Tough choice...LARGE not quite 2 year old in a Frontier

[CrunchyMaineMama]

My friend has a little boy turning 2 in April. He is currently FFing in a Marathon. He is 35lbs and 40" (this has been verified-he wears 4T shirts!). I haven't seen him in the MA so I'm unsure of the growth room he has left, but I'm guessing it's not much. I am thinking the Frontier is going to be the best choice for him to get him to booster age harnessed, but it has the 2 year minimum. She just bought the MA and is hoping to be able to exchange it since she didn't realize it was not the best choice for him at the time. So this leaves her with the choice of getting a different combo seat which he'll like outgrow before he's ready for a booster or going against manufacturer instructions and using the Frontier before he turns 2...

Opinions? Something I'm not thinking of? Clearly this is one of those tough situations where I will have to lay out the facts and leave it to parental decision...

 

[MommyShannon]

I'd get a Radian and rear face. It would give him extra time that is needed for his safety.
ETA: the MA is decently tall FF, but he should be rf ideally.

 

[Brianna]

If it's at all possible, I would buy a Radian to use now and then either use it as a grandparent's seat when he turns FF and buy a FR85 for the main vehicle, or use the Radian until it's outgrown and then determine if he'll need a FR85.

40" is crazy tall! J was 36 pounds at 23 months and didn't hit 37 pounds until more than a full year later, so it's possible this little guy's weight will slow down too.

 

[lovemy2kidstw]

My friend has a little boy turning 2 in April. He is currently FFing in a Marathon. He is 35lbs and 40" (this has been verified-he wears 4T shirts!). I haven't seen him in the MA so I'm unsure of the growth room he has left, but I'm guessing it's not much. I am thinking the Frontier is going to be the best choice for him to get him to booster age harnessed, but it has the 2 year minimum. She just bought the MA and is hoping to be able to exchange it since she didn't realize it was not the best choice for him at the time. So this leaves her with the choice of getting a different combo seat which he'll like outgrow before he's ready for a booster or going against manufacturer instructions and using the Frontier before he turns 2...

Opinions? Something I'm not thinking of? Clearly this is one of those tough situations where I will have to lay out the facts and leave it to parental decision...

How is she going to exchange the MA if he is currently using it? What seat was he in before the MA? If I was in the situation, I would use the MA or whatever other seat he was in until he turns two & then use the frontier. I wouldn't buy a radian just to RF a few more months & then have to turn around & shell out the $$$ for the frontier that he will need.

 

[carseatcoach]

If the seat is being used and is not defective, she should not hope to return/exchange it as the store or manufacturer should not have to eat the cost.

So I'd advise her to rear-face in it until it is outgrown.

 

[Kegracin]

Can you lone her a seat to use until April? I would however get him a frontier either now or in April when he turns 2, if i was in a tight spot for money and couldn't find a person to borrow a seat that LO would fit for the 2 or so months I probably would put him in a frontier now, I know from experience having to make these kinds of choices is no fun (especially if there is a lack of funds.) good luck to your friend.

Its crazy how kids come in different sizes hes the same size as my 4yr old and 3yr old (4yr old is 37lbs and 40inches and my 3yr old is 40in and 43lbs)

 

[CrunchyMaineMama]

I know ideally he should be rearfacing and she is aware of this as well. Unfortunately a Radian is not a possibility for her.
She had an Evenflo convertible purchased in Nov. '11 that had the foam break. BRU allowed her to exchange it for a new seat which is how she ended up with the Marathon. It has only been used to drive him home from the store yesterday. She just sent me a message yesterday after she started second guessing her choice of the MA. So she is either stuck with the Marathon or if she is able to exchange it, it has to be something available at BRU. (Our BRU doesn't carry Diono)

She just sent me pics and he has definitely outgrown it by height rearfacing. His head is at the top of the shell (not the headrest). He is on the top harness slot with about 1.5" of torso growth until he's above it.

 

[Mysweethoneybee]

I had/have a big boy like that. Mine was 42 inches tall on his 2nd birthday. He outgrew all the seats I could find locally by torso height at 20 months and at the time I bought a Regent and put him in it against manufacturers guidelines. Now at 5 years old he is 52 inches tall now so his growth did slow by a lot but he is still very tall.

 

[Persimmon]

I know ideally he should be rearfacing and she is aware of this as well. Unfortunately a Radian is not a possibility for her.
So she is either stuck with the Marathon or if she is able to exchange it, it has to be something available at BRU. (Our BRU doesn't carry Diono)
She just sent me pics and he has definitely outgrown it by height rearfacing. His head is at the top of the shell (not the headrest). He is on the top harness slot with about 1.5" of torso growth until he's above it.

Would she be open to RF past 2? She could try a My Size 70 and keep him RF. It would be safer for now and as long she she would RF him and he fits. According to the measurements spreadsheet, the Marathan is 23.5 inches to the top of the shell and the MySize 70 is 27.5 to the red head support adjuster button.

ETA: I know it wouldn't get him to booster but I like bigger kids RF longer than 2.

 

[BookMama]

The new Evenflo Sure Fit/Titan 65 might be worth looking into. It has 19" top slots and a nice tall shell. Not sure whether BRU carries it.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org

 

[Stelvis]

Let's face it though -- this kid is going to totally outgrow a Radian by height before he's ready for a booster.

What about a Maestro now and a Frontier later, keeping the Maestro as a backup seat?

 

[Stelvis]

If the seat is being used and is not defective, she should not hope to return/exchange it as the store or manufacturer should not have to eat the cost.

So I'd advise her to rear-face in it until it is outgrown.

He's already outgrown it RF. He only has 1.5" until it's outgrown FF, which means he will outgrow it by 3 if not before.

 

[jjordan]

Would she be open to RF past 2? She could try a My Size 70 and keep him RF. It would be safer for now and as long she she would RF him and he fits. According to the measurements spreadsheet, the Marathan is 23.5 inches to the top of the shell and the MySize 70 is 27.5 to the red head support adjuster button.

ETA: I know it wouldn't get him to booster but I like bigger kids RF longer than 2.

I can't remember where Graco finally came down on the RF limit of that seat. For a while they said 40", in which case he wouldn't be able to RF in that, either. If they have upped the limit then it would be a possibility.

OP, if there is a somewhat active Craigslist in your area, I would advise her to continue using the Marathon (FF) until the child turns 2, and then sell it on Craigslist and buy a Frontier. Or use the Marathon until she finds a really great price on a Frontier... stalking Wayfair/NoBetterDeal, maybe? If she can find a Frontier for $150-$180 and sell the Marathon for $100, then it's not a huge expenditure, especially if she has a few months to save. (Easy for me to say since I'm not looking at her family's budget - but I think that *most* families can sock $50-$80 in 3-4 months if they really HAVE to, maybe by selling stuff on Craigslist or eliminating a few McDonald's meals...)

She can also put the word out to the grandparents/aunts/uncles/etc that what he needs most for his birthday is money toward a bigger car seat.

 

[babyherder]

I read here yesterday that Graco ditched the rf height limit for the mysize (and clones). I'd check the manual before buying but it sounds like it could be an option.

 

[Brianna]

I can't remember where Graco finally came down on the RF limit of that seat. For a while they said 40", in which case he wouldn't be able to RF in that, either. If they have upped the limit then it would be a possibility.

1" from the bottom of the red handle/height adjuster
http://carseatblog.com/18365/tallest-extended-rear-facing-carseat-try-the-graco-size4me-70/

 

[Stelvis]

But with a highest harness height of 17.5", he's still going to outgrow the MySize FF before age 4, and he will still need a Frontier later. So if that's in her budget, great, but if not....

 

[CrunchyMaineMama]

OP, if there is a somewhat active Craigslist in your area, I would advise her to continue using the Marathon (FF) until the child turns 2, and then sell it on Craigslist and buy a Frontier. Or use the Marathon until she finds a really great price on a Frontier... stalking Wayfair/NoBetterDeal, maybe? If she can find a Frontier for $150-$180 and sell the Marathon for $100, then it's not a huge expenditure, especially if she has a few months to save. (Easy for me to say since I'm not looking at her family's budget - but I think that *most* families can sock $50-$80 in 3-4 months if they really HAVE to, maybe by selling stuff on Craigslist or eliminating a few McDonald's meals...)

She can also put the word out to the grandparents/aunts/uncles/etc that what he needs most for his birthday is money toward a bigger car seat.

This is pretty much the decision she came to. She's completely bummed she didn't use the opportunity of trading in the Evenflo to get a better suited seat, but he's at least got *some* grow room in the MA and she only had to pay the difference in price between the two so she's not out a ton of money. I told her he likely would have outgrown the Evenflo soon anyway (not sure which one she had) and she would have been facing buying a new seat at full price had it not broken.

She's hoping he'll last until the fall when BRU does a trade in again and start putting aside $10-20 here and there to save. In the meantime I'm going to keep my eyes open for FR deals for her. She'll then save the MA for when they have another baby so will get some more use out of it eventually. Luckily Britax does have a high resale around here if she decided to sell it.

I really hate situations like this!

 

[Phineasmama]

Gotta be honest...I would just put him in the Frontier. I know it's a 2 year minimum, but I think the spirit of what Britax was trying to do was to keep little tiny two year olds from FFing before necessary. Not ginormous 2 year olds who are probably as big as my 6 year old

So yeah, it's "against the rules". But at that size, I would just do the FR85. I think it would be worth it, she's definitely going to need the harness height to keep him harnessed until he can safely use a booster (maturity wise).

 

[TechnoGranola]

I probably would call BRU and ask of they would allow her to exchange for a Size4Me. I mean, if they helped her choose the seat (did they?), they clearly sold her something not useful for her child.

Then I'd RF him until he outgrew it, then use it FF and then at that point she can sell it, pass it down, etc. and hopefully have something saved for a Frontier. I'd think this would save her money right now as well since the Graco seat is cheaper than a MA?

And the reason I say this is because I think of Joel's story...larger sized, young kids are more at risk of internal decapitation due to larger head size/weight.

She's got a convertible now which is useless to her as a convertible, so if she's able to exchange it, why not get something that will work better and for longer.

 

[henrietta]

My consolation thought if she cannot exchange it for something he can rear-face in...is this....at least in the MA forward facing, he will be able to sleep comfortably, and he is as safe as he can be if he must be forward facing if the seat is used properly.

And I, for one, would try to go ahead and exchange for something he can rear-face in or would buy another seat to rear-face in, but sometimes that's just not possible.