Question Recommendation for a 3 yr old

*jen*

New member
I need to move my 3 year old out of her Britax RA and into her next seat. She is approx. 38" tall and 29 lbs. She has a longer torso, than legs. I was automatically going to get a Britax MA, but thought I should check to see if there is anything new or better out there that I should consider. I obviously want safety, but would also like something as non-bulky as possible without compromising safety. The new seat will be with the RA in the backseat of my Honda CRV which isn't huge. I will keep her in this seat for 3 years when my son will take it over and my daughter will move up to the next seat at age 6. My son is on the chunkier size(he is 6 months and already 20 lbs!), so this seat needs to have a high weight capability so that he can use it for 3 years as well. Any advice would be great!
 
ADS

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Maybe the Sunshine Kids Radian 65? It's wider and comfier for the child riding in it, but super low profile and narrow on the outside so it's really excellent to fit next to other seats, so if you had to squeeze a third person back there the odds are good you could fairly comfortably do so.
 

Maedze

New member
Is she rearfacing or forward facing? If she's rearfacing, I would go with the First Years True Fit to allow maximum rearfacing room to grow. If she's all ready forward facing, it seems sort of silly to spend money on a convertible when you all ready have one to pass down to the baby. In that case I'd look at the Graco Nautilus or Britax Frontier.
 

*jen*

New member
We actually got a Radian for my parent's car. I do like how slim it is, but man it is HEAVY and doesn't look as comfortable. Maybe I should go check out the reviews. My daughter is only in it occassionally as my parents really only take her somewhere about twice a month. Thanks for the advice!
 

*jen*

New member
Is the Frontier wider than the MA? I guess I didn't look at that because she is going to be out of it within 3 years anyway so my son can have it, so I really don't need it to go up to 100 lbs and it isn't like my son will be able to use it as a booster because by then it will be 6 years old(that is still the rule right?) If I can't get the full function of the 100 lbs. booster because of the age of the seat I would rather go with the MA which I can get way cheaper, KWIM? If I can continue to use it as a booster for my son over the 6 years then it would be worth it...
 

emandbri

Well-known member
I think the graco nautilus is a good choice but but you could also get a radian or true fit and put her rear-facing. My daughter in my siggy is in a radian and she is 33 lbs and will be 3 in July. There is also the graco my ride coming out next month that can be used rear-facing to 40 lbs but we don't know all that much about it yet.

My concern with the roundabout is that it is such a short seat your son won't be able to use it rear-facing as long as he could other seats with taller backs such as the radian, true fit, marathon, evenflo triumpth advanced, and my ride. It is recommended that kids stay rear-facing until the rear-facing weight limit of the seat, we would like to see kids rear-facing until at least 2.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Oh, my 3 yo really adores her Radian :thumbsup: Especially with the recline foot out and a single notch recline of your vehicle seat. Normally I'd agree that a convertible may be a waste of money, but since you can hand it down (maybe even to use it RF longer with DS, since the RA is kind of too short for rearfacing to the new recommended age of 2 or longer), it's a little longer lasting than the Marathon, and it's got a nice narrowness factor, I think it's a good choice. And then ds can use it and you can get dd a 'big girl' seat later :twocents::)
 

*jen*

New member
You guys rock! So you can put the Radian rearfacing? I moved my daughter to FF when she was 18 months. I know I should have kept her longer so no lectures please. I'm hoping to keep my son longer, so the advice is great. Maybe I should look at the Radian since it can last 8 years. That is great!
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Definitely you can put the Radian rearfacing :thumbsup: Can you just try out the one you bought your mom for a couple days to really get a feel for if you'd like to use it full time, maybe? I'm all hearts and flowers about it, but you should make sure it'll work before you drop more money on another one, lol.
 

lovinwaves

New member
Yep, it can rear-face! You will just need to attach the "boot." It actually gives an older toddler lots of leg room for rear-facing. My 5 year old and 3 1/2 year old are both still rear-facing in their beloved Radian65's. They have oodles of legroom.
 

lovinwaves

New member
All of the Radian models are convertible carseats(they rear-face and forward-face), meaning they have to have the boot used when rear-facing(not all carseats require an extra piece to rear-facing). It's a large piece that clips/slides on the bottom of the carseat towards the front, then a metal piece slides to lock it into place. You would only use this while the carseat is rear-facing.

It looks like this: http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i301/alunatic_photos/Radian/IMG_1782.jpg
 

jujumum

Well-known member
The Radian 80 is available for a great price right now at BRU with the coupon in the Shopping & Deals section. I think it comes down to $184 plus tax & shipping.:thumbsup: My son is right now reaching the rf RA height limit at 21 months/26 lbs.
 

*jen*

New member
Wow..I don't remember another piece coming with it. I better talk to my dad and see if he has it. I got that seat specifically so if he had to have my infant in it(for life or death emergencies) he could. I think we better look at the manual to see how to make it rear facing in case he does ever have to pick him up from somewhere. Thanks ladies, you truly are wonderful.

As for the comment about getting my daughter a big girl seat..that is EXACTLY my thoughts with moving her from whatever seat we get into one of those when she is 6. :thumbsup: I'm so excited the Radian is good up to 8 years. I love saving money!
 

*jen*

New member
Shopping and Deals section? Online?? Where is that?

Ok, my one other concern about the Radian(and maybe I will just have to put it in to see) is RF won't it be really tall and hit the front seat in my Honda CRV unless I have the front passenger seat all the way?? Anyone have the Radian RF in a relatively small car?
 

*jen*

New member
Lovinwaves..just saw the picture and that totally looks familiar! Sorry we bought the seat a year ago and my daughter was already FF so I probably didn't even pay attention to it. Thank you SO much for the picture. Man, like I said..you guys rock!
 

Pixels

New member
The Shopping and Deals section is a section of this forum. Scroll all the way up, and click on the white Car-Seat.org banner at the top. Then look for Shopping and Deals on that page.

I have (well, had, before it was crashed) a Radian rear-facing in a Honda Civic. I put it in the center seat, and that allowed the Radian to come up between and over the front seats. I can put it on the passenger's side if I move the seat up.
 

solmama

Active member
Yes, the Radian does take up a lot of front to back space rear-facing-the most of all the convertible seats, I think.

The First Years Truefit takes up less space when rear-facing, has a taller shell, a 7 year expiry, and is easier to install. It's wider, however, which could be an issue if you want to squeeze someone in the back seat.
 

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