convertible vs infant seat

biblionerd

DS has begun to HATE his infant seat. We are going to be moving him to a convertible before LO #2 is born so we don't need to buy a 2nd seat and he'll probably have outgrown it anyway. He's a hoss. :P So we were thinking about trying one out sooner than later to see if he likes it more. We'll still use the infant seat if we go to dinner or something, but he wakes up literally as soon as the car stops moving. I know nothing about convertible car seats. Any education for me here? I know it's recommended they rear face until 2. Do the convertibles take up more room? Less room? I have a Focus which is tight and the seat needs to be moved up quite a bit for my Chicco Keyfit. He has always seemed so scrunched in the Keyfit. Do they fit differently in the convertibles? Anyone's baby prefer one to the other for some reason? It's probably just because they look more like cushy seats, but the convertibles look more comfy to me. Any recommendations? 

Scout05

Do you use a base w. the infant seat? We do, and it doesn't look like the convertible is going to take up much more room than that.

Based on the reviews from friends, we're planning on getting a Britax. They cost more, and I don't love that, but from those polled (by me), it was the overwhelming favorite in terms of ease of use. And since there won't be a base for easy transfer between cars, I want one that is simple to install.

We'll personally be RFing until two, at least. The literature out there is staggering on how much safer it is.

erinchickchick

We have Britax carseats, they are the most expensive but highest rated for safety.  LOVE them.  Easy to get in and out of the car, cushy for babies, then you can take out the padding later as kiddo gets older.  But if you are on a budget, I hear good things about Even-flo!  Also Sunshine Radius carseats are supposed to be the most compact you can buy- good for a smaller car.  FYI- the convertible carseats take up a LOT of room when rear facing!

RunningGal900

I'm currently debating this. I am down to Britax Boulevsrd or Marathon or a Sunshine Kids Radian. Britax is a favorite brand, but Sunshine Kids is smaller. I will hopefully have three LOs in carseats at the same time (at a minimum two car seats and a booster), so I'm trying to figure out what makes sense for my car. I don't plan to buy a new one anytime soon, so I'm trying to figure out what works with our Highlander.

Helix07

biblionerd:

DS has begun to HATE his infant seat. We are going to be moving him to a convertible before LO #2 is born so we don't need to buy a 2nd seat and he'll probably have outgrown it anyway. He's a hoss. :P So we were thinking about trying one out sooner than later to see if he likes it more. We'll still use the infant seat if we go to dinner or something, but he wakes up literally as soon as the car stops moving. I know nothing about convertible car seats. Any education for me here? I know it's recommended they rear face until 2. Do the convertibles take up more room? Less room? I have a Focus which is tight and the seat needs to be moved up quite a bit for my Chicco Keyfit. He has always seemed so scrunched in the Keyfit. Do they fit differently in the convertibles? Anyone's baby prefer one to the other for some reason? It's probably just because they look more like cushy seats, but the convertibles look more comfy to me. Any recommendations? 

 

We went from a graco safeseat with base to a britax marathon and the marathon RF actually took up less room than the infant seat so it all depends on what you get.

 They have more room in the convertibles and do not sit as scrunched down in so yes they fit differently.  They also sit up just a tad bit straighter which is why DS prefers his.

 We have had several different brands between our cars, my parents and the IL's and we will only buy Britax from now on. They are so much easier to use from install to every day use. DD has britax frontiers (FF only), DS has a Marathon classic in  DH's car and a Marathon70 in my car.

Sweet Sadie Mae

DH and I both have the Britax roundabout 55 (my car is only a 2 door), baby looks comfy and it fits in my small car and isn't a problem to get her in and out of and of course Britax is highest rated!?

cynnnabun

Sunshine Kids is what we were looking at when I was going to have 3 in carseats. I like that they're smaller. Whatever you pick, make sure it goes to a high weight limit. I've gone through so many seats with DD1, when I could have just had one that would have lasted.