What you should consider when looking for the safest car seats for your children.

Usually, parents ask which are the safest car seats in the market today? Basically, the safest is always the one that can perfectly fit in your car and in your budget; and of course, it should fit your baby safely every time he or she rides in the vehicle.

When it comes to choosing the safest car seats, keep in mind that your child’s safety should always be on top of your priorities. Aside from the various characteristics that a car seat should possess, it is important to think about its safety features. The following conditions should be considered to determine the safest car seat for your baby.

 

Britax Marathon 70 Convertible Car Seat Review

The Britax Marathon 70 Convertible Car Seat was designed for infants ranging in weight from 5 to 40 pounds (rear facing). It can also accomodate toddlers as they grow from twenty to seventy pounds in the forward facing position. Safety and convenience are both present on all Britax baby car seats. Click here to see how much you can save at Amazon!

This baby car seat has a great number of features including a high density foam for comfort and padding, removeable cover, matching comfort pads plus an infant body pillow. All these are easily removed for cleaning while the seat is still installed in your vehicle. The Britax Marathon 70 also has two buckle positions to accomodate your child as they grow. Certified for Airline travel and comes with harness holders to keep them in place while you put your child in the seat. The base grips are contoured and have an anti-slip feature which not only protects your cars seat but provides a tight fit.

Britax Marathon 70 Safety and Convenience Features:

Both safety and convenience are present on all Britax car seats, especially the Marathon. The base of the seat is structurally engineered with SafeCell Technology which incorporates SafeCells designed to compress during a crash or impact. The centre of gravity is significantly lowered and this will counteract the baby car seat from propelling the child forward and possibly hitting the back of the seat in fron of them.

The Britax Marathon 70 car seat is also re-inforced for extra strength with the connection to your vehicle with the integrated steel bars. This feature reduces the seat from forward flex in the instance of a crash.

The energy-absorbing Versa-Tether is another safety feature that helps divert the forces away from your baby during a crash. In both the forward and rear-facing positions, this will absorb some of the impact and help stabilize the baby car seat from side to side.

Side impact protection is a crutial factor in your childs safety and Britax Marathon 70 has been designed with a rigid seat shell along with energy-absorbing foam to protect both head and chest.

The five point harness has been proven in both aircraft and race cars so it is another safety feature that will make parents feel confident that there child is safe and secure.

The Quick-Adjust Harness is both designed for convenience and safety as it helps parents quickly and easily adjust the harness straps correctly so that they are positioned close to the shoulders while in the front or rear-facing positions.

Premium Lower Latch Connectors have been standard on most Britax car seats since 2001 and in 2002 all passenger vehicles were required to install latch anchors for car seats to be directly attached to the vehicle. This system is also designed for both safety and convenience. You will hear a clicking sound when you attach the seat so you know it is securely in place.

The Britax Marathon 70 is equipped with Built-in Lock-offs which are designed to work with both the front and rear-facing positions. This system is approved to lock the seat belts securely if your vehicle does not have a locking seat belt system. In 1996 Federal regulations required all vehicles to be equipped with locking seatbelts.

Britax Marathon 70 Specifications and Dimensions:

Child weight:
-forward facing (one year and 20 to 70 pounds maximum)
-rear facing (5 to 40 pounds maximum)
Child Seated Shoulder Height:
-forward Facing (12 – 16.75 inches)
-rear facing (9 – 16.75 inches)
Child Standing Height:
-49 inches maximum
Seating Compartment Height:
-23.5 inches
Seat Area Depth / Width:
-11 inches / 11 inches
Shoulder Width:
-13 inches
Harness Slot Heights:
-8.5 / 9.5 / 10.5 / 11.5 / 12.5 / 13.5 / 14.5 / 15.5 / 16.5 / 17.5 inches
Buckle Strap Depths:
-5 / 7.5 inches
Product Dimensions:
-18.5in wide x 26in high x 21in deep
Product Weight:
-19.5 pounds

Britax Marathon 70 Available Colors:

Crimson, Blueprint, Waverly, Onyx, Azalea, Chilli Pepper, Cowmooflage and Allison.

Britax Marathon 70 Customer Reviews:

There are a large number of customer reviews for the Britax Marathon 70 Convertible car seat and they are mostly positive. Many parents rave about the safety features and how convenient it is to install. They also comment on how comfortable their children are while in the seat.

A few customers did complain about having difficulty installing this car seat but other customers recommended that if you watch the videos Britax has on You Tube it is easy.

The ease and convenience of the Britax Marathon 70 car seat is very popular with customers but the fact that it is so safe and well built really impressed most. Quite a few mentioned being in an accident and their children were completely safe and came out without a scratch or bruise. One customer’s vehicle flipped numerous times and the seat worked flawlessly.

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Britax Marathon 70 Results:

With the amount of positive comments from happy customer’s and the reputation for safety plus how convenient this car seat is for parents, we would recommend the Britax Marathon 70 to anyone looking for top rated car seats.

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat Review

The Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat is a great choice for parents who want a car seat that their child can keep using as they grow and mature. This car seat is very versatile in the fact that it can be converted from a harnessed booster for children that weigh up to sixty-five pounds then be transitioned to a high back belt positioning booster and again be transformed into a backless belt positioning booster. Instead of having to buy a number of different baby car seats after your child has outgrown their rear-facing baby car seat, the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 will be the only forward facing car seat they will need as they mature and grow. This can be a significant savings for families who do not have a lot of extra money to be spending. Click here to see how much you can save at Amazon!

The  Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat will accomodate a child from twenty to one hundred pounds and up to fifty seven inches in height. Graco is highly committed to safety and the Graco convertible car seat has to meet high standards. It is extensively crash tested so it meets and even exceeds U.S safety standards, plus the U.S Compliance Standard, the New Car Assessment Program and also the seat is tested for extreme car interior temperatures. You can be reassured that your child is safe while travelling in this car seat. It must also pass side impact testing and it is equipped with energy absorbing foam plus a reinforced steel frame. This makes the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat very strong and durable. It is equipped with an extended five point safety harness for children from twenty to sixty five pounds.

Comfort and convenience are top notch on the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat. It has a plush comfortable cushioned seat and a one-hand adjustable head rest to easily conform to your growing child. This baby car seat features a three-position recline for extra comfort, it has nice wide armrests, a cup holder that will not only hold a sippy cup but also a water bottle because as your child matures they will outgrow the sippy cup. It has a side storage for snacks, toys or whatever your child needs to keep them occupied on a long trip in the car. The seat cushion is machine-washable so you can easily remove it when there are spills.

When you consider all the safety features plus all the extensive testing that goes into the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat it gives parents confidence and peace of mind while their child is riding in this car seat. Also, the versatility of being able to modify this car seat to accomodate your children as they grow is a big plus for parents who are on a budget and these days, most families are on a budget!

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat Specifications and Dimensions:

-20 pounds minimum weight recommended
-100 Pounds maximum weight recommended
-27 inches minimum height recommended
-57 inches maximum height recommended
-machine washable pad
-19.5 pounds (seat weight without base)
-20 inches (seat base/foot width)
-5 point harness
-Weight: 26 lbs
-Dimensions: 29in high x 20in wide x 22in deep…with head rest in lowest position

 

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat Customer Reviews:

The Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat recieves a large number of positive reviews from customers mainly because of the versatility and the “bang for the buck” as one customer put it. Simple things like the cup holder and the storage compartment were very popular features according to many parents. A great deal of them commented on how easily the seat can be installed and adjustments are simple. Many were impressed with the rollers for the straps and how they help prevent them from getting twisted.

The most popular feature with customers is the fact that they only have to buy one car seat for their child as soon as they are old enough to be facing forward, and this will save parents a lot of money. There were many customers who said that their children felt very comfortable and could easily fall a sleep in Graco Nautilus 3 in 1 car seat. They also were impressed with the five-point harness and the machine-washable cover.

There were some negative reviews which included a few customers complaining about the installation of the seat and the crotch strap needing another setting for a larger child. Some also would like to have seen the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat recline more than it does and a few commented that the headrest seems to be too far forward and it causes their childs head to slump forward when sleeping. There were a few complaints about the latching system.

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Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat Results:

With the amount of positive and satisfied customers compared to the number of dissatisfied customers, we would very much recommend this seat. The versatility alone makes this a great choice for families with a budget to stick to. The price is very low for a car seat with this many features and of this quality, so if you are tight for money then definately consider the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat.

Evenflo Symphony 65 E3 All in One Car Seat review

The Safest Car Seats must have a sufficient restraint system:

The safest car seats are those with a five-point harness system. This feature includes straps that go over the shoulders, the upper thighs or the hips and in between the legs that connect in order to create a durable restraint system, which will prevent your child from slipping or moving too much while traveling or in the event of an accident. This system has been proven in car racing for many years as the safest. It is also important to opt for a system that uses a buckle instead of a clip in its shoulder straps because buckles are more difficult to disentangle.

LATCH system:
This is a uniform system for the installation of car seats that stabilize the seat and lessen the possibility of head injury. This system allows the use of car seat a lot easier because it can be installed without using the seat belts of your car. It also guarantees that the car seat is installed properly and attached into your car all the time and cannot cut loose especially during an accident.

Impact protection:
The safest car seats should have impact protection elements to ensure that your child is safe in the event of an accident. It must include wings that can protect the sides of the legs and head of your baby. When the car seat is in a rear-facing position, it must be installed in a manner that the sides and the back protect the child from all directions. To make sure that the protection features of the car seat are in full force, installing the seat at the right angle is essential.

Usability features should also be considered when purchasing car seats. This way, you will be able to use the car seat continuously, providing you benefits through the years.

Support: It should provide enough support for your child and ensure that he/she is maintained in a position where the baby can breathe properly and move freely without slipping.

Belt adjustments: Make sure to look for a car seat that includes a center-pull strap because this lets you tighten the straps conveniently and easily from the front instead of the back. This is very useful when adjusting the belt for various types of clothing that you baby wears.

Comfort: It is important that your baby stays comfortable while in the car seat especially during long trips. The material of the seat must let proper air circulation and should have enough head support and padding. It should not be too small for your child and must not strain your child’s muscles. You can find some models with cup holders, adjustable armrest and detachable pillows.

Washability: It is quite normal for babies and young kids to be messy so expect that the car seat will be dirty most of the time. This is the reason why it is essential to choose a model with a detachable and washable cover for easy cleaning.

How to find the safest car seats:

With the hundreds of car seats available today, it can be quite difficult to find the one that can provide safety and comfort to your child. Here are some tips that can help you in purchasing a car seat.

Looking at various reviews online can be helpful in finding the safest car seats for your baby. You can find tons of reviews on the internet so make sure to read those from reputable sources. It is also recommended to ask for recommendations from family and friends who have experienced using car seats. This way, you can know more about the safest car seats and the process of installation, how the cleaning is done and the comfort level they provide.