Car seat shopping today - recommendations?

[lovesT]

We are having our first baby in February and my MIL is taking us out to look at car seats today and hopefully/ possibly buy one. I've done some research but thought Mumsnet would be a good place to ask 😊

It would be great to be able to get one that lasts as long as possible through the stages - can anyone recommend any of these? I've seen some go up to 6yrs?!

Thank you mumsnetters!

Will you have a capsule or go straight into a seat? We have a maxi cosi capsule and a britax seat 😊

Joie Spin. Best seats ever.

Cybex Sirona 360!

joie spin. absolutely love mine and would never buy one without a spin function now

The one that fits your car best.
You need to think..
Isofix Vs belted... Isofix easier to fit each time, but all the bases could get expensive if used in several cars
Will you be wanting to use seat in pushchair.
Will you be doing very long journeys with a newborn.. you might need a lie flat
Lots swivel to the side to fit baby in these days

My youngest is now six, but she had a maxi Cosi baby seat then moved to the Joie stages at a year old, which she used rear facing to 2,5 years, the harnessed to five years old, and is now using it as a HBB (but approaching the limit so making our minds up on our next steps)

For babies, a proper infant carrier seat that you can click in and out of a base is a must have imo. Means you can carry them indoors in the seat and get them out in the warm, so useful when it's bad weather. Many will also click onto a pushchair which is useful for quick trips - for example getting out of the car to go into a cafe or something, you can leave baby in car seat, click them into pushchair to walk to cafe then get them out there, rather than getting them out of the car seat into a pushchair then out again once you're inside.

For next stage make sure it's extended rear facing, much safer (though almost certainly someone who didn't rear face will come along in a moment and say rear facing is actually a family choice/doesn't work when it's cloudy/is a conspiracy theory)

Iv got a joie I level and I like it. You can use the isofix base for the next seat up too

Another vote for a joie 360 spin. I love ours and most of my friends have them and love them too.

However, it doesnt come in and out of the car easily so it might be worth having an infant carrier seat for the first few months so when they fall asleep in the car you can get them inside easily - especially now the weather is turning.

Have you looked at copies of Which? In your local library, they do safety tests as well as value for money

Thank you that's amazing having so many responses already. I'm completely new to it so any advice is appreciated.

How important would you say a car seat that is a carrier too is? Especially for those with a joie spin, has that been a problem or is it okay for you?

The joie does look really good especially as it goes up to 4 years; I don't want to be buying them every year or two so that would be great as we can't spend loads all the time. I'd really like a good one that could last as long as possible.

For those with a joie spin, what makes it so good? I'll definitely be looking at those today!

Thanks again

Whether or not you need a carrier type will depend a lot on your lifestyle. If you are just using the longish trips, then taking the baby out for an hour or more, than a car journey home, you don't need a carry seat in the same way as driving an older sibling to school, taking baby out for 5 minutes, then back in car to drive somewhere else for 10 minutes etc.
If just wanting to buy one seat you will ideally need one that rear faces to 18kg or even 25kg if you think your child will be big.

The spin is good as it is really easily adaptable for each age, you just clip off pieces. It spins so when they get bigger you save your back twisting. It reclines enough they can nap without head bobbing around if your driving a while. Rear to front facing.
We had a bad car crash- I drove into back of someone at speed- and there were no marks on either of my kids. I had broken arm, bruising everywhere, properly broken up. So I feel really safe with them in their seats now.
I did have a maxi cosi carry one when my son was really small & it was great to just clip out and clip onto the buggy, he would stay asleep. But that depends on type of buggy system you have too.

Joie Spin.

When my first was little we had a hand me down Britax seat that was also a carrier/travel system and I basically never used it. Once they aren't teeny tiny anymore, carrying the seat with a baby in is HEAVY. I would say these sorts of systems are mostly only useful when you are constantly in and out of a car all day, which we weren't.

Any car seat that spins makes it SO much easier to get your baby/toddler in and out of the car. The Joie isn't particularly expensive, and looks smart. You can also choose how long they are rear-facing for (my 2 year old is still rear-facing in it).

The safest way for your baby/child to travel is in an infant capsule until they grow out of it then into a 25kg rear facing seat which will last them until around 6 (depending on weight). If you buy something like the joie spin now, then end up having a high centile child (over 50th centile) then it will be a false economy as you’ll need to buy another seat before they are old enough to go into a booster seat. So I’d recommend getting an infant seat that you can both use isofix for and belt in (useful if you go in a taxi/someone else’s car) from a reputable brand such as maxi cosi, joie, britax or be-safe. Then that buys you time to work out which seat you need once baby is here.

I'd recommend getting an infant capsule as they are designed for little babies, the bigger cross stage seats are not specifically designed for newborns. Then once you know what size your wee one will be at 4 (following centiles in red book) you can decide on next seat and have time to save up for it. The axkid minikid seat and the britax two way elite are excellent seats which are highly tested for safety that last up to 25kg where as some of the other seats only go up to 18kg so if it turns out to have a heavy 3yr old you may end up having to buy another seat which they won't get full use out of. Hope this is helpful and all the best with your little bundle x

Sorry welsh cross post - great minds think alike!

The joie I level is a carrier and I find it invaluable. Trips to the doctors or post office, nipping in Asda so much easier when you carry or attach it to pram chassis using adaptors. My daughter is 4 months old and 12lb and only now do I struggle with carrying it.

We have the Silver across wayfarer pram which we got second hand, and the Silver across car seats don't really fit what we want so I don't think it will be an option to have one that fits our pram. We aren't too bothered about that as we don't anticipate using the pram all that much.

We were told that the carriers are good for carrying but apparently they shouldn't be in them for longer than 30 minutes so if you have a long journey and then carry them around it's not recommended and we expect a few longer journeys because we have family a few hours away - so apparently the Joie would be good because they won't be slouched in the carrier but would be in a better position.

So we are thinking the Joie 360 😊

I’m afraid that’s not true about them being able to be in the seat longer if you have a non carrier seat - it’s 30 minutes for all car seats when they are newborn. Honestly getting a 360 now may well be an expensive mistake. Also means you can’t ever get a taxi, go on holiday etc without buying another seat. Don’t underestimate how useful having an infant seat is. Even if you leave it belted in all the time. You can get a joie juva for £40!

Oh and you can get adaptors for the wayfarer so you can use maxi cosi or joie seats

We've got a silver cross wayfarer and had a maxi Cosi car seat - you can buy adaptors that mean you can use the car seat with the pram frame.

I second looking at Which. I was horrified to discover that some of the car seats that Which reviewed using their more rigourous tests, that failed and failed dangerously, were actually still for sale. I think you can sign up for a month for a pound or something. Well worth it.

Welsh - this is true, but it's only for the first 4 weeks. So having a permanently installed car seat is easier to avoid this I think in that newborn period. Because generally with a newborn you'll put them in the seat ready to go, then run around putting your own coat on, gathering up the things you need to leave etc, that could be 5-10 mins in the seat before you even get to the car. Then you drive 20 mins or so, and you've already reached the time limit. Whereas with a fixed seat you've saved a good chunk of time as you put them in and immediately drive off, so you only count the time you're actually moving in the car.

After 4 weeks the time limit is 2 hours so fine for long journeys as you'd want to stop for a wee, feed the baby etc anyway.

@welshweasel that was the advice given by anyone we met when buying the car seat and it makes sense. It doesn't apply to all, the joie allows different positions so is better for longer journeys. Also taxis and holidays are not something that is a part of our lifestyle so that really doesn't matter, very rarely would baby be out of our car and in someone else's. We are very happy with our purchase 😊 it's great for what we anticipate needing.

There’s nothing wrong with the joie 360 - it’s a decent seat! But the 30 minutes (when newborn) and then 2 hours max still stands irrespective of the type of seat.

And if you have a higher centile child you’ll need to buy another seat when they hit 18kg. But you might have a small child and be ok!

Still, at least they've saved spending £200 on a baby seat you use for about a year I actually wish we'd just got the Joie right from the start. The carry seat was useful but in hindsight, I wouldn't have spent so much money on it. I look back and wonder why on earth they are so expensive.