A Carseat Question!

We have a Britax Regeant that has a five point harness and goes up to 80 pounds. We just recently got in a car accident where we were hit on the side where my son sat. We were fine, but I went researching heavily on car seats. The Britax brand has side impact testing and is really adjustable. We love it!

Hey S.! So funny I saw your request since I just saw you this morning! Anyway, there are car seats out there that can help you out (and you don't have to spend your children's college funds to purchase them). I've actually had booster car seats for over a year now, but haven't used them yet. Last year, before the kids turned 1, I researched carseats when they were getting ready to transition out of their baby seats (but apparently not enough research was done by me :). I decided to purchase Graco's Platinum CarGo booster seats because they work from 20-100lbs. I thought "great, I only have to buy one car seat until we don't need them anymore". Problem for me was that these seats weren't rear-facing, which I still needed at the time. I bought convertible seats and have just stored the booster seats. The Platinum CarGo seats have high backs (for head support) and have the 5-point harness for now and can convert to the belt-positioning booster seat when the time comes. I've been hanging on to ours as spare seats (just in case we need them in the other car) until my little munchkins finally graduate out of the convertible seats. I ordered mine on-line at Target, but several other places carry it and you can also order it directly from Graco's website. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to let me know!

J. S.

Hi S.,

I think Graco has one, a friend just bought it for her daughter and she likes it a lot. I also have the Cosco Alpha Omega Elite. It does the convertible into the booster, but I'm not sure if the booster is 5-point harness. My son is 37" and there's plenty of room in it without converting to the booster. Good luck!

For belt positioning boosters (and all carseats this is the rule), the child is supposed to meet all of the requirements - age, height and weight - before it is used. What I've heard/read, the belt-positioning boosters really aren't supposed to be used until 4 years and 40 lbs, as a 5-pt is just so much safer. Some good seats that meet those requirements (we have the SafeGuard Go booster, though it doesn't have sides and is shaped more like a booster, and the Radian 65) are the Graco Nautilus, Sunshine Kids Radian, Britax Regent, Britax Frontier, SafeGuard Child Seat, and SafeGuard Go Booster. THey are all good in a 5-pt harness over 50". I'm sure there are others I'm forgetting, these are just the ones I've looked at and researched over and over. Elitecarseats.com is a good site for user and expert reviews on seats for pros and cons. Car-seat.org is also a good site for parent reviews.

I do particularly like the Radian, despite it being really heavy, because it's very tall, my daughter is comfortable, it's nice and narrow in the base (good when you have multiple seats), and it works very well on aircraft as well (though again, it's very heavy).

I have the Graco Nautilus 3 in 1. It has the 5 pt harness to 65 pounds, then converts to a high back booster to use with the shoulder belt, then you can remove the back for just the booster. I love it! I don't know if there is an age recommendation for it though. My daughter is 3 1/2.

I got it at Buy Buy Baby for $159, less with a coupon. It was just on sale on amazon.com for $125, so we got an extra one for our other car.

Hi S.-
I don't know of a specific seat, but you may consider talking to your local fire department about it. The one if Plainfield does car safety seat checks and they have been wonderful about answering any questions we've had. We've gotten three seats installed there and they have always been so helpful. Also, Edward Hospital offers a car seat basics class. It's for expectant families, but I'm sure anyone can take it. Hope that helps.

Hi S. -

Graco has a new booster seat that has the 5pt and will convert to every booster style when you need it. My son just turned 2 and I put him in it already. I don't have any complaints so far. I got it at Walmart and I think that it was about $100. Good Luck.

At the Romeoville police station they is an officer named Kelley Hensen who is a carseat expert---PLS CALL HER TODAY--she can let you know the safest thing for your child. 815/886-7219

I have two cosco convertable car seat/boosters. They have the 5 point harness option or lap belt. I have a 4 year old who is only 32 lbs and 45 inches tall, and a 2 1/2 year old who is 26 lbs and 38 inches tall. I still have both in the 5 point harness. Illinois recommends that children be 4 years old and 40 lbs to be in a booster with a lap belt. Good luck!

There are the 5 points out there that eventually convert to a booster. We have 2 that are I believe Evenflo brand and 2 that are Graco and all of them were 5 point that could convert to a shoulder harness as the kids got older. Our 5 year old just now converted to a shoulder in one car but is still in a 5 point mode in the other car. All our car seats go to 100 lbs. Do NOT put your child in anything but a 5 point until he/she is at least 3----I'd say closer to 4 or 5 if you can. They simply "don't get it" at this young age and will easily wiggle out of a shoulder harness or bend over to reach for books, a sippy cup, something on the floor. My feeling is do not move a kid to a shoulder harness until they demand, repeatedly, to be "out of this baby seat" and into a shoulder one. We found all our car seats at Target.

HI!
We have an Evenflo Generations. It is only sold at Babies R Us, but we love it! It has a 5 point harness with an awesome "clicking" tightening system--I hate pulling the strap kinds. Then it later converts so you can use it with the seat belt. Hope this helps!

L.