Group 1,2,3 seat for a 4yr old?

[pigleychez]

We need to replace DD2's carseat.

She is almost 4 (May) and weighs 30lbs/12kg. Shes also tiny in height.
The obvious next step would be a high back booster but shes too tiny and not heavy enough as they start at 15kg. Shes such a slow grower I hate to think how long till she gets to that so wouldnt want to jump into one like that at this point.
So im guessing we should go with a 1,2,3 group seat that goes from 9mths to 12 years.
I heard car seats have a life span.. would it really last till she was 12? or about 18 the rate she grows! :)

Anyone recommend a decent 1,2,3 seat? They all look so massive too!

Hi Pigleychez,

What car do you have? (make, model, year)

In terms of car seat expiry, the advised life span is 6-10 years depending on use, however it doesn't mean that a car seat you have looked after and stored well is suddenly unsafe after the 6 year point (provided it's never been in a crash/dropped of course!).

It is advisable to not use car seats after 6-10 years as seat testing and seats themselves change so much that an old seat may not be up to the current standard. It may also not perform how you would want, or expect it in an impact.

Kat

Currently have a 57 reg Ford Cmax but we do have plans to change it in a year or two.

Britax told me (via email) that their car seats do not have an expiry date. And as for them changing, I have a Britax First Class and a Britax Cosy Tot infant carrier that are both more than 8 years old that I am still using. The First Class currently on sale is exactly the same as mine, only with an improved newborn insert cushion, and the Baby Safe infant carrier is exactly the same as my Cosy Tot only with a new name and a 5-point harness instead of a 3-point harness.

I've just replied to another thread about Group 1-2-3 seats, I really like the Britax Evolva. It is quite wide, I had to stop using using it when I had my third baby and needed to fit three car seats in the car (and we have a big car too). But it has nice head and body support.

My sister has the cosatto zoom 123 car seat and its very narrow the same width as our group one. when we got ours we couldn't get a 123 car seat as they were too wide for the invidual seats of our renault scenic so we went for a group 1 but my sister found this one which I think is fairly new out and safety tests well apparently. only down side is it doesn't recline.

They do have an expiry date, because the plastics used degrade over time. In my opinion, Britax were rather irresponsible to say otherwise

Have a look at the Cybex Pallas Fix. They start at 9kg and is the WHICH best buy.

There's a new casualplay one, an Isofix 1-2-3... Name forgotten... Googling... Aha this one, no idea of any specifics though unfortunately, just something new I came across whilst looking for something else.

I have a jane montecarlo which has an xtend cushion to make it group 1, then when they are heavy enough you can use it as. High back booster. I have the ones with isofix, although they can also go in without isofix. It's brilliant.

You could have a look at the following 123 seats:

Recaro Young Sport
Graco Nautilus
^ These will both fit, however when you change it you will have to be careful of the risk of the new car buckle crunching. These seats have a low lap belt routing and so can be more prone to it.

Other options
Britax Evolva
Cybex Pallas
Other impact shield seats
^ These are also good options, however I would test them in your car first as Ford's can have short seat belts, which may make getting these seats in tricky. They are unlikely to buckle crunch when you change your car however.

The Casualplay seat is another option, however it comes with an integrated top tether strap, so you will need to make sure you have a determined top tether point in your car (boot, back of seat or roof) to ensure a safe fit.

Hope this helps!

What seat does your little one have now? If it is stage 1 - it would last her until she reaches height(top of the seat)/weight limits(18kgs). You may also want to look at 1-2 stage seats which go upto 25 kgs if you worry about expiry date
Twins were in stage 1 until last week, bought 1-2-3 for them only because it is got desent recline option, but we have no intention to use it until 12...may be until they are 7 and then go to booster...

She currently has the Kiddy energy Pro with the impact shield but one of the arms on the shield has snapped. It still works fine but would feel happier replacing it.