Graco SafeSeat infant car seat

[biscuitcity]

I've been reading the reviews on this new car seat from Graco, and they all sound good--when I first saw it at BRU, I thought, why didn't someone think of that sooner!
I was so disappointed when we moved out of the infant seat with my first child, and now that I am expecting a second, I think we are going to go this route.

Has anyone tried it or heard of someone who has?
Any better prices out there than $129.99?

Thanks!
Anna
Mom to
Will 7-20-04
#2 EDD 7-8-06

[o_mom]

If you search this forum you will find some reviews. I think the main finding is that this seat will probably be outgrown before 30 lbs, because of height and the straps are not long enough. If you have kids that routinely grow out of an infant seat early say 4-5 months old, then this will buy you more time and will probably last at least 9-12 months, longer if they are slow growers.

Since your baby will probably be outgrowing an infant seat in the middle of winter, this might make sense to have, but don't expect it to last much more than 12-18 mos. A Snugride2 (22lb limit) might be enough to get you through the winter, though and is about $40 cheaper.

If you want to do extended rear-facing beyond a year (which is much safer), you will still need a convertible seat after this one.

Just for kicks, I tried it out on my 29 lb, 2.3 yo - he was just at the limit for height (1 in below seat shell), but the straps would almost certainly not be long enough. Our 22 lb, 9 mo fit in it just fine and would probably make it to a year or more. I also looked at the recline, since that was mentioned in some earlier reviews. From looking in the store, there was a fairly wide range of allowed recline angles. You could have it at 45 deg for a newborn or more upright for an older child while still having the level indicator in the OK zone.

[Niki_n_Abby]

A friend of mine has one for her baby and I plan on getting one for my second due this fall. It is a great seat! Some people express concern that older babies won't want to ride in it but I really can't see why not. It sits at the same 45 degree angle any other rearfacing seat does. My dd rearfaced at 45 degrees until she was 16 months and never complained.

Yes, it is bigger and heavier then other infant seats, but no one is going to be lugging a heavier baby in a carrier anyway. I love that I should get a full year+ out of it before we need to think about another seat.

Niki

[biscuitcity]

Thank you, this is great advice. As you noticed, baby #2 would be growing out of a regular infant seat in winter, and if I can JUST get into spring or even early summer, it would be great.

I think we're going to go for it!

Anyone know of any better deals than the $129.99 at BRU?

Thanks,
Anna

[mommy2maya]

I have one, and I really like it. I paid $119, for the red/black one.
the issue with the straps is that you have to adjust them for bigger toddlers- they adjust in the back on the shoulder harness & the lap harness, which adds a good amount of slack to the belts. My 2y9m son still fits in it- granted, he's on the small side, but he's just under 32inches, and about 29lbs. he's napping now, but I will take pics later. My 22lb 1yo neice fits in it with PLENTY of growing room!

[AnneLW]

Thanks - these good reviews for the SafeSeat are good to know, since I'll be having my first baby in mid-April and have no idea whether or not to get the Snugride or the Safeseat. Being able to use the same seat for 1+ years is great, though the heavier weight could be a bummer.

Does anyone know if the Safeseat fits with the Graco stroller frame, the Snap N Go, and/or the Evenflo Universal?

Thanks,
Anne

[mommy2maya]

It should fit with any that the snugride fits with. I am using the Combi Streak right now with mine and it works perfectly.

[Kat_Mom2D_J_andRuthie]

the straps lengthen because they have two sets of loops on the shoulder straps and also adjust where they go into the seat next to the legs.

it fits on any stroller the Snugride does.

someone on the bbc board posted pics of it on the babytrend car seat carrier, the peg pliko p3, and the joovy caboose.

Kat

[Joolsplus2]

I'm wondering if you noticed there are extra loops of strap on the back of the seat for both the shoulder straps AND the lapstraps? I would think that would make the seat last a bit longer? (If you did notice and used them, then bummer!)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[o_mom]

I did notice that - thanks to your earlier message. The first time I tried it I only had the baby, and he fit fine, but there wasn't much in the way of slack, even with both all the way out. The second time, I had both kids with me, but since it was a different Target store, the display was set for the smallest settings.

The first time around (first store), it took 10 min to get the straps all set - moving the shoulder straps and the lap straps, so with an antsy toddler, I didn't want to take the time again. I had to bribe him just to sit in the seat :-) On my list of things to do is to go back to the first store and try it out with DS1.

I did like that there is a very large range of recline angles - I could get it to about 30 deg upright and the level indicator was still in the "OK" zone.

[mommy2maya]

I posted a few days ago pics of my almost 3yo toddler in the safeseat- he's just in there for height and weight. Anyway, with just the shoulder straps on the longer setting he fit fine, not a ton of slack, but plenty to get him in the seat, and have plenty to tighten.

[o_mom]

I definitely plan to try it out - just to have a firm answer. I was just guessing based on the fit with the baby. I'll update everyone next time I get there.

[o_mom]

Made it back to Target today and bribed DS1 with a car to sit in the Safeseat. He is 29 mos, 28-29 lbs, about 34 in, and around 12-13 in seated height. He is not a big guy, and is definitely in the lower half of the growth chart (15% ht and wt at 24 mos).

His head is now just at the EPS foam at the top of the Safeseat. It has a foam lip at the top, so while he is about an in from the top of the plastic shell, he is less than 1/2 in from the foam. I'm not sure if that means he is too tall, but he is certainly maxed for height. Surprisingly (to me anyway) I could just get the straps buckled, but there was less than 1/2 in of slack when I tightened them. I wouldn't want to do that every day.

I'm guessing that he would have fit until about age 2, or a few months more, heightwise. For comparison, his head is just above the top of a Roundabout, and well within the Scenera and DC. Uses the second or third slots on the Scenera for RF and FF, respectively.

Given his size and age and what others have said, I would say that 18-24 mos is a good guess for when this seat will be outgrown. I'm sure there will be some very large ones that grow out at 9-12 mos, but for the majority, you would get over a year and maybe more.