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View Full Version : Which seats comparable to Nautilus?


deborah_r
10-09-2009, 02:20 PM
DS1 sits in a Graco Nautilus in DH's car. He has been in the Marathon in my car, but it expires this month. On our 6,000 mile trip cross country and back (in a VW Rabbit!) DS complained that his butt hurt (sitting in Nautilus). I was wondering if maybe the Nautilus is not as comfortable (cushy, padded) as he is used to with the Marathon. So I was thinking to get him some kind of Britax that is similar to the Nautilus - So I want FF, harness for now, booster later (he has just reached 35 pounds, not sure how tall -maybe 41-42" -- he's a peanut!) I was looking a tthe Parway and the Fronteir, but then there is the Radian right? I got really confused about the differences between them all. TIA!
nrp
10-09-2009, 02:25 PM
The Frontier is the most comparable to the Nautilus as far as being a harnessed seat that converts to a booster later. We have both the Nautilus and Frontier, and I think the Frontier is a little cooshier, but for a 6,000 mile trip I think my rear would hurt after awhile no matter what the seat!
deborah_r
10-09-2009, 02:32 PM
but for a 6,000 mile trip I think my rear would hurt after awhile no matter what the seat!

Yeah, I was thinking during the trip, I can shift around in my seat, but in carseats they can't really shift around too much.
jjordan
10-09-2009, 02:35 PM
The Radian isn't a Britax seat and it is a convertible seat, ie one that can face backwards or forwards, but it doesn't have the booster feature. It is a great seat in general but probably not the best choice for a child that is already facing forward.
deborah_r
10-09-2009, 02:44 PM
The Radian isn't a Britax seat

LOL, told you I was confused! There are just SO many options now. Goodness, when I bought the Marathon my decision was "Roundabout or Marathon?"

ETA; I was thinking of Regent, I guess. Not Radian.
o_mom
10-09-2009, 02:53 PM
Other than the Nautilus, the only other highweight harness combo seats are the Frontier, Apex and Generations65. I think the Frontier is the only one that would have padding that is significantly different than the Nautilus.

If you will eventually need another convertible seat to hand down to your little one, the Radian might not be bad. They are making them with memory foam now. I do think that the 6,000 miles is a much bigger factor, though. ;) The Parkway has a 40 lb minimum weight, so that's not really an option at this point.
deborah_r
10-09-2009, 02:59 PM
If you will eventually need another convertible seat to hand down to your little one, the Radian might not be bad. They are making them with memory foam now. I do think that the 6,000 miles is a much bigger factor, though. ;) The Parkway has a 40 lb minimum weight, so that's not really an option at this point.

Just bought a Boulevard for DS2 (he has been riding in the Graco Safeseat still - he is only 22 pounds at almost 28 months), so he's covered for what, 6 years? in a convertible. I'll probably be looking more to pass DS1's boosters down to him. Thanks for the info about the Parkway, I hadn't noticed that 40 lb minimum yet.
o_mom
10-09-2009, 03:01 PM
Just bought a Boulevard for DS2 (he has been riding in the Graco Safeseat still - he is only 22 pounds at almost 28 months), so he's covered for what, 6 years? in a convertible. I'll probably be looking more to pass DS1's boosters down to him. Thanks for the info about the Parkway, I hadn't noticed that 40 lb minimum yet.

Yes - you are probably good for the next 5-6 years with the Boulevard. I would look into the Frontier in that case as it has a 9 year lifespan, giving you plenty of hand-me-down potential (Nautilus is only 6 years on the harness and highback booster portion). ETA: the Regent is discontinued and only has a 6 year life - I would guess that any you buy now are at least a year old already, so it would expire before you could hand it down.
deborah_r
10-09-2009, 03:13 PM
Yes - you are probably good for the next 5-6 years with the Boulevard. I would look into the Frontier in that case as it has a 9 year lifespan, giving you plenty of hand-me-down potential (Nautilus is only 6 years on the harness and highback booster portion). ETA: the Regent is discontinued and only has a 6 year life - I would guess that any you buy now are at least a year old already, so it would expire before you could hand it down.

I could kiss you right now. Thank you for this info, I really appreciate it. I had no idea about the 6 years vs. 9 years thing. With my boys having a 4 year age difference, that could definitely come in to play! I was having a bit of a hard time forcing myself to pay more for a Fronteir when I can get a Nautilus cheaper.

ETA: I almost forgot though, that DS2 is sitting in a Decathalon in DH's car. I can't remember how old that one is - maybe 2007? I'm thinking I have about 4 years left on that one. Hopefully we will be covered.