FF harnessed to 25kg?

[pfisher]

Calling @BertieBotts if possible; other people with ideas and experience welcome too!!

DD is a tiny one, she has SEN and although she doesn't need extra support physically she has started escaping 😱 she is currently FF in an impact cushion seat but has figured out that if she presses forward hard enough on the impact shield then she can escape 😬 so I want to switch her to a seat with a 5 point harness ideally.

She is 7, but only 16.5kg and 102cm. She isn't predicted to reach 25kg until she is at least 10 so I'm looking for a 25kg harnessed seat. I have found the JOIE Bold R which looks good - any thoughts on this seat? Or recommendation of others to look at?

Yes, Joie Bold is generally the one to look at. There aren't that many 25kg harness seats so this is considered the best one. You need top tether anchor points in your car.

I wouldn't bother with the others given that you'll need the harness as long as possible. The Bold has the highest harness attachment, the others will be outgrown by height sooner.

The R just means it comes without the insert for children under 13kg. Most people never use this anyway.

@BertieBotts thanks so much for the speedy reply! I can find the Bold R for a fairly reasonable £150 so I'll just go for it. Can I ask/do you know can the harness be used upto the max height of the seat (if the child is still under 25kg I mean) if is the height limit lower with the harness?

Thanks for the info re the top tether too, I wasn't aware but both of our cars are fairly modern and have tether points.

There's no height limit on it, as it's an R44 seat. So you can use the harness for as long as DD fits in the weight limit and her shoulders don't go higher than the harness on the top setting.

I think in this one the harness can be raised right up to the top of the seat, which is unusual with 123 seats but does seem to be common to the Joie ones. Since it has the top tether, I believe it's fine to keep using it no matter how tall as long as she's under the weight limit. It's probably actually better than being too tall for the impact shield, because there is some speculation that the impact shield might not perform correctly if the child is too tall, as it would put pressure on the wrong part of the body.

Here is some info about that, sorry it's only in French - google Chrome should translate.

https://www.securange-leblog.fr/2017/01/y-a-t-il-une-taille-maximum-pour-utiliser-un-siege-bouclier.html

We have the Joie Bold R and love it. Opposite to you though as we have a very large 3 year old (was 2 when we got it and over 18kg)!. Recline is good for such a seat so nice for them on long journeys and it's easy to use.

I missed your comment @Daisypod but appreciate it - always nice to hear from someone who has actually used the seat

We bought the Cosy n Safe Excalibur which is FF harnessed to 25kg.

My tall 5yo is in it with masses of room to spare (she in 6-7 clothes). I preferred it to the Joie Bold.