Is the Cosco Alpha Omega really that bad?

[kels228]

I know the Baby Bargains book doesn't like this car seat, but I went to register today and I liked it the best out of all the ones they had. Does anyone have any input on this seat? It is the convertible/booster. We already registered for a separate infant seat, so we'd just be using it when the baby outgrew the infant car seat. Thanks!




Kathleen
Due 11/9/03

[Joolsplus2]

The one thing I wish I had been told when I was expecting, was to look for tall harness slots on my convertible seat...I had a seat that I really liked, and was really sad when my 2 year olds outgrew it by height, well before 40 pounds, and well before the minimum age of 4 that they should be to use a booster seat. Unfortunately, the harness top harness position on the AO is 1-2 inches lower than other seats, and so many people are disappointed when their 2 and 3 year olds are simply too tall to use the harness anymore (the headrest goes up one more position, making it look quite tall, but it is for booster use only, and failed compliance testing when used with the harness in the very top position). My almost 4 yo dd, has outgrown the AO, yet still has over an inch of space left to grow in the evenflo triumph and the britax roundabout...which is good, since she is much safer still being harnessed, and she's also still only 31 pounds!
As for the notoriously twisty Cosco straps, well, I heard a rumor that they will be upgrading their strap quality this year, and lots of people just order thicker eddie bauer harnesses...they are slightly less twisty (straps MUST be flat, otherwise they don't spread crash forces evenly and are likely to cause rope burn injuries...ouch!)...I'm sure it's not the worst problem in the world, if you find a routine to keep them flat (like rebuckling the seat when you take the baby out...that seems to work for some moms, too).
If you do go with this seat, just be aware that you will probably have to buy a combo/harnessed booster seat when your baby gets older, as they have much taller harness slots and will get him/her to the full 40 pounds, and also, that you will probably want to buy a dedicated belt-positioning booster, much later, as it is much more comfortable for a big kid (and will be higher on the *cool* factor in elementary school, lol.)
But if you expect to use it only as a convertible seat, then it may be ok, and is especially good for keeping kids rearfacing as long as possible...lots of 3 year olds could fit comfortably rearfacing in this seat, owing in part to the 35 pound weight limit and the tall seatback (here's a picture of one http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/TaivenAO.aspx)
Anyway, here are some other seats that you might want to look at, but primarily the Triumph and the Roundabout/Marathon are true favorites, followed by the Graco ComfortSport
Congratulations on your new baby! (And I don't want you to think I'm totally dissing the AO...it's just that I read the same complaints over and over and over...and, well, you asked! :)

[KMommie]

My SIL really likes her AO. I asked her about the straps when I was researching car seats, and she said you just get used to untwisting them, that it's part of the routine. Everything else, she says is fine. Now, my DN (darling nephew) is a VERY active 27 month old, but he's able to sit quietly (usually) while they strap him in (I would think it takes longer, since they have to untwist the straps.) They put him FF as soon as they could, though...because he hated to be RF, even though I told them RF was much safer. Now I will have to battle my MIL about keeping DD RF when she reaches that 1 year and 20 pounds mark. When I told her that I preferred the RA, she went out to BRU to buy one(I didn't tell her to, she just did) and came back shellshocked as to the $$ difference. Good luck with your search!

[michlee]

My mom has a regular Alpha Omega that she uses for when the grandchildren come visit and yes, I think it is *that* bad.

The straps get horribly twisted. I re-threaded the seat twice during our Christmas visit, carefully untwisting the straps as I went, and both times the straps were completely twisted after one use.

My husband and I were so frustrated using this seat during our visit, that when it came time for us to buy a convertable for our ds, we bought a Marathon and didn't even balk at the price.

Now, my sister has the Eddie Bauer version of the seat which she likes. The straps still twist but it isn't nearly as bad.

-Michelle

[JenaW]

My cousin has an AO and used it for her first two kids. She really liked it, but does always complain about the straps. She is preg again and decided to go with a Britax this time for size reasons. We initially loked at the AO too, but I remember something about the padding on it around the baby's head. one of the employees at BRU was very knowledgable about car seats and sold us on the Marathon for this reason (among others). There just didn't seem to be a lot of protection around the head rest and that scared me.

[bnme]

I would just reccommend you try and get the receipt for the seat if you reguster for it -although BRU pretty much takes anything back. We recently moved my son from his snugride to a convertible and he barley fit in the Evenflo seat we had registered for. He is long -90% and 75% for weight (right now at 6 months he is 18.9lbs and almost 28 inches!).

It seems the straps on most seats are shorter for the rear facing position and there is NO WAY he would have been able to use the seat rear-facing for even 1 year.

We exchanged it for the Roundabout and he fits SO much better in it and the seat is so much earier to use. Another thing to look at is where the side straps come from. On my seat the space was so narrow between the side straps and the crotch strap -I can't imagine a 2 yr old sitting in it -although I am sure its beciase I am using my baby's size to go by.

These are just one of the things that are hard to predict in advanca becuase you don't know your or your baby's needs. I think the Fields adice was to wait on getting the seat -but I couldn't resist registering for it.

Good luck!