Anyone recommend a good car seat for a 4 year old?

[Carseats]

I'm looking for a new car seat for DS4 and am hitting a brick wall on what would be best.

He's just over 100cm tall and ideally I'd still like a car seat with straps as opposed to using just the seatbelt.

The seat doesn't need to rear face as he is forward facing due to car sickness.

No brand loyalty here so happy to consider any option and budget is not restricted, although being so open to any is I think probably what's making my decision so much trickier.😆

Any and all suggestions welcome.

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If you’ve landed here while on the hunt for similar car seats for four-year-olds recommendations or advice, our guide to the best car seats for four-year-olds has been recently updated to reflect current availability and trends. It features a wide range of car seats as tried, tested and recommended by real parents.
For a deeper dive into car seat laws in the UK and whether you should keep your child rear facing for longer, check out our guides to the latest car seat regulations and the guide on how long a child should be rear facing in a car seat. Hope it’s helpful!

I think most car seats only allow for a weight limit of 18kg when using the straps, so you'll need to factor that in

I think the general idea is that if forward facing its much safer to wear a seatbelt rather than straps (you probably don't want to Google it but internal decapitation is a thing where the body is held still but the head still moves forward).
If your child is not trusted with a seatbelt you'd be better to rear face until he can.
If you want to forward face I can recommend the britax romer.

Thanks so far for the advice. He's absolutely fine using a seatbelt if that's the best option but I wasn't sure if he would be tall enough to use it comfortably?

Will take a look at the britax romer, do you have this seat yourself?

At that age and weight a high backed booster is best. You’d be right on the limits of any harnessed seats and a 4YO should be capable of sitting properly. I’d look at the Cybex T Solution- it’s one of the safest HBB out there, it’s totally fuss free and has the cybex patented reclining headrest so not lolling if prone to a car nap.

We have the britax romer kidfix for DD4 and love it. Very easy to move between cars and has a crotch guard to hook the lap part of the belt to stop "submarining" where they can slide out under if they're slim.

Are they nearer 4 than 5? I'd still opt for harnessed if nearer 4, because of their physical immaturity. If your car has isofix and top tether anchors, the Joie Bold R would be a good choice. It harnesses to 25kg.

The Britax romer does look good and the bit that sits between their legs looks quite reassuring. He seems so small and leen compared to most of his same aged peers that I can totally imagine the worry of him sliding out from under the belt. 😆

Rather annoyingly they are 4 1/2 so no closer to either age. 😂

Yes, we have 2, one child is 5 and the other is 7. Both very comfortable in them.

Joie bold is the main one recommended for harnessed FF and you should use it with the top tether to be as safe as possible. It will also convert to use with a seatbelt after 25kg.

You do have the option of spin seats if still 100cm (if still also under 18/19kg) but the height limit on these are usually 105cm so won't have loads of time left in it.

On the other hand HBB is ok at his age really provided you are happy he would sit up straight and properly in it and not mess around!
My daughter is 107cm and 3.5 years old and I'm not happy with her in a HBB yet, we are in an ERF harnessed seat still. But I'd be happier in another year for her to move to a booster.

We have the Joie bold harness until 25kg. And safer as tethered and isofix. Means the neck movement is less making it the safest FF harnessed option.

We have this one: https://www.halfords.com/baby-and-child/car-seats/toddler-car-seats/halfords-group-1%2F2%2F3-isofix-child-car-seat-with-top-tether-630382.html

Our son is the same height as yours but a bit younger. He can climb into it easily by himself and he says it's really comfy. Easy to adjust the straps as well. Only annoyance is the top parts of the fastening can be a pain to hold together sometimes. We like that it's isofix as well, as often larger seats aren't.

We got it on a big discount, they seem to do offers often

Some brilliant suggestions. Thanks so much to all who have replied so far. He's currently in a spin seat but I'm conscious he will need to move soon and so definitely want to get a handle on what's out there for the next stage.

Also a keen bargain hunter so will be good to have a list I can use to keep an eye on to see if any of them are discounted. 🤣

What is he in now? If you prefer him in a harness then I would keep him in his current seat because it is likely it will fit for just as long as any which have a 5 point harness that continue, and because when you do buy a seat, it is better in terms of safety to buy a seat that does one job (ie, is just a high backed booster) rather than doing two (harnessed seat converting to high backed booster).

You say he is only just over 100cm so he is just right at the bare minimum to use a HBB. He is tall enough but only just. I would keep him out of one for now if you have the option. It's likely his seat is up to 105cm (that is the usual limit) so he will have likely most of a year left in it unless he is taller in his body than his legs, or goes over the weight limit, or you have a seat with a smaller-than-average shell.

Do you know his weight?

I can make some suggestions anyway but some of them might be inappropriate so bear that in mind.

To use a harness as long as possible, if you'd prefer that - Joie Bold. You probably need Joie Bold R. Don't wait for a sale on this - it's discontinued so you need to get it now as they won't get any more stock. You need the older version (not the i-size) because this is the version with 25kg/no height limit on the harnessed mode.

The Joie Bold safety rating is only average, so only choose that if the extended harness is more important than the overall safety rating.

Cozy n Safe Hudson is the same story - harnessed to 25kg, no height limit, average/unknown safety rating.

To use a harness for probably the next 6-12 months with a good safety rating,

Britax Evolvafix or Advansafix Pro - both 105cm / 22kg limit on harness.
Maxi Cosi Titan i-size or Titan Pro i-size - 105cm/18kg limit on harness.
Silver Cross Balance i-size - 105cm/21kg limit on harness.

None of these are discontinued so many all go on sale.

For best safety rating, go for just a high backed booster, but there is some good data from US showing that children 15kg+ don't do as well in high backed boosters, children 18kg+ do much better. In the UK it is tricky to get over the 18kg mark without buying a 25kg limit seat, so we just say when moving from the harnessed stage (often 105cm and/or 18kg limit) to the high backed booster stage (100cm and 15kg minimum) try to aim for as close to 105cm and/or 18kg as you can, rather than switching over as soon as you hit the minimums.

Any HBB from Britax, Cybex, Recaro, Avionaut, Nuna, Joie (and the Joie clones so Halfords Transfix / Graco Eversure i-size) are good. There are a lot of good HBBs on the market, whereas to find a good combination seat is more difficult. Your best move really is to go to any big shop, ideally an independent, if it has to be a chain, John Lewis or Mamas and Papas are best. Try them out. See what your son finds comfortable. Ask the staff which ones give him the best belt fit. Check how far the headrest extends up. Ideally try it in your car, check it fits nicely with the seat, check the seatbelt runs smoothly and doesn't get caught and it's easy to buckle up.

If you want to look up HBB safety ratings, type in the name and ADAC and if it comes up with less than a 2.0 for safety (sicherheit) then it's good. Not all models have been tested though.

Thanks so much for the detailed reply BertieBotts it's very much appreciated.

I will definitely try to weigh him as that will help with making a decision. No rush to move him out of his current seat (a joie spin 360) just yet as he does still fit in it but I didn't want to wait until it was necessary to move him to start looking at options if that makes sense. ☺️

britax kidfix but keep using the joie for long as possible.

The Joie spin 360 is huge and will fit for ages 🙂 one of the few seats you'll probably outgrow by weight before height. DS2 could fit into it until about 112cm tall. He hit the weight limit first. For contrast he currently sits in a Britax Advansafix, and he got too tall for the harness at 109cm.

And yes, it definitely makes sense. Means you can keep an eye out for sales etc. Besafe is another good brand of HBB that I forgot to add btw. They tend to be expensive in the UK though. I'd say best bet in UK is usually Britax or Cybex for the main car, and Joie for spares.

I wanted a 5 point harness still and got a Joie Bold - I'd recommend it to others.

I swear by my dds cosatto ninja 2 car seat, the head rest comes around enough that if she falls asleep she’s not a nodding dog. It is a seatbelt but has a seatbelt holder under the headrest at the size so it doesn’t sit on their neck.

Another recommendation for the Britax Kidfix, great seat. Definitely follow Bertie's advice and keep him in his current seat until he's outgrown it, then move him into a HBB.

I’d join & make a post on car seat safety UK Facebook page. They are really helpful.

Hello, just hopping on this thread.

Currently crossed between a Cybex T-I fix solution and Britax Kidfiz I-size for our 3.5 year old! He has a tendency when falling asleep for the head on chin position, hence looking at the Cybex but seen mixed reviews for the effectiveness of the reclining head rest. We're pretty much looking and shortlisted off safety ratings. Think Britax Kidfix is the leader for 100-150cm with a 1.6 rating and Cybex T I not too far behind with a 2.1.

Can anyone recommend? The kidfix looks like from the head cushion it should enclose around the head/neck area anyway?

What is your son's height and weight?
Which seat is he using atm?

Read BertieBott's post above, she is the expert.

However, my advice is that your child is still too young for a high backed booster (like the ones you mentioned) and you should be looking at harnessed seats.