Big toddler, what seat to get?

[mandcmom]

My 20 month old ds is about to outgrow his Graco convertible seat height-wise (his shoulders are pretty close to the top slot). At his 18 month check-up, he was 35" and 31lbs 10oz. I don't want to buy a seat that only has a 40lb limit on the 5pt harness, and obviously a booster is not an option.

I know that the Radian and Britax have a couple of options with higher weight limits, but the prices take us back a bit. Yes, you can't put a price on your child's safety, but we aren't on the Rich & Famous list either.

He is our last child, so once he's done with the seat, we're done with it, assuming it hasn't expired before then. He's much bigger than his sister, so we have no idea how long we have before he hits 40lbs. She didn't get there until she was 4.

The seat will be in a 2002 Ford Explorer, which unfortunately does not have LATCH. Tether anchors, but no LATCH. Lap and shoulder belts are the only other means of restraint.

TIA

ETA We do fly once or twice a year, and we will use his seat on the plane.

	Britax - Click for more info Britax International has been producing reliable child safety products for over 30 years. Not only does Britax have decades of experience creating car seats and other children's safety equipment, Britax has a long standing reputation as an industry leader and innovator. Britax International is headquartered in the United Kingdom, but Britax car seats are designed and manufactured at facilities in Germany, Austria, and the United States. In the summer of 2002, Britax strengthened their commitment to creating the safest car seats with the opening of a brand new, state-of-the-art crash testing facility in North Carolina. Britax car seats have a reputation around the world for being some of the safest, most reliable, and best designed child safety seats ever made.

	Convertible Car Seats Convertible seats are for infants and toddlers. The seat can be used as a rear-facing seats for younger children, and switched to a forward-facing seat on the child's first birthday if the child weighs at least 20 pounds. However, experts recommend keeping the child in a rear-facing position until he or she outgrows the weight or height allowed by the safety seat.

	Booster Seat A booster seat raises your child up so that the car's lap and shoulder belts fit correctly. The lap belt should fall across the upper thighs. The shoulder belt should go across the middle of the shoulder and chest. A booster seat is used for older children up to about 80 pounds. Some states have passed laws requiring booster seats for children up to age 8 or 80 pounds. Check your state's law.

	Graco - Click for more info Graco is one of the world's best known and most trusted juvenile products companies. They started the entire juvenile products industry with an invention called the Graco Swyngomatic. Since then they have invented products that have changed the way that parents travel with their children such as the travel system, which has made it so parents can lock an infant car seat into a stroller easily, without waking their sleeping baby. Their Graco SnugRide Infant Car Seat is pretty much synonymous with the term “infant car seat” because of its safety and design features coupled with its affordability. Today Graco continues designing and developing top-quality products that inspire parents and keeps children safe. Check out the new Infant Safe Seat Step 1 and Toddler Safe Seat Step 2 for proof of Graco’s continued commitment to child safety.

	Forum Speak DD: Dear Daughter DS: Dear Son DH: Dear Husband DW: Dear Wife SO: Significant Other BF: Boyfriend GF: Girlfriend

	Sunshine Kids Radian 80 or 65 - Click for more info If "the Sunshine Kid's Radian 80 convertible car seat is (probably) the only car seat you will ever need," the "probably" part of this statement comes into play when you directly compare the Radian 80 with the Britax Regent. While the Radian 80 has a very high weight capacity, the seat width is only 10" vs. the Regent's 14" seat. The Britax Regent may be a bit wider, but it is very bulky, is only forward facing, and does not fold like the Radian 80. Because the Radian 80 is so narrow, you can potentially put three of them side by side in the back seat. Three Regents side by side? Impossible.

	LATCH LATCH stands for Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren. It is a system mandated by the Federal government in an effort to standardize and simplify the installation of child restraints without using the vehicle's seat belt system. New vehicles and child safety seats manufactured on and after September 1, 2002 will be equipped with the LATCH system. Cars, minivans, and light trucks will be required to have anchor points between the vehicle's seat cushion and the seat back in at least two rear seating positions, and a top tether anchor (with the exception of convertibles). Child safety seats will have a lower set of attachments that fasten to the vehicle anchors. Most forward-facing child safety seats will also have a top strap (tether) that attaches to the top anchor in the vehicle.

[Papooses]

I can relate! My daughter outgrew all the harness seats available to me in my local area at about the same age -- after finding a forum like this & discussing the issue with various technicians, I decided to drive an hour to buy the $35-50 Cosco Scenera which allowed me to turn kiddo RF + I saved toward the only high weight harness seats available at the time: Britax....

I urge you to do the same. Kids under 24 months old are at 4 times the risk of internal decapitation FF compared to those who are still RF. Since the spine does not begin to show the necessary strength to withstand the larger head size (in comparison to body) until 3-6 years old, Scandinavian kids stay RF until 50# in appropriately designed seats & have a shockingly, drastically lower rate of injury/death to this age group. The American Academy of Pediatrics urges parents to keep all kids RF until the limits of the convertible seat: the Scenera has a nice tall shell with 35# RF limit & is quite reasonably priced as well.

Yes, it only has a 40# harness limit & does not become a booster afterward, but the price is within budget & would allow you to save toward a longer lasting higher harness limit seat

	Forward Facing Car Seats A forward-facing car seat is one in which the child sits facing the front of the car. The seat should be installed in the back seat of your vehicle. Most forward-facing only seats are for children above 20 pounds.

	Britax - Click for more info Britax International has been producing reliable child safety products for over 30 years. Not only does Britax have decades of experience creating car seats and other children's safety equipment, Britax has a long standing reputation as an industry leader and innovator. Britax International is headquartered in the United Kingdom, but Britax car seats are designed and manufactured at facilities in Germany, Austria, and the United States. In the summer of 2002, Britax strengthened their commitment to creating the safest car seats with the opening of a brand new, state-of-the-art crash testing facility in North Carolina. Britax car seats have a reputation around the world for being some of the safest, most reliable, and best designed child safety seats ever made.

	Rear Facing Car Seats A rear-facing seat is one in which the infant faces the back of the car. Always install a rear-facing seat in the back seat of your car. This is the safest position for an infant. NEVER place a rear-facing seat in the front seat of a vehicle with passenger airbags.

	Convertible Car Seats Convertible seats are for infants and toddlers. The seat can be used as a rear-facing seats for younger children, and switched to a forward-facing seat on the child's first birthday if the child weighs at least 20 pounds. However, experts recommend keeping the child in a rear-facing position until he or she outgrows the weight or height allowed by the safety seat.

	Booster Seat A booster seat raises your child up so that the car's lap and shoulder belts fit correctly. The lap belt should fall across the upper thighs. The shoulder belt should go across the middle of the shoulder and chest. A booster seat is used for older children up to about 80 pounds. Some states have passed laws requiring booster seats for children up to age 8 or 80 pounds. Check your state's law.

[mandcmom]

While I can appreciate what you're saying, if he's not 35lbs by now, he probably will be within the month. The last accurate weight we got was 2 1/2 months ago, and he tends to average about 1lbs/month. Based on the measurements I found on this site, the Cosco you recommend has the same height for the top harness, so we'd be in the same boat we are now.

I guess a better question is what high-weight harness do you all prefer? The research I did had me really liking the Radian seats (yeah, I know, the more expensive seats, I have expensive tastes). I like the smaller footprint, the folding ability, the longer lifespan. If the roominess is true, that is a big plus as well. However, just because it's more expensive doesn't mean it's better.

I know there are lots of Britax owners out there, but I had never even heard of Sunshine Kids and Radian seats until I started this research. I know of one owner who has been very happy with hers, but only one owner. I was hoping to get a bigger sampling of opinions on various seats here.

Thanks again for your input so far.

	Britax - Click for more info Britax International has been producing reliable child safety products for over 30 years. Not only does Britax have decades of experience creating car seats and other children's safety equipment, Britax has a long standing reputation as an industry leader and innovator. Britax International is headquartered in the United Kingdom, but Britax car seats are designed and manufactured at facilities in Germany, Austria, and the United States. In the summer of 2002, Britax strengthened their commitment to creating the safest car seats with the opening of a brand new, state-of-the-art crash testing facility in North Carolina. Britax car seats have a reputation around the world for being some of the safest, most reliable, and best designed child safety seats ever made.

	Sunshine Kids - Click for more info Makers of a number of accessories geared towards making parents lives easier, Sunshine Kids has recently embarked in a new direction. In 2005 they unveiled their first car seat, the Radian. Their years of experience working in children's products focusued on child comfort and parent convenience shine through in this unique convertible car seat. The Radian is packed with safety features and is the first ever folding convertible car seat appealing to parents who car pool or travel often.

	Sunshine Kids Radian 80 or 65 - Click for more info If "the Sunshine Kid's Radian 80 convertible car seat is (probably) the only car seat you will ever need," the "probably" part of this statement comes into play when you directly compare the Radian 80 with the Britax Regent. While the Radian 80 has a very high weight capacity, the seat width is only 10" vs. the Regent's 14" seat. The Britax Regent may be a bit wider, but it is very bulky, is only forward facing, and does not fold like the Radian 80. Because the Radian 80 is so narrow, you can potentially put three of them side by side in the back seat. Three Regents side by side? Impossible.

[Papooses]

Aha....

The Radian65 is actually one of the least expensive high weight harness seats -- Radian80 is designed for obese kids: the average child will outgrow either at the same time by height (so unless a child is obese, it doesn't seem worth the extra expense & it rather annoys me that just because a child is obese they'd have to pay more) I do really like the Radian, but it is much more difficult to install properly in more vehicle types than is Britax.

Britax convertibles have lower top harness slot height than Radian, though. The FF only Regent keeps kids harnessed the longest, but is not FAA approved for travel (it's just too darn big + heavy to want to use for travel anyway) & they've recently changed the installation recommendation so I can't suggest it just yet unless the vehicle has easy to use reclinable seatbacks (recline the vehicle seatback, install the seat as per instructions, then bring seatback upright again for a nice easy secure fit).

The Safeguard Go is another option, but it's top harness measurement is more similar to the Britax convertibles & then only becomes a backless booster: fine for travel, but dedicated highback boosters that have deep head wings filled with EPS/EPP foam like in bike helmets are safer in side impact crashes (less common than frontals, but far more dangerous).

The Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe is based on the Britax Marathon without as many frills for slightly less cost & there's also the new Evenflo Triumph Advance with similar limits but super easy to use features

The best advice I can give you is to just see if a Babies-R-Us or BuyBuyBaby nearby has most of these options in stock to test out. The most important thing is simply that you can use the seat correctly 100% of the time. Whichever seat you choose based on ease of use for you + kiddo's comfort (for added cooperation) as well as your budget, just make sure a local technician helps make sure it is installed & used correctly.

	Forward Facing Car Seats A forward-facing car seat is one in which the child sits facing the front of the car. The seat should be installed in the back seat of your vehicle. Most forward-facing only seats are for children above 20 pounds.

	Britax - Click for more info Britax International has been producing reliable child safety products for over 30 years. Not only does Britax have decades of experience creating car seats and other children's safety equipment, Britax has a long standing reputation as an industry leader and innovator. Britax International is headquartered in the United Kingdom, but Britax car seats are designed and manufactured at facilities in Germany, Austria, and the United States. In the summer of 2002, Britax strengthened their commitment to creating the safest car seats with the opening of a brand new, state-of-the-art crash testing facility in North Carolina. Britax car seats have a reputation around the world for being some of the safest, most reliable, and best designed child safety seats ever made.

	Convertible Car Seats Convertible seats are for infants and toddlers. The seat can be used as a rear-facing seats for younger children, and switched to a forward-facing seat on the child's first birthday if the child weighs at least 20 pounds. However, experts recommend keeping the child in a rear-facing position until he or she outgrows the weight or height allowed by the safety seat.

	Booster Seat A booster seat raises your child up so that the car's lap and shoulder belts fit correctly. The lap belt should fall across the upper thighs. The shoulder belt should go across the middle of the shoulder and chest. A booster seat is used for older children up to about 80 pounds. Some states have passed laws requiring booster seats for children up to age 8 or 80 pounds. Check your state's law.

	Britax Marathon - Click for more info Increasing the time a child can safely stay in their convertible car seat is a big issue and Britax engineers have come through in a big way with the introduction of the Britax Marathon with LATCH. A LATCH Compatible Convertible Child Seat, the Britax Marathon can be used rear facing 5 to 33 pounds and forward facing from 20 to 65 pounds. Compare the numbers and you will see it is hard to find a seat with these weight limits that is safe and functional.

	Britax Regent - Click for more info The Britax Regent is the safe way to carry your older and larger passengers, all the way up to 80 lbs. Known as the "king of all car seats," the Britax Regent will accomodate your little king or queen for far longer than traditional car seats or booster seats. The Regent features a large roto-molded shell, comfy extra-thick comfort foam, washable covers, Patented Versa-Tether™, flexible buckle LATCH system, patented HUGS™ system, and tangle-free polyester 5-point harness.

	Sunshine Kids Radian 80 or 65 - Click for more info If "the Sunshine Kid's Radian 80 convertible car seat is (probably) the only car seat you will ever need," the "probably" part of this statement comes into play when you directly compare the Radian 80 with the Britax Regent. While the Radian 80 has a very high weight capacity, the seat width is only 10" vs. the Regent's 14" seat. The Britax Regent may be a bit wider, but it is very bulky, is only forward facing, and does not fold like the Radian 80. Because the Radian 80 is so narrow, you can potentially put three of them side by side in the back seat. Three Regents side by side? Impossible.

	SafeGuard - Click for more info Indiana Mills and Manufacturing (IMMI) is SafeGuard’s parent company, and has been in the business of developing and manufacturing quality safety systems for every facet of the transportation industry for over 40 years, covering everything from the heavy truck and agricultural industries to child seating. IMMI has a world-renowned reputation for creating and promoting the highest rated safety harnesses and restraint systems available today, from integrated child seats in production vehicles to campaigning for increased use of safety harnesses on public transportation systems. Based in Westfield, Indiana, SafeGuard has been creating and testing essential components used across the child safety seat industry through their state of the art crash testing facilities since 1961. The SafeGuard and SafeGuard Go are IMMI’s first direct foray into the child safety seat market, and the results are simply outstanding. No other car seats or boosters are designed with as much attention to structural integrity, ease of installation, and total child safety. This seat has been subjected to the most thorough and extensive testing “ever conducted in the industry”: virtual prototyping with computer models; rigorous front, side, and rear impact crash testing; and environmental testing in a range of climates and road types.

[mandcmom]

Thank you so much for your suggestions. I've never heard of BuyBuyBaby, may have to look it up, but we do have a Babies R Us. I really appreciate all your advice.