UPDATE 8.29.08 (to my "new mom" friends--i am including a mini review below to hopefully make your choice easier for you! i.e., Tori!) I took Jase to BabiesRUs today to get some "hands on" experience with the car seats. Both employees immediately told me to only consider the Britax Marathon (or any of their models, but the marathon is the cheapest since it has less padding), Evenflo Triumph, or if I wanted to wait until he's 1, check out the Graco Nautilus (3 in 1 seat, converts to booster later on). I tried him in all three. Any of the other carseats only carry babies till 40 lbs, and the three they recommended go to 65 lbs (well not true. the evenflo goes to 50 lbs, the nautilus goes to 100). Since Jase is so tall & big we ruled out all the 40 lb limit ones (which are MOST of the cheaper ones anyways).The car seat that was EASIEST to get him in and out was definitely the Marathon. Since my biggest pet peeve is buckling him in and out, I was pretty much sold just on that feature alone :) Plus, it comes in some pretty cool fabrics online. It is also the easiest to install in the car(Britax is the only brand that makes the super easy-to-use latch clasps so you can move the seat from car to car in a cinch). Another "plus" for me were these vertical shaped gummi rubber things that keep the straps from twisting up on you. They also help the straps lay comfortably on the babies' chest. And, it has velcro tabs that allow you to velcro the straps out of the way so you can put your baby in w/o having them sit on the straps while you dig behind their back for them (I always have to do that in the infant carrier and it drives me insane). Another great feature is that the Britax car seats sit higher in the car so your baby can have a better view out the window. Nice. Oh, and the Britax seats have been side impact tested for years (no others have been tested this way until the Evenflo Triumph just this very year).
The Evenflo Triumph looked comfy, but it's a pretty wide, bulky seat. They told me they get lots of complaints about them not fitting in cars very well when rear facing, and also it's impossible to put two of them side by side. But overall, it wasn't so bad. I mentioned earlier that it's side impact tested, so that's good. The other thing I didn't like too much was that instead of having to rethread the straps as they grow, you just turned a knob and they sort of rethreaded themselves. I found the knob to be kind of tricky to use and I had to struggle a bit to tighten and loosen the straps to get him in and out. I guess this is supposed to be "luxury" feature, but it wasn't for me. It did come in some decent looking fabrics, though.
The Graco Nautilus was not my favorite looking one. The buckle was pretty cumbersome. I had to use TWO hands to unbuckle it. Annoying! It also looked like it made Jase sit really upright (which didn't look too comfy), and we all know we want our kids to be comfy in their car seats or we'll all be miserable. Heh heh. The other thing to note is that it is only a front facing seat, so if we bought this one, we'd have to wait 3 more months before we could use it, and I think Jase will definitely grow out of his infant seat before then.
I tried Jase in the Britax Decathlon seat, too, just to see. It comes with more removable padding (I think it's intended for younger babies). It was a bit too much for him now, so it's not something he'd need in a seat. The one benefit it has is that the crotch strap adjusts farther out for bigger babies. The downside is that there is a push button release for the straps (to loosen/tighten them) but it's sticky and hard to use. This seat is about $20 more than the Marathon. But all other dimensions are the same on it.
So, I'm thinking we're getting the Marathon. I should be able to use it for Jase for a few years (yay). Now I'm going to try to decide what fabric I want to get. I think I will buy it online b/c you can get it for a bit cheaper and shipping is even included. Cool. And yes, I know I am a research FREAK. I can't help it. I'm trying to decide if these two "circled" patterns are too girly for Jase (pictured above). I think I like the gray one better. I am just going to freak out if for some weird reason he outgrows this seat before its limits. Yes, I will be fuming mad if that happens. I am SICK of buying car seats and this is only my 2nd one! Too bad you can't buy these used, huh?
Older News 8.28.08 Just when I thought it was safe to think I was done with baby gadget research, we are now at the point where Mr. Jasey could really use the next size up car seat. I'm told this would officially be called the "convertible" car seat. He's still in his infant carrier seat--which I have LOVED, by the way (chicco keyfit for bigger infants up to 30 lbs). I just think he's not so comfy in it anymore. So, I have heard good things about the Britax Marathon seat...but Britax also makes a few more seats and we've seen some Graco and Evenflo ones that look nice and comfy, too, for less than half the price of the Britax ones. Are they really that much more safe?? Who has what kind of carseat, and what do you love or hate about it? Someone told me to look for one that the baby can rest his head to the side--or what about armrests? Size? Width? Easiness to adjust straps? Is there some feature I am not aware of that I should be? I don't want to spend $ and be unhappy with the purchase. So I'll take all the advice I can get! Plus, I will be online in car research hell for the next few days trying to sort it out myself. *sigh* Not looking forward to that! So help me figure this out since most of y'all have already been there done that. Thanks! :)
9 comments:
From what I have heard, with Graco you can't go wrong. We have found that comfort is our biggest concern. I think the biggest safety issue is weather they are installed correctly. I would not use anyones used car seat, if some one volunteers it up. You just don't know what it has been through(wrecks, handled etc...) We have a Graco (not sure of the model) Paid about $90. and we really like it. Good Luck.
We have the Graco comfort sport and HATE IT! The straps always get uneven and it's a pain to even them out. Kate already seems too big for it, and we have a lot of car seat years left to go. Brock is trying to convince me to get rid of it and get another marathon. But we use this as our extra car seat so I can't really justify the expense.
We also have the Britax Marathon and it's been worth every penny spent on it. I don't regret buying it for a minute. It's like a lazy boy for a kid. The straps stay put. It's huge so you have to make sure you have the room in your car for it, especially for rear facing kiddos. We got a deal on ours online for about $200, we got the cow print. Oh and Marathon's are good cause there is a lot of room to grow for kids that are gonna be taller.
All car seats sold in US must meet the US standards for safety, so one isn't safer than the other. Britax do get the best safety ratings. Not sure why, maybe the size?
My neighbor has the evenflo triump also a great car seat. A few times I 've had to use hers when toting around her son. It's also easy to use, seems really comfy. A lot of people are really happy with that one. Good luck. A good car seat is important.
I am going through the same thing! We are looking at the marathon, too. That or the maxi cosi. Most likely we'll go with the marathon, but I am interested to see what your readers say and what you decide to do!
you sure do put a lot of thinking in your car seat. i just look at price. both my seats are graco and they have been fine. yve has never been uncomfortable. i bought a five-one which means that it can change into a booster afterwards which is nice. i don't think it matters too much as long as your kid has growing space. some like the wider seat and others don't. try not to spend too much time on it.
i left my feedback on sparks too, but i did want to say that the evenflo triumph that i have is 4 years old, the straps stay put, i LOVE the straps tightener, but it doesn't fit backwards in most my old dodge dakota unless it's in the middle, and yes, like i said it's super bulky so it won't share the seat with other car seats unless their boosters or something.
just go with your gut-and look at your finances , are you going to use it again? if so then go with the britax, if not, then go cheaper. but i've loved the triumph, you do have to unscrew the back to get out the straps and cloth thing to wash it though-hassle!
Hard decision! I think Caleb's is a Graco, and it works just great--but you have to go with what you really want!
Yes! thank you! This is very helpful. I think we are going to go with the marathon, too. Hopefully they'll be able to use it forever, right?!
P.S. Where did you find free shipping and those cute patterns?
I hope you get the one that haa all those options you love. easy is best!
it was so awesome seeing you and roob and jasey- i miss you all already!!!!
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