baby car seat (advice)

chilledout

hi there just looking for some advice on car baby seats, 6 month old is getting too big for the first seat we bought so now looking too buy a bigger one ,can any one recommend a good sturdy safe seat that passes all safety tests or point me in the direction of some useful websites. cheers in advance:cool:

Deliverance

ebay have a lot of options which are economically good. I find that Irish shops have a very limited range of car seats by comparison. Ebay is quite safe to use in conjunction with paypal.

*Page*

the best one to get is an adjustable one.

one that tilts and its sides move so when he falls asleep you can help him lie down.
and they grow with the child as the sides are expandable.

I'll find out the name of the one i had and i'll get back to you.

MaryMagdalene

It depends on your car. Not all seats fit all cars. Also its KG you go by not age - make sure that your child is heavy enough for the next size up. Buying on ebay is cheapest but you need to research first!!

Do you have Isofix fittings or not? If not, can they be fitted to your car? Safest if you have or can get them fitted. You need to find out these two questions first.

Then you could look at the review "Which" have just published for 2007 on this.

http://www.which.co.uk/press/press_topics/product_news/which_magazine/child_car_seats050607_571_115978.jsp

Be aware a seat tested with Isofix may be useless if only belts are used!!!! Watch for this.

Hope this helps.

MM

Shelli

Halfords have a good selection and they will fit it for you too.

crosstownk

Check if your car has ISOFIX mounting points. ISOFIX is so much handier - especially if you plan to regularly swap the seat from one car to another. It's also a lot more solid fitting than the usual seat belt set up.

Mine is Volkswagen branded, but it's actually made by Britax
http://www.britax.co.uk/ProductDetail.jsp?pid=10&cid=7&type=1

dame

REAR-FACING IS THE SAFEST FOR A YOUNG CHILD. Do not move your child on to the next stage of car-seat (forward-facing seat) until they have reached the maximum weight allowable for the seat the child is currently in. Parents like to move their child on to the forward-facing as soon as they can because they like to see their child is growing and advancing. A lot of parents pay no heed to the weight and just get the next stage because they feel like it. This is wrong. Weigh the child and make sure they are in a seat that is appropriate to this weight.

My daughter's first car-seat (rear-facing) was suitable from birth to 11kg and she used it until she was 13 months old and had reached 11 kgs. Don't be in any rush moving the child on.

In college I saw computer simulations proving that rear-facing is much safer in an accident than forward-facing.

In Sweden they use big rear-facing child-seats until the child is about 4 years of age. http://www.carseat.org/Technical/SwedCR.gif
Taken from http://www.carseat.org/Technical/tech_update.htm

Yes, if there is Isofix in your car, definitely get a seat that uses the Isofix system (attached directly to the frame of the car rather than using seatbelts to secure it).

When you are buying the next car-seat get one that will be suitable until the child is a good big weight. This is because the next stage up (about age 4) is the booster seat (with/without detachable back) and these must not be used until the child is at least ? kg weight. (Check what weight the next stage starts at and choose the car-seat you are buying now so that it will be suitable right up until the booster seat stage.) For example, my own daughter is almost 4 but is still too light for the booster type seat and will probably be using her current seat for at least another 6 months. She is average or even slightly above average height and weight for her age.

Also, most seats have them anyway, but obviously get one with a five-point harness, not a three-point harness. The five-point harness will protect the child's internal organs better than a three-point-harness.

Whatever car-seat you get, make sure you fit it properly and securely and check this regularly. Also, make sure the head-rest is adjusted to the correct height for the child and every time you put the child in make sure you tighten the shoulder straps properly until you can just about put one finger underneath. Loose straps take away a lot of the effectiveness of the car-seat because the idea is for them to stop the child when the car stops, but if the child is loose within the seat then they will keep travelling forward until the hit the limits of the straps with a sudden jolt and get thrown back again into the shell of the seat. Similarly, the car-seat must be fixed as securely is as possible to the frame of the car.

run_Forrest_run

Dame makes some very good points there, we were told the same when looking for a bigger child seat for our little one, there should really be no rush for putting them child in a front facing seat.

chilledout

thanks for all your replies folks , car does not have isofix and baby is 7.6 kilos so that narrows down search. will take all advice on board and start doing some research before purchase..

tulipandthistle

We had trouble finding a 2nd stage car seat for our wee man when somebody suggested asking B*W (don't know if I'm allowed to type the whole name?) if they had one, our car wasn't really made for getting baby's in and out.

We found that the B*W system was much easier and safer. If I try to describe it, it won't be doing it any justice so maybe check it out yourself.

http://www.bmw.co.uk/bmwuk/mid/imageviewer/0,,,00.html?/apm/content/images/bmw_info/181024756ljunior-seat-I-II-lge.jpg&Junior Seat I-II

If you see on the picture the seatbelt is used to hold the restraint cushion in place which in turn holds the whole seat in place.

The seat was also the most economical because it was only €250 and it lasts until your child is 7 years old.

It also fits in every car and comes in different designs.

Good luck in your search!

Shelli

I'm having the same problems looking for car seats too. My little guy is a lot bigger than the average baby, dont know his exact weight right now, he's due a weigh in tomorrow, but he was 12lb born and 22inches in length.

He's only 14 wks now but is just about out of babygrows for 6mth olds.


My problem is that while I know rear facing child seats are recommended to use for as long as possible, he's outgrown the one we have already, his little legs are up against the back seat and he cant fully stretch out any more.....must check the weight restriction on it.

killwill

Shelli wrote: »

I'm having the same problems looking for car seats too. My little guy is a lot bigger than the average baby, dont know his exact weight right now, he's due a weigh in tomorrow, but he was 12lb born and 22inches in length.

He's only 14 wks now but is just about out of babygrows for 6mth olds.


My problem is that while I know rear facing child seats are recommended to use for as long as possible, he's outgrown the one we have already, his little legs are up against the back seat and he cant fully stretch out any more.....must check the weight restriction on it.

WTF? That is one big baby!!!

Shelli

Yup, he's a big boy alright. He was weighed today, 19lb and 1oz.

I'm going to have to start looking for a new car seat I reckon.