What carseat for your 3 1/2-4 y/o?

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nikkiARNGwife

New member
Right now Avery is in an Evenflo Triumph but he is 1 lb away from the weight limit and is right at the height limit. I'm clueless as to what carseat he needs next... I just feel like he's too little still for the booster seat types but I can't seem to find a traditional carseat that goes beyond 40 lbs and 40 inches. Any suggestions?
 
my son is 3 and he's in the Graco Nautilus. it harnesses to 65 lbs and later becomes a booster. so it's really the last seat he'll ever need. it has wonderful safety reviews as well.
 
My too-tall kid (almost 6) just got a booster last week. I'm heartbroken. I want him harnessed 'til he's 21. :p
 
I'm so glad you started this thread! Rachel's in the same seat (Triumph) that we brought her home from the hospital in, but we need to replace it. We've got her in a booster in the truck, but need to get a new seat for the car.
 
When my now-5 year old outgrew the 40-40 seat heightwise, he was still under 40 lbs and I didn't want him in a booster. We got the Britax Decathalon and love it. It goes to 65 lbs, and after that he'll go to a booster. I know Britax has other seats that go to 65 lbs, too.
 
Thanks everyone! I knew there had to be something more in between the Triumph and a booster...

This is the seat my boys had until a few months ago. They are 5 in April so since they meet the requirements for the booster that is what we moved to!
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I thought Avery would fit in the Triumph longer than he did lol..we moved him to it after he outgrew his infant seat at 8 mos but I now have a very tall 3 1/2 year old lol. But it all works out well b/c Ella will need a bigger seat in a few months and then we can just move her into Avery's triumph..at least we'll be getting a few more years use out of it :).
 
Halle was in her Britax Marathon from the time she was 2 until last month at a couple months past 6 yrs. It harnesses to 65 lbs and is totally, totally worth it.

woot.com has some extended harness seats available today only as well. I haven't read much about the brand but several posters there seemed to love them.
 
I have a Britax Regent for my son. He is almost 6 and is nowhere near outgrowing his seat. I figure he has another 2 years in it. It is worth very penny for the safety!
 
we have two of these, one in each vehicle (my car & Des' truck)

http://www.coscojuvenile.ca/product/detail.asp?ID=908
(although one is two years older than the other)

not too sure how helpful I would be for you though, car seat laws are different up here than they are in the US, and we are very limited on seats that meet CSA standards. I have had these seats for 1 and 3 years now (since both little boys needed harnessed forward facing car seats for a while, Xan is now in a booster seat).
 
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I just got Travis a Graco Nautilus last month. He was getting too big for the Eddie Bauer. The Nautilus has a 5-point harness until 65 pounds. Then the back comes off to use as a booster up to 100lbs. I got it on amazon for $129-ish. Travis is 4, around 39 pounds, and 40-ish inches tall.
 
After much investigation and studying...this is the seat we have decided upon...
The Radian XT
Landen is a mere inch and a few pounds away from outgrowing his Roundabout. He has been in it since 10 months or so, and I figure the Radian with its 80 limit will be the last seat we ever buy and since he will be in it until he hits the 80lb benchmark or the height, then I don't feel bad forking over the dough to have this one.
RadianXT%20Rio.jpg

http://www.hipmonkey.com/car-seats/sunshine-kids/car-seats/radian-xt/prod_204.html
 
Seth is in a Triumph too... so I will keep an eye on this thread! THanks for posting it.
 
My 5 yo's carseat is expiring soon (did you know that carseats expire? I was suprised to learn that and I sort of prided myself on knowing a lot about them.) She is about 40 lbs... NC has a 8 yo/80 lbs rule, so we are going with a Graco Nautilus because it will grow with her... we can keep her in a 5 pt harness until 65 lbs (I think) and then it will transition to a booster, either with or without a back. And we found one in pink/gray at Target online, very important, lol.
 
The Graco Nautilus is a fabulous seat! I love that it harnesses to 65lbs (so long as they fit it by height--shoulders must be BELOW the harness slots), boosters to 100, even becomes a backless booster. The backless booster part has a NINE year expiration. That's practically unheard of in the carseat world. Even D's special needs seat doesn't have that.

I love the Radian too. We had one for D before we bought the Roosevelt that he uses now. Fab seat, nice and slim, low profile...just fab.

Shannon, does Landen have a shorter torso? If so, the XT is the best bet. If he's got a longer torso, the 65 is a better bet since he'll outgrow the XT by height before he hits 80lbs since both seats have the same top slot height for the harness. Devin was in the R65. He'd already outgrown it by height when we bought the Roosevelt. That said, Devin is very tall for his age and has the torso of the jolly green giant. JP, while taller than D, still fits the R65 (by height only) because he's all leg and no torso.
 
Both of my kids are in Britax Regent seats. My VERY tall 5 1/2 year old still sits comfortably in it- it goes to 80 lbs- so unless he gets too tall, he's staying put. My 3 year old loves having "a big girl" seat. I really think the 5 point harness I'll keep as long as I can.
 
We have the Sunshine Kids Radian. It harnesses up to 60 pounds, and I can't remember the height, but it's a lot. lol. It's totally worth it.
 
Leila said:
The Graco Nautilus is a fabulous seat! I love that it harnesses to 65lbs (so long as they fit it by height--shoulders must be BELOW the harness slots), boosters to 100, even becomes a backless booster. The backless booster part has a NINE year expiration. That's practically unheard of in the carseat world. Even D's special needs seat doesn't have that.

I love the Radian too. We had one for D before we bought the Roosevelt that he uses now. Fab seat, nice and slim, low profile...just fab.

Shannon, does Landen have a shorter torso? If so, the XT is the best bet. If he's got a longer torso, the 65 is a better bet since he'll outgrow the XT by height before he hits 80lbs since both seats have the same top slot height for the harness. Devin was in the R65. He'd already outgrown it by height when we bought the Roosevelt. That said, Devin is very tall for his age and has the torso of the jolly green giant. JP, while taller than D, still fits the R65 (by height only) because he's all leg and no torso.
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Yes, Leila he has a short torso, he is short all around. We waffled back and forth on the XT or the R65 but finally decided that at his current growth pattern we would go with the XT for the extra side impact protection. You are the one who lead me to the Radian...I'm thankful for your car seat education Leila.
 
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Another fan of the Graco Nautilus!

We also just got a Graco TurboBooster for DH's car for daycare to home. But he is also five years old, 48 pounds, 47 inches. :) I would love another nautilus for Joel's car, but that was out of the question to spend that much again.
 
I just bought the Britax Frontier for my 4 year old...we had another Britax that he would've been in for a while but when someone stole my car they stole my baby's car seat...
 
Ellie is in a Britax Marathon as well. Well worth the $300 considering it is the ONLY seat I had to buy.
 
psalm149 said:
We have the Sunshine Kids Radian. It harnesses up to 60 pounds, and I can't remember the height, but it's a lot. lol. It's totally worth it.
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I've heard that this is a "narrow" seat... would you agree? That's one reason I went with the Graco Nautilus, plus that it changes to a booster.
 
From their website pics it is indeed a narrow seat. It doesn't have any headrests or cupholders and it can fold. But after reading reviews on the site, it sounds like they really don't fit taller kids like the "specs" listed.

I am looking for a new seat for my DS who is turning 5 (and more importantly is an inch away from being too tall for his Marathon), but I want to keep in a harness as long as possible for a)safety and b)little brother wants to do everything big brother does so this will keep that argument for a while LOL.

I would really love a narrower seat even though I do have an SUV, but even though for the $ I think I'm going to go for Britax again. My brother in law has gone through two Graco boosters and they both have/had headrests that don't adjust anymore so we are staying away from those. Why does this have to be so complicated!!
 
DogwoodMama said:
I've heard that this is a "narrow" seat... would you agree? That's one reason I went with the Graco Nautilus, plus that it changes to a booster.
Click to expand...

The Radian is very narrow. On the carseat board I visit, many people use them to get good three across set ups in smaller cars. Oh, and the base model of the Radian goes to 65lbs and has a top harness slot of 17". The Radian is the ONLY seat on the market that can still be used once a child's shoulders are above the top slot--until the tips of the ear is even with the top of the seat.

Yes, I love the Radian. :thumbup:
 
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