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Car seats

Confused about car seat regulations? Find baby car seat advice here. For Mumsnetter-approved essentials, sign up for Mumsnet Swears By emails here.

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Original poster

Stuck on which car seat to get!

51 replies

Bumblebee1988 · 31/05/2020 23:47

Help!! Have just realised my child is too big for his current car seat (currenly using the ickle bubba stomp v3 car seat that comes as part of the travel system). I didn't realise he'd grown out of it as he hasn't been in the car for a couple of months (lockdown!). Now I need a new one ASAP.

So I want one that has isofix. It has to be rear facing up to 18kg and also front facing up to 12 years if possible.

There aren't many that I can find thay fit this description. Three I have found are the cosatto all in all +, the cosy n safe authur and the cosatto all in all rotate.

Any one have an experience with any of these or have any other recommendations?

Our budget is £200, £220 max.

Thanks!

OP posts:

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BertieBotts · 06/06/2020 18:05

Haha I'll try and stay :o

So how Which (and similar publications in other countries) work is that the tests are done in Germany at this consumer agency that is also a breakdown firm/motoring magazine (like AA) and they publish the basic results and sell the details to companies like Which? Who then publish in their own language. I can read German so I just read it directly from ADAC.

The max way plus got a fail score because they felt it was too complicated to install using the tethers and that there is too high of a risk of parents getting it wrong. They also felt that it took up too much space in the car and that the child has no leg room and can't see out if the window, both of the last points are very odd and don't really make sense (except I suppose that a crash test dummy with inflexible hip joints may well be tricky to post into such a seat! Real children are more flexible.)

However the safety score they gave it is really good. So it's really the fitting issue. I don't personally think the judgement is very fair. It is a bit more complicated to fit but it's not the only seat that's complicated to fit. However I respect that they're a general consumer magazine and want to aim at the average person who may not want to research car seat fitting methods in depth!

BTW, they give the same kind of score to all the rear facing 25kg seats they have tested.

Original poster

Bumblebee1988 · 06/06/2020 21:26

I agree, it's not really fair at all! They give a list of about 10 car seats and call it the do not buy list but give no details unless you pay. So for someone like me who doesn't know any better I blacklisted all of them! Bit naughty of them really when it's not really a safety issue as such.

We still haven't come to a decision but I've given us until tomorrow night to decide . Can you tell he's our first lol. With a budget of about 240 is the axkid move one of the easiest and safest do you think? From the video it looks great and I love the added side protection. I darent start looking through it all myself cuz I don't really know what I'm looking for with the 25kg seats and don't want to add any more confusion to the mix .

You have been brilliant really I can't thank you enough!

OP posts:

BertieBotts · 07/06/2020 13:13

Axkid Move also got a Don't Buy on Which BTW It was called the Wolmax when they reviewed it.

Don't mistake Which (etc) for a safety reviewer - they are a consumer reviewer, which is not the same. They give these seats a don't buy because they consider that they are hard to use for the average person.

If you have a £240 budget I'd say it's between the Britax Max Way Plus or Multi Tech 3, and the Axkid Move. Those are probably as easy as each other to install despite Which saying they're complicated. The Max Way Plus and Move are both plus tested, which is the highest safety test in Europe (performed in Sweden). The Multi Tech is not plus tested because you can use it forward facing (it's essentially the Britax Evolva) and to take the Plus test seats must pass in all modes. But it has the SICT like the Max Way Plus.

Diono Radian 5 is harder to install so ignore that.
Britax Two Way Elite and the original Max Way have worse side impact protection, so ignore those.

All the other 25kg seats are over your budget :) So just the three to compare.

Original poster

Bumblebee1988 · 07/06/2020 23:30

I love the axkid move and have also found the axkid mini kid 2 looks awesome and have found it on offer but neither say they are compatible with a vauxhall corsa 2001 (well any vauxhall for that matter). Argh just when I thought we had finally made a decision

OP posts:

BertieBotts · 08/06/2020 14:13

Vauxhall is called Opel in the rest of Europe, so it's listed as Opel, that's probably why you can't find it. But the fit lists aren't very extensive even though those seats are pretty much universal. They'll fit in your Corsa.

BertieBotts · 08/06/2020 14:17

In fact the first picture here shows you two :)

www.rearfacingtoddlers.com/rear-facing-car-seats-fitted-in-the-car.html

BertieBotts · 08/06/2020 14:19

Another Minikid (far side) in a Corsa

www.rearfacingtoddlers.com/uploads/1/8/4/0/18409761/vauxhallcorsa_1_orig.jpg

BertieBotts · 08/06/2020 14:20

Unfortunately I think the offer ended yesterday on the Minikid.

Original poster

Bumblebee1988 · 09/06/2020 21:50

Just my luck it was only the pink one on offer though so I'm not that upset. Pretty sure we are going to go for the axkid move, just cuz I want to keep him rear facing for as long as possible and it looks the easiest to install. Thanks again for all your help. See you in a few years when we need a booster

OP posts:

BertieBotts · 10/06/2020 07:37

NameChange30 · 10/06/2020 07:49

FWIW we recently bought the Britax Max Way Plus and i think it's a great seat. We compared it with the Axkid Minikid and it was a better fit for our DS because it seemed to have more room in the seat/crotch area.

I think BertieBotts shared a link to the Max Way Plus for £180 which is a really good price.

So that would be my vote!

BertieBotts · 11/06/2020 09:52

Axkid free apparently just brought out a super lightweight isofix seat up to 125cm and 23kg, it looks amazing, but it's £700!!

Original poster

Bumblebee1988 · 11/06/2020 13:57

Jeeeeeesus. Don't get me wrong. If it was the safest on the market and was guaranteed to keep my son safe I'd pay it but that seems ALOT.

Good news - I went with my gut and bought the axkid move last night so should be with us soon. So thank you all for all your help (especially BertieBotts who I swear could ace a degree in this stuff if there was one). I'll be back to annoy you all with my indecisiveness when the next one arrives on current boy needs a booster

OP posts:

BertieBotts · 11/06/2020 14:17

I suspect they've done it more because they wanted to prove it could be done than with any intention of selling them in great number, much like the £550 one by maxi cosi which is a forward facing one with airbags. That's now being sold at under £400, which is still at the pricey end, but not quite as off the scale!

The new axkid one is from birth so I suppose if you'd planned to get something like the Cybex Cloud Q with swivel base and then the Axkid Minikid, it would actually cost about the same, but most people don't spend £300 on the infant seat.

Paloma2019 · 15/09/2020 20:01

Hi there- I can see that this thread is a few months old but I am currently researching carseats and I am after the same features you were looking for. My baby is 10 months old and is also tall- with long legs. Having read this thread and watched the demo- I am also tempted by the Axkid Move. Have you been pleased with it?

Thanks

Original poster

Bumblebee1988 · 16/09/2020 20:43

Hiya! Honestly I am so so pleased I went with the axkid move! I can't fault it and my little boy who's now 18 months looks so comfy in it with plenty of room to grow. I am happier knowing he's alot safer rear facing too and it has side impact protection. We found it easy to install and although we haven't really moved it between cars as long as you buy another set of tether straps it'll be pretty straight forward. I was worried because I thought the installation was difficult but find some videos on YouTube and it's easy! Definitely recommend it!

OP posts:

Paloma2019 · 22/09/2020 07:45

Thanks so much for getting back to me. That's great to hear! We haven't got one yet- am going to go for it :)

FTMJustWingingIt · 19/10/2020 22:36

Ahh so glad I’ve found this thread!! I’m in the same position as you now with my 1yo he has 3kg untill he is too heavy for the pram seat and I have no idea what to look for. I was thinking of getting an 0-12 seat but reading this maybe we are wrong!! Going to have a look at all the ones you were suggested. I really did want isofix fitting rather than seatbelt though! I hate a seatbelt getting in the way!

Mylittlesandwich · 19/10/2020 23:08

@FTMJustWingingIt I have a Britax max way but I think the axkids are the same. The seat itself is belted in but it doesn't get in the way. It's threaded through the seat so doesn't cause a bother at all. I'm not sure if you can see from this picture or not.

BertieBotts · 21/10/2020 07:21

YY all the rear facing seats up to 25kg fit like that :)

The seatbelt is in the way for infant carriers and seats which rear face up to 18kg (which includes some of the all-in-one seats) which fit with seatbelt. This is because the seatbelt around the back is an anti-rotate feature, it stops the seat tipping down in a crash. The larger seats use a support leg to do this or "brace" on the seat in front so they do not need the seatbelt wrapped all the way around, and it's not in the way.

MWS1616 · 15/06/2021 23:21

Hi there.
Such an informative thread! This is SO helpful ladies. Thank you!! (Especially @BertieBotts !)
I know all this is a few months old but wondered if anyone has any views on the Babyauto Signa i-Size Spin 360 Group 0+/1 ISOFIX Car Seat?
Looking at SICT/iSize as a definite must and want to get good value for money. Hopefully not too much to ask...?!

BertieBotts · 16/06/2021 21:44

I wouldn't go for the BabyAuto, if you want a spin seat on a budget some of the Joie ones are on Online4Baby hidden deals section for £150 I believe. Although not the i-size ones. But the Spin Safe has decent side impact protection.

PPAK2 · 17/06/2021 11:08

Such a helpful thread. I found this after purchasing an axkid move, but it doesn't seem to fit in my car. It's a Renault scenic, and says it fits in all the back seats, but even with the front seats as far forward as possible it doesn't sit on the seat right. @BertieBotts, could you offer some wisdom please, do you know if it will actually fit or if its just me?

BertieBotts · 17/06/2021 11:14

I'm not trained in the fitting of seats, so I don't know I'm afraid. I do know you can put the Move either right up against the backrest of the seat, or kind of hanging off it. It might also be that it's more secure when the tethers are done up if you've only tried placing it in loose.

Your retailer or Axkid would normally be the best place to go for fitting advice. There are some Facebook groups for car seat/ERF advice as well.

PPAK2 · 17/06/2021 11:38

Ah it was worth a shot, I think I might give it another try, the seats slope so I was trying to fit the recline wedge thing in as well, and didn't actually try strapping it in.

I bought it online and there's nowhere local to me that fits them, but I will check out Facebook. Thanks for getting back to me so quickly 🙂

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