Car seat questions - moving from group 0+

[ceeveebee]

I have a couple of questions about moving onto the next stage of car seat.
We have Maxicosi Cabriofix with Easyfix isofix bases for our twins.

1. Am confused about when we need to move out of these. The manual says 12 months/13 kg. If they don't weigh 13kg by 12 months can they stay in it for longer? Currently at 9.5 months they weigh 7kg and 9kg so seems unlikely they'll hit 13kg in another 2.5 months!
   
   
2. When we do move I am keen to get rear facing. Can you get RF seats with Isofix? Am I right in thinking the Easyfix bases are only compatible with the MaxiCosi Cabriofix, in which case will I need to get new bases as well as seats?
   
   Thanks in advance!

[BertieBotts]

They need to move out when their heads reach the tops of the seat edge, or when they hit 13kg. They will almost certainly outgrow in height first. 12 months is a guideline as to when most babies will outgrow the seats, DS was 18 months with his. It doesn't matter if their legs come off the ends though :)

You can get isofix RF group 1 seats but I will let someone else advise...

As an aside, if you're moving up to an RF group 1 seat then you can move them over any time after they reach 9kg, as there is no extra safety gained by using a Group 0+ compared to a RF Group 1. If you were moving to a FF Group 1 seat then I would advise using the Group 0+ for as long as humanly possible! If you're using RF Group 1 then just as long as you prefer the convenience of having the handle and/or pushchair compatibility.

[nomoreminibreaks]

Don't think I can help with Q1 as my DS was quite large so was moved sooner than 12 months I think.

As for Q2, the thing I hadn't considered when I bought the cabriofix and - I think - the familyfix base is that you're much less likely to need to detach the seat with the child in when they're older, you just load the child into the seat, so the separate base isn't really necessary.

I went for the Priorifix as that uses isofix and can also be fitted with a normal seatbelt. You pay more for that feature - and actually we ended up buying a cheaper non-isofix seat for GPs cars anyway, so I probably spent more than I needed to but it is supposed to be one of the safest seats.

[crackcrackcrak]

Google mamachic - it's a friends business specialising in rear facing seats - she will be able to tell you about isofix etc

[RugBugs]

John Lewis sell a rear facing group1 isofix, I think it's a BeSafe Izi?

If DC are over 9kg I would move to the group 1 rear facing just for the extra legroom but I have a long DC

[ceeveebee]

Thanks all
They are both quite short - 2nd/9th centile for height so think they might last past 12 months. Think it will cost £500+ for two group 1 RF seats so want to hold out until I return to work at least if possible (but only if safe of course)

Do group 1 seats have carry handles? I know they'll be heavy to lug around but am worried about getting two toddling twins safely into the car if they are not strapped into the seats (no offroad parking here) but guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I carry them both at once now so should be able to manage one at a time when they're bigger!

Off to google mamachic, john lewis etc

[BertieBotts]

No they don't, and TBH once you get past about 9/10kg the group 0+ seats are a pain in the neck to carry anyway. I still found it useful if DS had fallen asleep in the car - but had to use two hands and couldn't carry far.

There was a thread recently about how to get twins or close in age children into car seats! I think the consensus was to use some form of restraint, either pushchair, reins or playpen and make sure that only one is unrestrained at one time, so you keep twin A in the buggy while strapping twin B in etc.

[ceeveebee]

Thanks - sorry for delay, was our wedding anniversary today!
Will check out in car safety centre. And yes, of course I can just keep them in the buggy