Extended Rear Facing car seat help

[JustAMum35]

Hoping there are some people here who may be able to point me in the right direction:

DC is 4.5years, 111cm and 20.4kg.

Unfortunately the car seat we currently have has developed a fault and it appears it’s quite common in the seat we have (BR MaxSafePro) so I’d rather not get the same seat again.

Can anyone recommend the best ERF seats for higher centile children? I’ve been looking at the Axkid Minikid 4? Or BeSafe Stretch?

Will be moved frequently between vehicles - mainly Kia Sportages of various ages, but also occasionally a Golf, so ease of installation is also important 😊

We have the a kid mini kid 2, it’s an older model so it was cheaper. I think I paid £235 for it last year? It goes up to 25kg. My 3.5yo is 105cm and still got plenty of growing room.

DH is 6’1 and can just about move the drivers seat back. We have an MG ZS.

Absolutely love our besafe stretch! Would buy another in a heartbeat. It’s simple enough to install but we find it easier with two people- one to pull the belt tight and one to hold the seat, but this may be the case with all seats? The entire cover comes off and is machine washable which is amazing!

I've got a 20kg 4 year old (unsure on height) in an Axkid Minikid 2. I find it easy to move it in and out of cars. Do you have an independent outlet or advisor that can let you try some out?

@Sebora Thank you 😊 I’ve seen Axkid recommended a lot! I’m hoping for a 36kg seat since DC is higher centiles though I think!

@Chocolatehobnobs25 It looks great in terms of leg room etc. Hmmm, I’m not sure - MSP was definitely easier with 2 people but still perfectly easy and took around 3 minutes to install with 1 person 😊 There will only usually be 1 person there for install so want something easy enough!

@Chocolateorange22 We have a car seat place about an hour away which stocks a huge number of brands - including lots of ERF options, so will be able to try them out there and see what works for us.
Would rather buy from an independent as I’ve seen lots that seem to give good aftercare & advice on Facebook etc but our faulty seat came from the place an hour away and they’re looking at replacing it for us so we may be tied to using them.

I had an erf dilemma last year and went for the besafe stretch. I finish my payment plan next month and it has literally been the best purchase I’ve bought my kiddie!

I feel really confident with my child in this seat and it’s really easy to remove and install. I do it all the time because I have to clean the seat and car so much! I do it on my own as lone parent and it really is easy once you’ve done it a few times.

@bertiebotts gave me tons of amazing advice I hope she doesn’t mind me mentioning and I also joined erf groups on fb for extra advice and just to see how other seats compare.

I was also torn between axkid and besafe but I went for stretch as it reclines while installed. Mines just turned 2 so was and is still napping!
also I think axkid is recommended for those with longer torso as it has a taller shell but someone with actual knowledge will let you know. Still, both seats are good for higher centiles.

Have fun deciding and let us know what you choose!

Thanks for the tag but honestly I don't have anything to add - everyone has already given great recommendations and advice

@Mildred01 Thank you! The stretch does look great. Hoping to hear back from the place we got the faulty one today to see if they’re going to offer anything before I go and purchase a new one. Thankfully it’s not used for any essential trips as we live a walkable distance to work/nursery so we have some time.

@BertieBotts Thank you 😊

If the Max Safe Pro fault is with the harness fraying, then Britax will replace it for free with the newest model, which doesn't seem to have the same issues. I know you said you weren't keen to go back to them, but just in case you weren't aware of that and it changed your mind.

@DeliciouslyBaked Thank you. It’s not fraying, it seems to be slackening off during use. I’ve checked everything I can think of - he’s properly bum to back and all slack removed, the straps aren’t twisted, head rest/straps are at the correct height, the seat is clean and no crumbs etc are lodged around the release button or anything.
it happened a few times previously and I assumed it was maybe that my son had puffed himself up while being strapped in and then the slack was due to him relaxing into the seat. But it’s started happening frequently and it’s definitely happening on its own.

Britax suggested our retailer as a first port of call.

We have a besafe stretch and I love it. It's so easy to install! With tethers in both cars it would be a doddle to move back and forth. Also have a minikid 2, which is harder to install but I believe the newer ones are easier.

We have the Axkid One - I recently got the Axkid One 2 rather than the current One 3 model as the updates appear to be minimal (like magnetic strap holders) but a good saving when you consider the One 3 is about 650! I went for this over the Mini kid because it's isofix and no tethers so I thought it would be easier to move between cars.

We have a Minikid 2 and a Minikid 4. We tried the BeSafe Stretch and it took much more room in the car (Qashqai). The Minikid 2 is great but the Minikid 4 is a bit smaller at the bottom and a bit quicker to fit due to a clever zip bit at the bottom for getting the seatbelt through easily. If you are transferring tethered seats between cars I'd get spare tethers to leave in each car. We bought a the newer seat for the main car and got the older Minikid 2 on sale for the second car. We can fit both seats in our smaller car which is smaller than a Golf.

All of these are good seats, but just to add, based on your boy's current centiles, he'll likely reach 25kg around 6 years old and 125cm around 6.5 years, so a 36kg seat will get you roughly an extra six months rear-facing.

If you're moving it between cars a lot, I'd consider getting some extra tethers – a lot of people who switch between two cars have a set of tethers in each to save time. With a lot of cars, that might be too much, but maybe a set for the 'main car' and set to move between the others.

The Axkid One has a weight limit of 23kg because of the isofix, so less good for a high centiles child.

We’ve recently moved on from a BeSafe Stretch which kept our tall son RF to over 7 years. It’s a great seat but it did take up a lot of room in our Golf. I believe the Axkid Minikid 4 (or one of the newer versions of it) is more compact and also has a taller shell so if your child carries their height in their torso, the Axkid could be a better option. We never used the recline in situ as our son was 5 when we got the seat, but this would definitely be handy if you have a younger child that you may be passing the seat down to at some point.
The Stretch is really easy to move, used to take me 5 mins, but an extra set of tethers would have made it even quicker.

@lochmaree @FizzyOranges @MarioLink @skkyelark @FamilyAreEverything

Thank you all for your replies 😊

We currently have spare tethers in all cars for the MSP so will do the same for whatever seat we end up with 😊 Will go and have a look at all the options suggested and see what we’ll get the longest rear facing out of as I want him rear facing as long as possible (much to my parents disgust 🙄😂)

No younger child to pass the seat onto so recline option isn’t really an issue. DC would only usually fall asleep on a long journey of maybe 1.5-2h + 😊

We have an Axkid Minikid 2 and an Axkid Movekid which is the same as the minikid 4 but without the auto adjusting headrest and tethers.

It has the tallest shell on the market so can accommodate the tallest torso children. The movekid is a lot cheaper than the minikid 4.

Having previously had the minikid 2 I was set that I wanted the minikid 4 but when I tried them out I actually preferred the movekid.

Hi @JustAMum35 just wanted to suggest another seat which is the new avionaut stardust. Swivel rear facing then converts to a hbb but not sure of the rear facing weight/height limits. I just had a thought your little one was 4 and higher centiles. It might not be what you’re looking for but just a suggestion. 😊

We have the stretch and love it. Love that it tightens the belt. Love that it reclines. Love that my son can fall asleep and not get a sore neck

The Avionaut Stardust is harnessed to 21kg, so better for average to lower centile weight children.

@Mildred01 Thank you 😊 I’ve heard good things about Avionaut before but I believe this seat is harnessed either rear or forward facing until 21kg then converts to a HBB.
Hes 20.4kg at 4.5yo so I’d ideally like a 36kg rear facing seat to keep him rear facing as long as possible 😊

Currently having a battle trying to deal with the fault through our retailer unfortunately!

Thank you all for your advice 😊 Finally got it sorted with our retailer and will be testing some out this week to replace ours!

Currently looking at Axkid Minikid 4 Max or Pro or the BeSafe Stretch I think!

Please let me know which you decide! Been driving myself a little crazy looking at ERF car seats and trying to decide what to get. I've narrowed it down to the same two car seats and would love to hear what you thought of them. Unfortunately there is no where nearby where we can go into a showroom and have a look because that would have been ideal.

Having to replace our car seat after we got rear ending by a lovely fellow who jumped out of his car and proceeded to shout and blame us for his carelessness. Thank goodness for dash cams.

@Tanuki88 Ahhh, how awful for you 😔 I hope you nobody was injured?

What carseat did you have?

We went and tried some Axkids and the Besafe Stretch and we went with the Axkid Minikid 4 Max 😊 cannot fault it at all. Super easy to fit, DS says it’s super comfy, it sits a tad higher than our previous seat so DS likes that he can see out the window a bit better, and he has loads of space 😊

DS said the Stretch wasn’t as comfy.

We spent a good hour trying seats so I’m happy to answer any questions as best I can if you’re wondering about and specific features etc 😊