Seeking Advice on Car Seats

Both of our kids (1 year old & 2 1/2 year old) have the Eddie Bower 3 in 1. It is good to 100 pounds. That guarantees that the kids won't need a new seat unless they totally distroy these.

Throughout the years, the age for kids to be in safety seats has steadily gone up. If they decide to increase the age again, I think we'll still be covered with these chairs.

1 mom found this helpful

R.,

The answer is that yes, the seat only will be useful until your child is 50 lbs. and then you will have to get another one, most likely a booster seat.

I have been looking at the Graco Nautilus carseat/booster which can hold up to 80 lbs. That seat sounds so great because it converts to a booster seat later on, so you can use it for much longer. The bottom weight is 20 lbs. though.

If I were you, just look online or if you're in a store with bay products, start to look at the seats that are convertible seats or combination booster seats. You can see what all the weight differences are and make a choice based on price and the length of time you'll be able to use it without having to buy another.

Good luck!

E.

Go to Britax's website and see what they have. We own three, Marathon, Roundabout and Regent. They weight limits are quite high if I remember correctly. I don't think the Regent can be used rear facing though but it's a great seat for when they are older.

I know it is overwhelming, whatever you do, try to keep your little one rear facing for as long as possible. Many experts agree it is safer.

M.

Hi,
Check out the Britax Marathon series. Our guy outgrew his carseat at 4 months (we didn't figure it out until he was 7 months old, though, yeah, we're dopes) and has LOVED the Marathon. It goes from infancy to 65lbs, can be rear or forward facing. Cover comes off for easy washing. The cover is polyester, though, not cotton.

BTW - yes, whatever the manufacturer puts on the box is the maxiumum weight the seat is safe for, so the Evenflo can be used until your daughter is 50lbs. Good luck!

You are right. The car seat you're looking at is only good for a child up to 50 lbs. This is typical. The standards are when a child is around 40 lbs they can graduate to a booster seat. There are some car seats out there that are combo car seat/booster seat. However, a booster seat by themselves isn't that expensive. Personally, I'm not a big fan of the combo units. When my children reached 4, a standard booster seat was much easier to move around from car to car and it also allowed for them to learn how to operate their own seatbelt. Booster seats can also be used well beyond the law stated requirements of 6 years/60 lbs.

Hi R.,

First, it's one year AND 20 pounds. Make sure your child has hit both before switching to forward facing. We waited until slightly beyond that. Once our children were in forward facing seats, we purchased two car seats. One was the Britax Marathon. It was so far superior to the other that we went out and bought another one. Now both of my daughters are using the Britax. It allows for a higher weight and had super ratings on Consumer Reports. I recommend the brand wholeheartedly! As others have said, it is more expensive, but it is so worth the piece of mind. It just feels more sturdy. We did a lot of research before purchasing it. Good luck with your choice!

i just got my son a new car seat too. After a lot of searching on the best in safety and one that would last till he needs a booster. . . I chose the britax boulovard. I love it my son loves it and the most important is its rated the safest. However it is big so if u have a small car i'm not sure how that would work. Also you can face it forward or backwards. Rear facing is recommended till one year old or as long as possible. Well good luck hope this helps:)

You should know that 50 lbs is a 6 year old child--likely you will have moved your child out of a 5 point harness system by then. They can move to boosters when they are 4 years old. So if the seat is good up to 50 lbs you shouldn't have to buy another one. I think Britax makes one that goes heavier, but chances are you will want to move your child to a booster by the time they are 4 or 5.

Any of the Britax models are the safest you can find anywhere.

Hi R.,

My name is Sita Helms I am Mom and a Director of a non profit that advocates for children, I have 2 girls (9 & 10). The answer to your question is yes. If your child is above the weight limit or the head is above the back it is time to get another car seat. My nine year olds torso is still short so when she sits in the car the seat belt cuts her across the neck. At the age of 9 She still sits in a foam booster seat.

When purchasing a car seat please make sure it has the extra Styrofoam that surrounds your child in side the hard plastic shell that will protect your childs back, sides and head area. This is in addition to the cushy foam in the seat cover. The Styrofoam will help protect your child in case of an accident. The Styrofoam helps absorbs the impact of the child’s head and body reducing injuries.

You need to do some on the site research at your local store that has a lot of car seats, pull off the cover and inspect the seats. Check out Britax. There should be padding in the cover plus the Styrofoam that is glued on to the plastic car seat. The majority of car seats will not have this(there are 3 or 4 manufactures that do have them now). Britax(top of the line and very expensive), if you can not afford the britax use its construction and materials as a guide. It may take extra time to find a car seat with this type of protection for your child, but believe me it is well worth your time.

The seats will also have min and max weight amounts. Once you have made your purchase Check the seat out in the parking lot and make sure it fits properly in your car. Also when your childs head is above the car seat back it is time to up grade to a larger seat.

Four years ago we were in a head on collision on our narrow street where we live. A construction worker in a monster truck talking on the phone, speeding while going around a blind corner hit us. We were 15 houses from home. My girls were both in smart car seats with the extra Styrofoam surrounding them for protection. They walked away with seat belt burns and some whiplash. The extra padding protected their heads and body in the collision.

Hope this information helps. Good luck with the car seat hunt.

With Every Best Wish!

Sita Helms

Hi R.,

I would suggest getting a convertable car seat for your 10 month old. They are nice because they can be adjusted in the rear facing position for children under 1 year and under 22 pounds. Then, once the child is big enough, it can be turned around until the child is around 3 or 4.

When it says that it is good for a child up to 50 pounds, that is what it means. My daughter is almost 4 and is 40 pounds. She has a convertable car seat right now, but she has pretty much outgrown it height wise. By the time they are 50 pounds, you are going to want to get a full back booster seat that you can use the regular car seat with it. That's actually what I'm in the market for now.

The reason that the safety warning says 5-30 pounds rear facing is because even if the child is over the magic 22 pound mark, if the child isn't a year old yet, they still have to be rear facing. The muscles in their necks aren't strong enough before a year to support their heads if the car stops too suddenly. The 20-50 pound front facing warning is because a child who is a year and over 22 pounds can use the seat in the forward position. The seat will effectivly keep the child safe up to 50 pounds. Generally, a child who is 50 pounds is going to be too big for the seat height wise anyway.

I hope that this helps you..

L.

Yes, that does mean that it's only good up to 50lbs. To put it in perspective, though, I have a six year old who only weighs about 46 pounds, so you'll be using it for a long time. I hope you find what you're looking for. :)

Hi R.,
Britax are consistently the best rated car seats (consumer reports.com has all the ratings). There are several models in different price ranges. My son just hit 50 pounds and he will be 6 next week. He's been in a regular booster for about a year. He happens to be tall and the regular car seat was too small for him. If your daughter is on the smaller side, she may be in the regular car seat longer. The weight restrictions are basically to let you know when you can turn your child around facing forward and when you can move to a booster. The guidelines are by weight and age. When you daughter is 1 year and 20 pounds she can face forward - both requirements need to be met. After 4 years and 40 pounds you can move to a booster if you want to - they say it's best to keep the kids in a regular car seat as long as you can.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

I highly recommend Britax. They have the highest safety ratings. The Marathon allows babies to continue facing backward even when they are over 20 lbs. The experts say it's much safer
to keep them facing backward as long as possible. They also have the 5 point harness on the larger models so kids can ride safer as the grow as well.

i have an alpha-omega 3-in-1, i forget who makes it, but it is for 5-100 pounds, goes all the way from infant to booster. we've got 3 pounds to go til shes booster weight, but so far i have been quite pleased with it. with the evenflo yes you would have to buy a booster after.

i have to tell you though, i am an advocate of extended rear-facing. just because they turn one does not magically make their neck muscles stronger. in sweden kids are kept rear facing to between 3 and 5 years of age, and do you know how many kids die in a year from car accidents in the entire country? less than 2.
sorry for the rant, i am just very passionate about it.

I did a lot of research and since you need to have the rear-facing capability until the baby is a year and then until your child is a certain height and weight... what a pain!!! I know that it's "safer" but the amount of time they need to be strapped in is ridiculous.

I ended up buying the Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite. It looks comfortable and I will never have to buy another seat since the weight goes to 100 pounds. Rear-facing 5-35 lbs, forward-facing 22-40 lbs, and belt-positioning booster 40-100 lbs.
They were actually carrying them at costco for a little while for at $40 less than Baby's R Us... You should check that out.

We use Britax also. They are a little more expensive, but are very safe and get great reviews and they last longer.

Yes. It means that for you to use it correctly the child must weigh 50 or less. They do make seats that convert( 5 to 30 rear and 20 to 100 forward ). I would look into one that grows with them a little longer. I hope that you find one you like. There are so many on the market that it can be over welming.

yeah you would usually have to get another one. look for one with a weight limit of 60 pounds because once they hit 60 lbs or 6 years old they don't require a carseat. or you could get one that has the weight limit of 50 lbs then buy a small booster seat later which those don't cost as much as carseats

We also have two Britax Marathons. With my first we got the Graco Snugride then switched over to the Marathon at 6 months when he outgrew the Snugride. With my second, we didn't even bother with the Snugride. We immediately put her into her own Marathon.

I did a lot of research on carseats before our first was placed with us (www.consumerreports.org), so it was a no-brainer for me to put our second into a Britax.

The Britax is good for up to 65 lbs, which is 5lbs more than CA state requirements.

Plus all Britax seats are FAA approved (some carseats are not, so you can't use them on planes).

And their customer service and part replacement is really good. I had to replace the tether system on my daughters seat because I broke the metal clasp when removing her seat, and they sent it out asap with no charge to me. I also had to replace the belt buckle on my sons seat because he got Icee syrup stuck in it. After the syrup dried the buckle still worked like normal, but for precautionary reasons I had it replaced to be safe. They sent it out asap. Other than those two things, we haven't had any issues with our Marathons. My son's seat is now almost 4 years old and my daughters is now 17 months old.

The price tag is pretty expensive, but worth it if you can afford it. I got a good deal on my sons seat through a seller on ebay. With my daughters seat I got it at Target on sale. Both times I saved like $50. You can also check out usababy.com. They have the best selection of carseats and strollers that you can test drive in their stores.

Yes, that is what it means. Although every child is unique. The average child isn't going to weigh 50 pounds until he/she is 4 or 5 years old. For some it will last a little longer.

My kids are 3 and 6 and I still have one of the carseats (Cosco Alpha Omega) that I bought when the first one was born. I hate it. My 3 year old now meets the standards for a booster seat (seat only - no back) and she prefers to use one of these, which are also cheap - $14 at Walmart. Unfortunately, with 2 cars and carpooling, she often ends up in the old one. When you look at carseats, look for the features you want - size, ability to take apart and wash (potty training comes faster than you think!), sturdy straps that won't twist, easy to fasten - both my kids loved being able to buckle themselves, but could not unbuckle. You will want to get rid of those monster carseats as soon as you can!!

Hi R., You've gotten some great advice on the type of car seat to look for so I won't repeat that. I just wanted to say that we had a guest speaker in my Mommy n Me class not too long ago talking about car seat safety and the most important thing she stressed was the installation of the car seat. We all buy the best car seats and then put them in wrong! She quoted some statistics that said of all the car seats inspected during a given time something like 90% were installed incorrectly! Here is a website that lists inspection stations in California.
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/People/Injury/Childps/CPSFitting...

Just click on the letter of your city (or a nearby bigger city)and find one in your area. Then once you get your car seat, make an appointment to have them check to make sure you have it in right. SO important, it should be required!! Good luck!

We have the Evenflo carseat for our twin boys. They are awesome! Plus, it's likely your child will be too tall for the seat before being too heavy. My daughter is 7 and hasn't hit 50 pounds yet. She's been in a booster seat since she was 4. So I wouldn't worry too much about the weight thing yet. We really like the Evenflo, facing either way. They are easy to use and easy to install. And the straps don't get all twisted through the clips like they do in so many carseats.

R.,
I believe the California car seat law states that a child must be in child restraint ntil 6 years and 60lbs, but at 40lbs a child can use a booster (no back) with the regular seat belt. After 60lbs a child can sit anywhere without child restraint but must use a seat belt. Hope this helps

At 10 months old I moved my son into a Britax Marathon. I kept it rear facing for several months after he turned one. He is now 4 years old, 39 pounds, and still sitting in the same seat, although forward facing. It's a great seat and he shows no signs of immediately outgrowing it. My two year old has his own Marathon. While you may cringe at the price, the seat is highly rated and isnt's your child's safety worth any cost?

You will need another seat, but most likely a booster. My son is a bit on the heavy side and he is 37 lbs at the age of three. My daughter (on the light side) just reached 50 lbs, and she is 7 years old, so I wouldn't be too concerned, because once they are 4 years old and 40 lbs, they don't need the harness system anymore.

Yup, that's exactly what it means! Typically, once your daughter outgrows her convertible car seat (like the one you're looking at - both rear and forward facing), you can do a booster seat which is considerably less expensive. However, you have to realize that 50 pounds is a pretty big kid :o) That's about how much my sister-in-law weighed when she was 7.

also, you can face her forward after she reaches 20lbs (and 1 year), but safest to leave rear facing for as long as child will fit.

Most seats will only go up to 50-60 lbs. And then yes, you do need to buy a new seat. Usually at this point it will be a booster. It may seem excessive but of course it's what's safe for our kids.

By the time our kids can be in a seat belt, they probably have gone through 3-4 seats.

R.,
you've got some great advice so far... If I could just add that you should consider keeping your child rear-facing as long as physically possible the better even beyond the 22lb/1 year "guideline"... it's obviously the safest position.

Here are some videos to prove it:

Importance of rear-facing car seats for your child
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2DVfqFhseo

Importance of Car seats vs booster for your toddler
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azgBhZfcqaQ

C.~
www.HelpUStayHome.com

I can't recommend the Britax Marathon highly enough. It is extremely highly rated for safety, is really comfortable for the child, and is rated for forward facing up to 65 lbs, so your child can use it for a very long time. My son is almost 5, and he would still be using his... if we hadn't had needed to hand it down to his little sister! It is a little pricey, but again, you'll use it forever. Check it out!

Hi R.. That is what it means. We bought the Boulevard for my husband's car and the Marathon for mine when it was time to switch our son to a forward-facing seat (which, if I remember correctly, they recommend to do when your child is either 22 lbs or 1 year old)....although the guy who installed them told us the longer they are rear-facing the safer. I think both our car seats go to 65 lbs as well, and then I'm not sure if we need new seats or if that's the point at which we switch to those booster carseats.....but I love the Boulevard (the Marathon is also great, but the Boulevard tilts back just a bit more so that if he falls asleep his head doesn't fall forward). Anyway, hope this helps!

I just bought a new car seat for our one year old. I recommend the ones that go up to 65 lbs then you don't have to buy another one for a while (theoretically).

Hello R., I am a safety seat tech. That seat is a very good seat. It is recommeneded infants stay rear facing until one year and twenty pounds. (allows the hips and shoulder bones to solidify enough to withstand forward facing). There are some seats out there that are called a three in one. Used for rear facing, forward facing to 40 pounds, and as a high back booster until 80 - 100 pounds (without the harness). They are usually a little more expensive, but you only buy one seat. There are techs nation wide, go to the NHTSA.ORG for lists of techs in your area that can help. You can also call the local police and fire dept.'s or social services offices. They might have techs. Most of the techs will assist you in installing your seat properly. Good luck, Jim

I too recommend the Britax Marathon - both our kids are in it and will be in them for quite some time with the heavy weight limit. They are expensive but right now Costco has a great price on them!