Seatbelt fixed extended rear facing

[Manikki]

I’m looking for a new car seat for my 18 month old. I would like to keep her rear facing until she is 4 and we do not have Isofix. I was looking at the Joie stages or Joie everystage R129 but WHICH does not rate them very highly, however I think this more due to the safety when they are turned front facing? Originally I was planning on getting one that will last her as long as possible but now I’m leaning towards changing her seat again when she is ff. just looking for guidance really, is there a better option than the Joie if I don’t mind needing to change again when she is around 4?

Hi OP,
Do you know what centiles your DD is on as that will give you an indication on when she will likely outgrow the seat. Also, what car are you planning on fitting it into?

A Swedish Plus tested seat will
keep her rear facing for longer, and then you could move her straight into a HBB. This will save you having to purchase another FF seat if she out grows the rear facing seat sooner and isn’t ready for the 3 point adult belt.

Hi, she is 12.5kg and was previously on the 50th percentile for height but haven’t measured her in a while. Car is a Jaguar xtype (very old second hand, my partners choice haha).

any recommendations of Swedish plus seats?

Ok, so she’s above the 91st centile for weight and if she stays on the same centile, she’ll out grow the stages at around 3 which is really too young to be considering FF with the adult 3 point belt. You’d then be looking at purchasing another harnessed seat before a HBB. The every stage is outgrown rear facing by height, which will be around 4.5 years is she stays on the same centile.

I’d take the Which reports with a pinch of salt to be honest. They often downgrade some of safest Swedish Plus tested seats because they have tethers, which can make them more tricky to install, but certainly not impossible if you get support from your retailer. Seats which try to cover multiple stages such as the stages and every stage, will often be compromising somewhere.

I’d take a look at the Axkid MiniKid 2 or the Axkid Move. Both are extended rear facing until 25kg which will see your daughter through to 5 years on her current trajectory, when it would be safer to move her into a HBB. If budget is more of a concern then the Britax SafeWay M or MaxSafe Pro are both under £200, but both these seats take up more cabin space than the Axkid seats above.

Great, thank you so much for your help, i will check them out! I haven't even heard of them before or come across them when looking into options. I didn't even know you could get seats that can allow rear facing past 4 (ish, I know its height or weight based).

So many reviews and info websites just focus on Isofix seats its tricky to decipher which ones will suit my car.

I'm not sure where in the UK you are, but have a look for an independent car seat retailer (relatively) near you. They usually stock a good range of Swedish Plus tested seats and will help you fit them in your car so you can see which one works best for you/your car/your child. They'll often discuss by phone or email as well if you can't get to one, but obviously that's not as good as having an expert there physically helping you.

Definitely go to a shop where you can make sure it fits - the extended rear facing seats are large and do not fit in all cars plus in cars with molding (not sure of the technical term) but without a flat back seat sometimes they simply do not fit, my mothers pergeot wouldn't fit any standard seats (front or rear facing) only their own one!

If you're located within a reasonable distance of Milton Keynes then I would really really recommend an appointment with the In Car Safety Centre. They're an amazing bunch and will lug endless rear facing seats out to your car, fit them, fit the child in the seat, and talk to you about everything they're checking while they do it.

With car seats, safety is as much about fitting the seat correctly, and fitting your child in to the seat correctly, and the whole combination working well together. The In Car Safety Centre will guide you through all of that and more.

I travel about an hour to reach them. I'd travel double that willingly if I had to.

So the longest lasting rear facing seats are upto 125cm or 36kg (whichever they reach first). The Axkid Minikid 4 is the longest lasting seat on the market at present with the tallest shell.
I have a tall, almost 7 year old who is about to outgrow his rear facing BeSafe Stretch by height, he’s no where near the weight limit. We’re going to be sad to see it go as he’s still super comfortable in it and I know he’s super safe too.

If you look on Axkid's website, they have a retailer search and Axkid is the most popular "niche" brand, so pretty much all of the ERF specialist retailers carry them. Ignore the chains which might only carry the Axkid One (Isofix seat).

But what this means is you should be able to find your nearest ERF specialist and they will likely have other brands as well as Axkid.

Just wanted to thank everyone for their help, it seems ERF specialists are few and far between in London, but we plan to visit somewhere when seeing family over xmas. Really cant thank you all enough for your help!