Is britax really worth the $??

dawnp15 · Apr 16, 2009

Here's me dilema i have 5 month old twins that were 3 months premature. So they are tiny little ones. They are just now almost 10 pounds, and will not be anywhere near 20lbs by one year. So i'm doing my research now so i'm well informed before i switch them into a convertable seat. I was not very informed with my oldest who is now 3 and 40lbs. I put her FF and 11months and put her in a booster when she hit 40lbs.

I didn't know better, but now after finding this site she is now in a nautilis harnessed.

So know that i'm more informed i will keep the twins RF as long as possible, so i want to make the best decision. Is britax the way to go, or are the other seats just as safe for less $. I've been reading the threads about how the tru fit is hard to adjust when RF. What do you think will be the way for me to go. I'm willing to spend money on good seats, but nowadays money is tight, and with having to buy two at a time it can add up fast!! Are the reviews for the Combi coccoro good? They sure are cute and come in lots of colors. I would like to switch the babies before they hit 20 lbs. It gets to be to hard to carry babies around in their buckets when they get that heavy. Thanks for any advice i'm open to any suggestions!!!

Victorious4 · Apr 16, 2009

What seats are the twins currently in?
What is the vehicle year, make, model?
What is your budget?

Glad to hear you've found the forum helpful for your older kiddo

dawnp15 · Apr 16, 2009

We have a 2006 chevy tahoe, and the twins are in graco bucket seats. I don't have a problem with the buckets right now, but when they get bigger they do get heavy. I would like to keep the budget around $200-$250. I know some seats have like the infant inserts for when they are smaller. How long can they use those inserts? If i put them in a convetable sooner than later i would like them to have some extra support.

arly1983 · Apr 16, 2009

$200-250 apiece or together?

cpsaddict · Apr 16, 2009

It's hard to answer if they are worth it or not. To me, personally, yes they are. Others would say no. It's a very individual choice. There are certainly other seats that are safe and less money. The True Fit seems to be popular. The new True Fit coming out this summer will have an Anti Rebound Foot that should take care of the harness adjuster access issue. The Sunshine Kids Radian is nice, as is the Evenflo Triumph Advance.

dawnp15 · Apr 16, 2009

Sorry $200-$250 a peice is the most i think i could spend. The other hard part is getting dh on board. He thinks that all seats are the same so why pay so much for something that can do the same as a 60-70 dollar seat. That's why i'm doing my research now, so i have time to save and make the right descion.

carseatcoach · Apr 16, 2009

IMO, they are worth the money for the comfort, cuteness, and convenience. They are not necessarily "worth the money" for safety -- kids can be just as safe in a less pricey seat.

Did that make any sense? I'm saying that I think the price is justified if you have the money and you want the features, but if you can't or don't want to spend that much, you shouldn't feel as if you are compromising your child.

heyruthie · Apr 16, 2009

Remember that you don't "have" to use the buckets as carriers. With your babies being so tiny, you can certainly keep using the infant buckets for quite some time. And you don't ever have to remove them from the vehicle if you don't want to. Putting them in a convertible doesn't give you more options: it limits them. IMHO, my kiddos have always slept better in their infant buckets too--which can be a big plus. (Of course every kid is different, and i'm sure lots of Moms experienced the opposite.)

Why not wait until you have to move them out of the infant buckets--who knows what will be on the market? Britax is debuting the new Roundabout50, and we hear tell of the new Graco MyRide, as well

Buying a carseat is a decision that is best left until the last-minute, since new stuff comes out every day, and you can never predict your kiddo's growth pattern.

ETA: I'm looking at the Avenue for my DD's next RFing seat, which you could consider when your twins get bigger. It's on sale at my Kmart this week for $72, so with a price like that, you could def. stay within your budget. It has many of the features Britax has, including a ton of EPS foam. It also has infant supports. Also, I'm basically in love with our EFTA: practically my ideal seat....if only they had a "truly" girly cover, it would be my dream seat. It's regularly on sale for almost as low as $100, esp. if you use a coupon at BRU.

ketchupqueen · Apr 16, 2009

To me personally, not worth it.

Pixels · Apr 16, 2009

To me personally, not worth it. When they were the only fish in the pond, yes. Now other companies have comparable features for much less money.

People are seeming to like the Coccorro. But it does have a shorter shell, so it probably won't be the only convertible you'll need.

Take a look at the Scenera ($35-$50, 35 pounds RFing, will need to have a different seat for FFing like the Nautilus or whatever is out at the time), Avenue (usually $90, only available at Kmart and Sears, 35 pounds RFing, 40 pounds FFing, again you'll likely need to follow with another FFing harnessed seat), Evenflo Triumph Advance (35 pounds RFing, 50 pounds FFing, might get your kids to booster age), Radian (35 pounds RFing, outgrown by height around 50-65 pounds, should get most kids to booster age), TrueFit (35 pounds RFing, tallest shell so will last the longest RFing, should get most kids to booster age).

Different seats have different rules about when the infant insert must come out. The only one I know of off the top of my head is for the Radian. The body support must come out at 30 pounds, but it can be used as a toddler head pillow at that point. The Radian65 doesn't come with it, but can be bought separately.

jujumum · Apr 16, 2009

To me they are worth it - when on sale! I have several Britax seats and love them, but haven't paid full price for any of them. Each September and Februrary (or so) there are great sales, and occasionally there are closeout fabrics at other times of the year. I saw the Madison Boulevard on Amazon and Albeebaby the other day for only $215 shipped, no tax. Great deal for a girly seat.

There was a thread about Britax a couple of weeks ago:

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=79130

Since you are planning ahead, you have time to search out the best deal, whether a Britax closeout or another seat using retailer coupon codes, etc.

:thumbsup:

carseatcoach · Apr 16, 2009

$215 is indeed a good price for a Boulevard, but for a lot of people, it's still just not do-able -- and again, other seats may not be as pretty or as cushy or as quick to install, but they are safe and sensible choices.

bobandjess99 · Apr 16, 2009

In a word...no.
i mean yes...they are great seats, they have tall shells, high weight limits, some great ease-of usefeatures...but at this point, there are also a number of other really good seats on teh market with similar height and weight limits that you can purchase for much cheaper than a britax seat that are perfectly safe and great seats.

If I had to recommend a seat, the TRuefit is exceptional....and they run $179 apiece...they also have higher slots and shell than the marathon,so will last most children a longer than the marathon....

Other really great seats that will keep your child harnessed to a good booster age (5-7 years old depending on size) include the new alpha omega seats with the 50 lb limit, the evenflo triumph advance,the sunshines kids radian seats .....and all of those can be had for under $200 apiece.

Jan06twinmom · Apr 16, 2009

Congratulations on your twins! I'd definitely recommend waiting until closer to when you need the seats so you can decide what would work best for your babies. You might consider going with a seat that has a 40lb limit - like the Avenue - for extended rf. Then when it's time to go ff, you could do the big switch - move oldest child in a dedicated booster, pass along the Nautilus and get another ff seat like the Nautilus. Or you could get an Avenue with the idea that the baby in this seat eventually gets the Nautilus and one higher weight convertible car seat.

There are lots of options, esp. if you are okay with the idea that your twins might not be in the same seat. We buy seats in pairs, and I found that I've had them all mixed up because my twins are such different sizes.

Melanie

pastrygirl · Apr 16, 2009

As much as I love my Marathons, I wish that options like the True Fit and Evenflo Triumph Advance were out at the time. I'm thinking about getting a Radian, too, for my son who is FF. I'd end up using it RF in a couple of years for the baby.

The Marathon IS super easy to install, the fabrics are really nice... but I'm finding that I'd rather a seat that doesn't sit so high up now that my son is FF.

tjham · Apr 16, 2009

pastrygirl said:
but I'm finding that I'd rather a seat that doesn't sit so high up now that my son is FF.

Exactly my feeling! Wish their stinkin' bases were removable!

ZephyrBlue · Apr 16, 2009

I think so. We've been buying Britax for almost 9 years now and in my opinion, the extra testing that Britax does (as well as the voluntary recalls of minor issues) makes the extra money worth it. Other companies have been negligent in their handling of recalls and that makes me very wary of trusting them with my childrens' safety. I also feel that Sunshine Kids is worth the money- we're very happy with our SK convertible seats and especially our SK booster. We also really like our First Years True Fit convertible- it's absolutely comparable to Britax in features. I don't know how much extra testing First Years does, if any. We won't know how the company conducts itself with regards to safety issues that arise, but I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt at this point.

dawnp15 · Apr 16, 2009

How about the evenflo symphony? Is that a good seat?

J-max · Apr 16, 2009

chickabiddy said:
IMO, they are worth the money for the comfort, cuteness, and convenience. They are not necessarily "worth the money" for safety -- kids can be just as safe in a less pricey seat.

Did that make any sense? I'm saying that I think the price is justified if you have the money and you want the features, but if you can't or don't want to spend that much, you shouldn't feel as if you are compromising your child.

This is exactly my thought

rochelle · Apr 16, 2009

dawnp15,

I was born 3 monts prematured at 2lbs. my twin sister died 3 days after birth. at 6mths I was at average weight & heighof a normal baby (according to paed). so it really depends on how fast your twins catch up on weight and height.

:twocents: get the best possible seats at the lowest price and save the rest for emergency medical expenses. if you are on HMO, your twins medical are basically covered, if on PPO, cost can be high. we found out the hard way when having our DS2 and DH's company only offered PPO. I had childhood asthma and medical cost was quite high.

alot of my neighbours sold their Britax Roundabout and Marathon after upgrading their firstborns to Regents/Frontiers. ask around and you might be able to get good deals from your neighbours.

Is britax really worth the $??

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