What carseat can I use for my HUGE 5 month old?

[dejags]

DS2 is 21 weeks old now and is seriously, seriously struggling to fit into his rear facing car seat (it's a graco travel system one). He is nowhere near sitting up independently so I cannot put him in the next one up as it is forward facing.

Are there bigger rear facing seats out there?

PS: he is 23.5lbs - I am not even sure what the upper weight limit of the graco is

i put jess in a forward facing one at 5 and a half months as she was too big for the travel system one.... she loves it and doesnt looked dwarfed by it at all.

use the next size up
am positive I di d for ds3
cant be arsed lugging those things around

you can put them in a big one once they reach 19lbs - it goes by weight!

i think your ds has exceeded the limit for the car seat you are using, usually its around 20lb mark. i'd splash out for a 2stage seat (britax 1st class si maybe) which can be rear facing then turned about. hth.

goes by weight and head control .. if he has good head control then I'd put him in the forward facing one

btw put dd2 in forward facing seat at around 4/5months as she was too big for rearward facing ones. she was also rolling at this point and crawled soon after.

thanks very much - you are right the upper limit for the one he is in 26lbs so not much in it at all.

I'll get the 2nd stage one out of the attic and try him in it.

I can't believe he has outgrown his baby carseat

I was told by Britax that they have to be sitting independently to go forward facing as well as the right weight.

My ds was big but mothercare told me he had to be sitting well before going in a forward seat. apparently it is weight and a developmental thing too.

Dejags - just one thing to be careful about; even if yr ds is too big for his current seat, I'd keep him rear facing for a bit longer. As Misdee says, there is a Britax seat for the 2nd stage, (9m - 4years approx), which can be installed facing the rear an then turned around.
The reason is that however comfy yr little one looks facing forward, looking out the window, ets, in the event of an accident, even at low speed, a baby's neck and spine are VERY vulnerable to whiplash type damage if facing the front. As I understand it, sometimes the damage is so bad they don't fully get over it. Sorry to be so gloomy about it ! A lot of car manufacturers recommend that young babies should stay rear facing for a lot longer than is currently the norm in the UK for this very reason.

stilltrue - I know, problem is, is that there isn't a rear facing carseat available in this country such as the Britax - I'll have to look at importing one.

It's my major, major bugbear about South Africa. People just don't give a damn about restraining their children properly. I am amazed at what I see - e.g. I must see toddlers standing on the front seat of a car at least 5/6 times a week and it is the norm for people to hold their tiny babies in the car - I'd say that there are more people who do this than use a proper car seat for a newborn.

My best friend does this and it drives me nuts. As for toddlers being in carseats - well this is rare to non-existent. Can you believe they still sell cars here without rear seatbelts?? Considering the road safety statistics are some of the worst in the world...

I am in a difficult position now though - if I import the Britax or similar it will take so long to get here he will probably be ok in the Maxi-Cosi Priory by the time it arrives.

Decisions, decisions, me thinks the little porker will be shoehorned into his current seat for a while longer.

as long as he is within the weight limit he should be fine till the enw one turns up. check the britax site to make sure it fits b4 u order it if u get the britax one. dd2 legs were really cramped up and she used to scream when we put her rear facing. the britax one has a bit more leg/bum room than the smaller seats.

i have the problem now that at 2.5yrs old dd2 has now outfrown 2nd stage seats as she weighs over 40lb, and i dont like her in just a high back booster but the only seat i can find that suitable is the britax elite and atm wont fit in the car with 2 other seats. cant wait til lwe get our new car sorted, for now its a high back booster for her.

oh how lovely to be in the company of sane, car-safety conscious people.

I'll print off this thread and show it to the next relative who tells me to stop being paranoid because I won't let DS1 go in the car unless he is in his seat (he's 3.5 and I am paranoid and proud ).

my parents have an odd car (peroduo or soemthing) and the britax 1st class doesnt fit in their car, but an old britax 2 stage one does. and its lovely and slim. the fabric is gone on it tho, but the seat is solid. its at least 5 years old, and the label has worn away.

Dejags, I didn't know you were in SA; I can see your problems with the local car culture. I don't know what you drive, but could one of the big manufacturers (Ford, Volvo, Merc or whatever) sell you a suitable seat, even if not same brand as your car iyswim. Maybe try sales/service dept ??