Combe car seats

[CPSDarren]

>The Avatar is heavy because the shell is constructed with a
>double wall of plastic for phenomenal side impact protection.
>The Avatar has twice as much plastic as the RAB. The Avatar
>shell is blow molded and the RAB shell is injection molded.
>Injection Molding is a quicker, less expensive molding process
>than blow molding.

I do really like the Avatar's heavy, deep wings around the torso and head. Though I've not seen any tests indicating it is phenomenal for side impact protection, it seems like it should be. Now if Combi could combine rigid LATCH with a seat that would pivot from rear to front facing, that would be a real winner!

>The Combi Connection Infant Seat is shipping now. Will
>accomodate an infant 0-22 lbs and up to 29". It has 3 types
>of energy absorbing foam and releases from the base and
>stroller effortlessly. Ad in the April/May issue of Fit
>Pregancy.

The upcoming Chicco infant seat looks to be very nice, too. The base is exceptionally easy to install with LATCH or seatbelt. Incidentally, infant seats are all going to be at least 22 pounds and 29" in the USA by the end of the year. I'm also very interested to see the Connection since Combi didn't appear at the Lifesavers conference in Charlotte this month. In any case, it also looks very nice and the link is here:

http://www.combi-intl.com/8040.htm


>Combi car seats should be taken seriously. The Tyro infant
>seat received a very good rating from Consumer Reports along
>with the Snugride and Peg. It was the only infant seat to
>receive an excellent rating in the crash protection with latch
>category.

That assumes we know what the Consumer Reports crash protection rating means. Does the rating reflect real world risk of injury? How much difference is there between rating categories? If a model with a top rating turns out not to fit well with a parent's child or vehicle, is it still as safe as CR suggests? Does the rating include side impact protection? Does the rating apply to all variations of the same model? If you don't know the answers to these questions, you may not want to put a lot of faith in Consumer Reports' ratings...

>The Engineer that made sure all the Britax seats meet the
>FMVSS standards is now working at Combi. He will take Combi
>to the next level regarding car seats.

Does Combi do child restraint design in the USA? When they were headquartered in Carol Stream, Illinois, I was led to believe it was mostly marketing, sales and distribution in the USA.

Darren
www.seatcheck.net

[kristy l]

Is it your opinion that a tyro infant seat year 2003 is very good too? I am looking at Baby unuverse and they have savona stroller and tyro infant seat on sale I am considering this route any suggestions?

[TahliasMom]

I have the 2004 tyro infant seat. We used it with DD from day 1 until she was about 8 months. Great seat, no problems!

[sbaker]

The Marathon doesn't have a puzzle buckle. I don't think any of the newer Britax seats do.

Just my two cents...
:) :+ :)
Sara
Mom to:
Rayce 02/09/02
Charlye 12/20/03

[Joolsplus2]

Sorry, didn't see this post...

Nope, there hasn't been a puzzle buckle on a Britax in several years, and anyone with a puzzle buckle can replace it with a normal harness for about $12, if they hate it. And yeah, my dd is really good with her own seatbelts. But "wanting a kid to buckle themself" isn't a good excuse to move to a less-safe booster seat, either (some kids can't even buckle boosters, and it's easier for MOM to buckle a harness...which is safer anyway, so why graduate them to a booster any earlier than you absolutely have to?)


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

[ASheumaker]

We are looking at the Tyro Combi for DS (to arrive late May). I have read that the seats are "difficult" to get in and out of base. Does anyone have any real experience with this? Is it really that difficult? Unfortunately, there are none in stores to try out close to us. Any general info. from those of you who use the seat daily would be great! Thanks SO much!

[chriss]

In order to release the seat out of the base you must pull the handle, slide the seat forward slightly, and the seat is then released. It is not difficult at all. Once you do it once, you have done it a million times! This seat also goes to 29 inches and 22 pounds!! Hope that helps!

[MommyofJulia]

I have two Combi Victoria Car seats (one in Hampshire and one in York). I love them both. I first bought the Britax Roundabout, but my daughter was not compatible with it. Then I bought a Graco ComfortSport with the pedicfoam and a Combi Victoria. I returned the Graco because it just wasn't as nice as the Combi and had too many issues (too big for my car in rear facing, not easy to adjust the straps, one strap seemed longer on one side than the other, etc.). I liked the Combi so much I bought another one for our other car. I think it is the next best thing to the Britax Roundabout and it is a lot cheaper. I bought them online. The Hampshire from babycenter.com ($129.95) and the York from Albee-baby.com ($129.00). The shipping was free for both, but at babycenter.com I had to pay an $8 oversize charge. My daugher who is 8 months seems to love it a lot. The seat sits up higher than most so she can see out the window. She looks very comfortable in the seat.

[kate850]

What's the trick with the buckle latch? We have two Avatars and the buckles drive us crazy! I'd love to know how to do buckle them up more easily...

[Joolsplus2]

I hope she pops back in with her trick, but if not, one of the general rules for puzzle buckles is to loosen the harness before you try to buckle them...it's a lot harder to do if the harness is tight (so the mantra is: loosen the harness every time you take the baby out, and tighten the harness every time you put the baby back in)

Don't know if that will help, but it's the only way I could deal with my old Maxi Cosi Priori puzzle buckle.

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