3 in a row or one child in front?

[Aurinia]

Hello everyone, havent been on in a while but need your help again
ive just found out i am pregnant with number 2 and therefor the big question about carseats has arisen again!

what we have at the moment (in the UK) is a vauxhall vectra sri
dsd (4 1/2 yrs) is in a britax isofix hbb
ds (2 1/2 yrs) is in a britax multitech that seat

we used a maxi cosi cabriofix seat with ds (with base) and would use that again for new baby.

ds will be 3 years 1 month, dsd who we have one day a week will be 5 yrs 4 months when baby comes.

the only solution i can see to first question ive got is that dsd sits in the front passenger seat when we've got her and ds and new baby on the outboard seats of back seat (dont think the booster would fit inbetween the two seats and neither the infant bucket or the multitech can go in the middle seat because i cannot use a footprop in teh middle seat) i would sit in the middle back seat (which has 3 point seatbelt) for those tiems we've got dsd.
what would be safer? having dsd in the front seat (as far back as possible form airbag) in high back booster or having dsd in back middle seat possibly only in booster cushion if we could find one to fit?

we have only just bought the hbb for dsd so really dont want to be spending again for a seat that only gets used once aweek.

my second question is what to do when baby outgrows the infant seat, say at about 9 months.

ds would be almost 4 but still not big enough to go in booster and i want to keep him rf for as long as possible. dsd will be 6 years

which seat is best to get for the then 9 month old baby? i have looked at this one:
http://www.incarsafetycentre.co.uk/shop/special_brio_01.html as i think this one is quite narrow and also doesnt have a footprop so could go in the middle back seat?

i would be willing to import a seat from america if need be and if a very good option was available to keep my kids rf and harnessed for as long as possible.

thanks, petra

 

[mommycat]

I would try to find a booster which would fit in the back. As long as the shoulder belt fits properly, I think she would be fine sitting in the center (away from the vehicle sides) in a low back booster (just the cushion).

Check out carseat.se and ask which seats may be narrower or install without the foot prop. I think the DuoLogic looks promising but I am just not familiar enough with EU seats. Hopefully Lenats31, Adventuredad or some other EU members will come by to help!

 

[Adventuredad]

Rear seat is always safer with one important exception. A rear facing child is as safe or safer rear facing in the front seat with AIRBAG DEACTIVATED. Your older child would be safest in a booster in the rear with one of your RF kids in the rear and in the front. It would not matter which kid is RF in the front seat. Infant or 3 year old are both equally safe.

Can you turn off your airbag with switch or key?

I have fit 2 Swedish RF seats and one booster in my volvo V70 but it's quite spacious. 3 Rf seats across in that car would also be no problem.

Your older child "could" ride in the front seat but I would not recommend it. Maxi Cosi Cabriofix is a great seat, parents love it. You won't believe how many emails I get from parent who love this seat and now wants a Maxi Cosi mobi

Brio Zento, which you linked to, is a good seat but I would not recommend it since there are better options. It needs quite a bit of space and is not a comfortable seat. Seat shell is also short to be a combo seat meant to be forward facing later on. It's quite a low demand seat.

Britax Two-Way would then be a better choice if you wan a seat which can also be used forward facing later on. Since you will have three kids in the car I would probably recommend a Britax Hi-WAy for you. It's RF only but handle 0-25 kg. It's a very popular seat due to needing little space, being lightweight, and fitting virtually every vehicle.

DuoLogic, by Akta/Graco, is even more compact and is the most popular Isofix seat if you want to go that way. It can also be installed with seat belt which is a big plus.

If you want to keep your kids RF for maximum amount of time then Britax Two-Way is the answer. Just got a photo from a parents yesterday with her 6.5 year old in it. He's 51 inches, 130 cm, tall and still got room. He's sitting forward facing but the mother was really excited he still could fit in his sisters chair at that age

 

[mommycat]

Glad to see someone who knows their stuff here. And yes, I forgot that RF in front might be an option in EU since it's not done here.

 

[Unregistered]

Does anyone know why rf kids are as safe or safer in the front seat (as long as there is no airbag)? I hate not being able to see infants so it would be nice to know the front can be a safe option if I ever had to transport one.