When did you switch from something like the Chico Nexfit to a high back booster? With a baby coming, I’m wondering if we should use our Nextfit for baby in our 2nd car (instead of buying extra base) and get my 4 year old DD a high back booster. They’re about the same price. DD is about 38lbs and 41 inches.
Is one safer than the other? She fits the weight/height range for both. Which high back booster would you recommend?
I kept DS in a convertible 5pt harness till he was 6.5 or so. It was safer for him, it kept him upright if he happened to fall asleep and most importantly he could buckle himself in much easier than if he was using a high back booster with a shoulder belt.
We just replaced the car seats (Nextfits) in DH's car with high back boosters (with harness) due to a car accident. I figured if I had to get new seats I would move on to the next step. My twins are 3.5 and about 35lbs, 38 inches so met the size requirements to be in the seat with the harness. We got the Graco Tranzitions for them as they had good reviews and were a great price - he said the install on them isn't the easiest, but the seats will hardly ever be moved in his car so ease of install wasn't too high on the list.
They are still in NextFits in my car and when the time comes to replace those I might look at the Britax clicktight seats for ease of installation.
My 6 and 8 year old are still harnessed. They were involved in a 50+ mph head on collision in January, harnessed and just minor bruising from it. They will be harnessed until they outgrow the seats at 54", 80 lbs. And yes, I replaced the crashed seats with other 3-in-1 seats, not high back boosters, even though they were almost 6 and 8 at that time.
ETA: My kids are both over 4 feet and under 50 lbs. My 8 year old is all legs and sits shorter that his sister. They both still have inches to go before outgrowing the harness. We have the Nautilus Elite 80.
Post by Velar Fricative on Apr 13, 2018 7:46:26 GMT -5
You can get the high back harness boosters too. Once I wanted to put DD2 in the convertible, I bought two harness to booster seats for DD1 at age 4. Both seats (Graco Tranzitions and Evenflo Hybrid 3in-1) can have their 5-pt harnesses taken out to convert to high back boosters and then backless boosters.
My 6 and 8 year old are still harnessed. They were involved in a 50+ mph head on collision in January, harnessed and just minor bruising from it. They will be harnessed until they outgrow the seats at 54", 80 lbs. And yes, I replaced the crashed seats with other 3-in-1 seats, not high back boosters, even though they were almost 6 and 8 at that time.
ETA: My kids are both over 4 feet and under 50 lbs. My 8 year old is all legs and sits shorter that his sister. They both still have inches to go before outgrowing the harness. We have the Nautilus Elite 80.
Which seat is this? My almost five year old is 49" and 49#, and we just moved him to a shoulder belt high back booster because his harnessed seat said he grew out of it.
Best practice: When the child outgrows their harnessed seat. And when the child is mature enough to sit in the seat belt properly. Usually this is more like 5 or 6.
However, if one needs hard guidelines, then we CPSTs usually say 4 years old AND 40 pounds at a MINIMUM.
Post by steamboat185 on Apr 13, 2018 7:53:58 GMT -5
We moved to a high backed harnessed convertible booster around 4. The baby was moving out of a bucket seat and it seemed silly to buy another car seat rather than something that could be used until she was done with seats.
Post by oceanstbride on Apr 13, 2018 7:55:05 GMT -5
DS is almost 5 and moves around a little too much to be safe in a high back booster with seat belt. He outgrew his Nextfit by his torso height. We recently got the Myfit which is a combo harness/high back booster. He likes it because it's more of a "big kid" seat and I like that he can be harnessed a lot longer.
Will you miss being able to take an infant seat in and out of the car with a sleeping baby if you're in the 2nd car?
Ditto what most of the others are saying. I would get a combo harnessed/high back booster. DS1 turns 5 next week and I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable with him using just a seat belt yet. He is all over the place and I don't think he would sit properly.
We have Britax frontier clicktights that I love for both my 3 and 5 year olds. I have hated most other car seats that we have owned but I find these super easy to use/get in and out of. They are pricey though but I think you got a lot of other good suggestions at lower price points.
My DD will be 4 in a month. I will be keeping her in a 5 point harness as long as I can. She has a 4Ever in my car and we just switched her to a Graco Tranzitions in H’s truck. She’s 46 lbs and 40some inches, very tall. However, she’s also 4 and there’s no way I trust her to be able to sit correctly in a HBB at all times. Also, 5 point harness is just safer, so until she no longer fits in one, she’ll be in one.
Post by expectantsteelerfan on Apr 13, 2018 8:41:39 GMT -5
Another recommender of a combo harness to booster seat. My 8 year old uses a high back booster with seatbelt and has for a year or so, but my 6 year old is still harnessed in our main car (when she hit 40 lbs earlier this year I let her start using boosters if she's riding in someone else's car though). Even though the harness to booster combo seats are bigger and need installed, we haven't had an issue keeping them in my car. We did buy extra cheap high back boosters for dh's car and then one extra we keep in the basement for when the grandparents take both kids (both grandparents also bought one to keep at their houses too).
Post by minionkevin on Apr 13, 2018 8:46:58 GMT -5
Most kids aren’t mature enough to properly sit in a HBB until age 5, usually age 6+. You could get a combination seat that will keep her harnessed, like the MyFit, and later concert it to HBB.
Thanks! I think the booster with 5 point harness seems perfect. Is there any safety difference between booster with 5 point harness and the Chicco Nextfit?
My 6 and 8 year old are still harnessed. They were involved in a 50+ mph head on collision in January, harnessed and just minor bruising from it. They will be harnessed until they outgrow the seats at 54", 80 lbs. And yes, I replaced the crashed seats with other 3-in-1 seats, not high back boosters, even though they were almost 6 and 8 at that time.
ETA: My kids are both over 4 feet and under 50 lbs. My 8 year old is all legs and sits shorter that his sister. They both still have inches to go before outgrowing the harness. We have the Nautilus Elite 80.
Which seat is this? My almost five year old is 49" and 49#, and we just moved him to a shoulder belt high back booster because his harnessed seat said he grew out of it.
We switched DS1 to a high back booster last June before we went on a long roadtrip. He was 3 years 4 mo at the time and tall. He was more comfortable in it for the trip. We specifically got the Britax ClickTight Frontier. It's solid as a rock in my car.
Thanks! I think the booster with 5 point harness seems perfect. Is there any safety difference between booster with 5 point harness and the Chicco Nextfit?
Nope I don't believe so. The 5 point harness is obviously just a FF only seat and sits a little more upright like a real seat. I call it my son's "race car" seat to him.
Ditto what most of the others are saying. I would get a combo harnessed/high back booster. DS1 turns 5 next week and I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable with him using just a seat belt yet. He is all over the place and I don't think he would sit properly.
We have Britax frontier clicktights that I love for both my 3 and 5 year olds. I have hated most other car seats that we have owned but I find these super easy to use/get in and out of. They are pricey though but I think you got a lot of other good suggestions at lower price points.
Do you find the Frontier CT straps hard to tighten to remove slack after you've buckled? We have 2, one in H's car and the other in MIL's SUV. My H can barely tighten them sufficiently, let alone me, and it freaks me out. Currently DD (4 yrs, 35 lbs) is still in a Marathon CT in my car but is approaching max shoulder height in that, so I'm looking ahead to the next step. I'm hesitant to get another Frontier.
Ditto what most of the others are saying. I would get a combo harnessed/high back booster. DS1 turns 5 next week and I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable with him using just a seat belt yet. He is all over the place and I don't think he would sit properly.
We have Britax frontier clicktights that I love for both my 3 and 5 year olds. I have hated most other car seats that we have owned but I find these super easy to use/get in and out of. They are pricey though but I think you got a lot of other good suggestions at lower price points.
Do you find the Frontier CT straps hard to tighten to remove slack after you've buckled? We have 2, one in H's car and the other in MIL's SUV. My H can barely tighten them sufficiently, let alone me, and it freaks me out. Currently DD (4 yrs, 35 lbs) is still in a Marathon CT in my car but is approaching max shoulder height in that, so I'm looking ahead to the next step. I'm hesitant to get another Frontier.
I think this happens with a lot of car seats (including the Frontier) when the height is not adjusted properly. Whenever mine are getting hard to tighten I know I need to adjust the straps/headrest up a bit. Usually doing that solves the issue.
Post by nextbigthing on Apr 13, 2018 14:26:52 GMT -5
DS is 3, 43" and 42lbs.
I switched him a couple months ago from the chicco next fit to a diono radian. It's a high back booster with a 5 point harness. He sits more straight-up-and-down and just seems to have more room. I have no intention of switching him out of the 5 point harness for many years.
We have the Graco tranzitions in my dad's car and I really like that seat as well.
I switched him a couple months ago from the chicco next fit to a diono radian. It's a high back booster with a 5 point harness. He sits more straight-up-and-down and just seems to have more room. I have no intention of switching him out of the 5 point harness for many years.
We have the Graco tranzitions in my dad's car and I really like that seat as well.
The problem with Diono is their limits are overstated, especially for their harnesses and HBB. My 3.5 year old is at the 2nd highest harness slot, is 90%ish for height (or was at age 3)... and yet is 3” or so shorter than your son.
I switched him a couple months ago from the chicco next fit to a diono radian. It's a high back booster with a 5 point harness. He sits more straight-up-and-down and just seems to have more room. I have no intention of switching him out of the 5 point harness for many years.
We have the Graco tranzitions in my dad's car and I really like that seat as well.
The problem with Diono is their limits are overstated, especially for their harnesses and HBB. My 3.5 year old is at the 2nd highest harness slot, is 90%ish for height... and yet is 3” or so shorter than your son.
Agreed! He's already at the highest.
If I'd known about the graco tranzitions I would've bought that one
The key is the harness, not the kind of seat it sits in. Convertible or 3-in-1 or harnessed booster all have the same safety tests and certifications, so it doesn't really matter which you choose, as long as you choose a 5-point-harness UNTIL your child meets ALL of these factors: * At least 40 pounds (otherwise submarining is more likely) * Able to sit properly in a 3-point booster ALL the time * The above is usually a question of maturity, and age 5-6 is the youngest a child can be expected to be mature enough and some are not mature enough until much later.
The maturity factor is why my almost 9 year old is still harnessed in my car. I am removing the harness when she turns 9 as she is doing well remembering to sit properly lately. She has severe ADHD and is very squirmy.
We recently got the Myfit which is a combo harness/high back booster. He likes it because it's more of a "big kid" seat and I like that he can be harnessed a lot longer.
How do you like the MyFit? We've been looking at getting that seat for DD1 and switching DD2 to the Boulevard Clicktights. I love that it is one of the only harness to booster seats that you can recline and is still a really skinny seat. It's new to the market but reviews I did find look good and that it fits older kids really well. DD loves all the color choices.
The Diono seat my niece has is so straight upright and has very little padding it looks uncomfortable for long car rides.
I just want to say I'm glad there's someone else here with a giant 3yo. DS just turned three and was 39lbs, 39in at his well-check.
He's in a FF Britax Marathon in my car and the Diono Radian in DS's car--both we used RFing and then flipped FFing (admittedly a bit before he turned 2 because he was SUCH a jerk RFing). Don't really have plans to switch soon--maybe will look at it this winter when DS2 (due in June) will be done with the infant seat--I think I only tolerated lugging that thing around maybe 6mo with DS.
DS went to a Britax Frontier and Pioneer around 2.5 or so - shortly before DD arrived. It was much more comfortable for him - he can get in and out easier and I think he likes that it feels like a grown up car seat.
ETA: FWIW, I haven't been too focused on multi-use car seats since we pass the old seats down to DD by the time DS moves to the next.
The key is the harness, not the kind of seat it sits in. Convertible or 3-in-1 or harnessed booster all have the same safety tests and certifications, so it doesn't really matter which you choose, as long as you choose a 5-point-harness UNTIL your child meets ALL of these factors: * At least 40 pounds (otherwise submarining is more likely) * Able to sit properly in a 3-point booster ALL the time * The above is usually a question of maturity, and age 5-6 is the youngest a child can be expected to be mature enough and some are not mature enough until much later.
The maturity factor is why my almost 9 year old is still harnessed in my car. I am removing the harness when she turns 9 as she is doing well remembering to sit properly lately. She has severe ADHD and is very squirmy.
I’m always amazed by kids who fit in harnessed seats that old! My kids all outgrew the radian as a FF harness seat before their 4th birthdays and my 8 year old is both too tall and too heavy for a harnessed frontier! My 5 year old is on the top click of the harness in his frontier!