Length Restrictions

[Kasha]

My ds just had his six month check-up and we discovered that he is a giant, as in 29 inches already. So I now need to get a convertible seat. Which one has the highest length maximum for rear facing? I would like to get him to two years if possible. He will probably slow down his growth (neither dh nor myself are exceptionally tall) but I want to be prepared just in case.

For what it is worth, we will be installing this in a Hyundai Tuscon where there is no LATCH for the middle position.

Thanks for your help!

[jjordan]

A seat is outgrown RF by length when there is less than an inch left of the seat's shell above the baby's head. I *believe* that the Sunshine Kids Radian (65, 80, or XT) has the highest shell, followed by First Years True Fit, followed by the "big" Britax seats (Marathon, Decathlon, Boulevard, and now the Roundabout 50). And probably the Evenflo Triumph Advance fits in there somewhere.

ETA: I just read on carseat.org that the TF has a longer shell than the Radian.

The Radians can tether rearfacing and the TrueFit is reportedly coming out with a new version soon that has an anti-rebound bar. Britax MA, DC, BV can also tether rearfacing but they do have a shorter shell.

If you think you'll ever need to get 3 carseats across, I'd go with a Radian. Otherwise maybe a True Fit.

I don't know how any of the seats install in your car but maybe someone else has experience there.

[Kasha]

So if I am understanding this correctly, there is not a seperate rear-facing length requirement like there is a weight one - if they fit in the seat it can be rear-facing. This would definately explain why I could not find any of this information on any website!

Thanks for your help.

[codex57]

Yeah, length is more of a guideline. It's not a hard rule like the weight limit. Some kids are taller in the legs than the torso. The key indicator is where the head is in relation to the top of the shell. With two kids of the same height, the one with the longer torso won't last as long in a seat as the one that is more legs.

As you get into research into convertible seats, one of the first things to look for is harness height. The higher it is, the longer it'll last you. Weight typically isn't a big deal cuz nearly all kids will outgrow a convertible by height (usually in the harness area) than by weight.