Toddler car seat nightmare, anyone using/tried a Kiddy Pheonix or Gaurdian car seat?

[Redcagoule]

My toddler DS will do anything to avoid getting into his car seat (ordinary 5 point one) once in the car. He used to be fine. He loves climbing from seat to seat. Bribery sometimes works but even the promise of watching his favourite film on the iPad isn't a reliable enticement.

Why he's doing this is uncertain, he does it on the way to nursery and on the way home. No destination seems to worth getting into the seat for. Chocolate occasionally is. He wriggles out of my grasp and gets very upset if I try to make him get in it, and unless I have help, I can't even do it.

He certainly sees it as a big game to see what I'll do to try to get him into his seat and it often ends in tears (for both of us) and recently I've started avoiding journeys because it's got so bad. I know I shouldn't, but it's just too upsetting. I don't know how much is due to my boy hating to be restrained by the harness.

On an old thread I saw advice about a Kiddy car seat. They look very different and the child gets restrained in a very different way. I'm wondering about getting one but as I already have a car seat it needs to be worth it. I wondered if anyone has any experience they'd like to share, especially using one with a toddler who previously was difficult to get into a 5 point harness one.

Any other advice is also welcome!

We have a kiddy. DS is 2.6 and loves it. He climbs in himself then you place the cushion across him and thread the seat belt through the cushion. It acts a bit like a tray table so can rest small toys or book's on it.
It really helps that it is so portable, so easy to put in different cars.

We had one and I liked it a lot, but DS never really had problems with a 5 point one when he occasionally used one in friends cars etc. (In fact my ex had a 5 point one which he was fine in.)

I wonder if it would be possible for you to try one out? They're expensive if it doesn't work, and I wonder if it's more of a psychological thing and hence changing the seat won't help. Have you asked him what he doesn't like about it, if his language is good enough to tell you?

What's he like in a pushchair? DS always used to get his arms out of the pushchair harness, but in a pushchair I didn't really worry about it - it's not like a car where a crash would happen at high speed.

I have kiddy guardians for both my dds. Dd1 is 5.5 so uses it without the seat pad (ie. The bit that slots in over the tummy) now as that bit can be removed when they are about 4yo. Dd2 is nearly 3.

To be honest, they're great but can be fiddly. And if your DS doesn't want to be restrained, then it can be a bloody nightmare to get them in, get the seat pad in and get the buckle done. I've had moment where I've literally had to karate chop dd2 in half, try and wedge the pad in, lean on it with one shoulder whilst trying to get the seatbelt done up. You have to be very, very quick. And if your car is like ours, the seatbelt has to be extended to its max length to get around the seat pad and if you don't pull it all the way out, it locks and you have to start again. Couple that with a screaming, wriggling toddler and it ends up exhausting.

I also found that I have to adopt a rather ungainly pose when getting the wee one in the car as I had to sort of balance on one leg whilst getting enough purchase to get them in, with my arse hanging out over the road.

But plus points are that they very safe, and easily transportable.

If you can try one out for a bit then do as they are expensive. We had them from when they moved on from a maxi cosi cabriofix (so approx a year old) so they got used to them. Your DS might not like the seat pad at all and that would be that. Then again, he might just love it!

What age is your DS? They do go through phases of just being wee toe rags about getting in car seats full stop!