Marathon or Boulevard?

sdb421 · January 2013

Britax Marathon 70 G3 or Boulevard 70 G3....Which do you prefer and why? My 3 month old is 18 lbs and tall, so we need to look at convertible carseats in the next few months, as he's using a Chicco Keyfit 22 currently. Which do you recommend?

abell77 · January 2013

We chose the boulevard for both of our kids over the marathon mainly because when you look at it you will see that there is extra padding around their heads. It's great for when they fall asleep in the car as a headrest, but also it seemed like it would offer added protection in the event of an accident.

penguingrrl · January 2013

I actually would recommend against a britax if your son is tall. Britax seats have among the shortest shells on the market, so they're outgrown earlier than many other seats on the market. For a tall child my recs would be:

Clek Foonf: pricey ($450-$500) but by far the highest rear facing height limit and highest RF weight limit on the market. Also has new technology that is supposed to make a forward harness safer, although you likely can use this seat to rear face until your child is ready to move to a belt positioning booster (which is what is done in Sweden and has much better outcomes than forward harnessing)

Graco Size4me70 (also called mysize): second tallest shell on the market and decent RF and FF weight limits.

Diono Radian: my old favorite and what my kids use. Was one of the tallest RF seats on the market until this year. If you order this one make sure to order the angle adjuster, approved for use starting at 12 months, which will help with room for whoever is in front of the baby.

Graco MyRide 65: slightly taller shell than the radian, shorter than the size4me. This is a larger seat than the others side to side, which may or may not be a concern for you

First Years True Fit: very tall shell, but only allows a child to RF to 35 lbs, so a great option for a tall, slender child, not so great for an overall larger child. Known for being a huge seat, so takes up a lot of space

LittleApple · January 2013

I have the Boulevard. I like the true side impact wings.

gfam23 · January 2013

I love our Boulevard for the side impact protection as pp mentioned. I do not know what I would have done if DD1 was 18 pounds at 3 months, wow, big boy!

eyenigh · January 2013

penguingrrl:
I actually would recommend against a britax if your son is tall. Britax seats have among the shortest shells on the market, so they're outgrown earlier than many other seats on the market. For a tall child my recs would be:
Clek Foonf: pricey ($450-$500) but by far the highest rear facing height limit and highest RF weight limit on the market. Also has new technology that is supposed to make a forward harness safer, although you likely can use this seat to rear face until your child is ready to move to a belt positioning booster (which is what is done in Sweden and has much better outcomes than forward harnessing)
Graco Size4me70 (also called mysize): second tallest shell on the market and decent RF and FF weight limits.
Diono Radian: my old favorite and what my kids use. Was one of the tallest RF seats on the market until this year. If you order this one make sure to order the angle adjuster, approved for use starting at 12 months, which will help with room for whoever is in front of the baby.
Graco MyRide 65: slightly taller shell than the radian, shorter than the size4me. This is a larger seat than the others side to side, which may or may not be a concern for you
First Years True Fit: very tall shell, but only allows a child to RF to 35 lbs, so a great option for a tall, slender child, not so great for an overall larger child. Known for being a huge seat, so takes up a lot of space

This. I had a Marathon and had to get rid of it because it was a terrible fit for my 33 inch 10 month old. We have the Clek Foonf and love it.