car seat or booster question

numberonemama

DS just outgrew his Britax Marathon.  I personally would like him to be in a harness for as long as possible especially since he doesn't always sit correctly in the high back booster he has in his dad's truck.  (the normal wiggling and such from a 5 year old!)  I also want something comfy like what he has since we are in the car a lot and sometimes several hours at a time.  We'll be in the car for over 30 hours each way in a couple of weeks and I can't imagine him sitting properly or comfortably for that long in a reg booster.

I was looking at the frontier and have seen some other seats that look interesting but are only boosters I think.  

Any experiences with the Frontier, the Sunshine Kids or DIONO I think they are now, or Recaro?

Thanks!! 

MesmrEwe

He's 5 - at some point he needs to learn to sit in a big kid seat with a regular seat belt and it's up to you to correct him when he's not sitting properly (quite a few times I pulled over with DD to teach this point).  60 hours in a car and you'll I'm sure be getting restless as well, let alone a 5yo in a car...  I would go for a regular seatbelt high-back carseat option at this point.  You're baby is growing up, and the last thing you want is them getting picked on when you drop them off at school and another kid sees him still in the 5-point!  It'd be one thing if you were dealing with a developmentally challenged situation, but it doesn't sound like that's the case.

2Gma

Britax lover here  We use the Roundabout & have the Frontier.  The Frontier is not the easiest to install but I love the fact it has a harness option up until 80lbs/50 inches.  I like that it will be able to grow with my children and be used in the booster mode as well.  It is comfortable for DD.  I like it way better than the Graco Nautilaus we tried (for a week)  She started using it at 2.5 and is still in harness mode at over 5.  I've read good things on here about Recaro but no experience with it.

JPLbride

My 5 1/2 year old daughter is still in a 5-point harness because it is safer for the same reason that you are complaining about.  Children will not sit still or keep the seat belt in the locked position.  Sarah has been in the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 seat since she was 3 years old.  Once my little boy is 2 and forward facing we will put him in the Graco Argos 3-in-1 seat since it goes up to a higher weight limit.  My daughter is tall for her age (49'' and 53 pounds) and she loves her seat.  It is easy to install and clean.

penguingrrl

If you don't feel that he'll be safe in a booster then don't move him. Or let him use it for short trips and use the harness for longer trips when he's likely to get restless or sleepy.

If he has outgrown the marathon I would do a frontier. The radian is a great seat, but he'll outgrow it quickly. My 4 year old does not fit in a radian, outgrew it right around her 4th birthday, although she's crazy long-torsoed.

jehprb

We have the Frontier 85 and LOVE it.  My son is almost 6.5 and still in the 5pt harness.  He's been in a booster before (vacations) and sits fine even for longer rides.  Obviously that means he's old enough/big enough to use a booster but we feel he's safer in the 5pt.  We also kept him RFing until 3.5yrs when he got too tall.  Bottom line is that he's your kid and you get to make the decisions about his safety :-)

MrsSR

The Radian RXT is a great seat.

If you aren't comfortable with him in the booster, then don't put him in one.

Don't move him just because he'll be teased.  Kids will always find things to tease another child about (this is to PP not OP).

lsufan

We were happy with the Nautilus and didn't move DS1 to a high back booster until after he turned 6.  We never used it as a booster, as I'm getting ready to transition DS2 from the Boulevard to the Nautilus.  I just wanted to say that I would never move to a different seat just because I was worried I was keeping him a baby or some ridiculous fear that he would get made fun of.  For one thing, I'm pretty sure the last thing DS and his friends talk about on the playground is their carseat choice.

jnicks19

My 6.5 yo is still in a 5pt.  I just feel it's safer.  Right now we have the Frontier and I love it.  I don't move it from car to car, so I can't attest to how annoying it may be to move.  She does use a booster for infrequent rides in MH's car.

penguingrrl

jehprb:

We have the Frontier 85 and LOVE it.  My son is almost 6.5 and still in the 5pt harness.  He's been in a booster before (vacations) and sits fine even for longer rides.  Obviously that means he's old enough/big enough to use a booster but we feel he's safer in the 5pt.  We also kept him RFing until 3.5yrs when he got too tall.  Bottom line is that he's your kid and you get to make the decisions about his safety :-)

Just an FYI, there's actually no evidence that a 5 point harness is any safer than a properly used booster, so I wouldn't worry about moving a kid who is big enough and mature enough to a booster at all!

In most of Europe and particularly Sweden (who have long been regarded as the world's leading experts in car safety and routinely had kids rear facing back in the 60s!!!) they actually believe in RF to booster age then skipping forward harnesses entirely. The thinking behind that is that the harness transfers all the stress of an accident to the head and neck instead of distributing it evenly along the spine the way an adult seatbelt does. If a kid won't sit correctly in a booster this is clearly a moot point since they need to use it properly, but once they can sit correctly there's no reason to feel a booster offers less protection!

beachgirl1977

MesmrEwe:

He's 5 - at some point he needs to learn to sit in a big kid seat with a regular seat belt and it's up to you to correct him when he's not sitting properly (quite a few times I pulled over with DD to teach this point).  60 hours in a car and you'll I'm sure be getting restless as well, let alone a 5yo in a car...  I would go for a regular seatbelt high-back carseat option at this point.  You're baby is growing up, and the last thing you want is them getting picked on when you drop them off at school and another kid sees him still in the 5-point!  It'd be one thing if you were dealing with a developmentally challenged situation, but it doesn't sound like that's the case.

Actually the last thing she would want is her child to be hurt because he wasn't ready to be in a booster seat. The child is only 5. All it takes is a split second for something bad to happen and if the child can't sit correctly 100% of the time than it's not worth. My 5 yr old will still fall asleep in the car and  don't think can handle a booster. It's not safe for me to constantly be watching him the in rear view mirror making sure he's sitting correctly. 

I was in a severe car accident where my infant son had bleeding in his brain. Luckily everything turned out ok,  but I really don't care if my 5 yr old gets teased, 'd rather him be safe and alive. I'll decide when he's ready, but not based strictly on age or what his friends are sitting in

jehprb

penguingrrl:

jehprb:

We have the Frontier 85 and LOVE it.  My son is almost 6.5 and still in the 5pt harness.  He's been in a booster before (vacations) and sits fine even for longer rides.  Obviously that means he's old enough/big enough to use a booster but we feel he's safer in the 5pt.  We also kept him RFing until 3.5yrs when he got too tall.  Bottom line is that he's your kid and you get to make the decisions about his safety :-)

Just an FYI, there's actually no evidence that a 5 point harness is any safer than a properly used booster, so I wouldn't worry about moving a kid who is big enough and mature enough to a booster at all!

In most of Europe and particularly Sweden (who have long been regarded as the world's leading experts in car safety and routinely had kids rear facing back in the 60s!!!) they actually believe in RF to booster age then skipping forward harnesses entirely. The thinking behind that is that the harness transfers all the stress of an accident to the head and neck instead of distributing it evenly along the spine the way an adult seatbelt does. If a kid won't sit correctly in a booster this is clearly a moot point since they need to use it properly, but once they can sit correctly there's no reason to feel a booster offers less protection!

Yes, I've read about this before - saying that when a child is of a certain age/size that a 5pt isn't more safe than a booster.  But even though my kid is 6 1/2 he's a peanut at a whopping 34ish pounds so I guess I don't feel like he's physically big enough?  Though I'm not sure why, lol.

penguingrrl

jehprb:

penguingrrl:

jehprb:

We have the Frontier 85 and LOVE it.  My son is almost 6.5 and still in the 5pt harness.  He's been in a booster before (vacations) and sits fine even for longer rides.  Obviously that means he's old enough/big enough to use a booster but we feel he's safer in the 5pt.  We also kept him RFing until 3.5yrs when he got too tall.  Bottom line is that he's your kid and you get to make the decisions about his safety :-)

Just an FYI, there's actually no evidence that a 5 point harness is any safer than a properly used booster, so I wouldn't worry about moving a kid who is big enough and mature enough to a booster at all!

In most of Europe and particularly Sweden (who have long been regarded as the world's leading experts in car safety and routinely had kids rear facing back in the 60s!!!) they actually believe in RF to booster age then skipping forward harnesses entirely. The thinking behind that is that the harness transfers all the stress of an accident to the head and neck instead of distributing it evenly along the spine the way an adult seatbelt does. If a kid won't sit correctly in a booster this is clearly a moot point since they need to use it properly, but once they can sit correctly there's no reason to feel a booster offers less protection!

Yes, I've read about this before - saying that when a child is of a certain age/size that a 5pt isn't more safe than a booster.  But even though my kid is 6 1/2 he's a peanut at a whopping 34ish pounds so I guess I don't feel like he's physically big enough?  Though I'm not sure why, lol.

I totally understand! At 6 1/2 his skeleton is definitely formed enough to not need a 5 point, but if you're more comfortable and he still fits heightwise there's likely no harm in it.

I was unsure when I first read it, but my husband is almost through with his PhD in Chemical Engineering, which is actually largely a physics-based degree. I asked his opinion based on an expert level knowledge of physics and he poked around and decided that he prefers the "give" of an adult seatbelt to a rigid harness and that the ideal would actually be a harness with the give of an adult seatbelt (but, alas, this does not exist).

I'm glad we decided that because the frontier is a beast and does not  fit in our car (VW beetle) so we had to move our daughter to a booster when she outgrew her radian for harness height... right around her 4th birthday (she's tall and all torso)! I was nervous about her behavior but she's 4 going on 40 and does beautifully in the booster and slowly I got comfortable with it. I also have her in the britax parkway, which has an awesome thing that goes between the legs to prevent submarining under the seatbelt, and that makes me far more comfortable especially if she's sleeping and accidentally slouches a touch.

jehprb

The other issue for us is that the Frontier 85 cannot be used as a booster until 40lbs and I don't want to buy another seat (he's an only and we're done having kids) just to cover a 5lb gap, kwim?  Once he does hit 40+ though I'll likely switch him to booster mode because, like you said, at some point having the "give" of the regular seat belt seems preferable to the rigidity of the 5pt.

penguingrrl

That makes perfect sense! I think the parkway also has a 40 lb minimum, but my daughter weighs 42 so she's fine!

stdldb29

DS will be made fun of all the time then---that kid will be in his 5pt harness for a while. We love our frontiers, love, love, love them. I guess because the drive to school is 50 minutes to and from---that he falls asleep some and just looks like he is more secure.