Small Car (spectra) - should I go with a TF or Radian65? ~long~

sarah2106

New member
We have a small car - Kia Spectra5.

Right now DS is in a EF Triumph (short shell) and DD is in an EvenFlo (unknown model) high back with 5-point to 40#'s.

DD (3 years, 35#'s 40" tall) - We are thinking of getting DD the GN - because the 5-point goes to 65#'s and the high strap settings of the 5-point.

I was set on getting DS (17 months, 25"'s, about 2" from the top of his short shell Triumph) a True Fit so we could keep him RFing up to 35#'s and then use it until he was 65#'s. Now I am not sure...

The new TF w/ARB should be coming out soon and my understanding is that the ARB is similar to RFing teather so... that got me looking at other seats.

Is a Radian 65 a better option (it is about the same price as the pre-order price of the TF w/ARB). We have a small/narrow back seat and don't plan on purchasing a new car in the future (for at least 3 years) so I didn't know if the Radian would be a better fit. We are not sure if we are going to have a thrid baby, but there is a chance we would need to do 3 across.

Is the TF pretty wide? I can't imagine going three across with our current seats and I imagine a TF is pretty wide. At the same time it seems that a Radian doesn't always fit well RFing in some cars.

We can't afford to change out car seats all the time, and if we did have a third child and needed to do 3 across it would be a bummer if we had to replace the seats again. Since I can't find any B&M stores that carry both seats, should I just order one with a good return policy and try it out?

If you made it this far TIA for the help!!
 
ADS

unityco

Ambassador - CPS Technician
The TF is a pretty wide seat and I don't think it would puzzle very well if you needed to do 3-across.

You could get your daughter the Radian instead of your son. It's not quite as tall as the Nautilus, but it's still a very tall seat and has the same 65lb weight limit.

For your son, have you considered some of the Dorel/Safety 1st seats? The Scenera, Avenue and the *new* Alpha-Omega all have a 35lb RF limit and are relatively narrow (if you leave the base off the AOE.) The Scenera is the shortest of the bunch, but at its low price, if it gets your son to 35lbs RF, it has done its job. Then maybe you could buy a Nautilus to add to the Radian and put either of your older children in it (since at that point they'd both be FF.) With at least one Radian in the mix, you should be able to make some version of 3-across work.

Did that make sense? I hope so! :eek:
 
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sarah2106

New member
That makes sense... that is another good idea. I will have to check out those seats too.

There are just so many with so many options it can be confusing:eek:
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Because of the height of the harness straps, kids will last longer in the Nautilus than the Radian even though they have the same weight limit.

The Radian when RF takes up just a LOT of room front-to-back. The TrueFit takes up much less and might be a better fit in your car for that reason. I would definitely not buy a Radian without trying it first (or at last purchasing somewhere it could be easily returned, either to a store or with shipping insurance.)

I would definitely look at the Avenue, as it's both narrower and fairly tall for RF.
 

bobandjess99

Senior Community Member
Honestly, even if the other 2 seats are radians, i dont think you will get a 3 across with the nauti in there. I have an optima, and with a nauti on one side and an AOE on the other, they nearly touch in the center, completely obliterating the center seating position. I do know there is someone on here who has a 3 across in her sig in a spectra...I can remember what with..3 radians,maybe? i would get the seat from a good return policy store, like you said..maybe target,since you can return it to the store? And the AOE is NOT narrow..I love the seat, am probably it's biggest champion, but the fricken thing is 21 inches wide...wider than the nautilus!
 

sarah2106

New member
Thanks for the replies! I look forward to hearing more too!!!

I think I will check into ordering seats from a place with an easy/cheap return policy and try them out.

I know small cars are tough, but it is a lot cheaper to fit the car than purchase a new car:)
 

skipspin

New member
Here is a three-across setup in a Spectra that I helped my friend get in:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=61121&highlight=kia+spectra

It was their only car until #3 was around 4 months old. She also got a RFing Marathon where the Snugride is.

I'd say if there is a possibility of having to get three seats you should get at least one Radian. It fit FFing in all three positions in the back seat with the seatbelt, or LATCH outboard. It fit in the center RFing too, but did go up between the two front seats a bit.
 

sarah2106

New member
Here is a three-across setup in a Spectra that I helped my friend get in:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=61121&highlight=kia+spectra

It was their only car until #3 was around 4 months old. She also got a RFing Marathon where the Snugride is.

I'd say if there is a possibility of having to get three seats you should get at least one Radian. It fit FFing in all three positions in the back seat with the seatbelt, or LATCH outboard. It fit in the center RFing too, but did go up between the two front seats a bit.

That was so helpful!!! Thank you so much!!!

Did the front seats have to moved forward much to get the Radian RFing? You mention that is sticks out between the 2 front seats, but I didn't know if the seats also had to be moved forward. Thanks!!
 

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