Child's Car seat Advice Needed!

RedfordML

Hi.

Not sure if this would come under 'Motoring', but is car related!!
Just after some advice re car seats;

We have a 2yr 7month old, weighs 14.5kg & is currently in the Maxi Cosi Priorifix (isofix group 1) car seat suitable for 9kg - 18kg in weight (9mnths - 4yrs approx).

Our nearly 16month old is now coming up to the 9kg weight & so we had planned to buy her the exact same car seat her brother has - had no complaints about it & has been ideal.

However...fact her brother is only 8lbs off the max weight for his seat, we are now in a dilemma over what seat to buy - do we put our Daughter into our Son's current seat & then buy him the high back booster seat, that covers groups 1-3 age 9months to 11yrs!! This is the cheapest option, but we are not sure how good these multi-group seats really are?!!! Do they really span such a length of time?!!
Please anyone who has been in this situation what would your advice be?

Many thanks.

shortdog

I've just replied on your other post.

lil.smartie

The Britax 123 (explorer?) is a good seat, keep the straps in until he's big enough to fasten & un-do his own belt & understand when he can & can't un-do it! We have the std 2/3 version without the straps for my 4yr old who is pretty savvy and sussed the seatbelt thing fairly quickly. Obviously get what fits your car best but the 123's are fine as they are designed to adapt.


Kate

steve-L

We got our 1st seat capable of backwards facing (Britax Prince)
I then got another (cheap from Halfords for 2nd car) for about £30 .. this is a convertible one.
We recently got one from somewhere online for about 30... that is 18kg up (group 3 - uses normal seatbelt).

The convertible one is just as good, we took off straps now so its seatbelt only.

Quite honestly, have no idea looking back why we paid £80 or something for the 1st one! The 30 quid ones are just as good.

If doing it again, I'd just go for the cheaper options and be guided by what's on sale.

londonTiger

the best precatuions is to make sure your tyres, brakes and other parts of the car are taken care off. There is probably some margin of error which the age ranges of children. I would buy the 2yr 7month old the next size up and give his current one to the 16month old.

The older kid is going to outgrow the seat in next to no time and then you'll be left with a spare child seat.

You could ask around I suppose and see if another parent has a spare child seat lying around. These kids apparatus' are in garden sheds all over the country. Parents always want the brand new stuff because it's "clean" but actually the used ones are better. They have human bacteria which is good for the childs immune system and free of parabens and other chemicals that the brand new stuff have.

red_eye

RedfordML wrote: »

Hi.

Not sure if this would come under 'Motoring', but is car related!!
Just after some advice re car seats;

We have a 2yr 7month old, weighs 14.5kg & is currently in the Maxi Cosi Priorifix (isofix group 1) car seat suitable for 9kg - 18kg in weight (9mnths - 4yrs approx).

Our nearly 16month old is now coming up to the 9kg weight & so we had planned to buy her the exact same car seat her brother has - had no complaints about it & has been ideal.

However...fact her brother is only 8lbs off the max weight for his seat, we are now in a dilemma over what seat to buy - do we put our Daughter into our Son's current seat & then buy him the high back booster seat, that covers groups 1-3 age 9months to 11yrs!! This is the cheapest option, but we are not sure how good these multi-group seats really are?!!! Do they really span such a length of time?!!
Please anyone who has been in this situation what would your advice be?

Many thanks.

I have the mammas and pappas cybex pallas http://cybex-online.com/uk/carseats/pallas-fix.html my boy loves getting in helps me put the bolster on too. the covers come off and are washable. but at around I can not tell you how it will look in 10 years time.

notanewuser

I've just ordered a Kiddy Guardian Pro for my DD (27 months). Her current seat should last her till she's 4, but we needed a spare and this one can just be her main seat once she's 4. It goes from 9 months to 12 years and is a fabulous seat. Safer than a seat with straps. About £200.

sarahg1969

I'd buy one that allows the child to stay rear facing for as long as possible as that's the safest way for them to be. There aren't many of them around, but I think BeSafe is the best known, and is suitable up to the age of 4. And I'd keep the older child in the other seat for now, as they offer more protection that a high-backed booster.

The thing with these seats from 1-11 is that the experts say a car seat should only be used for around 4 years because of wear and tear and deterioration in the materials, so I don't see how, if used regularly, they would last for 10 years. And surely they'd be pretty grotty after 10 years' use?

The Kiddicare one does look very sturdy, and probably good for over 2 years, but I personally wouldn't put a 9 month-old facing forwards.

FIL!!*_2

notanewuser wrote: »

I don't like the look of that at all. In the event of a crash the head will fly forward leaving the shoulders pinned back and could cause serious damage.

I had my concerns too, but it's been tested to all the correct standards and made a car seat safer and endorsed by the Fire Service. I didn't think companies like John Lewis and Halfords who'll be selling it would do so unless they were happy with it. I've used it and it really does help, it attaches to the existing seat belt so it can't make it any less safe than the original system?

FIL!!*_2

notanewuser wrote: »

I don't like the look of that at all. In the event of a crash the head will fly forward leaving the shoulders pinned back and could cause serious damage.

I had a good look at the crash test videos that look harrowing but definately better with than without the BeltUpp device.

notanewuser

FIL!!* wrote: »

I had my concerns too, but it's been tested to all the correct standards and made a car seat safer and endorsed by the Fire Service. I didn't think companies like John Lewis and Halfords who'll be selling it would do so unless they were happy with it. I've used it and it really does help, it attaches to the existing seat belt so it can't make it any less safe than the original system?

They sell hundreds of forward facing group 1 seats which aren't the safest possible option. Not sure they mind what they make money on!!