Maxi – Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit Review

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit crotch buckle positions

Three crotch buckle positions At 5, 6, and 7 inches from the back of the seat pan, these positions allow a wide variety of children to fit the Pria without being uncomfortable.  It must be in the smallest and middle position when rear facing without the TinyFit.  When using the TinyFit insert, the buckle must be in the furthest out position.  Forward facing, the buckle can be in any position.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit recline positions

Three adjustable recline settings give you the flexibility to adjust the seat to the correct recline depending on the vehicle seat’s slope and child’s weight.

• Rear facing: the recline adjuster must be in position 2 or 3, depending on which position helps the Pria install at the correct angle according to the level line on the side of the seat.
• Forward facing, the recline adjuster must be in position 2 for children who weigh between 22-40 pounds
• Forward facing, the recline adjuster must be at position 1 for children who weigh between 40-70 pounds

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit push on lower anchor connectors

Push button lower anchor connectors help with those deeply buried vehicle lower anchors and make for an easier install and uninstall.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit no rethread harness

The no re-thread harness is adjusted by the squeeze of a button at the top of the head support.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit

TinyFit infant insert   This insert is like a seat within a seat. It’s only used in rear facing mode for infants who weigh between 4-22 pounds. It does take some extra effort to install into the seat.  The TinyFit must be used until the infant’s shoulders reach the bottom harness position without the insert (10 inches).

TinyFit body pillow is a welcome addition for those little infants that need a bit of extra side to side support when using the TinyFit infant insert.

The Head pillow can be used to help support a newborn’s head.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit harness comfort pads

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.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit chest clips

The Pria 70 includes two sizes of chest clips.  The manual states that the smaller of the two must be used with the TinyFit insert and can be used for smaller newborns who aren’t using the TinyFit insert. The large chest clip can never be used with the TinyFit insert and is intended for larger babies and toddlers. The manual doesn’t list a specific weight, age, or height guideline for when the larger chest clip can be used.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit furthest position

The TinyFit Insert is a seat within a seat.  It is a plastic insert that is actually installed into the seat for small infants.  This takes the hassle out of using a rear facing only seat for a newborn and allows a caregiver to use the Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 from birth.

The installation can be a bit time consuming so here’s a quick rundown of how it works.

Note: the TinyFit insert requires the smaller chest clip. This is mentioned at the front of the manual, on the part identification page.

1.  Make sure the crotch buckle is in the furthest position from the back of the seat pan.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit unthreaded

2. Unthread the harness from the back of the car seat and pull everything except the buckles off. The smaller chest clip must be used with TinyFit.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit rethreaded harness

3.  Set the insert on the seat and thread the harness and buckles through the holes at the bottom of the insert.  Thread the chest clip, harness comfort pads, and head pillow onto the harness, then thread the harness through the appropriate harness slot in the insert.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit harness through insert and shell

4.  Pull the harness all the way through the insert and into lower set of harness slots on the seat shell.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit splitter plate

5.  Attach the harness to both sides of the splitter plate.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit lowered head support

6.  Move the head support down so it secures the insert into the seat.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit rear facing installation

• Expiration: 10 years
• Lower anchor weight limit: 40 pounds

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit lower anchor connector strap behind crotch strap with TinyFit installed

When installing the Pria 70 with the TinyFit insert, the crotch buckle must be in the furthest position from the back of the seat pan. The lower anchor webbing or vehicle seat belt must be routed behind the crotch buckle.  Fully extending the head support makes it easier to route the lower anchor webbing or vehicle seat belt.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit lower anchor connector strap in front of crotch strap without TinyFit installed

When installing without the TinyFit the crotch buckle needs to be in either the smallest or middle crotch buckle position then the lower anchor strap or seat belt is threaded in front of the buckle.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit belt positioning guide

Like other Maxi-Cosi convertible car seats, the Pria 70 also incorporates a belt positioning guide on either side of the rear facing belt path.  The lower anchor webbing or lap portion of the vehicle seat belt needs to be threaded through this positioning guide before tightening.

The Pria 70 has a single recline level line for rear facing installations.  This line is a raised portion of plastic at the top of the seat right above a green label.  The Pria has 2 rear facing recline positions — the more reclined is for children who weigh between 4-22 pounds, the more upright is for children who weigh between 9-40 lbs and who are 40
inches tall or less.  However, despite these very specific restrictions, the Pria only has the one level line. This means that regardless of which recline position is used when installing the seat, it’s still fairly large front to back.  A pool noodle or rolled towel may be necessary to acheive the correct recline angle when the seat is in the more upright position.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 forward facing installation

To install the Pria 70 forward facing, the lower anchor webbing or vehicle seat belt must be threaded through the forward facing belt path, then tightened until there’s less than an inch of movement at the belt path.
The Pria 70 has some rules around recline positions for forward facing installations:

• • Children who weigh between 22-40 pounds and who are between 29-43 inches tall must use recline position 2 for forward facing installations
  • Children who weigh between 40-70 pounds and who are between 43-52 inches tall must use recline position 1 for forward facing installations

There will most likely be a decent gap between the vehicle seat bight and car seat.  This gap has been okayed by the manufacturer as long as you still have a tight (1″ or less of movement at the belt path) installation.

The larger harness pads need to be used for children who weigh over 65 pounds if the seating position is without a vehicle tether anchor.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: Preemie doll, 4 pounds, 17″

Preemie Huggable Images doll, 4 pounds, 17 inches long
The TinyFit insert was a perfect fit for her!  I used the head pillow, body support, and small chest clip.  All helped with fit tremendously.  The TinyFit adjusts the lowest harness height down to 5 inches, one of the shortest harness positions on the market.  Her shoulders were actually quite a bit above the lowest harness position, almost up to the 2nd harness position, which is very rare for our doll.  The biggest downfall I had with using the TinyFit with her was tightening the harness straps.  The extra harness routing through both the TinyFit insert and seat shell adds quite a bit of friction that made the harness difficult to tighten.  It’s necessary to tighten from the back of the seat typically by pulling the harness straps from the back of the seat, then pulling on the tightening strap tail by the child’s feet. The manual explains this method as well.

The harness tightens easily when there isn’t a child in the seat. That’s not particularly useful since children need to ride in the seat.
The harness does not loosen easily when the harness is tight and the splitter plate is low. The harness loosens easier — without having to pull from the back — once the splitter plate is up high enough that the angle of the straps from the splitter is similar to the angle in the front.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: Newborn doll, 7 pounds, 17 inches long

Newborn Huggable Images doll, 7 pounds, 17 inches long

Our newborn doll had an amazing fit as well.  I kept all the inserts and smaller chest clip on for her and she had a very similar fit to our preemie doll.  Since the newborn doll is just a tad taller in the torso than our preemie doll, she was a bit closer to the 2nd harness slot, but still not quite there.  I also had the same harness tightening issues as I did with the preemie doll.

4 Months Old

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit 4 months old

This little cutie is 4 months old.  She weighs 14 pounds and is 26 inches tall.  She’s at the top end of the height range for the TinyFit.  She’d probably fit well in the Pria without the TinyFit at this point.  Our model of this car seat doesn’t include infant padding and she’s well below the 10 inch lowest harness slot so we’re unable to see how that would fit her.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: 8 months, 20 pounds, 26 inches tall

8 Months, 20 pounds, 26 inches tall
He fits, but was extremely uncomfortable and had very little excess harness length.  At his size and fit, I wouldn’t use the TinyFit insert for him normally since his shoulders come right above the bottom harness position without the TinyFit insert.  Even though the insert is approved for use up to 22 pounds, we’d assert that 15 pounds might be a more realistic maximum weight for the TinyFit.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: 12 months, 23 pounds, 29″

12 months, 23 pounds, 29 inches tall

Our 12 month old model fits perfectly without the TinyFit insert now.  His shoulders are still just barely below the 2nd harness position, so he is still in the first.  Even without the TinyFit insert, the harness is still pretty difficult to tighten, so we continue to pull the harness from the back of the car seat while pulling on the adjuster from the front.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: 3 years old, 25 pounds, 33 inches tall

3 years old, 25 pounds, 33 inches tall

Our 3 year old model also fits perfectly in this seat with quite a bit of growing room.  Like her 1 year old brother above, she loves how upright she sits in it.  Because the Pria 70’s sides are fairly low, I don’t have to hoist her too much over the sides.  The seat’s base is rather high, so it sits quite a ways above the vehicle seat despite these low sides.

3 Years Old

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit 3 years old

This 3 year old happily modeled this seat for us.  She weighs 27 pounds and is 37 inches tall.  She’s got plenty of room to grow in this seat and she finds it quite comfortable.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit: 3 years old, 25 pounds, 33 inches tall

3 years old, 25 pounds, 33 inches tall

Our 3 year old model rides rear facing but she’s within the height and weight limits of the Pria 70 for forward facing.  We recommend rear facing until as close to 4 as possible.

Since she weighs between 22-40 pounds, the Pria 70 is on recline position 2. This recline serves her very well and makes the Pria 70 a nice forward facing option for a smaller child. However, it was nearly impossible to tighten the harness forward facing.  We found that moving the headrest up a click or two in some cases made tightening the harness slightly easier but it never became something that was easy.

5 Years Old

Maxi-Cosi Pria forward facing

This model is 5 years old.  He weighs 43 pounds and is 46 inches tall.  To fit him properly, we moved the headrest to the highest position.  Even on that setting, he’s right at the edge of outgrowing this seat.  He does find it quite comfortable but we found it pretty challenging to tighten the harness with him in the seat.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 with TinyFit important information

FAA approval label can be found on page 46 of the instruction manual and on a label on the side of the seat.

Date of manufacture is on side of the seat along with the model number.

Expiration date is stamped into the plastic on the bottom of the seat.

Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 manual storage

Manual storage the manual stores on the left side of the cover along with the smaller chest clip if that’s not in use. There’s a handy tab on the cover indicating the manual storage.