Yet another advice thread

[krasota]

I'm expecting a newbie in late May/early June. My son will be five in April.

I drive a 97 Crown Vic with a center lapbelt. To give you an idea of what I've fit in the past, I've done a three across with a FF Scenera (40RF), SS1 in the center, and a Blvd either RF or FF. I've also done FF Radian (not mine), SS1, FF/RF Blvd. The Blvd expires in 2013 and is DS' primary seat. He currently FF on the passenger side, where our only upper tether anchor is retrofitted. I have also put the Scenera FF on the passenger side and the Blvd RF in the center. They fit fine together.

It seems like a fairly wide back seat. For day to day use, I'll likely keep DS FF on the passenger side and put the newbie behind the driver. For road trips, however, I need two seats side-by-side with newbie in the middle so that an adult can sit in the rear seat on the driver's side. Our dog gets severely carsick in the backseat and rides in the front seat (belted in).

The Blvd won't fit the newbie, of course, and DS is happy with it. I don't anticipate replacing it until it's expired or outgrown. The SS1 is not expired, but needs replacing. The release mechanism sticks and I don't trust it to function properly (well, perhaps baseless), so I will not use it. It's going to have the harness removed and will be turned into BRU for a coupon this winter/spring.

When the Blvd was installed at a 45° angle on the passenger side, it necessitated the front passenger seat being scooted up. That is an issue to consider with a newbie angle on the driver's side. I'll probably call up for another upper retrofit just for flexibility with placement.

Thoughts on what seats I should look at? I'm not wed to a bucket. I can't carry buckets, so it would stay in the car. I wear my babes and I'm willing to consider a convertible. What puzzles well with an older FF Blvd? I have trouble installing the Scenera RF with the leather seats and it's very hard to get a newbie angle in this car with that seat, so I'd rather not use it (does it fit newbies well, anyhow?).

I might be replacing the seatbelts this year, though the Ford garage does not think it's necessary at this point. The car may be replaced in a few years, but that's not in the cards at this point in time.

DS is about 41" or so, 35lbs (maybe).

Budget isn't really an issue. DS flirted with the idea of being on growth charts and didn't outgrow his Blvd RF (33lbs and 1" almost simultaneously) until he was 4y4m. He still has quite a bit of FF harness room in the Blvd. If my next child is similarly wee, I won't really have to worry about a 40lb 2yo or anything.

Thank you.

 

[ketchupqueen]

I know a Coccoro fits well under a FF Boulevard- IF it installs well. Some people seem to have more install trouble than others; leather seats can be a bear with that seat as with others for sure in some cases. You pretty much want to be looking for a low-profile seat; I don't know that a Titan would be any better than a Scenera, or that it would for sure fit, but if you have a store nearby that lets you try seats, you could try it?

A friend has a Crown Vic and it is definitely pretty wide. Other option, for road trips, might be a Nauti for the FFer if you get a good deal, and the Boulevard RF center if the baby fits by then?

 

[krasota]

A friend has a Crown Vic and it is definitely pretty wide. Other option, for road trips, might be a Nauti for the FFer if you get a good deal, and the Boulevard RF center if the baby fits by then?

Aye, that's a possibility, but when we bought the Blvd, DS *just* fit in it at 7.5mo, with the harness cranked pretty much all the way down. I bake small babies, apparently. Well, the first one was. Perhaps the next one will be ginormous.

There's a very strong possibility DS will fit his Blvd until it expires. He'll be 6.75y in Dec 2013 and I'm comfortable boostering him at that point, particularly if he sits well (and I think he would). The Blvd will expire before I'd be willing to FF the newbie, so I'm definitely looking at purchasing a convertible before Dec 2013.

We'll definitely be driving to NJ before the second baby fits in the Blvd. And we'll almost certainly be driving to Florida and/or Indiana before then if the next baby travels better than DS did (screamed in the car until he was 2y). And we'll likely have a few camping trips this summer, too.

Question--does the Nauti support legs better for FFers? Kiddo complains a lot about his feet falling asleep and his back hurting now that he's FF. I keep blankets and jackets stuffed down in the footwell to support his legs, but it doesn't seem to help a whole lot.

Perhaps I should just buy a bucket soon and then buy a convertible in mid to late 2013 and a HBB that winter. DS fit his SS1 by height until he was 17+mo.

I suppose the Cocorro is an option, too, especially with the possibility of a wee toddler.

 

[ketchupqueen]

Honestly I've found almost everything supports the legs better, especially for long-legged kiddoes. It's a pretty shallow convertible as far as leg space, and of course most FF seats are built with bigger kids in mind, so they have more leg support (most, not all.)