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Original poster

Car seats - please help very confused

30 replies

berrycravings · 09/10/2010 17:54

I have spent the last few weeks searching for a carseat and am really struggling. I have a seperate pushchair as I decided a travel system was not for me, so for my question I only need help with the car seat itself. I am thinking of going for the Maxi-Cosi Cabirofix seat. Having done some reading it says it can either be used with the cars 3 point seat belt system or with an easy base (around £80 extra).

My question is, what is the difference for me using the the 3 point seat belt way or the base? Safety is my number 1 priority so will happily purchase the easybase if I need to. However as I am not planning to keep baby in the carseat and I will not need to be taking the seat in and out of the car that much (planning to use a sling and not drive very often). So do not need to easily take the car seat out of the car which I know is one benefit of the base.

Any help appreciated as I want to make the right decision.

OP posts:

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Ineedmorechocolatenow · 09/10/2010 17:57

IME the base makes it easy to take in and out of the car as it just clicks back in. I did take both mine into the house in their car seats when they were wee, or if we were visiting friends they would sit in the seat.

If you didn't have the base, it would be more of a faff getting it in and out. Something you want to avoid if LO has dropped off in the seat.

Hope that helps

japhrimel · 09/10/2010 18:30

It's a bit of a faff to put a car seat into a car with the 3 point belt if you're not used to doing it, so you'd need to always leave extra time for this to make sure you'd never be rushed, especially as you wouldn't get into the habit of doing it easily.

I think for dafety's sake, the base is good. You can go to Mothercare or Halfords or somewhere to get it is fitted correctly and then it can just sit in your car,ready to go.

japhrimel · 09/10/2010 18:31

For safety's sake.

moonstorm · 09/10/2010 18:57

I a crash test, I think I'm right in saying that Isofix is not safer than a seatbelt. HOWEVER with a seatbelt, you can put the seat in incorrectly whereas the Isofix seat will always be installed correctly (provided the Isofix base itself is fitted correctly). A badly fitted seat can be dangerous.

Last time I didn't have Isofix, this time I am, just to make sure.

hth

Original poster

berrycravings · 09/10/2010 19:03

Thanks for all your advice, I think hearing that it might be possible to get it wrong with the seat belt method I will go for the base.

Many thanks for taking the time to respond, my decision is now so much easier.

OP posts:

NoSexInOurCity · 09/10/2010 19:26

Hi. When purchasing ours, the shop assistant showed us how in rare cases, a belt-fixed maxi-cosi could possibly tip diagonally towards the back of the seat to which it is attached - at least with the base, it is absolutely fixed vertically and laterally.

Certainly the base has made it a LOT easier for lifting in and out of the car. On the odd occasion when we've travelled in other cars/taxis, at least it is possible though, but yes, a bit of a faff.

Only problem is when choosing new car, not all models have the isofix bars, surprisingly... Sounds obvious, but do check yours does (hope that doesn't sound patronising - meant kindly)

Have now recommended the same to pg friend who is borrowing our base to go with her seat .

oldmum42 · 09/10/2010 19:57

From what I've read (research and crash test reports), a PROPERLY fitted 3-point seatbelt seat is safer than an isofix one, as with a 3 point fitting, there is a bit of "give" which absorbs some of the crash momentum, where as with an isofix, it is very rigid and all the momentum is transferred to the baby, so increasing the risk of injury (as compared to the same crash with a correctly fitted 3point fixing).

HOWEVER, a shocking number of 3point fitted seats are either the wrong shape for the car they are put in, or they are belted up wrong.
And that makes them dangerous.

Obviously the shops selling these things are
going to point out the dangers of the 3point system - but not the dangers of the isofix, as they are the expensive option and they want to sell more of them.

I've gone for a 3point seatbelt seat, suitable for my car, and have been practising fitting it properly and quickly(baby due in a couple of weeks), as I am confident that this is the safest option, nothing to do with the extra cost as that's not an issue for us.

dairymoo · 09/10/2010 21:56

I had Maxi Cosi cabrofix car seats for my DTs and just used the 3-point seatbelt, and have to say that I never found it a faff, or that it took very long at all. Like you, I wasn't using the seats as part of a travel system, just took them out of the car occasionally if we were visiting someone and they were sleeping. As there isn't anything to say that either way is substantially safer, I chose to save the extra ££ per base and use it on something else!

1Catherine1 · 09/10/2010 22:28

Sorry for the mini hijack but oldmum42 how do you know if a car seat is suitable for your car?

I drive a Ford Ka (original modal) which is pretty cramped in the back and it worries me that I might get one that doesn't fit properly and I won't even know it. My car doesn't have the option of Isofix anyway so I know I'm looking for a 3point seatbelt seat.

MrsC2010 · 09/10/2010 22:45

We went for the Maxi Cosi and the Isofix base. (DH like the fact it was attached directly to the chassis.) We got the FamilyFix base, which can be used with the next car seat up too. Been great so far.

MrsC2010 · 09/10/2010 22:47

Oooh, if your car doesn't have Isofix bars you might be able to have them retro-fitted. We bought ours direct from the Audi dealer and DH fitted them, quite easy (apparently!)and didn't take long.

Lionstar · 09/10/2010 22:52

We had the Maxi Cosi and Isofix base which was great, and I often took the seat in the house if kids were still asleep after a trip in to town (though was aware of the limit of them sleeping in seat)

On holiday we used a seat fixed with seatbelt and it was SO MUCH faffier. Also, because the shoulder strap part of the belt kind of 'blocked' the access to the seat, you had to pretty much undo it every time to get the baby out, let alone remove the seat. Undoing and doing the seatbelt every time just added to the possibility of fixing the seat incorrectly at least once, whereas no likelyhood of that with the fixed base.

oldmum42 · 09/10/2010 23:02

1catherine1, some sellers like Halfords and Mothercare will check the seat fits and is suitable, but I THINK this info may be available from the seat manufactures as well? As It's just the from birth small carrier seat (from my travel system), they all seem to fit everything - I've not yet bought the next stage up.

BertieBotts · 09/10/2010 23:06

Really with the first stage seats fitting is not an issue - it's very unlikely you wouldn't get one to fit in a car unless your car is more than 10 years old and has very short seatbelts.

The second stage seats are trickier but I wouldn't worry about that yet anyway.

I don't drive myself (my ex partner did so used the car occasionally) and I always had a seatbelt-fitted carseat and found it fine and really quick and easy. If you look up how to fit it, it's not difficult to get it right, and once you've done it a few times you get used to it. Personally I think the bases are a bit of a gimmick, though they could be particularly useful if you have mobility issues, a bad back, etc, a 3-door car, or if you have lots of children.

I was interested to notice, BTW, that the own-brand Mothercare infant seat is manufactured by the same people as Maxi-Cosi, just unbranded, and I think it's a good choice if you don't need it to be compatible with a pushchair and are on a budget.

NoSex I find it bizarre that the shop assistant told you that, as the shop assistant I spoke to showed me exactly the same thing and said it was a safety feature, that was why the handle is designed to be up, and the seat forms a rollcage with the back seat of the car to protect the baby, in that instance.

KickArseQueenOfTheDamned · 09/10/2010 23:14

The seat base is normally held in by a 3 point belt anyway. Not necessarily isofix!

The base I had with ds2 would slide on the seat and slacken off it was not in my opinion as secure a fit as the belt fitted seat I had used with dd1.

It is useful to be able to take your baby into the house when they are asleep, don't discount how much you will want your baby to stay asleep once they are - their sleeping time is very precious!

japhrimel · 10/10/2010 10:02

One advantage of the Easyfix base that is compatible with the Maxi-Cosi CabrioFix is that it is semi-universal and be fitted with either the 3 point belt or Isofix. We got this one as we have a car without Isofix right now but may be replacing it within the next 9 months.

If you're ever in a rush - running late, it's raining, whatever - then it's a lot harder to make sure a seat is fitted correctly with a belt. Obviously if you get a lot of practice, then it's easier.

For the OP, I'd say that as you won't get much practice with the seat, a base is a good option.

sparklyrainbow · 10/10/2010 10:26

There is a car compatibility guide from Maxi Cosi here

Cabrio Fix was a best buy in Which, tested without a base if that helps.

SmacsGonePotty · 10/10/2010 10:44

I have the easyfix base (we didn't have Isofix in the car when pg with DD1) which I am using for the second time round with DD2. I love it and think it is well worth the extra money to save faffing. I fully appreciate that if you use the seatbelt all the time you will get quicker at it but I live in a wet part of the country and I hate getting a wet back while I put the carseat in place, especially at the supermarket. The base makes putting the carseat in much quicker and when it shows green you know it's safe.

LotteryWinnersOnAcid · 10/10/2010 13:37

Can I ask a possibly stupid question? (Thought here might be a good place to ask rather than start a new thread.)

Do you have to have the car seat fitted in the front seat when the baby is newborn/young? People have mentioned this to me and I have no idea why this would be the case unless you only have a 2 seater car or something... anyway enlightenment on the issue would be much appreciated.

1Catherine1 · 10/10/2010 16:10

I know you should never put your baby seat in the front seat if you have an airbag fitted since apparently if it goes off it can kill the baby or cause serious harm. I have read that warning over and over. It even says it on the car seat manual. That therefore means there can't possibly be restrictions saying you must do this because sometimes it would be dangerous.

My dear car only has a driver airbag so I intend to put the baby in the front when I'm alone so the baby can see me and in the back when I'm with my OH. I tend to drive since it's my car and I'm protective of her and my OH is too tall to fit in the back of a ford Ka :)

1Catherine1 · 10/10/2010 16:12

This link might be useful to you LotteryWinnersOnAcid

law on child seats

1Catherine1 · 10/10/2010 16:16

Forgot to press space in my link so broke it... woops... I'll try again

UK Law on Child seats

trixie123 · 10/10/2010 19:45

One downside to having baby in the front is that you are more easily distracted by them and might be tempted to try and find the dummy or whatever instead of concentrating on the road. If baby is in the back you CAN"T do anything unless you pull over.

In Herts we had a talk at our "first mum's group" organised by the HV team about car seat safety and it seems the council has a specific person whose sole job is to advise and check up on people's car seat. I don;t know if this is true elsewhere but she gave us lots of useful info.

Hopalongcassidy · 10/10/2010 21:45

We had the Maxicosi Cabrio with Easybase (not isofix) for DS1. It was so much easier to get in and out of the car with a sleeping baby, but the biggest benefit was that it was so simple to fit. When we moved the seat between cars, we took the base too. There is also a red/green button on it, which goes green when the seat is inserted into the base correctly-fantastic reassurance when I was so exhausted and anxious (PFB!)

whizzymummy · 10/10/2010 22:55

Just thought I'd say both our DC were born before Isofix was widely available. We had a maxicosi which we used for both DC, it was really good.
My honest opinion, from experience, is that it is not a hassle to get these in and out of the car - when you get the hang of them they really don't take long.
Also you can have your child in the frontseat when they are rear facing but ONLY if you can switch your airbag off. We can and I did as it made it easier to put a dummy in when it fell out!!
Good luck with your choice but if budget is an issue I would not worry about the Isofix, what seems more important to me is the car type you have. A 3 door car may be a struggle and a base you simply click into more straightforward what with all the leaning over?

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