What's it like to use day-to-day?
The way this seat tilts made it easy for our tester, Anna’s, two-year-old to get comfy in the seat when it was rear-facing, as it meant there was plenty of space. However, it’s fairly high up in the car when fitted so he couldn’t climb in by himself.
Because the seat can be adjusted as your child grows, Anna felt that her son had plenty of legroom – something that does concern some parents when it comes to an extended rear-facing car seat. The seat fit him beautifully and almost seemed to mould to his shape, and the harness straps lined up well against his shoulders.
One of the best features of this seat, in Anna's opinion, was the harness' magnetic fixings that held the straps out of the way while she was putting her toddler into the seat and getting him back out again.
Most parents, at some point or another, will have been frustrated by straps that have to be fished out from underneath their child or that catch on arms and legs when you’re taking them out of the seat – so this relatively simple little touch actually made a really big difference when it came to using the seat day-to-day.
The straps themselves are easy to adjust and tighten (although the release button is a little stiff), which made everyday errands, such as the school run and trips to the supermarket, that little bit less stressful.
Because of the seat's recline, Anna's son slept really well on longer car journeys. She found that his head didn't loll backwards or forwards at all like it did in the Graco Nautilus car seat we also tested.
The seat is really cushioned too, which made it extra comfy, especially on the long two-and-a-half-hour car journey Anna and her family went on during testing.
Because the seat needs to be fitted to a particular base, you wouldn’t be able to use it in an aeroplane or in a taxi, and you could only use it on holiday if you were taking your own car – otherwise you’d have to take the seat and the base with you and make sure any car you used while on holiday had ISOFIX fittings.
How easy is it to clean?
Fairly easy, all in all. The straps got a bit grubby during testing and some marks didn't come off with a cloth, but they weren't immediately obvious because of the darkly coloured fabric.
The covers are removable, if only hand-washable, and generally were OK to remove – simply undo two zips in the main seat and then pull them off.
They were a nightmare to get back on, however, as Anna found it hard to feed the fabric around the lip of the seat. This could potentially put some parents off giving the seat a thorough clean, especially as all that lovely padding meant that the cover then took two days to air dry.
As with the Britax Römer Advansafix IV R, which we also tested, you could invest in a spare cover – an essential, really, if you're planning to use the seat every day.
In the spill test we conducted, both juice and milk came out of the seat in the first wash. There were a few little marks and specks from general use, but on the whole, once washed, the seat looked almost as good as new.
What about value for money?
The iZi Modular i-Size is available from £230 up to £290, so do shop around. The base is an additional £200 approximately, but a handful of retailers do have bundles available that could potentially save you some money.
This isn’t a cheap option by any means, but if you're keen to have your child rear-facing for as long as possible, then the simple installation and comfort of this seat more than makes up for its price tag.
Final verdict?
Many parents are choosing to keep their children rear-facing in the car for as long as possible. If you're one of them, the BeSafe iZi Modular i-Size could be the ideal choice.
This seat means that you can feel confident that your child is safe and comfortable (with plenty of legroom) in their car seat at all times, and that trips in the car are as stress-free as possible.
The simple installation is practically infallible and all those green indicators give real reassurance and leave you with one less thing to worry about. With all that in mind, we think this seat is a really good buy.
About Mumsnet Reviews
All Mumsnet product reviews are written by real parents after weeks of research and testing – this includes recommendations from the Mumsnet forums. We work hard to provide honest and independent advice you can trust. Sometimes, we earn revenue through affiliate (click-to-buy) links in our articles. However, we never allow this to influence our coverage. Read more on how we test car seats.
All prices correct at time of publication
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