ERF 360 Car Seat that lasts past 4 years old?

[Firsttimetrier]

Baby number 2 is due soon and instead of getting another 360 car seat that lasts until 4 years, it makes sense for us to get something for our 2.5 year old instead.

Ideally, we’d like something that’s rear facing as he’s on the smaller weight and height side, but also spins as was a nightmare getting him into the Joie Everystage we had previously.

Does such a thing exist?

I think the BESAFE BEYOND 360 fits that criteria if budget isn’t an problem.

You might have just had a problem with the seat rather than the 360 aspect. We had the joie stages and had a nightmare getting DC into it but no problem with our Avionaut Sky

Thanks @Aprilrosesews! Looked into the Besafe but it’s above our budget atm.

The issue with the Everystage was getting him in under the seatbelt as he’d then run around the car. Had no issues when he was a baby, so maybe we get another Everystage for the new baby, then swap seats in a year or two when our toddler can be forward facing.

Oh yes the seat belt is a nightmare. I ended up getting them in from the other side but that doesn’t work with another car seat in the back.

I’d recommend there’s a few tethered ERF seats that are more budget friendly. we have a max-safe pro (which we replaced our joie stages with as one in the spare car). It should last until aged 7 and no problems getting into that. With the tethered seats the seatbelt goes through the bottom so it doesn’t get in the way.

Only the Besafe Beyond for a rotating one. There are some 360 seats which turn into a high back booster after 18kg/105cm, but these are usually a false economy with compromises in safety and practicality in all the stages - it makes more sense to get a separate rotating seat up to 105cm (the up to age 4 ones) and then a high back booster later on.

You'd probably do well with one of the tethered ERF seats which go up to 125cm - they are easier to get into because the seatbelt is much lower down. For example see this picture of Axkid Minikid. (Every Stage is installed on the other side of the car for comparison).

What is the budget?

Would it make sense to get an infant carrier for the new baby and keep DS1 in the 0-4 years seat? Since infant carriers can last around a year or so, he would probably be ~3.5 or so by the time you needed to move baby into the rotating seat, though if on the smaller side, possibly still a good way off a high back booster. You could then make a decision re moving him to a larger ERF seat like the Minikid (pictured), vs moving him to a seat like Britax Advansafix which is forward facing with 5 point harness and then the harness gets taken out at 105cm to convert to high back booster.

I have a nearly identical set up to BertieBotts above with an axkid minikid 2 and Joie stages. Love the axkid. Hate the stages 😂 but my daughter will be moving into a HBB soon so will get rid of the stages.

I have found with the joie 360 in the other car that as my son gets older (now 3) it’s actually harder to get him in-he can’t climb as it’s much higher than the axkid, and I have to awkwardly put him in to prevent banging his head.

I’d be thinking the axkid for my 2.5, infant carrier for the new baby, then if there’s a gap between new baby outgrowing infant carrier and older going into a HBB, using the 360 for the baby you currently have. Then when older is in HBB baby can move into axkid (or other extended ERF with similar belt path!).

@BertieBotts thank you, this is really helpful.

Budget is around £250, if that’s possible.

I don’t think our toddler will be big enough for a high back booster in just over a years time. He’s 25th centile for height when he had his 2 year check up a few months ago. Both of us are tiny, so even with a growth spurt, we’ll probably have that odd in between stage. This is why I think not having an infant carrier would make sense, plus we live in London, so car seats stay in the car as we use the pram for most things.

We looked at a HBB earlier today in John Lewis and he looked tiny in it and it was FF from 15m, but obviously want to keep him RF as long as possible.

@Ktjc we do find we have to dip the toddler slightly when getting him in, but it’s miles better than trying to fold him over the seatbelt of the Joie Everystage. Wish they had the isofix for RF and not just FF.

I’ll look into the Axkid seats and see if we can test one in person somewhere too.

Thanks all!

Yes definitely not big enough for a HBB in a year's time - I was thinking a 5 point harness seat which converts to a HBB. But if you would prefer to keep him rear facing until he is big enough for a HBB with seatbelt, then the tethered seats (e.g. Axkid/Britax Max Space etc) are definitely worth looking into. They will give you much more leg room etc for DC long term and take up less space in the car than a rotating seat. If you're keen to stick with RF then you don't need the infant carrier as much. Though it might be worth considering whether you'll be doing school/nursery drop offs in the car with the bigger one and bringing the baby along - it can be useful to have a carrier for that which goes on your pram so you're not having to constantly get them in and out of different things. If you're both on the smaller side then you might get use out of an infant carrier for closer to 2 years if you pick carefully.

For a budget of £250 you have Axkid Move, Axkid Minikid 2, Britax Max Space Pro or Britax Safe Way M - quite a few choices :) And if you can get to the In Car Safety Centre, they also have the Klippan Opti 129 on clearance too.

If you're in SE London, Margaret at Rear Facing Toddlers always seems nice on social media and very knowledgable. www.rearfacingtoddlers.com/pages/child-car-seat-advice-checking-and-fitting-service

@BertieBotts we never had an infant carrier for the toddler as I genuinely didn’t feel the need to use it on the pram etc. With nursery runs, it’s 10min walk away, so no need for the car there, hence my hesitation to buy one now as it feels like a waste of money.
Luckily, toddler was always great at staying asleep on any transfer from the car to pram etc, if we did need to move him and still is now.
Maybe we won’t be lucky second time around though.

We’re east London, but will check out Margaret, thank you for the recommendation!

Fair enough, I thought it sounded like you had used the 360 seat last time, so you obviously know what you're doing with the fixed seat from birth