When does a baby sit upright in a car seat?

[Readmarx]

Hi - if I sound like a bloke it's because am, my good lady is in the bath, so I'm tasked with the questions!

Our first is due in a month.

We're looking at car seats - when do (or what weight do) babies safely sit in 45 degree child seats?

Has anyone any good guidance? We're WHICH Mag members, but I can't find anything instructive on it.

Thanks if you can help me, mum :)

It seems to depend on the parent, to be honest.

It's meant to be 9 months or 9kg, whichever one they hit first, but I think most of the stage 1 seats go up to 15kg.

My dd is 8 months old and 8.5 kg. SHe's a big girl with lots of body control etc. However, she'd be swamped by a bigger seat and therefore not as safe. Ds, who was enormous, was in an upright at 9 months. My cousin, on the other hand, has a tiny 11 month old who has been in an upright seat since she was 7 months old because "she didn't like looking backwards."

Are you getting a pram or a travel system? The car seat that comes with a travel system is fine for ages.

You keep them in a rear facing infant carrier as long as possible, it is much safer. A forward facing child is at risk of internal decapitation. You keep them in an infant carrier until their head it over the top of the seat. You can buy seas to keep them rear facing until age 4. Otherwise it will be anywhere between 9 months and 18 months depending on the size of your child.

you;ll probably have an infant carrier to start with which, if it' a group 0+ will go up to 13kg

it's best (safest) to keep them rear-facing for as long as possible. so you might want to consider something like the Klippan Kiss which will do you birth to 18kg rearfacing and has a newborn insert bit that clips in and out

Perfect time for you to be reading up on rearfacing .

Keep the baby in the infant carrier until their head reaches the top or they reach the upper weight limit. This might not be until they are 18 months old . Their leg length is irrelevant.

The safest next option is a more upright rearfacing group 1 seat with a 5 point harness. You can get these to fit all cars, though they do look bulky, and most fit toddlers up to the age of at least 4 years.

Not before 9kg for certain, and not before 9 months if you possibly can.

Before there head reaches the top of the seat, or they exceed the weight limit for the seat.

Just moved DS2 at 14 months.

Thanks very much for all the replies :)

I think we're clear on us buying a travel system.

I wasn't clear in my original question between a car seat and an infant carrier. I should have said infant carrier not a car seat. The baby will fit a car seat when they're bigger.

We'd buy an infant carrier as part of a travel system and fit the infant carrier so that it is rear facing and sit on an isofix base in the car - we understand the bases are useful as you can slide the carrier back to allow for growth and for longer legs keeping the baby in the safer rear facing position for longer. The isofix base can then be used to take a child car seat later on when they're big enough.

So, I should have asked what size are babies when they go into an infant carrier. Personally I prefer the later the better. I know that manufacturers say 0-13 kilos, but I feel naturally inclined to keep them out of the car for as long as possible. What weight/age were yours when they first went into an infant carrier?

Thanks again

Wont you need to carry them out of the hospital in a car seat ?? My hospital wouldn't let me leave until she was in one and she had checked she was in it properly ?

We started with a Jane Strata with isofix base - good for baby's pulmonary system if you're doing a lot of long car journeys. Babies should not be in their car seats for extended lengths of time. The car seat comes out and goes on to a pushchair - we bought a Jane Nomad because we wanted a light weight off-roader with four wheels.

When DD was 9 months we moved on to a Besafe Izi Combi Isofix extended rear facer, which DD will have until she is around 4.5 / 5 years old. (Which Best Buy and available at John Lewis)

Please, please, please read www.rearfacing.co.uk. The word about extended rear facing seats is slowly getting out there, they are 5 times safer than putting your child into a forward facing seat. Unfortunately British parents have been kept in the dark by car seat manufacturers and our competitive parenting "who can put their child forward facing first" mentality.

Well with regards to when you first put them in an infant carrier, most people take them home from hospital in a car! Mine were born at home but were taken into hospital for hearing checks (standard) at a few days old. Plus you know, life goes on, siblings have to be taken to school etc. It isn't good for a baby to spend all day in a carseat but from birth is fine!

OK, as people have mentioned, you are likely to use the infant carrier to get home from the hospital.
Your LO will be better in a flat pram when out and about, and just using the infact carrier in the car. Always have a break after 2 hrs in an infant carrier.
Personally I wouldn't attached the infant carrier to the pushchair unless you really need to - your best using the pram atachment. They usually transfer quite easily from one to the other.

Oh, and I'm not sure about extending the isofix arms to give more leg room. My understanding is the base needs to be as close to the seat back as possible to prevent rotation in a crash. Baby just bends their legs if they are long enough to.

You use an infant carrier from birth but not necessarily on the travel system chassis if you have the option to lie baby flat. btw the isofix base for an infant carrier doesn't normally take the next stage seat as well, those have integral isofix bars.

ours is a britax and it says to 13kg, which I think is supposed to be about 9 months.

We were able to adjust the straps and take out the head hugger at about 5.5 months (her head was getting too big to fit into it)

definitely say go for the infant carrier rather than a fix in car seat, because you will find it a godsend that you can carry it around with you (esp in the supermarket or anywhere you go that you can't be holding the baby all the time (when they can't support themselves, they can sit in the car seat))

No one told us this vital information before we had DD.

nickel I never take my seat out of the car, I hate carrying it around! ds2 is just used to being taken out and shoved into a sling or baby seat on a shopping trolley and stays asleep .

ooh

that car eat has been a godsend to us - she sits in it at choir, at church, at dance lessons, anywhere and everywhere!
she doesn't stay in it so much now, she's quite mobile and can sit on her own, so it's only necessary for when we don't want her to move around.
and it means we don't have to faff with slings or pushchairs etc.
(although now the pram is a buggy, we can put it down and put it up again, so much easier)

Thanks again for the replies - opinions are really informing!

Thanks for the post of the rear facing seats - sobering.

Thankfully we live 400 yds from our local hospital and the maternity unit. So long as we're at home when Kate goes into labour we could walk back... Though I think she'd appreciate it if I drive the car!

Nextphase - sorry, me not writing clearly, again! I should have said that the top of the Isofix base has the ability to slide back slightly to allow for a bit more leg room - keeping them rear facing for longer. The base itself would still be pushed tight to the anchors.