My son has outgrown his car seat, but we don't want to put him in a belt-positioning booster, so I've been reading up on the few 5-pt harness seats available. I've narrowed it down to 3, I think, all within $50 of each other, but I'm wondering if any of you have experience with any of these--the seats & their specs are below. We do occasionally fly, so FAA approval is nice, and our son is tall and thin for his age (40", 37 lbs). What do you know? What do you think?
Recaro Como: up to 70 lbs, up to 50", FAA approved, seat = 21 lbs, is 28" tall, has interior seat width of 15" and interior height of 25.5" (doesn't give seat base size)
Britax Regent: up to 80 lbs, up to 53", NOT FAA approved, seat= 26 lbs, seat base/foot width 21.5", interior seat width 14", seat height 30", interior seat height 28"
Sunshine Kids Radian 65: up to 65 lbs, up to 53", FAA approved, folds in half for easy transport, seat = 20 lbs, 17" base, height 28", interior seat width 11.5"
The Radian is the cheapest, and it still has metal frame construction, but it's only available online, so I can't take Stuart to the store to check is fit! I know he's tall and thin, so I don't think it will be a problem. All the seats have some mixed reviews, but all are rated very well, and have mostly high stars with parent reviews. All recline for napping, too!
Any help you may have is GREATLY appreciated!
Thanks, everyone. I went with the Graco Nautilus, and so far, we love it! It installed easily and is SOLID! I've never seen a car seat sit quite so solidly as this one--there's no wiggle at all! The straps are easy to use, and my son seems very comfortable in it. It wasn't easy to find, but one of our semi-local Wal-Marts finally got one in stock and I raced for it. It does have some minor assembly required before installation, but it was easy to follow the instructions, and my DH had no problem installing it in our Town & Country. Plus, at $150, it's $50 cheaper than the next cheapest seat, but is FAA-approved (in the harness), harnesses to 65 lbs, and seems to have great SIP in the head area. What a find!
My son is in the Britax Regent. We are a Britax family and have had the Marathons and Roundabouts. The Regent doesn't come close to comparing with them. The seat is huge, but comfortable. I have had the hardest time installing it. It is a bear to get in tight with no wiggle room. The straps also tangle on a regular basis. I don't think I would by this seat again. Hope this helps.
I have the Sunshine Kids Radian 80 and I absolutely love it! Granted, my son is only one so we don't have to worry about the height, but we bought it knowing it should be the last one he will need. I think the 80 has a taller back to allow the older kids more "height". It sounds narrow but once you get it in the car, everything looks the same except for the width by the head and no cup holder... which in other car seats makes things look more comfortable, but I love the security of the Radian.
Also... I ordered mine from babysafetyforless.com and the price was at least $50 below the SK website and most other websites, and also the shipping was free.
We have the Safeguard Go Booster seat and LOVE it. We got my son into it when he was 3 1/2 and needed his Britax Marathon for his little sister. I love it because it is compact, has 5 pt. harness, uses the LATCH system and folds down and comes with it's own travel case that is smaller then a carryon suitcase for traveling. The only thing that makes this not perfect for everyone is that it uses a rear teather strap to function. It is not usable on the airplane or in cars that are older and do not have teather hooks. My son loves the seat and we will probably get one for my daughter when she grows out of the Britax Marathon.
I got mine from Elitecarseats.com and they offer free shipping which was nice. I have had great experience with their website and customer service.
Here is a short description from their site:
"The SafeGuard Go works as either a simple backless booster seat that will accommodate children up to 100lbs. and 43"-57" tall, or a forward facing harness seat with full LATCH attachments and a 5-point harness. When secured with the LATCH system, the GO secures kids from 30-60lbs and up to 52". "
I didn't see the Radian 80 mentioned. We have it; it's great!
I just bought my daughter who is almost 3 the SafeGuard Go Hybrid Booster. It is for children over 1 yo and wieghing over 30lbs. It has a 5 point harness but converts to a belt positioning booster at 60lbs. I have two young children so it was important for me to have something that can transition. My daughter was in the Britax Marathon until recently but I had to move my 1 yo son up to that. I did a lot of research and these one came out on top for us!
How much is the Radian? I was considering one of these as well but, didn't have alot of luck locating one. L. T.
I can't comment on the other seats, but I do have the Britax Regent for our 3 year old and I love it. We switched to the Regent from the Britax Roundabout, which we also really liked, because our son had outgrown it. As to the FAA approval, we always took the Roundabout on the plane and never had any issues. Don't don't if it was approved or not. Britax makes great seats and they exceed all safety standards as far as I know.
I would recommend the Britax carseats all the way. We are a Britax family and I love them. The safety of the seats is superior and comfort is also key. We just love ours. We have two marathons.
I don't have any personal experience to share with you since my son is only 1 but I did hear of some new government ratings of car seats. Check out this website: www.nhtsa.gov
I guess they have only rated about 75-80% so far but they will be getting to the rest of them soon. I hope it helps!
J.
