Advice needed - baby car seat questions (merged)

Violetta_2

Thank's Minerva I'll let you know, btw how tall is your daughter my wee one is 91cm so wonder if the evolva would suit.
So glad you finally got one sorted that your happy with.

natalie1974

OMG , I can't believe that I completely forgot about the Silver Cross Explorer seat , same as the MC Priori XP and such like but this again goes up to 25kgs , roughly aged 6 years . Stupid thing is , having spent £102 on the Britax Junior Traveller , I realised I have one of these seats in my garage that I borrowed of my sister :rotfl: http://www.silvercross.co.uk/silvercross-car-seats.html

ETA: Think this maybe like the Britax Evolva 123 where the harness comes away at 18 KGS but will check with Silver Cross tomorrow .

Minerva69

natalie1974 wrote: »

OMG , I can't believe that I completely forgot about the Silver Cross Explorer seat , same as the MC Priori XP and such like but this again goes up to 25kgs , roughly aged 6 years

The Which report didn't like this one either, it says it has "unacceptably high front crash loads when fixed with a seat belt" (instead of using the Isofix mounts). I've seen a description on the Two Left Feet site (http://www.twoleftfeet.co.uk/acatalog/Silver_Cross_Explorer_Car_Seat.html) which says the harness goes up to 18kg and then it is removed, so yes you're right it is like the Britax Evolva 123. I think you're probably better off sticking with your Junior Traveller

Minerva69

Violetta wrote: »

Thank's Minerva I'll let you know, btw how tall is your daughter my wee one is 91cm so wonder if the evolva would suit.
So glad you finally got one sorted that your happy with.

Hi again, I've just measured my daughter's height today and she is nearly 96cm, so I don't know if the Britax seat will be suitable for you or not. If you can find somewhere locally that sells it then it might be worth trying it out though. My local Mothercare doesn't have it in stock so I went to the large Mothercare World in Leeds and they said they have only just started selling it there. If you have a Mothercare near you it might be worth ringing them.

BernadetteN

Violetta wrote: »

Thank's Minerva I'll let you know, btw how tall is your daughter my wee one is 91cm so wonder if the evolva would suit.
So glad you finally got one sorted that your happy with.

My 5 year old is now 112cm tall and weighs 17kg (measured in the last week) and still she fits into her Britax Evolva 123 under the 5 point harness so a child only 91cm should have ages to go before they non longer fit height wise.

natalie1974

Minerva69 wrote: »

The Which report didn't like this one either, it says it has "unacceptably high front crash loads when fixed with a seat belt" (instead of using the Isofix mounts). I've seen a description on the Two Left Feet site (http://www.twoleftfeet.co.uk/acatalog/Silver_Cross_Explorer_Car_Seat.html) which says the harness goes up to 18kg and then it is removed, so yes you're right it is like the Britax Evolva 123. I think you're probably better off sticking with your Junior Traveller

Yeah , so it is just like the Britax Evolva 123 then with regards to the harness . Why can't car seat manufacturers get it into their heads that kids now days are getting taller and bigger built by the day ! There needs to be more than 1 seat on the market that has a harness that goes over 18kgs . And most people don't know about the Britax Junior Traveller as it is a special needs seat and most people wouldn't even think of looking at those types of seats if their child didn't have special needs .

BernadetteN

natalie1974 wrote: »

Yeah , so it is just like the Britax Evolva 123 then with regards to the harness . Why can't car seat manufacturers get it into their heads that kids now days are getting taller and bigger built by the day ! There needs to be more than 1 seat on the market that has a harness that goes over 18kgs . And most people don't know about the Britax Junior Traveller as it is a special needs seat and most people wouldn't even think of looking at those types of seats if their child didn't have special needs .

Boots and Mothercare both sell the Britax junior Traveller but didn't until recently. The Britax Evolva 123 fits children up to 120cm tall with the 5 point harness in place which is the size of the average 6 year old. There are plently of seats designed for children from approximately 4 years old where the average height is around 105cm (and average weight is just under 17kg). Height is very rarely the problem.

It is weight that is the problem as children are getting fatter. Britax have responded to this need by producing 2 seats for children above 18kg in weight and under 4 years which do not cost the hundreds of pounds they used to cost when originally manufactured and Boots and Mothercare now sell one of these seats. However the market is still quite small as it is still quite rare to find under 4 year olds who weigh over 18kgs so there is going to be a smaller selection of seats. The label "special needs" as regards the Britax seats will probably be dropped because, although these seats were originally designed for older children whose physical needs meant they needed more car seat protection than a seat belt could offer, they now suit those children who do not fit into their regular range of seats.

natalie1974

BernadetteN wrote: »

Boots and Mothercare both sell the Britax junior Traveller but didn't until recently. The Britax Evolva 123 fits children up to 120cm tall with the 5 point harness in place which is the size of the average 6 year old. There are plently of seats designed for children from approximately 4 years old where the average height is around 105cm (and average weight is just under 17kg). Height is very rarely the problem.

It is weight that is the problem as children are getting fatter. Britax have responded to this need by producing 2 seats for children above 18kg in weight and under 4 years which do not cost the hundreds of pounds they used to cost when originally manufactured and Boots and Mothercare now sell one of these seats. However the market is still quite small as it is still quite rare to find under 4 year olds who weigh over 18kgs so there is going to be a smaller selection of seats. The label "special needs" as regards the Britax seats will probably be dropped because, although these seats were originally designed for older children whose physical needs meant they needed more car seat prtection than a seat belt could offer, they now suit those children who do not fit into their regular range of seats.

Yeah but this was both mine and the OP's problem , our LO's are both just 2 and already weigh just under the 18kg mark . So the Britax Evolva 123 would be rendered useless for the both of us within a few months . What 2 seats have Britax made then as the only seats with a harness to take a child that weighs over 18kgs are the Britax Junior Traveller and the Traveller Plus , which at the moment retails in Boots for £335.99 , it has got 20% at the moment but would normally cost £419.99 .

natalie1974

And the harness on the Britax Evolva 123 goes up to 18kgs which is the average weight of a 4 year old .

BernadetteN

natalie1974 wrote: »

And the harness on the Britax Evolva 123 goes up to 18kgs which is the average weight of a 4 year old .

After a bit of search for up to date UK stats, the average 4 year old boy weighs 16.7kg and the average 4 year old girl weighs 16.0kg. About 25% of 4 year olds are over 18kg though.

Even the vast majority of under 4s over 18kg would not weigh over 25kg and the Britax Junior Traveller SI costs £120 which is a reasonable price. I am guessing that the other Britax Junior Traveller which goes to 36kg with a harness is so expensive because it is such a tiny market - I am guessing that less than 1% of children aged 2-4 would be over 25kg so around 25000 children in the UK out of around 8 million children up to 150cm in height (recommended to sit in a car seat) - and therefore less are made so manufacturing costs are going to be higher. I do sympathise but also you have to look at it from a manufacturer's point of view. Even an expensive car seat costing £350ish is less than the cost of buying and running a car. I think the greatest barrier to finding a car seat for children under 4 years and over 18kg is that there is not so much choice and it's more a case of buying a car to fit the car seat rather than the other way round, but with the market being a small one, the choice diminishes. Thank goodness Britax exists though.

Perhaps the 18kg limit is based on European standards so that is what seats are manufactured to.