follow-up booster for lbs70 plus

[MAMA22]

My tall 6 year old has reached the height limit for his fisherprice booster (discontin. model). He still has growing room in his recaro booster but I am in search of a second/new booster that will take him all the way up to lbs 100. How is the bodyguard liked by the above lbs 65 pounds, bigger kids? Any news on any new boosters to hit the market soon??

[Joolsplus2]

The Bodyguard is probably the tallest booster with a 100 pound weight limit, and Britax did have pictures of much larger kids fitting great in it. I know one mom who's large 8yo and average sized 11 year old do find it quite comfortable, and only have minimal trouble with the lapbelt lockoffs (they are harder for some kids to master than others).
Do you need head support in your car? If you have headrests, you can just use a backless booster. Also, he'll probably be ready for the adult seatbelt alone before he reaches 100 pounds http://www.carseat.org/Boosters/630.htm (unless you are loving the side impact head protection the BG offers...then you can keep him in it as long as he fits, even if he doesn't technically need a booster anymore).
The Starriser Comfy is also a tall booster, but is about the same height as the Recaro, and only goes to 80 pounds (so why even mention it? Bigger kids DO find it very comfortable....).

Anyway, the best you can do is try out the BG and see if you like it...some love it, some hate it. The Evenflo Big Kid also goes to 100 pounds, but probably won't be much taller than your current seat.
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[MAMA22]

thanks for your reply. I had hoped you had some info on something ultra new. After loving the german kid version I had been excited about the bodyguard. but simply dealing with the britax customer service has been so frustrating over the years. I do buy their products but I wished they had better informed people answering the phones. Today I had another issue: with todays dvd/video systems in the cars that regularly come with headphones it does make sense to offer a booster that comes with integrated headphones (espec. when considering the wrap-around style headrest with side-impact-protection). Some websites even still advertise this feature on the BG. When I called Britax, the only info I could get on this issue (after being on hold forever) was that it was a marketing decision to do away with this option on the BG.

[Joolsplus2]

Yeah, those headphones were a major bust...didn't seem to fit any child on the planet's ears! I was hoping I'd have some new cool products to report back after the Lifesavers conference I went to last week, but zilch. I guess you could look at the NEW recaro with the built in speakers in the side impact protective headrest? http://www.proamauto.com/page11dq.htm

I had the old recaro, and it didn't suit us well, but the new one seems better (you don't have to use the red belt lockoff after 40 pounds! yay!)...I'm dreaming of getting a couple of these...

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[MAMA22]

my recaro is also the old style with the slide on headrest from Germany, great for napping but of no use in side-impact coll. What was the rationale for needing to use the lock-off above 40 lbs, if it is no longer required with the new model, it is still the same seat!? I used to only use the lock-off below a certain weght, according to the german manual.

[Joolsplus2]

If the German manual only required the lockoff to a certain weight, do you suppose that the first US models/manuals just accidentally omitted the fact that the lockoff was no longer required after a certain weight? I'm quite sure my old US manual said to use it for ALL weights, and I found that restriction so annoying I didn't do it, then sold the seat on ebay!
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[mama22]

I just checked the manual, it states that up to a weight of 18 kg the lock-off is mandatory, above this weight it is sufficient to only use the seatbelt guide function. Ok, here it says in the english section of my manual: "use of belt clamps is compulsory for children weighing up to 18kg. For heavier children it is sufficient to guide the belt without the clamping function".
However one is still supposed to always guide the seatbelt through the belt clamp, maybe this caused some confusion for the US manual? I purchased this seat in 2000 but the manual is from 12/98. One other thing I remember: The recline function on this seat cannot be used above 25 kg but I had my son sit upright in it from early on anyway. I will have to see how the "new" recaro will do in future crashtests before I will consider to buy another one. the britax-roemer Kid scored higher than the old recaro so maybe they will do a new series of tests this summer, testing the recaro with its improved side-impact features. I will be spending the summer In Germany and will check things out. I guess I still will have to figure out whether to buy and take along a BG....

[Joolsplus2]

I check that OEAMTC site almost daily now, hoping they have done their 2004 testing with the new Recaro, lol http://216.239.39.104/translate_c?hl=en&u=http://www.oeamtc.at/netautor/html_seiten/kisitest_2003/gesamt.html&prev=/search%3Fq%3Doeamtc%2Bkindersitze%26hl%3Den%26lr%3 D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8
I know a mom who lives in Japan, and her dd has the Kid there, and the BG here, and supposedly the padding is actually better in the seat for the BG. I was shocked to hear it, since the belt lockoffs make the BG look so much more spartan...but oh well...

Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx