Graco Safe Seat Infant Car Seat - any info?

[stephhsi]

I am due with my first child in late July - early August. I have been looking at car seats and talking to some of my friends with infants. I was going to buy the Graco Snugride but I'm concerned that my baby might outgrow it sooner than expected. I've been looking at the new Graco SafeSeat infant car seat. It has a 30 pound weight and 32 inch length limit. It's a little more expensive than the Snugride but if it lasts longer than it's worth the money.

Does anyone know if this seat is good? I'm of course worried about safety and how easy it is to use. Has anyone purchased the SafeSeat and can you give me any recommendations or feedback on it?

Thanks,
Stephanie

[o_mom]

There have been several recent threads - do a search on "safeseat" in the carseat forum and you will get a dozen or so discussions. Here is one to get started with:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=13&topic_id=37701&mesg_id=37701&listing_type=search

[jeanum]

I've been using the Safeseat (in the Roxy pattern) for about a month for my nearly 8 month old DD, 18+ pounds and 29 inches tall with a really long torso. She outgrew her Baby Trend Latch Loc by height in January and I bought the Safeseat for the convenience of continuing to use an infant seat in the winter. I suspect my baby would have outgrown the Snugride with the 22 pound weight limit by height as soon as she outgrew the Baby Trend Latch Loc.

The Safeseat installed easily in the second row center of my 8 passenger Sienna (2005 model) with the seatbelt and the built in seatbelt lockoff in the base made it easy to get the base installed tightly. I didn't even try to install the Safeseat using LATCH because the Graco LATCH hooks are hard for me to use and I'm spoiled by the Britax LATCH hooks in my older DD's Marathon. The Safeseat is fairly heavy with my baby in it and wider than the Baby Trend seat, but it doesn't feel any more awkward to carry than the Baby Trend. It's also easier for me to work the straps and buckles because the straps are thicker and not as potentially twisty as the Latch Loc's, and the Safeseat buckle isn't a puzzle style one like the Latch Loc's. My baby seems comfy in it and probably has another 2 or more inches of head room before she outgrows it by height, so it should last us through the remaining months of winter.

My only complaint is that it's harder for me to release the Safe Seat and lift it off the base. I think this is due to a combination of the release lever being fairly big and hard for me to grab (small hands and short fingers) plus needing to simultaneously lift the combined weight of the seat and baby. It felt like the seat was stuck on the base the first couple of times I used it, but my husband could remove it easily and he showed me that I needed to make sure I was holding the release lever and lifting the Safeseat up by the handle at the same time rather than as two separate steps. It has gotten easier for me to do this with more experience, and overall I think it's worth being able to use the Safeseat during the winter. A shorter torsoed baby might actually fit in the SafeSeat longer and get closer to the 30 pound weight limit, but it likely would be pretty awkward to remove the seat from the base with a baby approaching 30 pounds. BRU had another Safeseat in a different colored fabric with a cold weather boot for $20 more, but I just use a fleece blanket over the baby after she's buckled into the Safeseat. My current plan is to use the Safeseat until she outgrows it by height and then switch her to a Britax Boulevard.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Jean (not a tech but a carseat fanatic who drives friends and DH up the wall on the subject)

[Kat_Mom2D_J_andRuthie]

okay... I just measured Ruthie by having her lie down with feet flat against the wall and marking where her head was with a pillow... edge of pillow where top of head was.

she's 37"... if I do it with her standing up I get 35.5"... cause she's still so wiggly and the ped always measures her lying down... with the boys, they have them stand flush against the wall standing straight as can be... though they have Damian lie down at the orthopedists because of the scoliosis and trying to keep track of any worsening of the curve.

anyway... she's 31-32lbs I think... I haven't had a chance to weigh her cause I don't have a scale... but when she turned 30lbs she had 1" above her head.

she still fits in the first set of loops on the harnesses... but they have to be completely loosened... but she does fit... she would use the top slots, which are just even with her shoulders, but she is now too long for this seat and too heavy.

these pics were taken before the salesguy came along and asked to see if she really could still fit in the harnesses.... he was stunned at how long a baby could last in this seat and that I promised him most babies would get 12-18mo minimum out of this seat before getting too big.

I pulled the canopy down here to show her head is now level with the top

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/kat_k1/carseat%20photos/SafeseatRuthie.jpg (http://photobucket.com)

this one shows where the crotch buckle falls... it's still not too short and it's not under her yet

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/kat_k1/carseat%20photos/SafeseatRuthie2.jpg (http://photobucket.com)

I think it had two crotch positions... I know this was the tightest.

the pics are posted in reverse order of when they were taken... she slept through those and the evenflo triumph... being put back in the stroller... she can really sleep when she's tired.

Kat

[AnneLW]

My husband and I went ahead and bought the Safeseat, and it installed very easily in our Audi All-road, using the LATCH system (baby's not coming until mid-April). We are in the market for an additional car and are interested in the Prius. Does anyone know if the Safeseat works with the Prius? I tried to check carseatdata.org, but there are no records yet for that combination.

Thanks,
Anne