Two Convertible Car Seats

I don't know if they'll fit, but I had the Evenflo Triumph (it's now the Triumph 5 or something like that). It was great. It had great safety ratings, especially because underneath the seat covering is styrofoam. That is supposed to be safer in an accident.

Good luck.

J.,

I'd not put any stock in Consumer Reports, their last infant seat testing was a fiasco...they don't really look at the seats realistically and do a terrible job of rating them.

The Radian 65 or 80, Britax Marathon (online about 229), Triumph Advance (not the old Triumph) all are great choice that will allow you keep you little ones in a 5pt harness for quite awhile....all should be fine installed rearfacing in the Accord, at 8 months the babies seats are fine to be installed in a more upright position. You will want to keep them rearfacing until about age 2-3, see link below- the old idea of turning them at 1 year and 20 pound is not the safest.

All of these seats make the most sense. The Fisher Price has been out of production for 18 months, therefore the seats for sale already have lost 18 months from their expiry date (they all expire in 6 years generally). Also although it is made by Britax, some of the awesome features on the Britax which make it a dream to use are lacking. I have 4 Marathons so I'm obviously a fan, I also hear that the Radian's are great, most people find the 65 is plenty big as kids will rarely get to 65 pounds before they reach the height limits.

Basically the cheaper seats will be outgrown before you kiddo's are ready to move into a booster, so you'll still need another seat (that's why the Eddie Bauer Omega Alpha Elite is not recommended..kids rarely get to use the 5pt harness to 40 pounds as the slots are so low...and they are NOT ready to use it in booster mode...

Please read the link below and pass along to any other moms of little ones who may be thinking of turning them soon!

http://www.carsafety4kids.com/rearfacing.html

Email me if you need help finding an online retailer....buying in stores is too expensive!

B.

Mom to Maddie (almost 5) and Logan (just turned 2)

We have a Nissan Sentra and purchased a Fisher Price Safe Voyage convertible seat. It's made by Britax and is said to be a "stripped down version of a Marathon". I was excited to order it (I found it for a great price at Albeebaby.com), but when we got it, we realized it's too big to use rear facing in our car. Luckily my son was over the 1 year/20 lb minimum, but I was still hoping to keep him rear facing until he reached the 33 lb maximum on the seat.

If I was able to do it all over again, I'd get a Triumph so I could use it rear facing.

I'm posting because it seems I'm the only one that's recommending the Sunshine Kids Radian, we have the one that goes to 80 lbs but they also make one that goes to 65. It turns into a booster seat when they are ready and is well rated for saftey. We got it because the design is more sleek and narrow than anything else we looked at. We only have one though so it's in the middle and rear facing which gives us a little more room to play with than you'll have. They aren't cheap either, about $250 for the 80 lb one.

I also looked at the Alpha Omega Elite per consumer reports. It was too wide for the middle seat of our car but they sold for cheaper. I still see them at Costco sometimes for about $120 I think.

I have a saturn vue.....we own the Evenflo Triumph and the fisher price voyage deluxe ..... both are outstanding carseats.

The fisher price is smaller, but still has the foam and is made by britax.

The evenflo also has the foam, it is a little bigger and has a easy way to tighten the straps.

I suggest you go to babies r us and play with the ones that they have on the shelf.

Evenflo Triumph are fabulous.

I used Consumer Reports for advice on convertable carseats and they recommended the Evenflo Triumph V. I believe they rated it just as high as any Britax and it only costs about $140. I love it! And my sister has the same seat in her honda civic.

I have twins, too. Be sure to take your car to Babies R Us and see if the carseats you want fit before you buy them. An employee will help you install one to check. With a small car like that, I'd really make sure. I have a Dodge Caravan (not Grand) and the convertible Britax seats would NOT even fit in my van because they were so large and the center captains chairs don't move back. I have 2 Century/Graco convertible seats (one was a Century that was my older daughter's and the Graco was just the newer model of the same seat) that were around $120 each from Babies R Us and they fit both ways, though now they are facing forward as my twins are almost 2. ALL of the carseats meet federal regulations, so there is nothing wrong with buying what fits as long as you are careful to install it correctly in your car. Good luck!

I had a Britax Marathon for about a year, but I wound up giving it to my sister since she has a bigger vehicle. It is HUGE and took up so much space in the car that my daughters knees were starting to get cramped from the front seat (she was 3.5 at the time). I purchase the Sunshine Kids Radian 65 and we are thrilled with it. Yes, it was bit expensive but it will keep my daughter in a 5-point harness for a long time and will also convert to a booster when she is ready (she is 4.5 and still only 32 pounds so she will not outgrow this seat). I think this is a great seat and would buy it again if I had another child.

Good luck on whatever you decide!

M.

I did research on consumer reports website. I know they had one problem rating but have since redone their testing. They are pretty conscientious and are very heavily scrutinized by the public and the carseat manufacturers. From what I can see the best on the market is a britax boulevard, which has side impact protection. The only downside is that it is very big. The Britax roundabout is smaller but doesn't have quite as much protection. This is the one area that I don't save money because there are some crazy drivers out there and I want my little one to be as safe as money can buy. Everything else I look for hand me downs and lower cost but not the car seat. Also, most of us will never know how well our car seat really performs because hopefully we will not be in a car crash. When people tell me theirs is great but all they have to go on is that they like it and it was cheap, I take that with a grain of salt. Crash testing is the sort of data I want to see.

We don't have twins but we have a honda accord and we've purchased the maxi cosi carseat. It fits great in the honda and a second one would certainly fit no problem. I originally had registered for the Britax and I'm so glad I did not get it. Not only was it expensive but sooo bulky. The maxi cosi carseat was very inexpensive and it is of superb quality. I love it. My husband and I switch it back and forth our cars. Very easy to use, very comfortable for our baby and very safe. I also love the fact that it's made in the USA.

I, too, have the Evenflo Triumph and a Honda Accord. It is big, but with 2 carseats, it's pretty hard to fit anyone between the carseats. Right now I have the Triumph for my 1 year old and a Britax booster for my 4 year old and there is about 10 inches left in the backseat. I love the Evenflo triumph because it fits babies from convertible until Booster (we just switched our 4 year old). It is also nice and high so the kids can see out of the windows.

I have the Britax in my car and my husband has the Graco in his. I have to say, the Graco is half the price and works just fine. I also have a Honda and I know that two will fit in the back just fine. Hope this helps. Good luck!

I love Britax. Yes, they are expensive, but they are so well worth it. I have had others that say they are equivalent, but they just aren't.

http://boards.babycenter.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?webtag=bcus...