if you have a gp 1 rear facing car seat can you come here and help me please...

[luvaduck]

thanks!

v helpful chat with in car safety centre today and am about to order RF car seat (next stage up - eg 1 year to 5 years) as have been convinced by safety data. I first heard about them on here so thank you mumsnet.

However we live MILES away from milton keynes so can't test them out

Does anyone have any experience of a britax 2 way elite?

or a multitec??

I have a vauxhall corsa - 4 years old - so space may be an issue - apparently the recaro polaric will be too big.

Thanks in advance

hi yes i have the 2 way elite. had to get this one as i can't use one with a stability leg as i have underfloor storage. we bought it from the in car safety centre too and have been really happy with it. simon tried it in both cars and then fitted it in mine as it will mostly be in mine. ds loves it too as even though it is rf he can still see out much more than in his baby seat.

we had either this seat or the multitech to choose from but the multi tech was too upright in both our cars. this can recline nearly as much as the maxi cosi cabrio if you need it to.

i was concerned about the side impact protection on the seat before i got it-but seeing it fitted, it's much deeper than it looks online. also it apparently got 9/10 for side impact tests in a safety test in finland. at the end of the day any rf seat is safer than a ff seat!

if you'd like to know anything else just shout

thats really helpful thanks

does it recline to different positions then?
what car have you got?

i was a bit worried about the side impact thing so thats good to know - have you got it in the middle seat?

do you (or anyone esle) know anything about the secura highway???

thanks again!

the recline depends on how you have it resting on the front seat, as you tether it when you have the desired position to secure it. i have a renault grand scenic.

i have it behind the passenger seat. didn't put it in the middle as i didn't think it would be very practical getting ds in and out of it.

i haven't seen the hi way although looking at the in car website it looks as big as the fixway. i tried the fixway in the front seat of my car as this was the only place i could have it- and it was massive. it blocked my side window so much i couldn't even see the side mirror!! i would guess in a corsa you wouldn't be able to use the passenger seat if it was behind it.

the multitech doesn't have a recline at all so it depends on the angle of your car seat as to how it fits iykwim. was a bit better in dp's car a seat leon. you could try ringing the centre and see if they have fitted it in a corsa. simon was really helpful and advised on the practical side too.

We have a Be Safe Izikid and a Britax Multi Tech (both RF seats good to 25kg).

Looked at lots of seats due to issues with legroom, and ended up changing car in order to get RF seats in and still be able to drive!

Prior to taking this rather major step, we had tried a variety of RF seats at the In Car Safety Centre in Essex (their contact details are on www.rearfacing.co.uk. The very helpful ladies there will be able to advise you by telephone or email if you are unable to visit in person (they are based near Basildon in Essex). Their service is funded by the County Council, and they do not sell car seats, so they are impartial and very knowledgeable.

You will also find a lot of info on seats and car models in the various threads on the rear facing Q&A forum.

BTW if you decide to purchase a Be Safe, it is considerably cheaper to import them from Sweden on www.toddler.se rather than from the MK shop - they charge about £700 for the seat rather than the £330 we paid inc P&P. That said, they do the Britax for £260 inc P&P, and we are also happy with that seat.

Also on the rearfacing site there are member profiles, and you might find someone closer to you who will let you try out their seat in your car.

this is GREAT thanks ladies!