safety first all in one convertible carseat

purplepuggles

good seat: yay or nay? and where can i find ratings for carseats etc?

TIA!

katlizabeth

Don't know.

https://www.car-seat.org/

goodheartedmommy

There is NO such thing as a safety rating for a carseat. Baby Bargains and Consumer reports are not reliable resources for carseat safety.

Every carseat passes the same crash tests. There's nothing more to it. The safest seat is the one you can use correctly 100% of the time. Beyond that, decide what is important to you in a carseat and what a reasonable budget is, and buy a seat that meets as many criteria as possible!


Here are my recs:

Britax Boulevard or Marathon--These have a lot of qualities that made them my favorite seats for a long time. I love that they have a rear facing tether. They are the easiest seats to install (I moved seats a lot for a long time, and could install them correctly in seconds). I love the true side impact protection and no rethread harness on the boulevard. These used to be the tallest seats out there, but that's not necessarily true any more. They rear face to 35 lbs, and forward face to 65 lbs. The bottom slot on these seats is high, so it won't fit most babies until 4-6 months. They are also very plush and comfortable.

First years true fit--super high shell (highest on market). The premiere version has an anti rebound bar. Anti rebound protection of some sort is a must-have for me. Some people find it unnecessary. If you google a bit, you'll find some info on it, but no one really agrees on it yet. It's just something you decide for yourself. Anyway, it will last most kids until an appropriate booster age because of the tall shell. Rear faces to 35 lbs, forward faces to 65

Sunshine kids radian--I love these seats. They can be a bit hard to install in some cars, but they are barely shorter than the true fit in shell height, they have a 9 year lifespan instead of the usual 6, they tether rear facing, and they're the only company to release crash test data (makes them rather trustworthy, you know?). They are very narrow, but do take up quite a bit of room rear facing. They rear face to 40 lbs, and the ones they're now making rear face to 45 lbs. It is safest practice to rear face as long as possible, and this is only one of 2 seats that could get a normal sized child to 40 lbs (most seats are outgrown by height before weight). They will also get most kids to booster age. the Radian 65 foward faces to 65 lbs, and the radian 80 and radian XT forward face to 80 lbs.

 Graco myride--They technically rear face to 40 lbs. Most kids wouldn't make it that long in it, though. They are similar in shell size to the britax marathon/boulevard. The shell is deeper, which gives it good side impact protection. When I tried my son in it the other day, it actually seemed like it was a bit taller than the marathon. It looks very comfortable, and I think I've heard it's pretty easy to install.  Forward face to 65 lbs.

Evenflo triumph advance--also similar to the britax seats. I love the infinite harness--by far my favorite harness out there. The way it tightens is awesome. I have no experience installing them. They rearface to 35 lbs, forward face to 50 lbs.

Safety first complete air--this is the other seat that could actually get a child to 40 lbs rear facing. I've heard a lot of good things about it--it's very tall, and could get most kids to booster age, too. I personally am not comfortable with a heavier rear facing child not being tethered, so I would not buy this seat, but a lot of people don't think they tether is necessary, so it makes this a nice seat!  Forward faces to 65 lbs

 

Avoid seats with small shells like the britax roundabout or diplomat, evenflo titan, and graco comfortsport. The shells and top harness slots are so short, and they're always outgrown too early. You'll optimally want to rear face to at least 2 years old, hopefully longer, and the absolute minimum booster age is 4 years/40 lbs. 5.5-6 years is a more appropriate age for a booster, so you really want to get a seat that will last you a long time rear facing and forward facing, so you don't have to buy a lot of carseats. Seats are almost always outgrown by height before weight, which is why a tall shell and tall top harness slot are so important.

 Also avoid the 3-in-1 seats. While they are taller than the ones from a couple of years ago, they're still outgrown rather early, and they make an awful booster.

If these aren't in your budget (all that I listed are $250 or under, most around the $150-$200 mark), I'd go with a no bells-and-whistles cosco scenera ($40) for now, and save for a taller seat--because you will need one.