Looking for an Infant Convertible Seat

Hi! I have a Britax Marathon and I love it! We were using only one car for a long time and now we finally broke down and bought a second car seat for my husband's car. After going back and forth we decided to go with a second Marathon! My 18 month old loves it!

Hi P.,

I like the Britax models. They are a little more expensive but you can use them longer because they hold weights up to 65lbs. Good luck

You should go to Babies R Us. Even if you don't buy -- they are so helpful and can show you and tell you about each one, then you can search around and see if someone has a better deal. I personally love Graco -- we have one for each child of the one that goes to a booster -- to up to like 80lbs. They are great, safe, look nice, and my boys love them. I ended up getting them from target.com

I actually just switched to a convertable car seat about 1 month ago. I too tried to do some research on them and going to the store it is overwhelming. I ended up getting the Britax Roundabout. My daughter really seems to like it. It got great reviews and I wanted to go with a car seat in the middle price range. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive. The safety straps adjust to 3 different shoulder heights and loosen easily. There is also velcro squares on the sides of the carseat which are great because they stay out of the way as you are putting your baby in. My daughter got the throw up virus 2 weeks ago, and got sick in her car seat. I was able to take the whole cover off and wash it, very helpful. Good luck.

I like the Graco brand seats personally, though everyone has their own choices...
My thoughts on choosing one for your son:

*Get one with a washable and easily removed cover. Kids get everything dirty, even if you don't give them food they somehow find a way to get things filthy and you want to be able to wash the cover!
*If you make alot of long-distance (more then 2 hours) trips, get a seat with more padding, less if you never travel far.
*5 Point harness!
*Aim for one that has the latch system, 99% do these days and if your car was made since 2001ish it will save you a ton if time and wrist pain.

All in all, look for highly rated ones on a website like Target.com or babiesrus. You can spend 300$ on a carseat or 70$ and get virtually the same thing these days.

GL!

I have 4 children so I have been through MANY car seats of all shapes and sizes... for my last son (now 11 months) my friend told me that I had to get a Britax which I never had with any of my others. I think we have either a Marathon or Roundabout - but my point is that they are really EXCELLENT car seats. They are so well made and the way they lock onto the seat (totally fitted properly, proper angle, etc.) seems so superior to all the other brands we have had in the past. I am not sure which model would be what you are looking for but I will say that you should check them out - they are totally worth the price which I think is a little more than the others... Good Luck!

I know a lot of people think the Britax Roundabout is great but it's really expensive. Two friends recommended the Evenflo Triumph Advance. They said it's really easy to use and it's much more reasonable priced (I got it on Amazon.com for $112 with free shipping).

I have Britax Boulevards in my car and my husband's car for both of our children - 11 months and 2 years (and they are very close in weight but not at all in height, and it works for both of them). It's a great seat, with an adjustable head side-crash protector. I think it's up to 65 lbs. I bought them online and saved money by purchasing last year's (at the time) discontinued pattern. They are more expensive than other seats, but I was sold on them when I read information from a law enforcement official who had seen a child in one at the scene of an accident...he didn't think anyone would survive it and the child suffered only minor injuries, which he attributed to the car seat. I think that this is a purchase that warrants the investment, given the time most of us spend in the car. They are also easy to clean.

HI P.,

I just joined mamasource today and see that you are in the market for a convertible car seat. I carry Recaro car seats in my online store, www.welltodobaby.com. Recaro offers two types of convertibles, the Como and the Signo.

Recaro has been around for 100 years, they originally started with racing car seats. Now they carry a full line of infant car seats including the convertible type. All come with Side Impact Protection and a host of other safety and comfort features.

Please feel free to check them out by copying and pasting this link to our Recaro page into your internet browser:
http://www.welltodobaby.com/Store/Search.aspx?key=%20Bran...

If this link does not work for you, simply go to www.welltodobaby.com and click on the car seat category on the left. You can also find in-depth information on their website, recaro.com, in the child safety section under the USA tab.

We offer free shipping on all purchases over $99, and you can also save 10% at checkout by entering this code: TENOFF.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, either through here, or by sending me a message on my website, www.WelltodoBaby.com.

Wishing you all the best with your new baby!

D.

Hi P..

I got the Britax Marathon seat on my son's 1st birthday. I chose it because it goes up to 60 lbs, so I know we'll have it for a while. I got it on sale for $250, plus free shipping on the babycenter website. Expensive, but I hope it will even out since we will be using it longer than other seats that only go up to 40 lbs.

Good luck,
R.

I have the Evenflo Triumph Advance Premier and love it. My daughter is 19 months and has been in in since she was about 7 months. It is also big enough that she will fit in it until she is ready for a booster. I picked think the best thing for you to do is go to Babies R Us and see what you are comfortable with your son in. Safety wise I think most of the seats are all the same. It is pretty much down to what "bells & whistles" you want. Britax seats are great, but very expensive. A few of my friends have Britax seats and hey say the straps are not comfortable on their kids thighs and shoulders. Also you have to watch Britax because the different models are different sizes. their cheaper models will allow less room for your child to grow and you will need another seat. I actually pucked mine out becausemy 6 month old was comfortable in it and so was my 5 year old. One thing you should also check is that it fits in your car. If you go to Babies R Us they will let you try them in your car. Most seats will fin in most cars forward facing, but it rear facing that can be the problem. Make sure it fits. Sometime it is better to use the infant seat for a little longer if the "big" seat you want does not fit well in your car rear facing. It is really not an easy thing to shop for and it can be very frustrating. We shopped around less when we bought our car than we did for the car seat!!!!

britax my pediatrician recommended.. it is expensive
or go to onestepahead.com

We have a Recaro Como. Recaro makes racing seats for race cars....and you know in a race car the seats need to be good for crashes, so it is one reason we chose this brand.

It is a beautiful car seat and it goes up from 5 - 70 lbs. The side supports are like none other that I've seen. It has a washable velvet cover, and has the latch system. I love it. My MIL bought it for $250, but this website has it for $150 -- a great bargain!

http://www.albeebaby.com/recaro-como-convertible-car-seat...
(Regarding the comment on the seat, we have a highlander and had no issues like the person said).

We're expecting our second child and we'll be buying the same carseat for him/her.

I like the Britax Roundabout. It is a toddler/converible seat, so it can be used for infants facing backwards, and then turned around for your toddler. I also suggest the nomie baby car seat cover. It solves problems for parents, easy clean ups, and makes life much easier. www.nomiebaby.com.

My husband and I each have a Britax Marathon in our cars. We wanted to save money on our second car seat for the car we use less frequently. We bought one at BabiesRUs, a convert. w/highest weight limit. It was horrible, we coulsn't even get it in the car! We returned it right away for the Britax. I think the Roundabout is a little more expensive, but both are highly rated for safety.

Consumer Reports and Shop Smart magazines are about to publish another story on convertible chairs. You should check them out. But after you choose the one from the ratings you should go to the store and check out the belt and straps. You want one that is easy to use. Believe me it's important since you have to strap them in and out all the time.

I have an Evenflo Triumph carseat in beige. It is awesome, because you don't have to pull out the srtaps to adjust them and to tighten them you tur the knob on the side - no more digging for the strap between the carseat and the back of the seat. It's bucket shaped, very comfortable, you can tilt it backwards if your child falls asleep, very easy to install! It is quite large and expensive (nowhere near Britax - about 170 dollars) but the weight limit is huge - your child may fit in there until he is four or more! Hope this helps.

Hi P.,
I actually purchased a Cosco brand that is sold at Walmart...being that we needed two, one for my car and one for my husbands, buying an expensive one wasnt in our budget...the one from Walmart was around $40 and I have to say that I love it....they have a tan and blue plaid pattern for boys, and a floral pattern for girls...I really feel the quality is just as good as those expensive ones!!
Meg