car seat recommendations? JULY 2008

Dear Car Seat Expert:

heya,

i'm wondering if you have recommendations as to what convertible seats are better than others as far as safety ratings go. we have a good seat for my car and i'd like to purchase another seat for my sweet's car so we don't have to move the seat back and forth all the time. i'm amazon.com and there are a coupla seats that i can afford. in your opinion, between the following seats, which are the best?

Cosco Alpha Omega Convertible Car Seat
Evenflo Tribute V Convertible Car Seat - Big Brown Plaid
Graco ComfortSport Convertible Car Seat in Marcus
Safety 1st 3 Phase Convertible Car Seat
Evenflo Tribute V Convertible Car Seat - Abby II
Cosco Convertible Car Seat - Scenera


I do understand that I'm only asking you for your opinion will also do my own research.

thanks!

heidi

Ugh°!!! Alo just erased my long reply...

What kind of seat do you have now?

Tribute = nice seat... the cover seemed to get roughed up really quickly.. the shoulder straps were a bit harder for me to unsnap.. not as easy as some to adjust the straps. the padding was decent but not a lot

Scenera = my two youngers are in this seat.. Nice seat it RFs to 35# which is a plus for me. Easy to adjust the straps.. less bulky than the tribute. not a whole lot of padding about the same as the tribute.. very lightweight seat if you have to carry it

Alpha Omega... bulky and is harder to adjust the straps. more padding than the scenera. hear both good and bad things about this seat. I looked into it and was going to get this one but when I went to the store they were out.

The others I have no knowledge of.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kiss_the_fiddler

Cosco Alpha Omega Convertible Car Seat
Evenflo Tribute V Convertible Car Seat - Big Brown Plaid
Graco ComfortSport Convertible Car Seat in Marcus
Safety 1st 3 Phase Convertible Car Seat
Evenflo Tribute V Convertible Car Seat - Abby II
Cosco Convertible Car Seat - Scenera

---

Tribute is a nice seat.

The Scenera is a decent seat too...it RFs to 35lbs but the harness height isn't such that it will last long for a tall child. But, it's a safe basic seat. It doesn't have a lot of padding either and has a tendancy to twist the straps. If you are dedicated to making sure the straps lie flat then it's a fine seat. We are using this seat with Leo because it's one of the more narrow seats...and the lack of padding doesn't bother me because we don't do a lot of driving.

The ComfortSport with EPS foam is one of the better convertable seats you can get. I would recommend it to everyone as a great option if they can't afford a Britax.

The Triumph is aalso a great seat...right up there with the ComfortSport. If I had the space in my car I'd have gotten the ComfortSport or the Triumph.

I don't really recommend the 3-in-1 seats. To be a good booster seat there has to be less side protection (to accomodate the seat belt...keep it from being held too far from the child's chest/shoulder), but to be a good RFing seat there needs to be more side protection...so they sort of take a middle ground which, IMO, makes for mediocre in each position. I'd rather buy a convertable that doesn't convert to a booster and then buy a booster when it becomes necessary. Besides, it won't be the last seat you purchase...most carseats expire after 5-6 years, and your child should be in a carseat/booster until he/she is 8 years old.

HTH!
Emily

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Emilys3Guppies

The ComfortSport with EPS foam is one of the better convertable seats you can get. I would recommend it to everyone as a great option if they can't afford a Britax.

---

Thanks! My brother's inlaws got me the ComfortSport and Neil will be in it soon! The fabric cover comes off easily for washing btw--you don't need to undo the straps!

Okay, I'm finally able to post again! Silly site issues.

Anyway, I've got a sticky about this on the car seat board. Take a look at this for starters, then I can answer any questions you have.

http://www.pregnancy.org/bulletinboa...d.php?t=402127

Just wanted to add, there really aren't any reliable "safety ratings" to consider. All the seats pass the same federal standards, and Consumer Reports generally isn't seen as a good objective source on car seat testing.

Part of it is that no seat has ever been tested in YOUR car with YOUR child, and every seat fits every child and every car differently. There is no one best seat for everyone. The best seat for you is the one that fits your child, fits your car, and is used properly every time.