Advice on 5 Point Harness That Becomes Booster Seat

I have heard that the naulitus is a great seat. The longer you can keep him in a 5pt the better, there should be no rush in getting him in a booster seat. I belong to another online site and I am constantly talking to other moms and so many moms even a lot of them are car seat safety techs recommend the graco naulitus because it harnesses to 65 and then after that you can use it as a belt positioning and backless booster until they are 100lbs.

I have the Graco Nautilus for both of my girls (ages 4 and 6). I love this car seat. Yes, it can be a bit difficult transforming the seat to a booster, but if you don't have to do it multiple times, then it's great. The seat has cupholders and little pockets that the kids can put stuff in. The headrest is also adjustable, which is great. The 5 point harness is easy for the kids to learn to put on. My husband is completely over-the-top when it comes to buying something: he will spend hours and hours on the internet searching for reviews and such. He chose this car seat because of the price and the features. He read safety data about how well this car seat did in a crash and he was sold. I highly recommend this car seat. It is a great deal for the money. I wish I had've bought them sooner.

I know how you feel. Most people by now would just put him in a booster because of his age but a 5 point harness is best for as long as possible. I have researched and researched car seats until I thought I was obessessed. Currently my almost 5 year old is in a Sunshine Radian because it is slender but fits tall kids but it does not turn into a booster. He could probably be in it another year which is great and then he'll use a booster. Three of our kids are in the Radian. I do have a Britax Regant that I purchased for my son. I purchased it about a year and 1/2 ago and it has literally sat in storage or in a garage for all but 4 months that I've had it. Once we became a blended family with 5 kids, the seat was just too big. I keep thinking I want to sell it because it is a shame it's just sitting in a gargage. If you want to consider that, it would be a cheaper option if you wanted a Britax. In the few months it was used, it was never in an accident and was well taken care of. I would never sell something that put someone else's child in danger. In fact, I'm one of those people that would stop a stranger to tell them their child is incorrectly buckled because I want them to be safe. You can email me if you are interested. My email is ____@____.com. I live near the Chandler/Tempe border. Good luck!

Hi K.. I'll start by saying I don't know the first thing about carseats AND I'm brand new to mamasource. So bare with me. I am a newly expecting mom and just went to the Gilbert Firestation Car Seat installation. They were so, so, so great. I don't know if they would give you any recommendations or not, but I think it would be worth a phone call at least. Also, the research I've done seems to all point to Britax as the best of the best. I know you said you couldn't afford it - how do you feel about used? I checked Craig's list today and there are a bunch of listings for Britax carseats (just not sure if any of them are what you are looking for). Most of them are listed under $100 and it seems to be 3-5 new listings added every day. I know it wasn't specific advice for your question but I hope it helped a little.

We've used the Cosco Summit Highback Booster for both of our kids (now almost 6 and 4) and they work great! Highly recommend! Consumer Reports gave it top ratings because the shoulder strap has freedom to move/adjust and keeps them safe in the booster setting.

Hello K.,

My boys are 8 and 3 so I don't have the problem of 2 in seats at the same time. What I did was kept my older boy in the booster until he was too big for it, but that was at 7 years old. My boys stayed in the forward facing car seat until they outgrew the capacity for it, and then went straight to the Graco booster that has a back to it and cup holders to either side. the back part adjusts up as they get taller to keep the lap belt going across where it should. My older boy grew out of the booster before my younger one was ready for it. My 3 year old is 3 foot 4 inches tall and 45 pounds, so he is big enough for the booster anyhow. He stayed in the forward facing car seat until he was 3 though. I would do it that way unless your 2 year old is already at the capacity for the seat he is in.

I also take the 12 hour drive to CA, only we take it 2 times a year to see family as I have no family here. Where in CA do you go?? I go to Gilroy, CA.

D. P.

We purchased the nautilus for my very large 48 lb 4.5 year old because I was not comfortable with him in a booster. We absolutely love it and I would recommend it to anyone.
It I thought it would be tight but there is still room to grow and will hold him in a 5 pt until 65 lbs.

I just bought the Graco Nautilus for my 5.5 year old son, who weighs almost 50lbs and is 43" tall. He fits in it beautifully and I am so glad that I made the switch from a booster, back to a five point harness. He has no choice but to sit in it with the five point harness and at first he complained a lot. I just ignored it and I haven't heard anything for at least three weeks!!! He love's the fact that it has a cool cupholder(one that the cup doesn't fall out of) and that it has little cubbies for "treasures" I love that my son is safe, secure and comfortable. Now if only I could afford a second one for my four year old!

We have the Cosco Summit. It has a guide on the side for the seatbelt to run through when you convert it. The guide slides up and down so that it will adjust properly for your child. It was a consumer reports best buy at about $80. ordered it on line.