pretty much choose based on what fits where.
Inexpensive does NOT equal less safe. Often, higher prices reflect convenience factors (which can be a good thing to help with proper use, or just make it more complicated and therefore CAUSE more misuse) or market perception of a brand name.

Personally, I like the simplicity of the install on the ComfortSport. Put a belt through the proper beltpath, secure and tighten, and done. No messing around with lock-offs. Just plunk the carseat on the vehicle seat and belt.
 

Mama2J

Member
The Regent is in my car because he rides in it everyday, and that is the more expensive seat. I didn't want to spend another $300, and my dh wanted something that will convert to a booster later, so the Nautilus was a perfect solution for his truck.

As small as J is turning out to be, I could have used a Nautilus for my car too, but unfortunately they were not out yet at the time I needed a seat.
 

mominabigtruck

New member
Inexpensive does NOT equal less safe. Often, higher prices reflect convenience factors (which can be a good thing to help with proper use, or just make it more complicated and therefore CAUSE more misuse) or market perception of a brand name.

Personally, I like the simplicity of the install on the ComfortSport. Put a belt through the proper beltpath, secure and tighten, and done. No messing around with lock-offs. Just plunk the carseat on the vehicle seat and belt.

I didn't mean to say they were less safe, just that all of my seats have the same features, for instance I don't own a boulevard and a scenera, I just think that's weird. Why would you say that having eps foam and tsip wings is important in one car but not another??

It's like when I see an ad on CL for a really old or crappy seat and they say how it would be great for a second vehicle or grandma. I don't understand the reasoning behind that, if you buy a nice, new seat for your main car why would you get something significantly different for your other car unless you had some other reason for it.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
I have two Nautilii. The butterfly seat is the primary seat (in my car) because my daughter thinks it's prettier -- and also, even though he'd suck it up and deal if he had to, my husband would prefer a plain grey seat in his car.

Why would you say that having eps foam and tsip wings is important in one car but not another??

My daughter rides in my husband's car maybe once a month. If my finances were different, I could see a very strong argument for having an adequate but not super-duper seat in a rarely used car and good food in the pantry. $200 can buy a lot of food.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
I can see the logic in saying "then get 2 middle-of-the-road seats." But then, the Scenera, etc. are great for travel. So I can also see getting one as a travel seat and ending up using it as a backup. Or in our case, we first bought our Scenera as a seat for Grandma's car (very occasional use.) Our main convertible was a gift to us, and was more than we could afford on any kind of second seat. So the Scenera it was. there are all kinds of situations that can lead to "seat inequality." I also don't mind lending my Scenera out to someone who needs it as much as I do, say, my spare Radian. Because if the Radian doesn't come back (or doesn't come back usable) it's a lot more money to replace than my Scenera...
 

mominabigtruck

New member
Like I said, there are reasons that I could understand it, like if it was a gift or something like that.

But if I knew someone and they came to me and said I have $300 max to spend on seats and I need two, one for mine, one for dh's then I would much more go the route of two eftas or even two AOE's (the new ones) then I would a marathon and a scenera or a radian and a cs. One reason is that then they're not interchangeable. If we have icecream in the car and there's a mess or if there were an accident and one of my seats is unusable I feel completely comfortable taking a seat out of someone else's car and using it or vice versa. Personally, I wouldn't feel comfortable putting a seat without eps foam in dh's car because it's basically a soup can on wheels with no safety features.

Also, when you buy seats of differing values usually they're different weight limits too so when your child outgrows the cheaper seat, which is normally a 40lb seat then you feel like you're wasting money to buy another hwh seat. When if you bought that seat to start with you wouldn't be in that quandry of do you put out the money for an apex or nautilus or do you just buy a booster because how much use are you really going to get out of the other seat.
 

Mama2J

Member
Like I said, there are reasons that I could understand it, like if it was a gift or something like that.

Also, when you buy seats of differing values usually they're different weight limits too so when your child outgrows the cheaper seat, which is normally a 40lb seat then you feel like you're wasting money to buy another hwh seat. When if you bought that seat to start with you wouldn't be in that quandry of do you put out the money for an apex or nautilus or do you just buy a booster because how much use are you really going to get out of the other seat.

I see your point. Maybe if I had bought them both at the same time AND dh wanted the same features in his vehicle as I did AND we wanted to spend the extra money for two expensive seats, then they could be the same.

There are lots of variables to consider. It is not just a random choice. At the time I bought the Regent, I had no idea how long I would need to use it for, so I bought something that would last as long as possible. Now that we have the Nautilus, I can see it would have been just as good (if it was available then) since it is doubtful J will ever make it to 80 pounds harnessed.

Also even if I did choose to use the Regent until it was outgrown or expired, my dh would not want to use a harnessed seat that long in his truck, so the extra money would have been wasteful to spend on that seat for him. Finally, he wanted something versatile that he could use for a booster later and not have to buy anymore seats, and it doesn't bother me to buy boosters later. So, different people may want different features, size limits, different cars they are being installed in, etc.
 

J-max

CPST Instructor
For us, it is mostly which ones the kids like best go in the car we drive the most, with a bit of what fits best where thrown in. So the regent and BLVD are in my car, which the kids are in more and for longer. And the kids like their comfy seats better - they are not big fans of the GN. The pickup has 2 GNs and a RA. The regent does not fit in the truck very well in a 3 across and the GNs block any seeing out the back in my 'burban, but they do all work in both vehicles if I had to move them.
 

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