Since we wrote this review, the Pria 85 Max has joined the Maxi-Cosi product line. Our review of that very similar car seat features our modern formatting while this review harkens back to our earliest days.
The Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 is an update to the well-loved Pria 70 convertible car seat. The Pria 85 takes many cues from its European counterpart, incorporating plush fabrics and little details like the no rethread harness, easy to remove cover, and harness holders to make buckling the child easier.
CSFTL Quick Stats:
- Rear facing weight range: 14-40 pounds
- Rear facing height range: 40″ or less
- Forward facing weight range: 22-85 pounds
- Forward facing height range: 29-52″
- Shell height: 26″ (headrest fully extended)
- Lowest harness position: 9″
- Highest harness position: 17″
- Expiration: 10 years
- Lower anchor weight limit: 40 pounds
Features:
- 3 position crotch strap
- 3 recline settings
- Push button lower anchor connectors
- No rethread harness with 9 positions
- Easy remove cover
Rear Facing
The Pria 85 requires a little bit of extra attention to detail when it comes to installation. The first essential step to installing any car seat is, of course, to read the manual. It’s especially important with the Pria 85 to ensure that none of the details have been overlooked. The Pria 85 features three recline settings: either position 2 or 3 can be used while rear facing, so long as the single level line is level to the ground after installation. The recline foot is clearly labeled, making it easy to tell which recline setting you have selected. In my vehicle, the more upright recline position 2 put the indicator nicely level with the ground.
Next, thread the seat belt or lower anchor strap through the belt path. There are guides on both sides of the rear facing belt path, the lower anchor strap or lap belt of the seat belt must be threaded in those guides on both sides. The edges of the guides are a little bit sharp, and I was very careful about threading the seat belt through. If the seat belt were resting on the edge of the guide while pulling tight, it could result in damage to the seat belt.
The cover easily pulls up to access the belt path, but I found myself wishing for a couple of slots in the cover to be able to access the belt path without partially removing the cover around the path. It was painless to get a secure installation with either lower anchors or seat belt in each of the vehicles I tried. The Pria has a single line that must be level to the ground for rear facing, I found it to be a nice angle for the my rear facing toddler, and it fit comfortably behind the driver’s seat in my Honda CRV with plenty of room for the average adult to drive comfortably.
Fit to Child
The Pria allows rear facing from 14-40 pounds, up to 40″, as long as the child’s head does not exceed the top of the fully extended headrest (which measures 26″ in height). With a 14 lb starting weight and 9″ bottom harness position, this seat is designed for infants who are ready to transition out of their rear facing only car seat and are around 6 months old. There are three crotch buckle settings at 4″, 5″ and 6″ deep; Maxi-Cosi permits use of the inner and middle position when rear facing and recommends using the setting that provides a snug fit for the child.
Rear facing, the Pria 85 is limited to when the child is 40 pounds, 40″, or their head reaches the top of the fully extended headrest. This stated height limit is unfortunate, as CSFTL recommends rear facing until 3-4 years old and some taller kids may hit 40″ before then.
Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 8 months old
Our 8 month old model weighs 20 pounds and is 27″ inches tall. He’s just moving into the Pria 85 from his rear facing only seat. The straps are just below his shoulders on the lowest setting and he is using the inner crotch buckle position. The strap covers are fairly large and a bit bulky on him so he is using the Pria 85 without the harness covers, which are easily removable with velcro along the sides.
Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 19 months old
This young model is 19 months and fairly small for her age, at 22 pounds and 31″ she is on the second headrest position. The Pria 85 gave her tons of leg room rear facing and gave a comfortable fit with the crotch buckle on the innermost setting. I did find the harness rather difficult to tighten.
The Pria 85 does not have a continuous harness, like many of its Dorel Juvenile Group cousins, but the tightening strap requires a firm tug to pull snug and careful attention to ensure the straps are not twisted. I employed the method of pulling the slack through the shell from the back of the seat, and then pulling the front adjusting strap to tighten.
Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 3 years old
This 3 year old weighs 30 pounds and is 36″ tall. He was very comfortable riding in the Pria 85 rear facing and his mom knows that he still is safest rear facing and loves that the Pria gives him plenty of room to grow.
Forward Facing
Installation of the Pria 85 was just as easy as rear facing, but did, again, require some attention to detail. There are several methods for forward facing installation, and all have specific rules that depend on the child’s weight:
Left: Recline position 1. Right: Recline position 2
- If the child is between 22-40 pounds, 29-43″, install the Pria 85 in recline position 2 using either LATCH or seat belt with tether.
- If the child is between 40-85 pounds, 43-52″, install the Pria 85 in recline position 1 using the seat belt with tether.
This requirement could prove problematic – there is no overlap in the weight and height requirements for using position 1 versus position 2, so if a child is in the weight range for position 1 but the height range for position 2, the manual is unclear which position should be used for that child.
Installation in both recline positions was simple; there are no belt guides for the forward facing belt path and the cover easily unsnaps in the back to allow access to the belt path to achieve a tight installation without a lot of effort.
I appreciated Maxi-Cosi’s advisement to always use the tether when the Pria 85 is installed in the forward facing position to greatly improve the performance of the child restraint in a crash.
Fit to Child
The Pria allows forward facing from 22-85 pounds and up to 52″, as long as the child fits with the harness at or above the shoulders and the midpoint of the head below the top of the fully extended headrest. The top harness position measures 17″, which unfortunately means the vast majority of children are going to outgrow the Pria 85 with their shoulders exceeding the top harness position long before ever reaching the height or weight maximum. Maxi-Cosi boasts that the Pria 85 is the only convertible car seat rated up to 85 pounds, and while that may be true, there just aren’t many children of that size that will truly be able to use the seat.
Maxi-Cosi permits use of any of the three crotch buckle slots when forward facing, and recommends using the position that will provide a snug fit for the child.
Top: standard harness covers. Bottom: grippy covers required for over 65 pounds with no tether available.
The Pria comes with two sets of harness covers, one for comfort, and a second that is a requirement if the child is over 65 pounds and there is not a tether anchor available. The second, larger pair look the same upon initial inspection, but have a thick, grippy material on the back. They are stored in a storage pocket on the outside of the cover, where the manual may also be stored.
This model is 6 years old, tall and skinny for his age at 43 pounds and 47″. He is on the second to the top harness position on the Pria 85 and on the 3rd crotch buckle setting. He found the Pria 85 to be very comfortable; he is quite leggy and appreciated the leg support, cupholder and soft fabrics. On his second ride in the seat, he actually fell asleep which is rather uncommon for him.
His only complaint with the Pria 85 was that the buckle is very difficult to open. He regularly buckles and unbuckles himself in his other seats, but he couldn’t do the Pria. The strap material is also rather thin and tended to twist, he had a tough time getting in and out without twisting the straps. With two kids, it’s a real time saver to have my oldest buckle himself so it was frustrating for both of us that he needed my assistance each time we got in and out of the car. I had a difficult time tightening the harness the first time I adjusted it for him.
This 5.5 year old model is tall for her age – 48.5″ and weighs 53 pounds. Despite being well within the stated limits of the Pria 85, she outgrew the seat some time ago. Her shoulders are above the top harness position, and the harness was only just long enough to get her buckled in, it was not comfortable for her at all.
I also tested our Huggable Images doll, Thomas, is 8 years old, 80 pounds and 57″. He is well over the stated 52″ height limit for the Pria 85 forward facing, but at 80 pounds he is within the weight limit. I tried him in the seat to see if the straps were long enough to fit around his body, and they weren’t even close. Unfortunately, neither the length nor height of the straps were built to accommodate a child at the upper ranges Maxi-Cosi has placed on the Pria 85.
Features
Maxi-Cosi came up with a lot of fun details in the design of the Pria 85, here are a few:
No Rethread Harness
The Pria 85 no rethread harness features 9 positions, which makes it easy to get a proper fit on just about any sized child. For rear facing, position the straps at or below the shoulders; for forward facing, position the straps at or above the shoulders. The headrest design places the headwings right around the child’s head without squashing their shoulders or awkward positioning like some other seats tend to do. To adjust the harness, squeeze the handle in the headrest and pull up or down. I found the adjustment a little sticky the first few times, but it did get easier as I moved it several times. The very top position was the most difficult to get the headrest to, I had to pull on the headrest as well as the adjuster on the back to get it all the way up.
Easy Remove Cover
Let’s face it: kids are gross. No matter how clean you try to keep your car, they will always find a way to make a mess. Whether it’s *ahem* organic fluids, goldfish crackers, apple juice, or some mystery substance that only a toddler can conjure, the bottom line is that you will have to wash the cover at some point. The Pria 85 features an easy remove cover that comes off without having to uninstall the seat or undo the harness. I was a little bit skeptical upon first reading about this feature, so I decided to give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised when it was just as easy as promised. It only took a few minutes and undoing a few snaps to completely remove the cover without uninstalling the seat. Plus, there aren’t any of those pesky little elastics with corresponding posts to find that secure the cover, it simply slips around the edges and then has a few snaps on the inner portion that keep it secured. I even washed the cover after a few weeks of use, and found the cleaning instructions in the manual easy to follow, and that the material washed nicely.
Comfy Fabrics
The gray material of the Pria 85 looks and feels just like a comfy pair of sweatpants. It contrasts with sleek, navy fabric and the result is a handsome seat that combines comfort and style. Sam told me several times that his favorite thing about the Pria 85 is the soft fabric.
The seat featured in this review is Brilliant Blue; with a couple cameos from a Devoted Black model. The Pria 85 is also available in Passionate Pink.
Harness Holders
Having to dig harness straps out from underneath a wiggly kid is, simply, the worst. The Pria 85 has these handy little clips on the side of the seat to hold the straps out-of-the-way. My kids have ridden in several other seats that have this feature and to be honest, I’ve never actually used it with any regularity. I always find that getting the straps into the little holders is more cumbersome than digging them out from under the child is to begin with. The Pria 85 changed that for me, however. The harness holders are in the perfect position to easily tuck the straps in
Overall Thoughts
The Pria 85 carries a lot of nice features and will last the average child a long time. I appreciated the plush fabrics, comfortable fit, and easy remove cover. I would love to see the rear facing height limit extended, and the forward facing limits set to a range more likely to be achieved by the size constraints of the seat. With a suggested retail of $299.99, the Pria 85 won’t fit all budgets, but the ease of use features make it a nice choice for many families. Would you like to win a Pria 85 for your Little? Maxi-Cosi would like to give one away to one of our readers, enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. You can also find the Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 on Amazon.com.
Maxi-Cosi generously provided the Brilliant Blue seat used in this review, however, we were not otherwise compensated and opinions, as always, are all our own.
Originally written by Emma Douglas. Edits maintained by CSFTL.
