Car Seat Mega Thread! Please post all your car seat questions here!

bee06 · 12-07-2019 3:44pm

Jurgen The German wrote: »

Anyone familiar with this one?

Dunno if its available over here.

https://bestcarseathub.com/reviews/graco-4ever-all-in-one/

This one either.

https://tonykealys.com/diono-radian-5-black-mist.html?___store=ie

Is the Graco one American? If so it wouldn’t meet European safety standards.

The Diono radian is a good seat. RF to 25kg and recommended on the RF Facebook group.

Skybirdjb · 11-09-2019 9:28pm

Looking for your advise please , my little guy is nearly 9kg now and I need to get him a new car seat . The only trouble is I would need a one that turns as I have medical issues that cause me a lot of pain and it’s so hard getting him in and out . Does anyone have a recommendation for a seat that won’t break the bank ?? Thanks

Millem · 11-09-2019 9:39pm

Skybirdjb wrote: »

Looking for your advise please , my little guy is nearly 9kg now and I need to get him a new car seat . The only trouble is I would need a one that turns as I have medical issues that cause me a lot of pain and it’s so hard getting him in and out . Does anyone have a recommendation for a seat that won’t break the bank ?? Thanks

Does your seat not go up to 13kg?

Skybirdjb · 11-09-2019 9:41pm

It does but he’s really tall and i Just find it so hard to get him in and out of the car , so the one that rotates would be so much easier

jlm29 · 11-09-2019 11:44pm

Skybirdjb wrote: »

It does but he’s really tall and i Just find it so hard to get him in and out of the car , so the one that rotates would be so much easier

Is he heavy as well as tall? The rotating seats are all 18kg seats, so if he’s tall and heavy he’ll outgrow that quite early, and you’ll end up buying another.
The joie spin is one of the more cost effective swivel seats.
Of note, some of the 25kg rear facing seats have quite low sides, so it’s very easy to get baby in and out even without the rotate feature

jlm29 · 11-09-2019 11:45pm

Skybirdjb wrote: »

It does but he’s really tall and i Just find it so hard to get him in and out of the car , so the one that rotates would be so much easier

Is he heavy as well as tall? The rotating seats are all 18kg seats, so if he’s tall and heavy he’ll outgrow that quite early, and you’ll end up buying another.
The joie spin is one of the more cost effective swivel seats.
Of note, some of the 25kg rear facing seats have quite low sides, so it’s very easy to get baby in and out even without the rotate feature

scarepanda · 26-11-2019 4:01pm

Hi all,

we have a 7mth old that we're thinking about her next car seat. She wont be in the next size for another few months, but theres a few deals on which is why we are thinking about it at the moment. However we are thinking of moving the baby into the toddlers seat (recaro zero) and getting the new seat for the toddler. We've had a look but have no idea what to get the toddler.

Shes 3 since august, 14kg and roughly 86cm so tiny for her age. From what i can see a group 1-2-3 seat would be best for her all things considered. Shes still rear facing in the recaro, and i would like to keep her rear facing for as long as possible, but it doesnt seem that the group 1-2-3s are rear facing. The seat must fit an opel astra, which doesnt have the top anchor (?) (the ones where the belt reaches into the boot).

Has anyone any suggestions of what would be a good option? Our budget is basically whatever is the safest, quality seat.

jlm29 · 26-11-2019 4:10pm

scarepanda wrote: »

Hi all,

we have a 7mth old that we're thinking about her next car seat. She wont be in the next size for another few months, but theres a few deals on which is why we are thinking about it at the moment. However we are thinking of moving the baby into the toddlers seat (recaro zero) and getting the new seat for the toddler. We've had a look but have no idea what to get the toddler.

Shes 3 since august, 14kg and roughly 86cm so tiny for her age. From what i can see a group 1-2-3 seat would be best for her all things considered. Shes still rear facing in the recaro, and i would like to keep her rear facing for as long as possible, but it doesnt seem that the group 1-2-3s are rear facing. The seat must fit an opel astra, which doesnt have the top anchor (?) (the ones where the belt reaches into the boot).

Has anyone any suggestions of what would be a good option? Our budget is basically whatever is the safest, quality seat.

The 1-2-3 seats don’t rear face. But in fairness, a decent high back booster doesn’t cost the earth, so when the time comes it’s not the end of the world to have to buy one. you could buy a 25kg seat, depending on fit and your car. I have an axkid minikid, it’s a great seat. Your daughter is small- it would probably last her until secondary school, lol! I had trouble keeping my middle boy rear facing after 3 and a half, the rows were just too much for me and he was like Houdini, so not that safe at all really.
All the harnessed seats >18kg that forward face need a top tether. That said, over four, over 15kg and forward facing, I think your child is safer with a seat belt than a harness anyhow

bee06 · 26-11-2019 4:56pm

I have the Axkid minikid in an Opel Astra and the Move would work as well.

andreac · 27-11-2019 3:34pm

Can't recommend this fb group enough. They are a wealth of info on car seats and ERF.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/456353881062172/

SmallgirlBigcity · 19-01-2020 10:09pm

Question about Baby Elegance car seat:

Our little one is 8 weeks old now and he looks very uncomfortable in the car seat, like his head is too low and squished down. I was thinking of removing the padded bits around his head and neck, thinking this might help the problem, but I wonder at what age/ weight the baby should be before these parts are removed? I've looked through the manual that came with it and it doesn't mention this anywhere. Thanks in advance!

Clashmore · 19-01-2020 10:17pm

Is there a cushion built in to the insert, I have a different brand of seat and there is a removable piece of foam in the back of the insert which can be taken out at 11lbs and then you can leave the head and neck support in. Hope this makes sense.

sillysocks · 19-01-2020 10:21pm

SmallgirlBigcity wrote: »

Question about Baby Elegance car seat:

Our little one is 8 weeks old now and he looks very uncomfortable in the car seat, like his head is too low and squished down. I was thinking of removing the padded bits around his head and neck, thinking this might help the problem, but I wonder at what age/ weight the baby should be before these parts are removed? I've looked through the manual that came with it and it doesn't mention this anywhere. Thanks in advance!

Not sure on the Baby Elegance seat but in the Maxi cosy there’s a piece of foam that’s under the baby’s bum that can be removed and sometimes helps them sit better around that age. Worth checking if you can do that, it’s hard to find in the maxi cosy but is there. It’d be very early to remove the head supports.

Utter Consternation · 20-02-2020 11:59am

How long do you have to have the kids rear facing in the seat? We have an eight month old and are upgrading her car seat.

Clashmore · 20-02-2020 12:05pm

My 5 year old is still rear facing in an Extended Rear Facing Seat that goes up to 25kg. It is recommended to keep them rear facing up to at least 4 years. If your child is in an infant carrier seat at the moment it is recommended to keep them in it until they out grow it by weight or height.

Utter Consternation · 20-02-2020 12:11pm

Clashmore wrote: »

My 5 year old is still rear facing in an Extended Rear Facing Seat that goes up to 25kg. It is recommended to keep them rear facing up to at least 4 years. If your child is in an infant carrier seat at the moment it is recommended to keep them in it until they out grow it by weight or height.

Cheers, we had her at the nurse yesterday for her check up. She needs to upgrade.

bee06 · 20-02-2020 12:24pm

Clashmore wrote: »

My 5 year old is still rear facing in an Extended Rear Facing Seat that goes up to 25kg. It is recommended to keep them rear facing up to at least 4 years. If your child is in an infant carrier seat at the moment it is recommended to keep them in it until they out grow it by weight or height.

My 2 year old will be RF until he grows out of his 25kg seat as well. Probably will be 5 or 6. Rearfacing is 5 times safer than forward facing so it’s a no brainer for me https://www.rsa.ie/en/RSA/Road-Safety/Child-Safety-in-Cars/Types-of-child-car-seats/Extended-rearward-facing-child-seat/

jlm29 · 20-02-2020 2:49pm

Legally it used be 9 kg, I think it’s now 15kg, or is that UK law? Ireland is always a bit behind.
Legal requirements are a minimum though, I’d rear face her for as long as you can. It’s 500% safer. If she’s high in centiles, buy a 25kg seat (I would say this even if you do plan to forward face her, She would be likely to outgrow a harness on an 18kg seat well before she is capable of sitting with just a seatbelt).
I have my 2 and a half year old still rear facing and will be for the foreseeable. Had to turn my now 4 y.o before he was 4 though, because he Was escaping and it was too dangerous.

Utter Consternation · 20-02-2020 3:23pm

jlm29 wrote: »

Legally it used be 9 kg, I think it’s now 15kg, or is that UK law? Ireland is always a bit behind.
Legal requirements are a minimum though, I’d rear face her for as long as you can. It’s 500% safer. If she’s high in centiles, buy a 25kg seat (I would say this even if you do plan to forward face her, She would be likely to outgrow a harness on an 18kg seat well before she is capable of sitting with just a seatbelt).
I have my 2 and a half year old still rear facing and will be for the foreseeable. Had to turn my now 4 y.o before he was 4 though, because he Was escaping and it was too dangerous.

She's up in the 98 percentile for her age and weight. She's taller than all the babies her age in her swimming class.

We have this base already:

https://eurobaby.com/maxi-cosi-3wayfix-isofix-base/

Are we limited to maxi cosi for seats? Can we buy other brands, or are all the bases proprietary?

Cakerbaker · 20-02-2020 3:39pm

Utter Consternation wrote: »

She's up in the 98 percentile for her age and weight. She's taller than all the babies her age in her swimming class.

We have this base already:

https://eurobaby.com/maxi-cosi-3wayfix-isofix-base/

Are we limited to maxi cosi for seats? Can we buy other brands, or are all the bases proprietary?

You can only use that base with maxi cosi seats and even then it may only be certain seats (I’m not 100% sure on that).

This Facebook page is brilliant for advice on rear facing seats

https://www.facebook.com/groups/456353881062172/?ref=share

Utter Consternation · 20-02-2020 3:50pm

Cakerbaker wrote: »

You can only use that base with maxi cosi seats and even then it may only be certain seats (I’m not 100% sure on that).

This Facebook page is brilliant for advice on rear facing seats

https://www.facebook.com/groups/456353881062172/?ref=share

That's the way it kinda looks. I'm heading into Mothercare tomorrow to quiz them on it.

bee06 · 20-02-2020 4:28pm

Utter Consternation wrote: »

She's up in the 98 percentile for her age and weight. She's taller than all the babies her age in her swimming class.

We have this base already:

https://eurobaby.com/maxi-cosi-3wayfix-isofix-base/

Are we limited to maxi cosi for seats? Can we buy other brands, or are all the bases proprietary?

It only works with certain Maxi cosi seats and Maxi cosi doesn’t do extended rear facing seats if I remember correctly. There is only one ERF seat which is isofix and it has a 23kg limit I think so won’t last as long.

You’ll end up having to buy a 25kg seat if she is so high in the percentiles so it could be a false economy to try and find something to match this base.

Tony Kealys give great car seat advice and the RSA check it fits team train them for car seat installation if there is one near you. Mothercare could be hit or miss so I would encourage anyone to do their own research on whatever they tell you. That Facebook group mentioned about is brilliant.

jlm29 · 20-02-2020 7:40pm

Where ever you go, be very clear that you need a 25kg seat. Otherwise you’ll be buying another

Utter Consternation · 21-02-2020 3:17pm

jlm29 wrote: »

Where ever you go, be very clear that you need a 25kg seat. Otherwise you’ll be buying another

Roger that. Thanks everyone for the good advice.

fits · 24-02-2020 6:03pm

Utter Consternation wrote: »

Cheers, we had her at the nurse yesterday for her check up. She needs to upgrade.

Nurse might not be the best person for advice. Just saying...

Mumnme and Tony Kealys are the best shops for car seat advice. my lads are on the lower centiles but are still happy out rear facing at the age of 3. They are in 18 kg seats.

Digs · 24-02-2020 6:25pm

Utter Consternation wrote: »

How long do you have to have the kids rear facing in the seat? We have an eight month old and are upgrading her car seat.

Legally it’s 15 months, which doesn’t make much sense as there’s a broad spectrum of weights and heights etc
We have our youngest in the joie ispin 360 and there’s actually a button on the back of it that locks it rear facing until 15mths +.

It’s an 18KG seat but my girls are relatively low on centiles. Almost 4 yr old is still rear facing and just 13.5KG so they get a good few years out of the 18KG seats.

98th centiles I absolutely wouldn’t consider anything other than the 25KG seats.

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 2:09pm

Agh need to make a decision in the next half hour! Lol
Maxicosi Peeble plus (Rachel Zoe), the stokke izi sleep, or that newish lie flat cubes seat. Please boardies... pick one for me please which is best for new baby. I’ve only ever had the maxi cosi cabriofix. They all do the samish ie... have isofix, fit on stroller and rearward. But I wonder are the ones that can lie flat better than the Peeble?? Thank you xxx

Millem · 17-03-2020 2:51pm

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Agh need to make a decision in the next half hour! Lol
Maxicosi Peeble plus (Rachel Zoe), the stokke izi sleep, or that newish lie flat cubes seat. Please boardies... pick one for me please which is best for new baby. I’ve only ever had the maxi cosi cabriofix. They all do the samish ie... have isofix, fit on stroller and rearward. But I wonder are the ones that can lie flat better than the Peeble?? Thank you xxx

Can you try and lift them? I found the Isi sleep too heavy.
I don’t have a clue which lie flat ones are best...maybe get the one that weighs the least?

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 3:51pm

Millem wrote: »

Can you try and lift them? I found the Isi sleep too heavy.
I don’t have a clue which lie flat ones are best...maybe get the one that weighs the least?

Thanks Millem, I just choose the pebble plus. ðŸ€žðŸ€ž it’s ok but I’m assuming it’s similar to cabriofix. It does weight 4.3kg which I think maybe heavy. Think cabriofix prob lighter!

bee06 · 17-03-2020 3:54pm

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Thanks Millem, I just choose the pebble plus. ðŸ€žðŸ€ž it’s ok but I’m assuming it’s similar to cabriofix. It does weight 4.3kg which I think maybe heavy. Think cabriofix prob lighter!

Bear in mind that the pebble plus is an I-size seat so is grown out of when baby hits 75cm. As a result, if you have a tall baby you won’t get as long out of it as the cabriofix.

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 3:54pm

Yea cabriofix about 1 kg lighter. Bummer. But I’m sure will be ok.

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 3:55pm

bee06 wrote: »

Bear in mind that the pebble plus is an I-size seat so is grown out of when baby hits 75cm. As a result, if you have a tall baby you won’t get as long out of it as the cabriofix.

Really! O crap

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 4:03pm

bee06 wrote: »

Bear in mind that the pebble plus is an I-size seat so is grown out of when baby hits 75cm. As a result, if you have a tall baby you won’t get as long out of it as the cabriofix.

Ok yea you’re right. And I have tall babies. What’s the point in I-size then?? Why would they make cabriofix cheaper but last longer? Pebble plus more expensive, heavier and last shorter amount of time. Ah well I got good price so can’t complain. Apparently a lot of people do find it heavy tho.

bee06 · 17-03-2020 4:05pm

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Ok yea you’re right. And I have tall babies. What’s the point in I-size then?? Why would they make cabriofix cheaper but last longer? Pebble plus more expensive, heavier and last shorter amount of time. Ah well I got good price so can’t complain. Apparently a lot of people do find it heavy tho.

I think I-size overall is a safer regulation and will last until a heavier weight but not so beneficial for tall babies unfortunately.

Millem · 17-03-2020 4:23pm

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Thanks Millem, I just choose the pebble plus. ðŸ€žðŸ€ž it’s ok but I’m assuming it’s similar to cabriofix. It does weight 4.3kg which I think maybe heavy. Think cabriofix prob lighter!

Not at all that is perfect! The izi sleep was nearly 8kg!!!! I am sure they are all great seats

Imagine even a 4kg newborn baby and the seat....that is a big bag of dog food!!!!

I hope to god I can find all the bits off my cabriofix otherwise I will be buying another seat come the summer!

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 4:43pm

bee06 wrote: »

I think I-size overall is a safer regulation and will last until a heavier weight but not so beneficial for tall babies unfortunately.

Ok thanks well that’s good to know I got a safe one at least ðŸ˜ŠðŸ˜Š

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 4:45pm

Millem wrote: »

Not at all that is perfect! The izi sleep was nearly 8kg!!!! I am sure they are all great seats
Imagine even a 4kg newborn baby and the seat....that is a big bag of dog food!!!!

I hope to god I can find all the bits off my cabriofix otherwise I will be buying another seat come the summer!

I had the same cabriofix for my first 3! Until I discovered it was dented on my third baby. She was big enough for next size then tho So I chucked it. Didn’t think I’d be needing another!!!! Well at least not so soon.... was thinking maybe in another year or 2....

The cabriofix was great quality tho and lasted ages.

Lizardlegz · 17-03-2020 6:44pm

Sorry can I just ask which isofix base fits the pebble plus?? Is it only the 2way fix?

Millem · 17-03-2020 8:07pm

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Sorry can I just ask which isofix base fits the pebble plus?? Is it only the 2way fix?

According to the Bella baby website there are 2 bases; the babyfix base or the 3 way fix base.

I have no experience of it though!
The babyfix just does the baby seats but the 3 way does the next seat up...is it a pearl or something?

jlm29 · 17-03-2020 11:13pm

Millem wrote: »

Not at all that is perfect! The izi sleep was nearly 8kg!!!! I am sure they are all great seats
Imagine even a 4kg newborn baby and the seat....that is a big bag of dog food!!!!

I hope to god I can find all the bits off my cabriofix otherwise I will be buying another seat come the summer!

Bella baby sells all the bits separately, so if you have most of it, you can get them there. It’s only if you’re missing multiple bits that it can make more financial sense to buy new. My cabriofix is nearly ready for retirement, so if you need a head hugger or wedge let me know, I’ll be taking them out soon, and won’t need again!

Millem · 17-03-2020 11:31pm

jlm29 wrote: »

My cabriofix is nearly ready for retirement, so if you need a head hugger or wedge let me know, I’ll be taking them out soon, and won’t need again!

Yes that is exactly what I will need if I can’t find them!!

jlm29 · 17-03-2020 11:54pm

Millem wrote: »

Yes that is exactly what I will need if I can’t find them!!

Well my seat is nearly 9 yrs old, so I won’t be passing it on to anyone after I finish with it, so you’re welcome to them! I still have them in for the moment, but baby is 8 mo old, so they won’t be in there much longer!

25-04-2020 6:30pm

Where can these be bought at the moment!? Mothercare, Smyths etc closed

bee06 · 25-04-2020 6:46pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Where can these be bought at the moment!? Mothercare, Smyths etc closed

Do you mean in-store? Both are still online. I don’t think there would be any store open.

If you need advice Tony Kealys are available by phone, chat etc and can purchase online then.

I think rearfacing.ie are still doing their car seat trial option as well if you want to try before you buy.

Lizardlegz · 16-06-2020 11:47pm

Has anybody Ud a look at the new maxi cosi coral? Looks really light for carrying and then you pop it back into the shell for travelling. Just thought might be handy for school pick ups in the early days before sling?? What do people think?

jlm29 · 17-06-2020 12:18am

Lizardlegz wrote: »

Has anybody Ud a look at the new maxi cosi coral? Looks really light for carrying and then you pop it back into the shell for travelling. Just thought might be handy for school pick ups in the early days before sling?? What do people think?

I just googled it there, Its I-size, and very expensive! I’m sure it’s grand, but it looks like a bit of a money spinner. Because it’s I-size it won’t last as long as a cabriofix (anyone would think I’m selling cabriofix’s, this is the second time today I’ve been on here plugging them

). I bought a really light buggy that takes the cabriofix for baby number four, and found it a God send for school runs.

_nobody_ · 17-06-2020 10:36am

Sent here from the pregnant thread.

Went car seat shopping last week and they tried to steer us towards the Cybex Cloud Z seat and base. It's quite expensive, but works with travel system, rotates sideways (full rotation on next seat), lies flat and the base lasts for the next seat.

The drawback is price and weight, slightly heavier than the maxicosi.

Does anyone have any experience with these?

Millem · 17-06-2020 11:26am

Don’t underestimate the weight. My first boy was approx 4kg at birth add that to the weight of a car seat and imagine lugging that around. Usually those baby seats go up to 13kg...,,add that to the car seat seat and see how you manage.

I was going to buy the be safe sleep one for second child. Tried lifting it in the shop and ending up buying the maxi cosi cabriofix.

I found attaching car seats a faff anyway tbh.

kandr10 · 17-06-2020 1:25pm

Can anyone advise please?

I’m using the be safe izi go infant car seat with a newborn. I attached with the seat belt and it felt super secure however baby’s head lopped forward. So then I tried adjusting the seat to tilt it back more but it just doesn’t seem to be as secure. Is there something I’m missing? Would the iso fix base give a better fit?

Lizardlegz · 17-06-2020 3:15pm

jlm29 wrote: »

I just googled it there, Its I-size, and very expensive! I’m sure it’s grand, but it looks like a bit of a money spinner. Because it’s I-size it won’t last as long as a cabriofix (anyone would think I’m selling cabriofix’s, this is the second time today I’ve been on here plugging them ). I bought a really light buggy that takes the cabriofix for baby number four, and found it a God send for school runs.

Lol ah sure look I’ve always had the cabriofix and found them great! But I got a pebble this time around and it’s isize. I think the corals are around €220 in the sale. I just remember those awful days of popping into the school or shop for a quick pick up and having to drag the maxi cosi with me with baby... I just found them really heavy with baby in them. Just thought the coral looked really easy for this sort of thing!!

Car Seat Mega Thread! Please post all your car seat questions here!

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