Need help choosing the right convertible car seat?
My son is 5 months old and he's already over 22 pounds, we can't use his infant car seat any longer due to his weight. If I knew he was going to be this big I would've buy on of those graco 32 instead of 22 pound limit. I need to buy a convertible car seat ASAP but I am not sure which one should I buy. I'd like something that is confortable and that will last longer but more than anything safe, very safe. I tried a few yesterday at target Graco 65, and Safety One, I like safety one cause is also a booster seat, but I wasn't sure about being confortable. What do you think?....Which car seat did you buy for your infant?...Any help is very appreciated. Thanks a lot 
Karina
Comments
8 Responses to “Need help choosing the right convertible car seat?”-
infant car seat Guides
Right Now On eBay
Baby Car Seat Ratings
Loading ...
Custom Search
I’m looking at new Car Seats as well. We have Graco Comfortsport and love them.
Grandma needs a Carseat for fulltime babysitting.
I’m loving the reviews and write-ups on Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 (at Walmart.com) and seriously thinking it will last a very long time, since it converts to a booster seat as well, but it’s Forward Facing Only so we’ll have to wait a year or so to purchase that. I was hoping to find a Rear Facing Convertible Carseat that would work well for many years, and the Graco 65 maybe the answer. I’m also thinking another Comfortsport should last a long time, and we know that we love it and it fits in the truck’s back seat (center), which isn’t all that easy to find. We also prefer carseats that do not have any black upholstery or parts that come in contact with the baby as it gets very hot during the summers here and don’t want to burn the baby. It’s all so confusing and really hard to decide.
I’ll be researching more, but thought you might want to look at it. I also love the following site to research carseats as well:
http://www.carseatdata.org/
I love to read all the consumer reviews, there are many listed at Walmart.com for the Saftety 1st and the Graco 65:
http://www.walmart.com/Safety-1st-Alpha-Convertible-Car/ip/10710254#ShortReviewTitleBar
http://www.walmart.com/Graco-Convertible-Car-Seat-Edgemont/ip/11016293#ShortReviewTitleBar
Hope this helps!
Best Wishes!
I purchased the Eddie Bauer Convertible (unsure of the style name) but it was the one that was rear and forward facing and good up to 100lbs. I saw no reason to purchase 2 and some don’t meet the weight requirements for when they are older. I am really glad I did too, as NY has since changed the law to any child under 8 years old regardless of weight. Good Luck!!!
We have an infant car seat, but we also have a convertible. I did not want to use the convertible until we have to; because we have the base in the car and we can remove it easily.
We got one from Target, and although we haven’t used it yet, we spent a lot of time thinking about which one to get. I love the idea that this one goes up to 80 pounds!! And as a bonus my husband and I thought it was cool looking. Almost like a race car seat =)
Good luck on your search.
Here is the one we got:
http://www.target.com/Safety-1st-All-Convertible-Seat/dp/B001FOBKYA/ref=br_1_22?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&searchView=grid5&searchNodeID=3579961&node=3579961&searchRank=pmrank&searchPage=1&searchSize=30&id=Safety%201st%20All%20Convertible%20Seat
I hope the link works =)
I always had a Graco rear and forward facing car seat. I never worried about it being a booster as its good to keep them strapped in until somewhere between 4-5. And then thats when we let them go pick out a cool looking booster seat (especially since here in TX they have to use it until they are 8).
The Graco one is most popular because it is so similar to the $320 Britax and you can use it for a long time so you won’t be turning around and buying another carseat until he needs a booster seat with a seatbelt strap around 4 yrs old. You can also keep him rear facing longer which is the safest way to be at least until age 2.
I bought my son a Britax, which they are said to be one of the safest out there. My daughter has a Eddie Bauer and I hate it, the straps always get all tangled and it’s a really hard car seat to clean.
If you have a Babies-R-Us in your area, I’d highly recommend you going and talking to someone there. You don’t necessarily have to buy there — but when we were in your boat the man we talked to there was very insightful. I’d ask about different seats and he’d give his opinion about the amount of padding and durability. They’ll also let you try a seat in your car to make sure it fits. As for safety all car seats on the market are safe they have to meet minimal guidelines. We ended up getting an Evenflo model (I think it’s the Triumph — it’s a convertible with a higher weight limit) for my car which is used the most. It has more padding and is supposed to be more comfortable — grandma’s car and dad’s truck have the Cosco convertible seats from Wal-Mart in them. I think my son (who’s now almost two) sleeps better in the Cosco because it seems he can rest his head to the side better in it. When he falls asleep in the Evenflo his head nearly always hangs forward and it looks so miserable.
This website could help you more — it’s the government’s ease of use ratings on car seats: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/template.MAXIMIZE/menuitem.9f8c7d6359e0e9bbbf30811060008a0c/?javax.portlet.tpst=4427b997caacf504a8bdba101891ef9a_ws_MX&javax.portlet.prp_4427b997caacf504a8bdba101891ef9a_viewID=detail_view&itemID=c57b24b3b0d55110VgnVCM1000002fd17898RCRD&viewType=standard
Since he is already 22 lbs at 5 months old, I would recommend looking at seats with higher weight limits so you can keep him safer, longer. Rear facing is five times safer, so he should remain rear facing to the limits of his new convertible seat. Most go to 35 but there are a few that go to 40 and one (well two models) that go to 45. What is your budget? My recommendations:
Sunshine Kids Radian 80 SL or XT SL. These each go to 45 lbs rear facing and 80 lbs forward facing. The XT has head wings for extra side impact protection. The seats have a tall frame, so they are great for tall kids as well. They have a steel alloy frame and are quite strong. One recently withstood three levels of parking structure collapsing on it! ( http://car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=90385&highlight=radian+parking+garage ) $250-280
Graco MyRide65. 40 lbs rear facing and 65 lbs forward facing. Not as tall of a shell, but it has the 40 lb rf limit which your son will probably need more than the height. $150
Safety 1st complete air 40 lbs rear facing, but only to 50 lbs forward facing. For many kids, this will be enough to get them to booster age, but going off of your son’s current weight, I’m going to guess that it will not make him to booster age, so you would need another harnessing seat after this one. $250
Sunshine Kids Radian 65, 80 or XT (not the SL models). These seats all go to 40 lbs rear facing (seats manufactured after 09/08. before that go to 35). the 65 goes to 65 lbs forward facing and the 80 and XT go to 80. $180-225
The Safety 1st seat you describe is a 3in1 and I would not recommend that for your son because they have a lower weight limit for forward facing harness, 40 lbs. Some children will be ready for a booster at 40 lbs, but if your son continues on his growth curve, he will not be ready yet at this weight. Same problem as the other safety 1st seat I listed above. It seems nice that it goes all the way to booster, but the reality is that these seats expire after six years, so it will need replaced before your child is ready to go in the vehicle belt only anyway. And the seats often don’t fit kids well in booster mode. It is generally better to get a good convertible and then get a dedicated booster when your child is ready. A good convertible will last most kids to at least 5 or 6 years old.
If you can afford it, I recommend getting one of the Radian SL’s. A great seat that will fit your son longer than the others because of the higher weight limits. It also tethers rear facing, which is a great feature not available on many seats. I would not recommend either Safety 1st seat because of the low FF weight limits. The Graco is a good choice also. It doesn’t go quite as high as the Radians, but higher than most other convertibles you will find.
I have a First Years True Fit for my daughter. It is a great seat and it is usually on my list of recommendations. I left it off of the list I gave you above because it only goes to 35 lbs rear facing and I wanted to give you the higher weight limit options for your big boy. But if you are interested in it, I recommend the Premiere version which has an anti-rebound bar. Both RF to 35 lbs and FF to 65 lbs