Britax Car Seats

I just read that for the older kids britax seat like the regent, they require a 60 lb ability in the upper anchor of your car and smaller suv's like honda crv only have a 4o lb ability. : (

We have the Marathon for our first child and just bought 2 more for our second child. We are happy with them. They've been easy to use. One drawback is the size - they take up a decent amount of space, but I don't know that other seats would be better. A friend of ours has the Decathalon and likes it.

We have a Marathon and absolutely love it! The book 'Baby Bargains' has this as their top pick for safety and value.

It's super-easy to install, especially since we have to remove it from one car and put it in another every day (my husband drops our son off at daycare and I pick him up in a different car). We have used it both rear-facing and forward-facing.

I have a Britax Boulevard for my 20 month old. He has been in it for about a year. We have done both rear and forward facing. Like the other mom said, the padding is removable that goes around he waistline area. I feel much better knowing that his car seat has the extra protection of the side impact, too. He seems to be very comfortable in his seat; we take long road trips too. We are expecting #2 and will be buying another Boulevard when the baby outgrows the carrier.

I would say the biggest downfall was taking the car seat on the plane. It is fine to check, but it's a bit big taking thru security and placing it in coach seats. I have a hand me down car seat we use for air travel.

We have a Marathon. We first used it rear facing from when my son was about 5 months until he turned a year. We have been using it forward facing since (he's now 3) and had no problems with it so far. He seems to be comfortable on it. The Marathon is pretty big, so I will not fit on a smaller car. I have no experience with the other two models.

I LOVE my Marathon! My daughter is turning 5, and has used it ever since she moved out of her infant car seat. I loved that we could keep it in the backwards facing position a little longer than some, as this does seem to be safer for babies. The straps are great... I also have two older boys, and their's would always tangle... these never do. I am expecting our last baby (#4!) in September, and may move my daughter into a captains style chair next year, and give the Marathon to the new baby. (I have priced new covers since my material is a little worn... they are in the $80.00 range, but probably worth it for how long these last) If it weren't for a new one on the way though... I could really keep my daughter in this much longer. She has NOT outgrown it yet, and I still have holes left to string the straps through to accomodate her getting taller. It is really a great seat, and goes into the car very tightly if you use your knee when you put it in. I have always felt like she is very safe in it. The material is also very soft, as you've probably felt. Since it may go to our next child... it was VERY worth the investment, and I have been happy with it.

I have both the marathon and boulevard. I love the marathon and wish I would have gotten two instead of the boulevard. The marathon is a cinch to use in any position and is very comfortable. The boulevard came out right before I had my son and with the side impact wings and all the other safety features it advertised it hooked me. It is a good seat, but more difficult to use. It also is very snug on my almost 3 year old. Can't see him sitting in that seat until he is 65lbs. I would go for the Marathon. They also have a newer one out that seats up to I think 80lbs and has the room for a bigger kid. I forget which model it is. Good luck.

I have a roundabout and a marathon. Got the marathon for my second child, as it goes to a higher weight. Although, I probably didn't need it as 40 pounds they can go in a booster. I have been using it since he was 11 months, rear facing. I haven't had any problems with it, except that sometimes it gets stuck when I pull to tighten it, and I have to pull a couple times. I tried it in the stores, and it didn't do it. I am not sure how front-facing is, since they are still backwards. But overall, I love it. And...for any Britax seat...if you are ever in a crash , Britax will, one time, replace your seat for free. Not many people know that. I am not sure if it one time per seat, or per person. A friend of mine found it out. Good luck!

We just got our first Britax carseat and I don't think that I will ever go back to another one. We have the Regent and absolutely LOVE it! And, if you buy them when they have their sales you can get a great deal. We only ended up spending $190 on ours!!! I am pretty sure they have their sales, twice a year. Good luck to you!!!

We have the Boulevard and it is awesome. My son is 2 and is in the 80% for height and 50% for weight and he fits well in his BLVD. I like the Marathon, but my kids won't fit in it. My son was 1.5 years old when I went to get a seat and his shoulders already touched the sides of the Marathon. I sat my 4 year old in it and he couldn't sit all the way back. I don't consider my kids to be broad shouldered, but I guess they are. If I were you, I would try out both seats at a local Babies R Us and see if your 3 year old fits in both. If so, chances are your daughter will fit in both. A site I love for recommendations on car seats is www.car-seat.org. They have tons of reviews and opinions on all car seats, especially the Britax ones. The Boulevard is very easy to adjust while it is in the car. I like this because if my son is wearing a coat or not wearing a coat, I can adjust it easily. If he is close to the top of one slot, then you may need to take the seat out depending on if he has a coat on or not. Also, the straps on the Boulevard do not twist as often as most other car seats. Also, the velcro straps on the side are awesome. I didn't think I would use them prior to buying the seat, but it really helps to keep the straps nice and it helps to save time when I am loading my son in the car. So, we love the seat and my son does as well. We also have the Britax Regent for my older son and love that as well. You can't go wrong with a Marathon or Boulevard. I have heard about issues with the Decathalon though.

We have the Boulevard and love it! We did a lot of research before choosing that one. I know there is a lot of talk out there about the pain of adjusting the straps, but I have no complaints. As far as the padding is concerned, my daughter is 13 months old, 22 lbs. and is completely comfortable. I would highly recommend the Boulevard. My sister-in-law used the Marathon for my niece and really liked it too, however got the Boulevard for their son. As far as safety is concerned Britax is the best, whichever seat you decide to go with! Hope our experience helps.
M.

I have two Britax Boulevard carseats and love them. One is for my 2 year old. The other is for my 6 month old (he is rear facing). I know it appears that there is a lot of padding, but part of the padding is removeable. My 6 month old still uses the padding (it helps the straps stay tight), but he is almost big enough for it to be removed. I like that the rear-facing weight limit is higher (35lbs.)because it's safer for kids to sit rear facing even after the 1-year, 20 pound requirement. I used it rear-facing with 2 year old until she was about 1.5 years and plan to do the same with the 6 month old. It's super easy to install. Adjusting the height on the shoulder strap is a breeze -- all you have to do is turn the knob, and the straps don't get twisted up. Although it is much bigger than most car seats, I can't say enough good things about this seat. I love it.

I have 4 Marathons, so ya I love em. Have used them for a baby 6 months rear facing till age 3 1/2 and my son is rearfacing in one now at age 2 (tomorrow !!). The Fisher Price Safe Voyage is a good choice EXCEPT it is now out of production, seats on the shelf are already a year old and parts may be a little difficult to get and it doesn't have all the extra's like the awesome latch connectors that the Britax has/the ability to tether Rearfacing which increases the safety factor- online Marathons can be had for under 210.00 no shipping, average that out over about 5 years and it's a great investment. I think most prefer the Marathon (and it has the most fabric choices) but the BLVD or Decathalon are also loved too...it's kinda of preference (the extra padding on the BLVD I believe is put in for an infant/baby and comes out later but I'm not positive).

I don't think you can go wrong with any of these.

B.

i put my daughter in the marathon at 4 months because she was so tall she outgrew her carrier, she turned 4 in december and at that time she was 38 pounds and 43 inches she has definately grown in the last 3 months and it still fits her great she has alway napped in it well too
all our family is an hour away, plus we've taken it on planes, 12 hour car trips it is a life saver easy to install

J.

I have the Marathon. We used it in the rear-facing position for a few months after he outgrew his infant carrier. It was easy to install, and worked fine. Now it's in the forward-facing position after he turned one yesterday.

The tether that you have to use with the Britax seats make it a bit of a pain to use in the rear-facing position if your child is heavy like my son. He's definitely at the 22-23 pound mark, and threading him into his seat was getting difficult. But now it's forward, so no more problems.

hi we use the britax marathon with our 20 month old. we started her in it when she outgrew the infant seat. so yes, we used it rear facing with no difficulty. i did a lot of research and felt that she was very safe in the seat. it did seem big when we first put her in it but i think any seat is going to seem big after the infant carrier. the harness/straps were not an issue with rear or forward facing. i tend to worry a bit too much about the car seats and making sure that they are in perfectly (i won't let anyone else put them in the car b/c no one can do it as carefully as i do- crazy, i know) and installing the marathon into the car is a breeze. we have used the marathon with my four year old and my 20 month old. good luck.

I have a Marathon and LOVE it! I used it with my son since he was 6 months and now my daughter (8 months ) just inherited it. I bought my son a different car seat, he's 3, and he complains that it is not as comfortable as the Marathon. It is so comfortable that my son would always fall asleep in it. I should have bought two! They are well worth the $.

I have the Boulevard and LOVE it. My dd just turned 1 and it works great for her. We will leave her rear facing until she hits the weight limit. I really like the fact that is has side impact protection, most don't. And the side impact head protection is great for when they fall asleep because their heads rest of that instead of falling over.

Hi J.,
We have the Marathon Britax for our son. I love it, I started put him in it around 9 months because he was to big for his other and I haven't had any problem. He is now 16 months and everything is fine.
S.

We have had the Marathon for our now 2 1/2 year old son since he was 6 months and love it! (forward and rear-facing) We are actually looking at getting another for our 9 month old daughter too! The only drawback I've found is when it is rear facing. The seat can be difficult to fit behind the front row seats without moving them fairly far forward (depending on vehicle). There is plenty of room with it forward facing. (We have an Acura MDX)

Hello,

My daughter was in the Marathon forward and rear facing and loved it. We switched to the Boulevard because of the side impact protection and she will be 3 in May and loves it. My son is 13 months and loves the Boulevard also. He is rear facing and my daughter is forward facing.

Hope this helps!
B.

We have the Marathon and love it. The safety factor outshines everything else. If I were going to buy a seat now, I would seriously consider the Diplomat.
http://www.britaxusa.com/products/product_detail.aspx?ID=4
We used the Marathon rear-facing before she was 1. Please make SURE you get it checked for safety as the incline that is required is really tricky. Good luck.

J.-
Hi! As a mother of 2 children (3 and 5 years old and both are in Marathons) and an OB nurse and childbirth educator - I can say Britax seats are the best! I used a Roundabout rear facing with both of my kids and it worked out great. My son was only 6 months old when I started him in the Roundabout and he fit very well with room to grow. I upgraded to a Marathon once they were front facing so I am not sure how the Marathon would be rear facing but I would guess just fine. You can tether the Britax car seats rear facing too. For rear facing I would also think that they would work the best with larger cars or SUV's not a compact.
I have not tried the Decathalon but I have been very happy with the amount of padding on the Marathon. My son who is 5 just started asking about being in a booster seat - like his classmates. He is 48 inches tall and 50 lbs. A big boy :)
Hope this information helps :-)
S.