ThCar Seat Dillema....Need Advice!

Updated on May 24, 2012
C.B. asks from Forest Grove, OR
7 answers

I have 3 children 5, 4, and 2 1/2. We have a Honda Pilot and their forward-facing 5 pt. harness seats fit well. We are will be taking some upcoming trips requiring car rentals. Renting a mini-van is SO expensive to accomodate thier carseats so I was thinking of purchasing new car seats for the older two kids. After reading about options, I am confused. In Oregon, where we live, they need to be in a 5 pt. harness seat until they reach 40 lbs. My kids are petite. The older two both weich 35.5 lbs. The states we are travelling to have the option of carseats (booster, or 5 pt. harness). I was hoping to purchase 2 booster seats to fit in a car rental (along with my 2 1/2 yr. olds seat). After reading about it, I'm not very comfortable with that. Which brings me here.... Should I be getting high back boosters? or should I be getting the 5 pt. harness booster seats? (is their such a thing) hahaha. See? I am confused. Any advice on carseats fitting in a car (3 across) would be so appreciated. I was hoping that these be the last seats we buy, if possible. I plan on keeping them in the seats they are currently in when we are not travelling.

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So What Happened?

Thanks for the helpful advice. Now I have a clear understanding. In response to Busymom saying "You are making decision based on your convenience not the safety of your children." I take offense to that statement! As I said in my post, I am not comfortable with my children in booster seats. They are currently in seats that they will be outgrowing (with a 40lb limit) and since we are travelling and needing to rent a car I was researching the next type of carseat, not knowing what that would be. If I could find a SAFE seat that I could fit 3 across in a vehicle other than a mini-van, then great!! It would be nice to save some money, however, I would NEVER compromise my children's safety for convenience. I have decided, now that I understand what is out there based on the helpful responses, is to purchase high backed boosters with harness. I will try them out in our camry to see how they fit. Either way we'll need new seats for them after, what I am hopinf for, a summer growth spurt! :-)

More Answers

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M.G.

answers from Seattle on

I would be very concerned with how your children literally fit into these seats. There is a reason there are height and weight limits on all seats. I could not imagine why a 4 year old who is admittedly petite needing to be in anything but a 5pt harness. It goes without saying that no the police will not check the weight of your children however if they are not properly restrained that could cause a bigger issue, as in death. Have your children been booster trained and have the ability to sit in a seat belt appropriately 100% of the time? A trip is not a time to test this out if you have not already had this proven. Please do what is safest for your children and look into all of your options before automatically jumping to putting them into a high back booster with a seat belt. There are safer options. Graco Nautilus, many Britax seats, others as well.

3 moms found this helpful
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B.R.

answers from Madison on

You are making decision based on your convenience not the safety of your children.

For you childs safety you keep them in a safe and secure 5pt harness in a rental Minivan!

1 mom found this helpful
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B.G.

answers from Champaign on

I like Rebecca's suggestion, but the one we bought was about 1/4 the price:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Evenflo-Chase-LX-Booster-Car-Se...

We used it for our very petite older son (almost 6 and just now about 40 pounds). Our 3 year old is currently almost 40 pounds and almost too big for his carseat. He will be using the booster seat with the harness until he matures and stops trying to unbuckle himself.

I do agree that many children that are under 40 pounds should be in a harness, but maturity really does play a role. My guess is that my 3 year old will be in a harness well past 40 pounds, as he is so interested in unbuckling himself and exploring the car. I'm afraid I would suddenly see his face next time mine, "Hi, Mommy!" I think I would have a heart attack!

1 mom found this helpful
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T.A.

answers from Seattle on

we have our kids in five point harness boosters called the britax frontier. Booster up to 120 lbs, five point to 85lbs. Not cheap but definitely safest! Not small either, but that's not really what matters, it's safety that does! albeebaby.com has the best deals on car seats always. five point harness is ALWAYS safer than the regular seatbelt, I wish I could have one in my seat! And it is very much a maturity thing, even my huge seven year old still doesn't always sit right in a high back booster with the seatbelt when she does on occasion.

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J.K.

answers from Kalamazoo on

If you get pulled over the police are not going to take your kids out and weigh them. I wouldnt get too worried over 5 lbs. I would get the high.back boosters that use regular seatbelt.

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