Joie i-Traver vs i-Irvana

[tsazzy]

LO is 3 years 9 months old, 104cm and 18kg currently in Joie i-spin 360, which we really love but looking to get ready for the next car seat. I believe 105cm is the limit for five point harness?

Potentially narrowed it down to Joie i-Traver or i-Irvana to keep look and feel as similar as possible as LO doesn’t always adapt easiest to change.

Looking for thoughts/advice from experience/knowledge of these seats. Or other recommendations to look at that still have isofix as I still prefer the idea of using this as installation.

Thank you!

The limit on the i-Spin is 105cm and 19kg, so you do have a little longer - I would try and keep him in it until he gets closer to the limit. If he stays under 19kg, I wouldn't worry too much about going past the 105cm as long as he physically fits in the seat - you are close either way though. It is worth trying to keep him in it for another few months since he's not quite 4.

There is no point in the i-Irvana because the harness limit is the same. If you think he would benefit from a longer lasting harness, I would look at finding a Joie Bold (NOT the i-Bold) as this has a harness up to 25kg with no height limit. Or there is Cozy n Safe Hudson, Cozy n Safe Excalibur, Enfasafe Event FX or Puggle Safe Fit & Grow which are all similar (25kg harness no height limit) - again not the i-size versions of these.

If he is happy rear facing, you could look at Joie i-Prodigi - this one has higher limits and does feel very similar to the Spin. It's expensive though.

Thank you for your detailed reply! Yes definitely keeping him in i-Spin for as long as possible, still feels like there’s a really good bit of growing room yet so will just keep close track of his weight etc.

Just wanting to be well prepped on the research of options and additionally with the look and feel of it as close to what he has now for him to adapt easily.

We have GB Vaya i-size that’s hardly used in another car, that feels far more like it’s at its limit size wise for him already, despite also being up to 105cm 19kg. So that was the original spark in starting the research, but will just stop using that shortly and replace both next year at the same time.

What are your thoughts on i-Traver? Seems a little odd without the full back support once needing to extend headrest to me but not sure? Thanks for all your other recommendations for me to look at to :)

The I-traver is okay - i’ve got one for occasional use. Being a front facing, booster-style seat it’s very different to a full car seat as I’ve found the child can loosen the straps and sit forward etc. I’ve found it’s okay once they settle down but I’d prefer a full harness / to be rear facing for longer.

i-Traver is a great HBB and will extend in all ways including in the leg area, so should stay comfy for longer. By the back support not extending do you mean the way the side wings stay at the bottom? That is quite normal with HBBs - if you look at other brands, they also do this at the higher settings. With a taller child, it is fine, but maybe an element of choice would help DC adjust and you could get him to try out some different ones?

If DC is loosening the seatbelt and moving around a lot then they are too young for a HBB - ideally we want them to be around age 4 minimum, but some children are extra fidgety and would benefit from a 5-point harness longer. I know the seats are marketed from age 3, which is a bit too young really.

Also there is a minimum 15kg/100cm for HBB but ideally if you can get them close to or over at least one of the 105cm/18kg that's better in terms of safety too :)