We’ve gotten tremendous use out of Levi’s Chicco KeyFit 30 car seat, but it’s finally time to move our little peanut into a convertible car seat. (I’ll bet he’s stayed in his infant carrier longer than most babies.) JB and I are currently debating several options, and since they all seem so similar to us, I’d love your thoughts on choosing a convertible car seat for Levi.
Using the 8th edition of Baby Bargains
Pros: Same as the Marathon (see below), but seat adds height-adjuster knob. Additional side impact protection in headrest.
Cons: Price. Big seat–may not fit into smaller vehicles. EPS foam only in headrest.
Note: This review was for the Britax Boulevard / Boulevard CS.
Pros: Up to 65 lbs. with a five-point harness. Plush pad, EPS foam, same pros as Roundabout.
Cons: Must re-thread harness manually. HUGS harness system gets mixed reviews.
Note: This review was for the Britax Marathon.
Pros: Excellent features–EPS foam, no-twist straps, can be tethered rear- or forward-facing, easy to adjust harness, double-strap LATCH, nice colors.
Cons: Harness slot a bit too high for smallest infants.
Note: This review was for the Britax Roundabout / Roundabout 50.
Pros: Headrest pops off for easier rear-facing installation. EPP foam, easy-off pad for hand-washing, affordable price.
Cons: Harness can be hard to adjust when rear-facing.
Note: This review was for the First Years True Fit (C630)
Pros: Excellent harness adjuster. SureLATCH makes for quick and easy installs.
Cons: 40 lb. limit for harness.
Note: This review was for the Evenflo Symphony 65.
Have we overlooked a superior convertible car seat? Do you have any opinions on my choices above? Please leave your comments below!
We chose the Roundabout 55. We liked the safety features of Britax but didn’t want one that was GIANT. When we looked at our kiddo’s size on the growth charts, we realized there’s no chance of him hitting the weight max of this seat before it’s time for the next one.
As for the concern with the height of the straps: if you have an infant seat, you probably won’t be using this bad boy before they’re big enough anyway.
We’ve been happy with it so far, and really like the removable cover 😉
Good call on the weight max issue — I have a feeling Levi’s in the same boat. 6th percentile, baby!
We have the Britax Boulevard and love it. Harper seems very comfortable in it. It is really big though so if you’re in a smaller car it may not fit (we have a Honda Pilot and it fits great).
Hmm, it would probably go in our SUV. Is it easy to switch between cars, though?
Thanks for this! We’re already almost ready to switch at 5 months (we have a 95th percentiler) and I think we’ve decided on the Marathon.
We have Roundabout for both kids and have been very happy with it. We liked the more compact size (versus the other Britax models) while still getting all the great safety features – side impact, etc. (It’s by no means small though, in my mid-size SUV they are pretty close together – the kids can hold hands.). My son will be 4 in November and he is no where even close to the weight limit.
Good luck!
Thanks for your comment, Katie! I appreciate you leaving a note 🙂
We have the Boulevard and think it’s very safe, easy to use and awesome. However, we have had the chance to use the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 and loved that one as well. And it will last a very long time since it changes into a booster. Maybe another to check out?
We love our Diono Radian RXT – our little guy is on the small side, so the seat should be good for quite a while! Rear up to 45 lbs, front up to 80 lbs. We did research through our local independent shop and settled on this one. Easy to install, looks good, not too bulky, folds flat if necessary to travel. And the little guy seems to love it!
Fits great in our Honda CRV.
🙂
I hadn’t heard of that brand but will definitely look into it — thanks, Lara!
I have a Britax toddler car seat and it’s been great! They make real quality products that are durable and have lots of usable functions. I would go w/anything Britax.
Which Britax toddler car seat model do you have?
We have two Britax Marathons, one for each car, and I love them.
The thing we learned AFTER buying a seat for the first time…some seats only go up to 50 lbs or so. This is not useful. After our first seats (yes, we bought 2 before realizing the max weight), we bought the Britax Marathon. Love it. Excellence in safety, and goes up to 80lbs in a 5 point harness and 120lbs in the booster seat. So, the kids should be able to use it well into their high school years…
We have the Boulevard for all three of ours – Love them!! Hate the price 🙂
We have the Roundabout in Chuck’s car…way too small when they get bigger in my opinion and I think I have the Boulevard in my car that Kori is in now. Keep in mind if you are planning on having more children close in age, you will end up buying more car seats for their needs! We bought Makayla the Britax Frontier 85, a combination convertible booster/car seat which is in my car where the girls are in the most and the Graco Nautilus 3 in 1 in Chuck’s car, which isn’t as expensive as the Britax brand. I had originally gotten the Marathon and I didn’t think it was necessary…I thought it was too big when I could get the others with slightly different weight requirements. In my world, I knew I wouldn’t have my kid in a car seat when they are 65 lbs!!! If you want to save some money, they will go on sale at Babies R’ Us or you can usually get previous year models online somewhere. Good luck!
My almost 3 year old son has been in a Britax Boulevard since he was about 8 months old. I was going to buy another for my daughter but while doing some research Britax just came out with a newer model of the Boulevard called the Pavilion. I’m ordering this one for my almost 6 month old who absolutely hates her infant seat.
Thanks, Jill, for leaving your first comment! I hadn’t heard of the Britax Pavilion but will definitely look in it.