If you have a Britax convertible car seat.. Whats the difference between all the models?

lisamarco

I am now looking into the britax car seats and see they have many models  marathon,and boulevard etc etc.      Is there a big difference in all of them.  I'm looking for one that is rear facing for up to the age of 2 since it's now required.  I dont know how big these car seats are ( I still have to go check them out personally) and or how comfortable either.

But can anybody shed some light as to what the differences are or if you have one why you got that one.      This is just soo much work and so confusing, aside from it also being pricey.

Thanks for any info it is greatly appreciated.

lisamarco

I never thought to even consider the height.  My first born has a graco 3 in 1 but he is now 4 and although we like the car seat it is not rear facing.  He is on the taller side  ( like daddy)and not sure if my baby girl will be as tall as him or as petite as me.

Chelz

We got the Britax Boulevard 70 at Buy Buy Baby.  We learned a lot about the safety features.  We did have him compare to a Safety 1st seat they had. 

Safety 1st - the body is made of plastic, Britax - made with reinforced steel, so it's not going to buckle in a crash

Britax can be latched in for extra support on both rear facing and front facing, most only latch for front facing

Britax has crash impact foam by the head, and is adjustable as the child grows,  whereas Safety 1st head protection is made of an air bag.  So in a higher impact crash, it could just pop and not protect the head

each Britax version has one additional safety feature

We used a 20% off coupon from BRU at BBB ... PLUS BBB has a very easy, lenient return policy

link to description

hikerbeth

Honestly, all car seats pass the same crash tests.

The Boulevard has the side-impact wings that the Marathon doesn't have.  The Advocate has the airbag thingies that may or may not be really useful.

Britax seats are really easy to install, but I'm not sure they're worth the price over some other seats imho.

I had an older Roundabout (which I loved except it was outgrown quickly) and a Marathon.  Now I have a Roundabout 50 (which was on super-sale at Target) and a Graco MyRide.  Love them all for different reasons.

Chelz

we were told Britax are tested against European safety standards, which are stricter

lilbugs momma

We are keeping Addie RF till 2 as well.

We have the Boulevard 70 CS. LOVE IT!

It's easy to install, LO looks comfortable in it, and it?s not so huge or so wide that it takes up 2 seats! It also reclines, and you don?t have to take out the seat to wash the cover. In my opinion that is worth all the money in the world!!

 

SuperCuteBenz

We have 3 Britax seats. I love them! They are so easy to install (which is a plus, because I want to know my husband can do it quickly and not get p*ssed), the covers are so soft, and their customer service is amazing!

That being said, I agree that there are other seats that are probably just as good and cost less. The First Years True Fit, Evenflo Triumph and Graco My Ride are all good examples.

I have found all three of mine on super clearance, otherwise I might have gone with something else. I am kind of glad I didn't though, because their customer service has been so amazing (I also have a Britax stroller) and that makes me even more loyal to them.

FWIW, My DD can still fit rear-facing in both our Roundabout 50 and Marathons. I am guessing that she is around 37-38" and roughly 29lbs.

katcarls

You can do a side by side comparison on their website.  The Boulevard 70 is basically a Marathon 70 with wings for extra side impact protection.  The Advocate 70 is a Boulevard 70 with extra side impact protection on the outside of the car seat.  I wouldn't look at any of the Britax models other than the ones I mentioned above as they have a shorter shell. 

I went with the Britax Boulevard 70.  DS is really comfortable in it and it was very easy to install.  I don't think it's that big or that heavy.  It takes up less space than an infant car seat.  I didn't think it was that pricey either, $230 from Amazon with free shipping and they don't charge tax.

amanda.grace.w

After countless hours of research and visiting 7 different baby stores to pick sales associates brains, this is what I have learned: The lowest end Britax seat is the Roundabout. The only difference between the Roundabout and the Marathon is you have to retread the Roundabout when baby grows and the Marathon has a "pillow" that they advertise as side impact protection but in the event of a crash it makes no difference. The next seat up from the Marathon is the Boulevard which has true side impact protection which helps to protect baby from a spinal injury in the event of a crash. It's estimated to offer 30% more protection than the Roundabout and the Marathon but the Roundabout and Marathon are still both exceptional seats and offer great protection in the event of an accident. The only difference between the Boulavard and the Pavillion is the "click and safe" feature which tells you when the harness is snug enough. This feature will cost you about $30 more and is a nice extra but not at all worth the price tag. I am not exactly sure what the Advocate's features are as it seems lex trembly bulky and I had no interest in it as there wasn't much difference to it than the other seats. All of their seats are the exact safe size and are built on the same frame with the same "foam" that protects much like a motor bike helmet. Baby can sit rear facing up to 40 pounds and must legally be in the fully reclined position at all times while rear facing. Forward facing goes up to 65 pound and 49 inches and the child must be in the upright position at all times while forward facing. Generally a baby will stay in the infant car seat until about 6-10 months then will switch to a convertible until kindergarten age before going into a booster seat. After researching any and every car seat on the Market I chose to go with the Britax Boulavard. Britax knows how to make an exceptional convertible car seat and I chose the Boulavard for the true impact protection feature. It ran about $30 more than the Marathon for a seat that's 30% safer so that seemed like a good upgrade. My second choice would have been the Roundabout as it's about $150 less than the Boulavard and the safety features don't even compare to the other cheaper brands on the market. All in all you can't really go wrong with a Britax. Just depends on how much your willing to spend for certain features!

amanda.grace.w

I forgot to mention the Roundabout only goes up to 46 inches as it doesn't have the head rest that lifts as baby grows.

greyt00

We have the Boulevard for most of our seats and we like it.  The harness is easy to move around because you just squeeze the "button" and move it up or down.  We bought the Roundabout for a spare seat (grandparents' car, field trips, etc. for DS1 so we don't have to uninstall ours) and had problems installing it RF.  It just did NOT look right and I don't know what we did wrong.  You'd think it wouldn't be that different to install.  DH has installed many Boulevards, and the Roundabout was just different.  I am not even using it in my parents' car because the RF install looked off.  It's the field trip seat only (which they install FF for DS1, he's 3.5 now).  DS2 is still RF in our car in his Boulevard.  It is a bit hard to put him in the seat (he's over 30 lb now), especially in a sedan with a small back seat opening.  In my CRV it's not hard.  I really hate low cars for that reason, glad I don't drive one.  

fusionbride

we have a marathon for her main carseat, and a Roundabout in Grandma's car.  I love the Marathon and would highly recommend it.  If you ever do long trips I think it is worth it over the Roundabout because it is more comfortable for LO to sleep in-- those head wings help her head from flopping over.

But if you are mainly doing local driving, I think the Roundabout is fine.

I personally don't think the Advocate is necessary.

I know you asked about Britax, but we also have a Graco MySize in our other car and love this one, too.

I have a small kid so didn't worry about height requiremetns, but if you have a tall kid and want to RF until 2, you might want to check the height requirements across seats.  I think the Diono is the good one for tall kids?

ASmallWonder

@Chelz all of the information you provided is false or inaccurate or unproven:

Safety 1st - the body is made of plastic, Britax - made with reinforced steel, so it's not going to buckle in a crash - There is no basis for you saying any seat buckles in a crash.  Seats are meant to absorb crash forces and there is nothing that proves steel does this better.  In fact, due to its rigidity, it may absorb LESS.

Britax can be latched in for extra support on both rear facing and front facing, most only latch for front facing - You are talking about tethering, not latching and yes it's an option for Britax seats but they have passed testing both ways.

Britax has crash impact foam by the head, and is adjustable as the child grows,  whereas Safety 1st head protection is made of an air bag.  So in a higher impact crash, it could just pop and not protect the head.  There is nothing to say foam or air is better OR that either has any impact on safety.  Your guess that the air filled pocket would pop is not based in fact or testing.  The seat passed testing.

Britax seats are tested to stricter EU standards. The EU has DIFFERENT standards - not better or stricter.  Also, only EU Britax seats are tested to EU standards.  Britax seats being sold in the US are tested to US standards.  They are not the same seats.