ctc1010

I found a few older threads that discussed the positives and negatives of some car seats, but since a few members have recently had new additions or stepped up to full/convertible seats, I thought there might be some new comments and advice out there. Has anyone had experience with the Britax Boulevard or Recaro Signo? They seem to be rather large seats, and I'm not sure how much room they'd leave for the side passengers if they're installed in the center of the rear seat. What other brands/seats are you using, and what would you recommend?

kscarrol

Not familiar with the particular models you mention but had the Britax Marathon seats in my car. These are for kids up to 60 lbs so they are on the large side. Putting just one in the middle left lots of room for passengers on either side. I wouldn't want to take a very long car ride like that as if the passengers are big adults, their shoulders will be brushing the seat. But it does fit just fine...

Heloha

I know putting the carseat in the middle is defineatly the safest place, but trust me, it will break your back as your child gets heavier having to bend over and hoist them into position. Also, I don't think the center has the "LATCH" system tie downs but I could be wrong.

I have 2 Britax "Wizzards" which I think were replaced by the "Boulevard" model. My wife has Recaro brand her Surburban which are a little narrower, lower, and compact which also transition into booster seats as the child gets bigger. I would get the Recoaro's since they look to be as well made and safe as the Britax and are a lot cooler looking too! Another brand, we considered was one made by Sunshine. Sunshine seats are actually made to fit better in narrower cars where you could if needed actually get 3 in side by side.

Here's some pics:
Britax "Wizzard" brand



Recaro brand:

Sunshine brand:

BMHKMan

I have the Britax in my E60 and would highly recommend; more than enough room for passengers. I also would not recommend mounting in the middle cause when your baby's asleep it will kill your back getting him/her out of the car. My other word of advice here is to make sure the seats you choose have deep headrests like the Britax or Recaro does because your child will at some time fall asleep in on a drive and their head will be all over the place without the headrest. For this reason, I'd not recommend the Sunshine brand.

Cheers,

Ed

JStraw

The LATCH system is only on the two outside seats in the rear. The middle seat does not have the LATCH, but you can use the seat belt, I suppose.

Yes, the middle seat is probably the safest, but the outside seats are more convenient. On the other hand, do you have the optional rear airbags? If yes, then the middle seat is your best option, since the rear airbags are not safe for kids.

Britax is considered the best car seats available, but also keep in mind they are big and heavy. We own two Britax Marathons (one for each car) take at least one everytime we fly, and they are a pain to lug around! One of the things I have found is that with the Marathon installed on one side, you cannot install another car seat in the middle.

Also, I find the Marathon easy to install in cars without LATCH. I have tried other car seats, and a lot of them usually don't fit well in the car and take a lot of effort to install.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need more information.

kchan

couple more thoughts
if it's rear facing for the 1st year, putting it on the side would makes it so that there's no much front legroom. right now i have two on the sides, one front facing on the passenger side and 1 rear facing (to be switch around anytime since he just turned one) behind me. i am not tall so it fits me barely...
there's technically no latch in the middle, but you can use the two inner ones from the side. i checked with britax and the spacing between the two inner latches would be safe for mounting carseat, and of course you can use seatbelt too.
putting it in the middle is the safeset but it's really really difficult for the side passengers to buckle up.

i have a marathon and roundabout in my e60, my wife's x5 has a marthon and a boulevard. the boulevard is the same size as marathon i think with the extra cushions/paddings. roundabout is a bit smaller but it's only up to 40 lbs, vs. 60 lbs for the marathon. but i think once the kid is 40 lbs or above many people start putting them on booster? i think the model you choose also depends if you plan to have a 2nd kid and see how the logistic would work.

and yes they are a PITA to haul around in the airport, ask me how i know... i was sweating left and right with all the luggages already. if you lots of travel i think a roundabout would be a better choice.

TMQ

We use the Britax Roundabout and it's fantastic. Not too big and easy to Latch on. We recently got a Cosco Summit for our Honda - that one is a booster seat and also has the 5 point harness - necessary since my daughter is just over 30 pounds.) The Cosco unit is one third the price of the Britax model but installation is more difficult. My daughter clearly likes the BMW/Britax combination, partly because the iPod has lots of kids music.

ctc1010

Thanks for all the tips so far. Right now, we're in-between stages; she's currently still in the rear-facing phase, but only a couple of months away from graduating to front-facing, which is why I'm looking at the two convertibles. I believe (but am not 100% sure) that my car has the rear airbags; if that's the case I'm definitely going to install the carseat in the middle. Safety-wise, it seems the Recaro and the Britax are both highly rated; all things being equal, we'll probably go with the Recaro because as mentioned above, it just looks so much better!

A bit off topic- for those of you who travel a lot, you may want to consider the CARES safety harness rather than lugging around a car seat with you everywhere. Here's the link- http://www.kidsflysafe.com/

Thanks again!

kchan

Check with your dealer and see if you really have rear airbags, and if so can it be disabled. Sometime down the road it's ALOT easier to put them on the sides, plus if you have another one then it will be a must. Actually the Britax has lots of different fabric options which I find it to be very cool. Also recommend to use a 3rd point mount (I use the rail of the front seat) since it makes it unmovable. The Britax has it but not sure about Recaro, may double check. btw congrats on the child turning one soon =)

ctc1010

Decided to go with the Recaro Signo, based on it being equal to the Britax Boulevard in safety ratings but a heck of a lot better looking in my opinion. Installed in the center for now, as the rear side airbags have not been disabled yet. The seat is kind of big; it makes the rear side seats a tight fit, but my in-laws are short and small anyway so it should all work out. I used the interior LATCH connectors from the two outside seats, as well as the seat belt system. Many thanks to everyone for their input!