Yet another car seat post

[awkwardpenguin]

I'm a huge nerd and am trying to get a handle on how to choose a convertible car seat.  Basically the goal is to stay rear facing and then harnessed as long as possible.  Is my understanding below right?

-To stay rear facing as long as possible, you look at the shell height and/or the headrest height (depending on which one is relevant for that seat) plus the RF weight limit.

-To stay harnessed as long as possible, you look at the harness height plus the harnessed weight limit.

Looking at the CSFTL recommended seats list, it seems like a lot of seats are pretty equivalent in how long you can keep a kid RF or harnessed.  It seems like the Nextfit and the Graco seats (both convertibles and the 4Ever/Milestone) are the winners here in most situations.

I'm leaning toward a Graco Milestone, but it seems like the Graco seats are much less popular than the Nextfit and Britaxes.  Am I missing an obvious drawback?

@fivedogs

[penguingrrl]

You are correct regarding the various priorities. I've owned graco seats and my biggest complaint with them is that my kids find them uncomfortable. If you go to the store and feel then the higher end seats generally have better padding and are more comfortable. They also often have other convenience features. I'm a convert to the britax clicktight system after installing my son's frontier this week. It's by far the easiest seat I've ever installed.

[awkwardpenguin]

@fivedogs, your posts are always so helpful, thank you so much!

[penguingrrl]

Oct 11, 2015 22:51:40 GMT -5 @fivedogs said:

Oct 11, 2015 21:35:53 GMT -5 awkwardpenguin said:

I'm a huge nerd and am trying to get a handle on how to choose a convertible car seat.  Basically the goal is to stay rear facing and then harnessed as long as possible.  Is my understanding below right?

-To stay rear facing as long as possible, you look at the shell height and/or the headrest height (depending on which one is relevant for that seat) plus the RF weight limit.

-To stay harnessed as long as possible, you look at the harness height plus the harnessed weight limit.

Looking at the CSFTL recommended seats list, it seems like a lot of seats are pretty equivalent in how long you can keep a kid RF or harnessed.  It seems like the Nextfit and the Graco seats (both convertibles and the 4Ever/Milestone) are the winners here in most situations.

I'm leaning toward a Graco Milestone, but it seems like the Graco seats are much less popular than the Nextfit and Britaxes.  Am I missing an obvious drawback?

@fivedogs

For all those specs, check out the measurements data on car-seat.org and some of it is on CSFTL.  The CSFTL list focuses a lot on seats that will ERF and extended harness, so it is a great resource.  There are tons of seats that don't last long at all, LOL - they just aren't on that list.    

Full disclosure - I own two Milestones and two 4Evers, and I will never have to buy another carseat because they convert to great boosters.  They have a 10 year expiration, and DD2 was a bit over a year when we got them, so they will last until she is done with a backless booster (probably around age 11ish).  But there are lots of other options that also work for a similar cost (like a Graco Contender plus a booster later will be a similar cost to a 4Ever).  And there are of course options that can cost a lot more, LOL.     

Graco seats seem less popular here for the same reason that everyone seems to have their kids in Hanna Andersen pajamas and have Tulas (and Foonfs, LOL).  People with a lot of money to drop on car seats (or whatever else) trend towards the higher priced brands.  But you are right that the Graco Size4Me/Fit4Me/Contender/Headwise/etc. clones and the 4Ever/Milestone are right up at the top of ERF and extended harnessing, along with the Nextfit. Britax finally woke up and brought out taller convertibles (ClickTight Boulevard and CT Advocate) that are also in that club.  The Radian and Foonf are in that range too.  Any of those seats are excellent choices.  Their height/weight limits are very slightly different, but in the end, it's a wash (like the Foonf harnesses to 50 lbs but has a standing height limit, etc.).  Most parents will never RF or FF their kids to the limits of these seats (which is a way better situation than your kid outgrowing a seat at 4 and having to buy a new harnessed seat).  My advice is always to put your kid in the seat, see how you like the adjustments, install it in your car and see how it fits.      

As for comfort, generally the amount of padding increases with the price.  The Nextfit, 4Ever, and Britax ClickTights are all very plush (and all very $300+).  The Gracos in the $140-200 range have a bit less padding.  Most kids don't seem to care - my girls have both ridden for extended periods of time in Sceneras, which have almost no padding.   

I would add "compact-ness" to your list because a seat like the Evenflo Sureride seems excellent until you can't install it in a mid-size car without eating the dashboard.  It has to be installed at 45 degrees, which is a murderous angle for a tall seat.  A tall seat that can be installed at 35 degrees is way more workable.  A lot of people give up on RFing because they think they can't fit a taller convertible in their car (which used to be true until many new seat designs came out).  This chart is excellent:  

carseatblog.com/22818/the-ultimate-rear-facing-convertible-space-comparison-review-size-matters/

There are sometimes standing height limits for RFing that severely limit the usefulness of the seat (i.e., some Evenflos have a standing height limit of 37" even though their shells can be fairly tall).  So shell height, standing height limit (if any), and weight limit for RFing.  

For FFing harnessing, your limits are the top shoulder slots, the shell height, and the weight limit.  A weight limit of 65+ lbs will get you anywhere you want to go - the harness slots are what will kill you on most seats FFing.    

The "Britax bubble" of marketing has been a powerful force for decades (and in the beginning, they definitely earned it - they were the only seats where you could harness past 40 lbs or RF significantly past 1, they invented LATCH/Isofix and then donated the patent, etc.). But now there are seats that RF and harness just as long/longer than Britax (and are less expensive). Chicco has an awesome LATCH design/force multiplier, and so many people loved the Keyfit that the Nextfit had a huge ready-made market. Graco came out with longer-lasting infant seats and now seats that are great for ERF.  It's like they say Samsung fires bullets and Apple fires canonballs - Graco is like Samsung and has car seats that span the cost and ERF/EH spectrum.  Chicco has the Nextfit.        


The Car seat deals group on Facebook is excellent for catching sales and coupons - I got awesome deals on all my seats.  

To me, Britax harnessed seats were mostly overhyped since I have owned radians since 2008. The radians were all that kept tall kids harnessed in a tiny car at that point and were cheaper than a new car lol! I only last week bought my first britax harnessed seat and only because my monster toddler may well max out the harness (my 6 year old fits in the harness but is exactly even with the top slot).

But I didn't realize until I moved my second to her radian that kids noticed the comfort level. But both girls cried nonstop in their graco and it stopped immediately in the radian. Once they were older and could talk Julia would tell me what seats hurt her butt (her words). If Julia hadn't started saying that I wouldn't have believed it mattered. For carpooling both girls prefer the bubble bum since it's comfy.

[Deleted]

I need to buy car seats too--any thought son which ones are easier to install?

[ewall]

I went with the 4Ever. I had seen a few people on here complain about lifting kids over the high sides on the Nextfit. And my large kid would likely outgrow most of the Britax seats sooner rather than later. We like the 4Ever enough that we ended up buying a second one for DH's car. He has a compact car, but the seat still fits fine RF. Doesn't take up anymore room than our Snugride did. The 4Ever is super easy to install. I have to re-install it weekly in various company cars and have never had an issue.

[spk926]

The Gracos are fine. My daughter is still rear-facing in it at 2y 9m and has never once cried from discomfort. She's cried because I won't give her something or another 2 year old reason but she's totally comfortable. I have two Size4me/Headwise 70s (which is now the Headwise 65) because the 4-ever wasn't out 2 years ago. I find it really easy to install and it's easy to use. I like that I can easily take the cover off to wash, the harness pads come off to wash as well and the cup holder is handy. I actually wish it had 2 cup holders though!

One thing I have heard about the Nextfit both on here and IRL is that the sides are really high which makes it difficult to rear-face long term because it's hard getting the child in and out. Buying a seat because of it's rear facing limits and then not being able to rear-face as long as you wish because of the seat's design seems really silly to me. My coworker tried it in her car at BBB and hated it and her son is only 7 months. I don't have that problem at all with my Graco seats.

[jeaniebueller]

I have only ever bought Graco seats and have had no problems with them. But I also don't own HA clothing or a Tula and think that Gymbo is a splurge. 

[Deleted]

I have a Graco Size4Me (the Target version) and it's great. It was easy to install, has good cushioning, fits well into our car and P sleeps well in it. I think Graco is often thought of as the 'cheaper' brand, but I just don't see any valid reason to spend more money on something else when it works fine and fits where I need it to. If you're selling a car seat in the US, it meets certain safety standards, so it is less expensive, but not skimping on safety or features (IMO).

[estrellita]

I've been leaning toward sticking with Graco (we have one now) and I'm glad to hear a lot of you would recommend them! We don't quite have the money right now but I'll be watching for deals in the next few months or so!

[pooh8402]

I'm looking at Graco 4Evers myself for E's next seat. DH and I drive E in our separate vehicles equally, so I'm not going to get a "nice" seat for one car and a cheaper but not as nice seat for the other car. We'll get the same seat for both cars. E already has a long torso, so I've been looking at high seated height limits.

[MamaMaui24]

I love love love the Graco 4ever. I have now installed it forward facing for my son and rear facing for my daughter. Tight install and not too heavy.

My only complaint is that the sides are high. This is not a problem with smaller kids and bigger cars. But with a big kid and a small car, we ended up moving DS to a radian for the lower sides. Now he can get in/out himself.

Others we have had:
Cosco Senera - hated the RF install

Britax - didn't love the RF install

Diono Radian - heavy!!!!! Only done FF install. (Love the narrow seat and low profile sides).

[estrellita]

Oct 12, 2015 9:47:51 GMT -5 @fivedogs said:

Oct 12, 2015 8:35:44 GMT -5 estrellita said:

I've been leaning toward sticking with Graco (we have one now) and I'm glad to hear a lot of you would recommend them! We don't quite have the money right now but I'll be watching for deals in the next few months or so!

The size4me on woot is $109, I think. It is probably last year's stock, but it has a pretty long lifespan 7 years).

That's a good price... we just don't have a lot of extra money right now we won't need it really until sometime next year so I might watch for Black Friday or other deals.

[Deleted]

Does anyone use seat protectors with their car seats?