Does anyone have a Compass or Evenflo Big Kid booster?

[lindsey]

Hi!

I am thinking of getting one of these booster seats and need some feedback. I think they both have the arm rests that fold up for easier buckling, and they appear to be nicely padded. I am shying away from the Parkway because of the large wings, I think they would drive my daughter crazy. My daughter wants to learn how to buckle herself and the Turbo Booster may be too hard for her, and they also are very light on the padding. If you have any info on one of the above boosters I would love some advice. They will be in a Town & Country mini van. Thanks so much!!

[Scatterbunny]

What is your daughter's height, weight and age?

If you intend for this booster seat to be the last one she will need (one that will take her to at least 4 feet 9 inches tall), I would avoid the Compass B500. I hate to say that, because other than it being much shorter than the others, it's a great seat, as far as the flip-up armrests and padding go. I also like that the seating area is a couple of inches wider on this one than the others.

Still, I've compared it to the Parkway and TurboBooster and the Compass B500 will be outgrown MUCH sooner. Side-by-side, adjusted to the highest setting, the TurboBooster and Compass only look to differ heightwise by about an inch. However, the location of the shoulderbelt guides are what makes the Compass so much shorter. The shoulderbelt guildes are located much lower on the Compass, so even though the top of the seat shell is only about an inch different, The highest position that the shoulderbelt can go on the Compass is several inches lower than the highest position on the Turbo (and Parkway and Big Kid). A friend's son is outgrowing the B500 at 48 inches tall; he obviously still needs a booster, and fits the other boosters with lots of room to grow.

The Big Kid does not have EPS foam or deep side wings for enhanced side impact protection like the TurboBooster and the Parkway (the Parkway, of course, has been designed and tested for side impact protection).

What versions of the TurboBooster have you seen? They have models that are $80-$90 that are very well-padded, while they also have models that are $40-$50 that are pretty bare-bones (with plasticky/rubbery armrests instead of fabric).

My dd has used the Turbo and the Parkway and much prefers the Parkway, though at 4 years and 9 months old, 46 inches and 46 pounds we both still prefer harnessed seats over any booster. Buckling and unbuckling a harnessed seat is much easier for my dd. The seatbelt always retracts on her while she's trying to get it pulled around her and buckled. It always gets twisted. The fact that the Parkway does not have armrests makes it easier to get buckled than the Turbo.

Here are my comparison pics of the Turbo and Compass: http://photobucket.com/albums/0603/s...ompass%20B500/

And of the Turbo and Parkway: http://photobucket.com/albums/0603/s...tax%20Parkway/