Car seats!

[Parent19876]

Oookay, just started shopping around for car seats and am boggled by how many options there are!!
I'm drawn to the ones that are separate stages (ie 0-15 months) because i like the fact that you can click in and out of the isofix without having to wake baby by getting them out of the seat. Also, if my mom were to watch her it would be cheaper to just buy another base than a whole new carseat.
On the other hand, it looks like the ones (stages 0-2/3) that "grow with the baby" are better bang for your buck. The only thing is that they don't seem to recline nearly as far so I'm terrified of the airway closing off if she were to fall asleep when a newborn.
And then the whole other fact of a travel system and which car seat fits into that etc.
Everything I've acquired for my little lady has been second hand, in fact the only thing i want to buy new is the car seat itself.
If it makes any difference, i have a honda insight which has a pretty large back seat bench area.
I'm just so lost and the only store within an hour and a half of where i live is Halfords (very slim pickings).
My sister found a great Graco 0-3 stages car seat in America that she was going to bring over for me, but it has chest clips, which are apparently illegal in the UK.
How did you guys decide which car seat you were going to purchase? What were the deciding criteria?
I'm twenty two weeks and due the first week of September...

I wanted something that did from birth onwards allowing for extended rear facing until the seat was outgrown, 3.5 years in our case.

We had the Joie Steadi seat as we didn't drive and needed something compact, we would've gotten the Joie Stages or a BeSafe seat otherwise as they look more substantial with more legroom for older kids too.

For me I have a bad back so wanted a swivel chair. Also wanted one that could be used for extended rear facing. We went for the recarro zero.1 elite in the end. Pricy but lasts

Get one that spins is the advice I’ve been given, so that’s how I am limiting the options!

I have no issues with a maxi cosi pebble. I just use a seat belt as it take 15 seconds to click in and out and it came with the pram bundle x

Be careful with American car seats. Their seatbelts lock differently (not just when pulled sharply) and sometimes car seats rely on this mechanism.

We found the isofix base thing great - so much easier than fiddling with the seatbelt. Also extended rear-facing is much safer if you've got room in the back seat of the car.

In car safety centre in Milton Keynes is great for advice...
incarsafetycentre.co.uk/

We had a group 0 infant carrier (Silvercross simplifix for DC1 & maxi cosi cabriofix for DC2) to start with. I have small babies, and they both easily fit in those until they were over a year old. They say you should switch when they exceed the maximum weight limit or their head is level with the top of the car seat - both of my DCs were too tall for the seats when we switched them to a new one, rather than exceeding weight limit.
We then swapped them to the next stage car seats (Joie Stages for DC1 and Joie Tilt for DC2). They are still comfortably in them. DC1 has turned forward facing now (she’s 4), and DC2 is still comfortably rear-facing in his seat (he’s 2 and a half).
We are expecting DC3 and will do the same again - use an infant carrier, then move onto the next stage when the time comes. We managed to get the two Joie group 1-2-3 seats on great offers post-Christmas both times! I think DC2’s seat was something crazy like 60% off!

I have got the maxi cosi pebble, you get the isofix family fix base to go with this, and when baby is too big u buy maxi cosi pearl which uses the same isofix base. I bought the adapters for maxi cosi pebble that clip it on to my pram and my pram is the bugaboo cameleon. haven't used yet as still few weeks to go but I thought this would be the best after searching all different options for months! x

One thing you might not be aware of is that most of the multi stage ones aren't rated as highly for protection than the one stage seats, which is something to consider.

I found choosing car seat really stressful too!

The thing that made it easiest was focusing on safety- that instantly ruled out most car seats for me, including all of the all the way through seats (which had initially been my preference). There ended up being only three car seats I considered based on their performance on tests at 40mph side and front on collisions (the EU requirement is only for them to be tested at 30mph front on even thought the most common accidents are side on and over 30mph as lots of people go over 30 in a 30 zone). I was genuinely shocked how poor the basic safety testing standards are!
Within the three, I ended up going for the kiddy evoluna isize (but the original, not the 2 version as it performed a little worse on safety tests) as this was the only seat of the three that reclines in the car so keeps the baby's airways open. We're not planning to get a pushchair, but if that's something you're looking into then the evoluna is compatible with a few different travel systems too. The only downside is it's hard to come by in the shops as the newer version is out, but the upside is that it means they are on sale online- ours cost £235 when it would usually have been over £400.

Although there are cheaper seats out there or seats with different mods and cons, when I made myself stop and think I realised the only thing that mattered was keeping baby safe in a crash and so decided to pay the extra and ignore the fancy extras and just focus on safety! xx

I’ve just got a Which subscription. For babies 0-18 months, it’s safest to get an I-size seat. The one Which rated most highly was the Cybex Aton - it was the only one to get 5 stars. I’m hoping to get that seat, assuming it fits in our cars!

Think ahead. You can get seats which rear face until 25kg now. Think about an infant carrier then a 0-25kg seat. Look for rigorous testing standards.

Postnatal woman should not be carrying infant car seats as it can lead to post-birth injuries!

Also some babies just don't stay asleep when you move their seat, most do but doesn't always happen!

I'd go with an infant carrier at first and then an extended rear facing (to 25kg) seat.
The infant carrier clips in and out more easily and helps if they are sleeping when you are shopping or arrive home.

I'd then go for a 25kg rf seat as it will last at least a couple of years longer than others which only go up to 18kg.
Ideally I'd be looking at a Swedish Plus Tested Seat. This is a voluntary extra Test in which seats are subject to higher forces.

There's a FB group called Car Seat Advice UK which can help you wade through it all.

Hmmm. My last attempt was deleted. I agree with Fairfax. Infant capsule (e.g. Pebble Plus) until 6-18 months depending on baby size. Isofix can alter recline angle and make them more upright so consider using the seat belt - no less safe if fitted properly but obviously you need to know how to do it and practice. Then rear face until 25kg. I was going to do isofix Pebble Plus/Pearl combo but research and membership of some FB groups has me going with Pebble Plus belted and then Axkid Mini until 25kg. All stages are not from 0kg so especially if you have a small baby they may not work anyway. Infant capsules are quite obviously better designed for babies when you look at them.

Have you chosen a pram/pushchair and do you want the car seat to be able to clip into it for quick trips into Tescos? I did and this narrowed down my choices! I wanted one that could be isofix for me and dh for ease, but could also be fitted with a seat belt if we went out in a friend's car for example. This narrowed it down some more. Then I looked on Which at their reviews, and discounted ones where they'd noticed problems that I was worried about. Then I ordered them by price (including the base) and bought the cheapest! Turned out to be the Joie igemm and I got an advance base which can be used with the next size chair (probably for Dhs car, I want a spinny one because of a dodgy back)

Top tested seats list below.

Is there a website that compares safety ratings? Or is it WHICH only?

I haven't decided on a pram yet, I'm waiting to decide on a car seat first. Safety and functionality is my main concern.
The infant carrier I keep going back to is the Maxi Cosi Rock.
I do think that I'll get an infant carrier first, then progress and use extended rear facing.
I haven't even decided if a pram is a necessity as I want to baby wear a lot, but I do realise that a pram is a lot more useful when carrying the shopping back.

Thank you all for your feedback.

Which? Isn't what I'd use to choose a car seat as their rating is funny. They apparently actually deduct points if there isn't a large enough range of colours.

I'd stick with ones that have passed the Swedish Plus Test as these are the most rigorous.

OP the list I posted below is the go to list for rear facing seats once baby is out of the infant carrier. The plus tested are the best of the best. I agree Which is not the best place to look for safety info. Please consider joining any number of UK car seat groups on Facebook like A-Z of rear facing seats. For infant seats you should stick with the big manufacturers like Maxi Cosi. They are well tested and would serve you well until you're ready to move to a bigger seat.

My starting point was a seat that lies flat(ish), which narrows them down to start.
I think I'll be going for a Joie i-level i-size. Its compatible with lots of travel systems with Maxi-cosi adapters.