Let's talk car seats..

[exhaustedmummy89]

Hello everyone,

My DD is 6 months old currently happy in a maxi cosi pebble pro car seat however I am finding now she is getting bigger I would much prefer one of those rotating car seats but there are so many too choose from so am looking for suggestions on the best no limit on cost either.. i would also like to no how bulky the iso fix bases really are I have a small hatch back and any advice on how to protect leather seats I currently have a seat protector on it so hoping that will be enough.. when my 2 others were babies many moons ago we didn't have the luxury of these spin seats so it really is a treat to get 😁

Thank you all

My 18m old is in the Cybex sirona, she went into it about 5 months and I'm sure she can stay in it until 4 years old! Rotates really well and super easy, you lay it down a bit too so she isn't sat completely upright when she sleeps.

We have our two in joie I spin 360. Goes forward or rewards to 19kg and 105cm so around 4. Daughter will be 3 in May and just under 14kg and 92 cm so loads of room still, son is 18 months. Looks like will both get to 4+ in the seat and really comfy, easy to use. Had a infant carrier first for both as we live in a flat and was easier to carry them up.and down stairs in the seat when they were tiny, but the joie does from birth and you remove the extra inserts as you go. It has a isofix leg and we have a seat protector on our leather seats. One on each side of back seat. Working really well for us, with the added advantage, we can stop on long journeys for a picnic and turn the seats forward while sitting still. Would buy the same again. They were around £300.

My twins also have the Cybex Sirona. It's great - rotates forwards or backwards, and is suitable till about age 4.
My daughter said she loves her car seat since it's "so cosy".
I've no negatives to say about it.

Another vote for the Joie spin 360. I got it at 8 months and it changed my life!!! He looked so comfy sitting in it

Thanks ladies I have seen the Joie one seems very popular can I ask what the bases are like for them?? I want something safe for my DD but also not really bulky she isn't a huge baby only weighing 14 lb and so many oz and only roughly 62cms atm so a bit petite like me I am only 5ft 1 x

The joie base is attached. Its pretty big but fits from newborn. My wee girl was pretty small but fitted really well, very adjustable.

It's on offer just now and there is a picture of the base.

www.mamasandpapas.com/products/joie-ispin-360-isize-baby-to-toddler-car-seat-coal-560779000?utm_term=36125052010661&gclid=Cj0KCQiAx6ugBhCcARIsAGNmMbg5YFX-qBo_OHALakZ8cXVzGzHxSL8biTmsUyW9QREqAMgJM4m_vjoaAixPEALw_wcB

My wee boy went into it at 3 months and it was very secure. Lots of friends have had a shot of ours then bought same one.

We have a cybex one in grandparents car as they already had for a slightly older grandchild. It's really good too.

We had the joie 360 one for DD and I was only raging I didn't have one for her older siblings. I think we started using it when she was five or six months (I can't remember) but it was great and she was so comfy in it

@Mmr224 sorry dumb question alert these seats are completely new to me I am old school I just belt my car seats in.. with this one do I need to purchase the iso fix base thingy separately? 🤦🏻‍♀️ x

@SparkyBlue I didn't have one for my boys who are 12&10 I think they might have just been coming on to the market but cannot remember I just use to belt their seats into the car which was a pain in the arse at the best of times 😂 with my DD she has the maxi cosi pebble pro and I belt that in atm but now all those memories of trying to belt it in when it's peeing it down is starting to come back and I think it's time I up grade x

We have the britax dualfix spin seat. I really like it and the spin button is in a better place than I've seen on some. But it is bulky and heavy. Its all one piece so you don't need to buy a separate isofix base. We will never use it forward facing though because rear facing is so much safer, so we just spin to the side to get her in.

I would really recommend checking out the Extended Rear Facing (ERF) Car seat safety group on Facebook. They have some great advice on safest plus tested seats and how to get a good fit. Often at 6 months petite babies can get a poor fit in spin seats and people tend to take the inserts out too soon. Our daughter is 2 now and stills fits in her baby seat so you may have loads of time left in that.

@Wrongsideofpennines thanks lovely oh I get that with the inserts I actually left mine it a little later than expect in her maxi cosi as I forgot they came out 🤦🏻‍♀️😂 yes rear facing is what I want for safety.. oh there is so many too choose from I remember the days when you could go into mother care and they would try them out in your care that's how long ago I brought a car seat 😂 she is definitely petite like me so will last a while which is good it's giving me a headache looking at all these seats now can I ask do the seats seem higher too my DD hates being so low down she is so nosey I have an aspiring curtain twitcher on my hands I think 😂 x

It's hard isn't it. And so many places sell them online but then it's just rubbish knowing if they're going to fit or not. Maybe find an independent retailer where you can try some out.
The spin seats are higher up yeah. Which is good for looking out of the window but does mean I bump DD's head on the doorframe multiple times a week...

I bought the Graco Turn2Me - really reasonable price and comes with the isofix base. I have a Smart 5 door and it fits quite well, the Joei one was way too big! We went to Mamas and Papas and they brought the car seats out to our car so we could check the fit. Definitely worth doing!

I would second joining the extended rear facing group who are very knowledgeable about car seats if you post details about height, weight and age. They can also let you know who your nearest independent retailer is.

I ended up buying an Axkid Minikid which I much prefer to my isofix Pearl pro. I had help fitting the tethers and installing it but love the self-adjusting headrest and the fact that I can increase the leg room when my little one gets bigger. As it is a 25kg I can keep my little one rear facing until they are ready for a HBB.

Do you have isofix in your car? You won't be able to use it with seatbelt, these are isofix only seats.

However it's not a separate base like the baby seats. The isofix is built into the seat so you just install it and it stays in place.

If you have a smaller car the Joie is very good as it's more compact than some of the others. The downside of this is that the legroom for the child isn't as good as they get older. This is not necessarily a problem in terms of safety but sometimes people don't like it as it doesn't seem very comfortable.

On the other hand there is the Besafe one which might be good if you're worried about your seats as unlike other car seats, it kind of floats above the car seat itself so should not leave any marks. (See attached video)

Or you could look at Britax Dualfix and get the Britax seat protector to go with it. Joie do not approve seat protectors under their seats but Britax have their own one, so you know it's approved with that seat.

@BertieBotts yes I have iso fix ports I don't have a base for my DD's seat I just belt it in atm but once I pick a new seat I shall be using it x

I am still no wiser on which to get I have joined the Facebook group awaiting my post to be approved. I am leaning towards the Joie one atm I am going to have a look and see if there are any stores I can visits to have a good look at them I so wish there was a mothercare that was definitely my go to place for when my boys were babies many many moons ago 😂 xx

To be honest, they are all much of a muchness. As long as you get one with a leg instead of top tether, and avoid the ones which do all stages in one, that would be my advice.

The Joie one is nice. They are often stocked at John Lewis, Halfords and Smyths if you have any near to you.

You’ll get some great advice from the Extended Rear Facing group.
It sounds like your daughter is low centiles, which may mean that you get to safe booster age with a rotating seat. I’d definitely suggest maxing out your infant carrier though. Spin seats sometimes don’t get a great fit until your little one is a bit older. They are also quite bulky and difficult to turn as your little one gets bigger.
You mentioned about your leather seats - just to warn you, Joie don’t approve of anything being used under their seats for safety reasons.
Good luck with your search.

The joie one is easy to fit and isofix base is attached. Relatively heavy to move in and out of car but easy enough to fit properly and I'm only 5'2" and can manage ok. I'm expecting my wee girl to get to 5 in the seat rear facing as shes around 25 centile. She is in hospital a lot due to being immune suppressed and gets a lot if illnesses, so light as well as short.

A few people we know have come round and tried our seat in their car with the baby as the car seat shops seem unwilling to do that now. Most have bought the same one after using it. It might be worth asku g around at baby group etc if anyone has one of the seats you are interested in, you could try lifting, fitting, see how it is in your car and how it suits baby?

We really liked Axkid seats but they don't do a spin one and with her being in hospital a lot, the spin feature is really helpful when she's not well so we don't jostle her so much getting in and out. We might get one of those for when the 1st one starts to get big for the 19kg spin seat as they go to 25kg backwards. We had an infant carrier which clicked into a separate isofix base which stayed in the car, which I loved. I really struggled with sestbelting the seat in and out every time particularly when my wee girl was I'll so often. The base made it.much better.

We moved to the next Maxi Cosi up from the Pebble- The Pearl Pro 360 or whatever it is called. Its great! And can be used from newborn so very adjustable as baby grows.

@alpinia I was looking at the Pearl one I love the maxi cosi seats and my dd does always look comfortable in it I might invest in that one.