What Are the Best Convertible Car Seats to Get?

We researched these seats, and ended up getting the Cosco Alpha Omega and love it. It rated almost equal to the Britax model (like one or two points below out of 100 for safety and ease of use)at about $100 less. We have seen it at Costco here for about $130.

Another place to find user opinions is at epinions.com -- sometimes the search can be a little difficult, but I often find useful info there.

We have 2 Graco ComfortSports in our car for our two boys. We really like them. There are different levels on the ComfortSports and we got the highest (most expensive) one - it's the one that retails for $119. And it has the memory foam so that the seat is really comfy as well.

Good Luck - I remember how overwhelming that was to find one!

S.

Hi J.,

I would recommend the Britax My husband and I did a lot of research on this car seat and let me tell you my daughter and I were in a car accident a couple of weeks ago and we were hit on her side and it did exactly what it was supposed to do I was very happy we spent the money and got the Britax. It is pricey but for us price was not a factor when it comes to the safety of our children. After the accident we bought another one. Good luck hope we helped.

I love my Britax Marathon. Easy to install. Safe, durable.

We have a Cosco Alpha-Omega Elite 3 in 1 carseat, and LOVE it! It is easy to install, has a great safety rating, easy to clean, and is very durable! The straps are easy to adjust and don't need rethreaded. Our son is tall for his age and this carseat fits him better than any of the others, including the Britax. It comes with all the bells and whistles! I recommend it to everyone!
Best of luck!

go ask your firefighters (or police - whoever does the car seat safety installations in your town) which ones they see most consistently installed properly - both into the car and kid into the seat. It doesn't matter how good the seat is if its not used properly! If its hard to tighten the kid's harness, you won't do it and your child will not be safe. Most kids are not put into the seats properly nor are the seats in the car properly. Then, after you make your decision, take it to the fire station and have them show you how to do it!

I am also currently looking into getting a larger car seat. Have you seen the book Baby Bargains? They have a book in print but also a website that has VERY active message boards. I would take a look there for sure. It might confuse you more though, there are a lot of opinions out there.

http://www.windsorpeak.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=3

I also like epinions as another mom has suggested. Also, sites like Target.com and BRU have consumer ratings on many of the items they sell but not all are rated.

Good luck!
J.

Hi J.,
As my little one is not big enough yet, I cannot speak from experience but I did buy a Britax Marathon. For advice/reviews, I went to Amazon.com and searched different car seats. Some parental reviews included different articles and sites concerning safety, ease of use, etc.

http://www.viewpoints.com/Car-Seats
http://www.epinions.com

These are both good websites. If you want data from people other than parents, the national highway traffic safety administration has a little article:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/template.MAXIMIZE/...

Good luck!

From what I have seen and read, the Britax Roundabout receives consistently high ratings. (Britax's other, bigger car seats don't seem to fare as well) We liked the Roundabout well enough that we bought another one for our second son. They are a bit pricy but worth it. If you search for Baby Bargains, their website (Windsor Peak, I think) usually has pretty good, unbiased information.

Hope that helps!

We love our Britax Marathon too. It's a little big, but very sturdy, safe and comfortable. I googled "convertible carseat reviews" and found a bunch of sites when we were looking for ours. The Marathon was moderately priced and got good safety reviews and had a high weight limit so it will last longer. We've been really happy with it.

I just looked into this when I bought a second carseat for my husband's car. The Britax Convertible Roundabout has the highest safety ratings on all the research I did. And it comes in lots of fun colors and fabrics!

Good luck!
M.

I just got into a car accident 2 weeks ago with my 14 mo old in the car. A car hit us at 50 miles an hour. Now I am no expert, but my daughter left that accident with out a red mark on her!!!!! Even the ER said that I had to have and a good car seat. I would recommeded it to anyone. I came home and bought 2 more on line. It is a Cosco brand that can be used as a booster seat as well. My daughter loves it!!!

Alpha Omega Elite - I bought it online at albeebaby.com - free shipping and no tax, just $89.99. I think it is something Cosco brought out a year ago, so it is cheaper now.

Good luck!!!!

Yes go to the department of national highway saftey and transportation website. We bought the eddie baur convertable for children from 5 to 75lbs. And it doesn't adjust well, but we also got the alpha omega elite and i don't think they could have made a seat easier to install and adjust, i absolutely love it. It got great ratings and it runs about $100. I think it goes all the way up to 100 lbs and it comes in many different colors.