baby car seat search

scanner_2 · 22 May 2005 at 8:11PM

I am looking toi buy a car seat for my toddler who is 2 years old.

I will appreciate your help in finding one of good value.

many thanks

Sarahsaver · 22 May 2005 at 10:15PM

moved this over here as there are more baby related posts here and you are more likely to get a good response here.

Ticklemouse · 24 May 2005 at 2:07PM

How big is your little un? It will still depend on the size of the child as to the type of seat you may want.

My DS2, who was 3 last week is very big for his age and although he was still in his Britax Renaissance, it was getting tight. I did a lot of research as to the seat I wanted and plumped for the Britax Kid. Mothercare don't sell this model now and Britax have a cheaper model called the Hi-Liner, but TBH, I didn't like that one at all. I bought my Kid from Boots.com so with points and cashback etc, it cost me a little over £50.

However, if your child is very small, you might want to consider still using a seat with a 5 point belt as they are safer. My friend's eldest is 6, not much taller than my 3 yo and about half the weight, so he still sits in what looks more like a baby seat. Also, if you can afford it, make sure you go for one with side impact protection (like the kid). You can pick up seats for £20 or so and whilst they do conform to BS standards, they won't give as much protection in the event of an accident.

A tip that might be of use to some of you. If your children don't want to sit in child seats, "big" them up:D Both my two have seats with side impact protection and I remember telling DS1 when he got his,that it was "the King seat" so he wanted to go in it. He's never got the option of not going in it and he never bothers about it either, but another friend's kids have little or no protection in the car, because they won't sit in seats specific to their age and size. I dread to think of what would happen to them in an accident and I have tried to help her 'encourage' them.

HappySad · 7 June 2005 at 6:49PM

I would suggest that you go down to your local library and look at the "Which?" magazine and find the monthly edition that has an article on child car seats. It will give you all the information you want to know to choose one and it will have a section that shows you which are the safest and which are not.

super41 · 7 June 2005 at 6:58PM

There was a report about car seats in this month's edition of Which.

We have a Britax Renaissance for our 3 year old and have been very pleased with it. Disappointed that it wasn't mentioned in the report but I guess things have moved on in the 2 years since we bought it.

We found Halford's very good at demonstrating and fitting car seats.

rach1973 · 7 June 2005 at 7:21PM

We have a Maxi Cosi XP for our 10 mth old and did have a Britax Trio for our 2 yr old.
The Which report brought up the fact that the Britax Trio wasn't as good as it could be......so we went and got a Mamas & Papas Protec, Which said that came out on top of the seats without the new Isofix system. Cost us another £99 (we got the cheapest style) but I'd much rather pay that than have something happen to my son that I could of avoided.
I would recommend a 5 point harness for as long as possible.

click here for a basic Which report on the car seats.

click here for a round up on Yahoo news.

HTH - I hope the links work.
Rachel

rach1973 · 7 June 2005 at 7:22PM

They don't work :mad:

Try again

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050602/325/fk9so.html

http://trial.which.co.uk/motoring.php?m_id=67&source_code=j8uw04

bylromarha · 8 June 2005 at 6:44PM

Have just had a Kiddy Life Plus shipped in from Germany. Was the only one rated "good" for 9m+ by AA, along with Britax Isofix. I notice it isn't mentioned in the latest Which report, though i guess they can't test every product in the world.

Britax ISOFIX hasn't been tested in my car, so Britax recommended I shouldn't buy it, even though I have ISOFIX mountings. SO make sure you double check with Britax's fit finder if you're going for the ISOFIX seats.

The Citroen ISOFIX seat cost £200...stupidly expensive.

SO I went to the trouble of getting a Kiddy Life Plus shipped in for £100. Looks very safe as no 5 point harness, but an "impact shield" which is a big padded cushion that slots in across baby's lap, and is secured using the seatbelt.

Lasts until baby is 12yrs old, so a huge bargain.

Apparently, Mothercare are going to start selling these seats in September...wonder if it'll be for more than I've paid?

JAMIEDODGER · 8 June 2005 at 7:25PM

hi there, i dont know if this is any help but...i have a four year old son and he is special needs therefore still needs to be restrained in a 5 point carseat but..i couldnt find one big enough to hold him and prevent him doing a "houdini" and getting his arms out. i did a bit of research and found that halfords could order me in a carseat with a 7 point harness thus preventing any escape attempts this was a britax under theie special needs range and cost me £150...but i will say this if i had known about these when my older two boys were younger i would have got them one even they are not "special needs" they are so safe and secure and no worries about them trying to get out while you are driving!! my little girl is 15 months and she will be going in it when she gets older! halfords fitted the complete thing and demonstrated it all too!

IM · 13 June 2005 at 1:13PM

bylromarha wrote:

Have just had a Kiddy Life Plus shipped in from Germany.

Just found some pictures on a (German) eBay auction. Looks very good. Where did you get yours from?

On a separate issue....

We'll be driving up to the Outer Hebrides in a few weeks with a 12 year old, a 15 year old, and a 4 month old.

Normally, the baby's seat is mounted in one of behind the passenger seat, and if the other two are with us, they need to scrap to see who ends up with the middle seat.

On this long trip, it would seem fair to try and fit the baby seat in the middle, and allow them the two window seats.

The car (a Honda Accord estate) has a proper 3 point seat belt in the middle, so I'm assuming it should be OK. It's one of those fellas with a base which stays in the car, and into which we clunk the seat each time. I don't think we'll be able to use the base, because it won't sit properly on the transmission tunnel, but is there any other reason why the middle seat would not be safe for the baby seat ?

bylromarha · 13 June 2005 at 5:19PM

IM- Got it from ebay germany from a Kiddy recommended retailer www.laluz-menden.de

Cheaper from ebay than their direct site. landed on my doorstep at 7am 3 days after I bought it. Great piece of kit and my boy seems to love it as he can bang on the impact shield. Very happy with the purchase, so easy to fit and swap between cars and immovable when my boy is sitting in it. As your baby is 4 months old, if you're interested in a Kiddy, then it may be worth waiting until Mothercare stock it in September to see if it's what you want?

As for the query about strapping the baby into the middle seat, I advise you to go back to the seat manufacturer and see what they think. As it's a 3 point belt, there shouldn't be a problem, but no harm in checking.

baby car seat search

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