FF seats, which to choose (in Canada)

[torontomom]

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[Scatterbunny]

You Canadians are actually pretty lucky when it comes to FF-only seats. :)

The Graco CarGo has tall top slots (about 2 to 2.5 inches taller than the 3-in-1's top slots) and a 48 pound harnessed weight limit. It has EPS foam and deep sidewings. The Cherished, Ultra and Platinum versions have a front harness adjuster, which is a MUST. It doesn't make a great long-term belt positioning booster though, because it doesn't adjust taller in booster mode. Kids will get too tall for it and still need another booster to get them to at least 4 feet 9 inches tall before moving to a regular lap+shoulderbelt.

Evenflo combination seats (Vision, Chase, Traditions, Bolero, Generations) are also good choices, because they have roughly the same top slot height as the Graco CarGo (and only about 1/2 an inch lower than the Britax Marathon) and harness to 47 pounds in Canada (these seats only harness to 40 pounds in the US). They don't have EPS foam or sidewings as deep as the Graco CarGo, and the harness adjusters are a little different, so be sure to try them out and decide which you like best. The Bolero and Generations would be my top pick if you want to use this seat both harnessed and as a booster, because these models adjust taller in booster mode to accommodate most kids to 4 feet 9 inches tall.

To see if your dd has outgrown her current seat, make sure it is adjusted to the second-to-top headrest setting, then buckle her in as usual. If her shoulders are over the harness slots, she is too tall for the seat.

Don't feel bad about using the Eddie Bauer RF for the new baby; the Dorel seats (Cosco, Safety 1st, Eddie Bauer) make good RF seats (especially in the US, where they RF to 35 pounds). It's FF and booster mode that fall short (literally). We don't generally like this seat because it proclaims to be the "only" seat you'll ever need, and that's simply not true...ESPECIALLY in Canada, where it is law to harness to 40 pounds. Kids just get too tall for these 3-in-1 seats before 4 years old and 40 pounds. My dd was 2.5 and 33 pounds when she got too tall for her 3-in-1.

[Kat_Mom2D_J_andRuthie]

we love the cosco seats for rf... our main hatred of the 3-in-1 is that it uses false advertising to sell it's product and overcharges... it's just never gonna be the last seat you ever need.

for a rf seat, we love it's high rf limit... so it's great for that.

if you have one with a 35lb rf limit,I wouldn't WANT to replace it.

And, in Canada, you really don't need the Britax as badly... because your other harnessed seats go higher than 40lbs.

I'd get the Graco Platinum Cargo... 48lb weight limit... tall top slots... it'll be perfect for you and you can pass it down to your new baby when the AO is outgrown or when your older one goes to a booster.

Kat

[torontomom]

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[bubbaray]

I would take your DD and see which of the combination seats has higher top slots. I found the Graco Platinum CarGo to have much lower (almost an inch) top slots than the Evenflo Vision/Chase. I ended up going with the Vision, purchased at Walmart in BC for I think either $89 or $99 Cdn (sorry, can't remember).

I got the seat for DD's DCP -- and she loves the seat. It is lightweight and very easy to install. The top slot is quite high, so I am hopeful that DD (2, 28lbs, 34") can be harnessed to the max weight (47lbs) even though she has a long torso.

Anyway, that is my longwinded way of saying try the seats out and see which has more growth room for your DD.

HTH
Melissa

Maya Papaya!
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