We are in the market for a booster seat for our 4 year old. He is roughly 42 inches tall and 40 lbs. There are so many seats to choose from - with backs, without backs, with seat anchors, etc. We tend to travel alot in the car and he frequently sleeps in his current car seat. Could the mommies out there provide some recommendations for a good comfortable, safe booster seat. Thanks.
5 point harness seats are the safest....we are getting Sunshine radian XTst......it's the best one out there.
Hi T.,
I'd recommend a booster seat with a back if you travel a lot. This gives them something to lean their heads on especially while traveling. I got a Graco booster and the back is removable so you have the choice. It has been convenient to have both options.
Hope this helps. Good luck!
We have the Graco Turbobooster for our less used car and the Graco Nautilus in the mini-van where he spends the most high speed miles. The Nautilus has the 5 point harness and side impact protection. We're on the express way a lot and I want the best protection for my 41 inch tall son. He only uses the seat belt booster when my husband picks him up from daycare 2 miles from the house. The Nautilus goes up to 100 lbs and is pretty comfortable. I have bought my son a neck pillow for sleeping in it because his head tends to fall forward more than in our old Marathon seat. That works.
I suggest you keep him on a 5point harness as long as possible. The britax frontier goes to 80lbs in a 5point then 100lbs as a booster. The Britax regent goes to 80lbs on a 5point and is/was on sale at target for I believe $159
I haven't purchased a booster yet, but when I was researching to buy my convertible seat earlier this year, I kept reading how you should buy a booster with a 5-point harness. So I can't recommend a specific seat, but I would definitely put that on my list of requirements.
I just did A LOT of research on boosters because we just bought THREE! We ended up with the Graco Nautilus, which I LOVE LOVE LOVE! It is the last "carseat" you will ever need, because it breaks apart and lasts up to 100 pounds. The main reason we got it is because my 4 year old is exactly the same measurements as yours, and I didn't like the idea of him out of a 5 point harness yet. This one has a 5 point harness until something like 60 or 65 pounds. If you don't want the harness, you can use it as a belt-positioning booster with the regular seatbelt. We travled this weekend with it for the first time, and I was thrilled to see that my kids had no problem falling asleep and staying comfortable in it. You can purchase it at Walmart for around $150. LIke I said, I bought three of them - for a 1 yr old, a 2 year old, and a 4 year old.
We got the Graco TurboBooster for our son who is also 4. We got the one with the back on it. I read where the back makes it easier for them to sleep while in the seat. Go to consumer reports and see if you can find their list. This one was on it, but there were others also. Good luck!
Consumer reports has recommended the Graco Turbobooster for at least the last decade in terms of performance in crash test... it also has two cup holders. We've had one for each of the kids, now ages [almost 9] and [almost 3]. They're also one of the cheapest out there at $45 (walmart).
Hi T.,
I am a certified car seat technician from Ohio. I found a website that I think has some good information for you on High Back Booster seats. I think based on your child's height and weight that this would be safer for him and depending on which seat you get, could last him to 80 or even 100 lbs. I can't recommend an actual seat, but the information I found can help guide you on what to look for in a seat. It's a little lengthy, but I hope this helps you.
A high-back booster seat is a belt-positioning booster car seat that has a tall back portion that gives extra support and protection to your child's upper body. A belt-positioning booster seat does not have an internal harness. The booster seat merely positions the child to better fit the vehicle seat belt by making the child taller. Proper seat belt fit is key for adequate protection in a crash. Children who are too small for the vehicle seat belt can slip out of the seatbelt in a crash, or can sustain serious injuries due to improper seatbelt fit. A booster seat greatly reduces the possibility of injury.
One of the main benefits of a high-back booster seat is that the upper portion features shoulder belt guides that position the vehicle seat belt so that it doesn't creep up onto the child's neck. The shoulder belt guide also makes it difficult for children to slip the shoulder belt behind their torso or under their arm, both dangerous mistakes. Some high-back booster seats have a deep top portion that offers extra side-impact protection, but more commonly the wider side portions merely offer a comfortable place for a sleeping child to lean on.
High-back booster seats are also needed if your vehicle does not have head restraints (commonly called headrests). In this case, the high back of the booster acts as a head restraint, preventing whiplash-type injuries in certain types of crashes.
Your child will have outgrown a high-back booster by height when the tops of the child's ears are above the top of the booster shell. Many booster seats offer an adjustable-height back to accommodate a growing child, and many also can be converted to a low-back booster seat.
Booster seats MUST be used with a lap/shoulder seat belt. Booster seats should NEVER be used with a lap-only seat belt.
When buying a high-back booster seat, look for a height-adjustable back, side-impact protection and wide shoulder belt guides that won't pinch the seat belt or allow slack to remain in the belt.
