Cybex Sirona vs Maxi Cosi Pebble/Pearl

[MangeTooot]

Looking at car seats for my first baby and I can't work out which of these two options would be best. The Sirona has the really useful 360 degree swivel which I think makes it superior to the Pearl. But, I do think it would be handy to have my winter baby all tucked up in a 'portable' car seat before leaving the house and I like the idea of having the option to leave him sleeping in the car seat at the end of a journey - so I fancy the Pebble for the early stages. So, if I'm buying a Maxi Cosi base then it makes sense to go for the Pearl for the next stage. But the Sirona seems so good...

Also, we have two cars - should we get a car seat (or at least a base) for both?

Hoping for advice from people who have been through this before! Thank you!

[JellyTipisthebest]

if you are planning to have another child during the time when you first will need the base then sticking with one base can be false econemy as you would either then have to use baby seat without the base for your second it makes life so much easier with a base when you have two or you end up getting the oldest a new seat

[Sephipops]

You might want to look at the 2way Pearl. Gives you extended rear facing. That's the seat I'm getting once my little one is out of the infant carrier (I have a cabriofix)

[MangeTooot]

Sorry it was the 2way Pearl I meant. Absolutely intending to rear face for as long as possible. I guess for a second baby I would just buy anothe base and then another 2way Pearl ultimately.

[VeryPunny]

We have the Sirona (two, actually, we have a close age gap) and the swivel is absolutely fabulous. I wish I hadn't bothered with a separate stage zero seat and gone with the Sirona from birth as both woke up as soon as the car stopped, so no transferring sleeping babies to the house. Out and about I shoved them in a sling anyway; by 5-6 months the car seat was too heavy to lift far with them in it.

Very pleased with the Sirona, the swivel makes getting them in and out so much easier.

[Grassgreendashhabi]

Cybex all day long. The swivel is brilliant not only for getting in and out of car especially in tight spaces but if you need to give a bottle or anything you can sit next to them and they face you (obviously when pulled over).

I love it!

[BertieBotts]

I think it's definitely worth getting a separate infant carrier seat especially if you plan on having a second child and also because it's not safe to put babies in car seats wearing bulky winter coats or snowsuits.

But it doesn't necessarily need to be maxi cosi for both, or the pair if you do get the pebble. As others have said, you'll wind up buying two bases anyway, so it's not necessarily cheaper than getting the pebble plus a different ERF seat.

[Starman16]

Also have the Sirona and the swivel is a brilliant feature! Makes it so much easier to get them in and out if in a tight parking space, and also in the winter I would swivel it the other way so I could put DS coat era on on the passenger seat before getting out in the cold.

I have never found it a problem not being able to take the seat out of the car (although I have to say we do not use our car a huge amount) - DS almost always wakes up once we stop and open the car doors anyway.

[AliceMum09]

Just be aware that the Sirona isn't that tall up the back of the seat, so although it has a weight limit of 18kgs a lot of children will outgrow it by height before they get to 18kgs. If you have a tall child it might not even last until they are three. I've read a lot of things on the internet where parents are a bit cross that they were led to believe that the seat would last until age 4.

In general the best thing is to use an infant carrier and then once the baby is a few months old you'll have a good idea of what ERF seat they might need. If they are 'average' you can pretty much take your pick of the ISOFIX seats on the market, but if they are tall or heavy a seatbelt-fitted ERF seat with a 25kgs weight limit might be better.

[Artandco]

The sirona is great. My youngest has just outgrown when he was 4 1/2 years.

They shouldn't really stay in a car seat more than the car journey when small (30 mins max really) so having one remove is a bit pointless anyway.

Get a good sling, and a baby ' bug in a rug'. You can put baby in it with it open in car and step in safely. Then can wrap blanket over straps if car is cold. When you take out you can unwrap and Unstrap them at front and move from seat, then straight into sling wrapped up if it's cold