What next for DD 9mo?

[Deliaskis]

Hi folks,

Hoping for a bit of advice on where to go now with car seats as I know what the manufacturers say, and then what happens in reality, can sometimes be two different things.

So DD is 9mo, and not quite yet but is approaching 9kg (she's quite petite still). She's still in her baby bucket style car seat, but it's a bit of a squash now and we're investigating options for when she hits the golden 9kg and can move into the next size of car seat.

So what next? Looking at age bands and weight bands and categories, the choice is a bit baffling. I assume I am looking for something now that will be suitable up to about 3-4 yrs? There seem to be seats suitable for 9kg to 18kg, and others up to 36kg. What are the pros and cons? I mean, if there were no cons, everybody would get the one suitable up to 36kg, surely? And there are still 0-4yrs/-kg-18kg ones - who are they for? I remember this with prams/buggies, they lure you in with suitable from birth to 5, and then you realise it weighs a ton and as soon as your baby can sit up, you want them in something much smaller/lighter easier to fold etc.

So what should I look out for with the next car seat? Pros & cons of 9mo to 4yrs versus 9mo to 12 yrs (??) (or equivalent weight bands)? Recommendations of brands/models? Does comfort come into it at this stage? Should I sit 9mo in car seats in shops and see if she wails? When does size/height become a factor as opposed to weight?

We will need two seats actually. My car has 5 doors but is not very roomy in the back (legroom front to back wise), DH's is 3 doors but a bit more spacious. Don't know if that makes a difference but thought it might be worth mentioning.

Budget wise, I would say we don't mind spending money to get it right, but haven't got oodles of cash so would be looking at the good quality and safe but also good value kind of range.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts/advice.
D

Hmmm...looking at people's questions on carseats with specific cars, I guess it might be worth mentioning my car is an Alfa 159 (5 doors) and DH's an old Audi A3 (3 doors).

D

I'm also clueless but I've read the which report on car seats and they say pretty much all car seats that go from baby - 12 yrs arn't great and overall it's usually better to get one from baby - 4 yrs and then another one.

I've also found out thanks to mn that rear facing car seats for the next stage that we are going into are much safer and many countries insist or recommend on rear facing much longer than the UK does but most generic large shops don't seem to do them so might need to go to a specialist. Also the rear facing one we are looking at (forget the name but can look it up if you want to know) is well over double the cost of ff at about £350

We are debating the rear facing/forward facing thing at the min but we also need a ff seat for DM/MILs cars and we are thinking of getting a britax something or other (it's the same one choc has so you can ask her)

HTH and I'm sure knowledgable people will be on soon

Hello! Will be keeping an eye on this thread for any good suggestions. The very limited research I've done has made me think that this one might be good - think pil might be buying it for us for xmas so don't think its too pricey...?

Hey reastie that's good that you've discovered that from Which - I was a bit suspicious of 9mo-12yrs as I thought if they were that great, why would anyone get anything else?

That looks quite reasonable Ponyo as yes the RF ones for older babies are v expensive.

I don't mind spending the money on RF if safety wise it is the right thing to do, but I am a bit concerned about DD kicking off in RF for the next 3 yrs. She's not v happy in her baby car seat at the mo, but not sure if that's comfort or boredom...

Will keep checking in case any experts have any words of wisdom!

Dx

This is what which says to the one ponyo is getting when used with an isofix base:
Pros: Good front crash protection, good leg support, high finish quality
Cons: Poor side protection, overall performance much poorer in belted mode, child's view is limited, seat cover is hand wash only

Britax Two Way Elite without a doubt!
It will rear face until 25kgs and forward face with a harness until 25kgs.
It transfers between our cars easily, is light weight and easy to install.
It's also 5 times safer for your child to rear face until the age of 2.
My 26 month old is very happy in his, then again, he knows no difference.
My 6.5 yr old was in hers (forward facing in harness) until a few months ago, so a long lasting seat and great value for money.

R has a Britax summat or other. We insisted on Isofix and it's a total doddle to move from car to car if need be. She's much happier in it and I wonder if my driving is now that bit safer as I never have to contort myself to get to her if she is upset.

I know RF is safer but cost and size were big issues for us.

I was given the information (by a car seat safety expert) that unless you have Isofix you lose the benefit of rear-facing as they get bigger because they push against the back of the seat with their legs and loosen the seat belt. Can anyone verify this?

I would keep her in her bucket for as long as you can, then get a good forward facing up to 18kg seat.

Hi, Delia! S's infant seat goes up to 13kg so he will stay in that for now, though he's over 9kg and I know he doesn't like it much. Fortunately he can see A in the third row so he's not too bothered. Then he will swap to E's recaro seat which can be both rear-facing and forward, as it is currently with E. I don't think we waited for the full 2 years with E as he is a tall lad, but he was in it from 8 months as that was when we moved to the US. It's also a latch-fix/US equivalent of Isofix which is so much better. Hope you find something suitable!

Thanks for replies folks. It is a bit of a conundrum. I can see that rear-facing is recommended, I suppose one of our issues is in the Alfa, there is hardly any legroom, and so having RF for longer would stop us going on long journeys as TBH it's unbearable for the front passenger. We have a holiday home in Austria and no way would we attempt a journey like that with RF for example.

But it's safer, so that is a bit of a deal breaker really.

Brachy the two way elite is sort of appealing as it is...well...two way. That's the mn best recommended isn't it?

I take your point Loopy & Wallace that changing over at exactly 9kg is not necessary or recommended, it's just she seems very uncomfortable at the moment, kind of scrunched up, and she's by no means a fatty!

Argh! This is hard.

Thanks for thoughts, will keep pondering.

D

I went front facing. DS hates rear facing and have to weigh up the additional safety of the rear facer vs the annoyance factor of the constant grumbling when I'm trying to drive . I just don't think they're practical once they want to interact with you more or, as you say, for longer journeys. I mean, I agree when they do the crash test dummy test, the rear facer is probably better, but I'm not driving around with a CTD.

I've got a Maxicosi and a Britax. The Britax is better as it reclines much more so they can sleep in it better.

hi, i would look at a rear facing seat. i have a britax two way elite, and a britax hi-way ii.

the twe is easier to install but both are very secure when installed and neither that hard to do. lol at the poster saying once they have longer legs they are not as safe unless it is isofix! :o my ds is 3.7 yrs and is about 100cms tall and still fits in both seats fine and cannot move them pushing with his legs against the seat! i have had the twe in lots of small cars, a clio, seat ibiza, fiesta, polo, and the hi-way in the polo too-all 3 door and they fit fine.

cost wise they were both much cheaper than the ff priorifix i wanted £200 v £285 until i found out about rf. there are much more expensive rf seats like the KISS i had that cost £300 but tbh i prefer the cheaper ones and they last longer-25kgs instead of 18kgs and are lighter to carry.

my ds2 is 10 months and he too hates rf in his baby seat, i still use it in my parents car and he cries most of the time but loves his big rf seat in my car as he can see out as opposed to the back of the seat/side of the door. ds1 age 3 loves waving at lorry drivers and cars behind- i have taken the headrest off so he can see lots.

:)

Ok:

Group 123 (9mths-12yrs) - As this is a combination seat the safety is compromised so I would not recommend at all.

Front facing group 1 (9mth-4yrs) - Again as RF so much safer I wouldn't recommend either! If you have ISOfix and want a FF seat go for Britax isofix as it is PivotLink (the seat can move in a crash and take more of the force - Other ISOfix seats are very solid, like the MC Priorifix, so the force of a crash is transferred to baby, putting terrible strain on the neck.)

As for Seatbelt fitted very good seats are:
Britax King Plus
Maxi Cosi Tobi
Impact shield seats

HOWEVER, I wouldn't get any of the above seats and definately opt for ERF

The Britax Two Way Elite is cheaper than most as an above poster has said, much safer and as baby has more room they'll be comfortable and not kicking off - it makes no odds to a baby what way they face as they've never done anything different! The TWE also RF to 25kg, but can go FF with harness to 25kg. So you could keep baby RF to 3/4yo then turn seat around and keep them harnessed longer :)

The MultiTech is also good and as above posters have said you can get the Volvo branded one for £130. Again this RF to 25kg.

My 2YO goddaughter has just gone rearfacing from being in a crappy frontfacing nania into the multitech and she is much happier in it, she loves waving at people out of the back window!

Take a look at www.rearfacing.co.uk for more info before you commit to a FF seat.

Also as mentioned above, 9kg is the minimum not the target, you only turn a child front facing when they have completely outgrown their Group 0+ this is (on most seats)

13KG or top of head at top of seat.

Saying that, turning front facing isn't even recommended! Take a look at the BMJ article on the rearfacing website :)

Sorry if this is all a bit garbled been a looong tiring day!

Thanks for further replies folks, I really appreciate it, and justforinfo you have helped clear some of the fog that I had in my head re car seats (esp re 123 seats, I knew it must be too good to be true).

I am erring towards the Britax TWE as the flexibility of RF & FF is appealing and it's certainly affordable. I love mn recommendations as you know you're not just reading one person's opinion but lots of people.

Thanks again
D

rear facing infant bucket seats may officially go to 12 or 13kg but many children will be too big before they hit this weight. They are very low down and I think people assume their child will hate a proper extended RF seat based on their unhappiness in the infant seats - in a proper RF group 1 seat they can see loads compared with an infant carrier. My DD is 27 months and only 10kg so she could still weightwise go in the maxi cosi cabriofix but her head would be way out the top. she also stropped up big time on it from about 13 months. at 16 months (7.5kg so had to be RF) we got her a besafe izi combi for my car and a britax firstclass for DH's car. she's still blissfully happy in both now and will stay in the besafe til she's either too tall or too heavy (looking in her red book she'll not be 18kg til she's 8yrs old so I suspect it'll be a move based on height!)