Safety First Enspira 3 in 1 Review — Canada

Safety 1st Enspira in the smallest setting

Canada’s convertible and 3 in 1 car seat options are fairly limited, but thankfully the market is growing and more options are available, including the Safety 1st Enspira 3 in 1. This multimode car seat has 3 functions: rear facing, forward facing, and booster mode. We were pleasantly surprised at all this seat has to offer. Join us as we share more!

Safety 1st Enspira rear facing recline angles

The Enspira features two rear facing recline angles. The bottom level to ground line is to be used with children who weigh between 5-22 pounds, cannot sit up unassisted, and are under 36 inches tall.

Safety 1st Enspira at the 5-22 pounds recline

Installed at the most reclined rear facing angle, the Enspira is fairly sizeable front to back.

Safety 1st Enspira at the 22-40 pounds recline

The top level to ground line may be used with children who weigh between 22-40 pounds,can sit up unassisted, and are under 36 inches tall. In addition to the 36 inch and 40 pound rear facing limits, the top of the child’s head must be even with or below the top of the Enspira’s headrest when rear facing.

Safety 1st Enspira padding

Some models of the Enspira come with a substantial infant body pad, infant head pad, and/or harness covers. All of these are optional, but the head support must be removed when the infant’s head has reached the top, inside part of the infant head support.

Headrest adjustment bar

The Enspira also features an adjustable headrest that must be positioned above the harness at all times. It adjusts easily by lifting the horizontal metal bar at the back of the seat, sliding it up or down, then locking it in place. The midpoint of the child’s ears must be aligned with the midpoint of the headrest.

Safety 1st Enspira harness adjustment

To adjust the harness height, unthread the straps from behind the seat at the splitter plate and rethread them through the slots in the cover and seat. Dorel (the parent company of Safety 1st) has included a clear warning on the back of the seat for caregivers to ensure that the straps are to go BELOW the headrest adjustment bar. The manual also specifies that the sewn ends of the harness strap loops face towards you when rethreading the harness.

Safety 1st Enspira flip stand

For forward facing and booster modes, the Enspira uses a flip-out stand to make the seat sit upright. This stand must always be used in forward facing and booster modes and is prohibited rear facing.

Safety 1st Enspira’s velcro harness adjuster flap – open

Our favourite feature of the seat, aside from the cushy cover (which all of our models commented on when testing the seat) is the Velcro harness adjuster lever flap, which covers the cam lock (the metal lever that secures the harness in place). Not only does the velcro flap prevent unwanted crumbs/sand/pebbles/road salt from entering the cam lock and potentially interfering with the locking mechanism, but it also may help deter little escape artist attempts.

The cover is not particularly easy to remove for cleaning (and may require a flat head screwdriver to help remove the lower harness guides), so if you are in need of a seat that can be washed often or easily, the Safety 1st Enspira may not be the best choice for you.

Pull back the cover and reach into the belt path to tighten the lower anchors

Weighing in at a light 12 pounds, the Enspira installs well using the noodle-less installation method. The cover lifts easily from the sides to expose the belt path, which makes tightening the vehicle seat belt or UAS fairly simple.

For children who weigh less than 22 pounds and who cannot sit unassisted, the bottom recline line must be parallel to the ground. The top recline can be used for children weighing between 22 and 40 pounds who can sit unassisted.

We were very impressed at how compact the Enspira was at the most upright installations. It was a similar size front to back to the Britax Marathon G4.1, which is considered one of the more compact seats available in Canada.

Safety 1st Enspira tether storage

When using the seat both rear facing and in booster mode, ensure the tether is properly stored on the back of the seat. When forward facing the tether must be used at all times.

6 months, 25.5 inches and 18.5 pounds

This model is 6 months old, 25.5 inches tall and 18.5 pounds. He normally rides in a Chicco Keyfit, and this was his first time in a convertible car seat.

He did not seem impressed with the deep recline that is required for a child who is under 22 pounds and cannot sit unassisted, as he seemed to be almost lying flat in the seat. Even though he wears a size 6 month onesie, he only just fits the Enspira with the harness in the lowest position.

We did like using the substantial body pillow with this model. It filled in the seat and provided great support for this little guy while preventing any potential head slump.

2 years, 35.5 inches and 26 pounds

This model is 2 years old, 26 pounds, and 35.5 inches. She is average height for her age, and is under the rear facing maximums of the Enspira for now, but will likely hit the 36 inch height maximum with her next growth spurt.

She has tried many car seats in her short life, and she was quite vocal about how comfortable she found the Enspira. When she was offered the choice between the Enspira and a few other seats, she almost always chose to ride in the Enspira. This was not surprising, as the cover feels very cushy, and the harness is very smooth and easy to tighten.

Safety 1st Enspira with headrest fully extended

To install the Safety First Enspira forward facing, extend the recline stand. This stand flips out from the base of the seat.  For lower anchor installation, it’s easy to switch the lower anchors between the rear facing and forward facing belt paths. The anchor strap is fastened to the outer shell of the Enspira, which allows you to remove the lower anchor strap completely from the rear facing belt path, and easily rethread it into the forward facing belt path. Remember to always use the top tether when forward facing.

4 years old, 44 inches tall and 42 pounds

This model is 4 years old, weighs 42 pounds, and is 44 inches tall. She only recently turned forward facing and has a lot to say about the comfort of seats she rides in.

She was quite vocal about her love of the Safety 1st Enspira. It may be the padded cover, or the fact that she could throw her legs over the sides of the seat for the duration of the ride, but when given the choice, she chose the Enspira over many other seats. The biggest complaint she had was the lack of cup holders, which Dorel has confirmed are not available for the Enspira.

“hidden” top harness position

The top harness position of the Safety 1st Enspira is hidden by the adjustable headrest. Because of this design, it is difficult to show how much room this model had to grow before the Enspira is outgrown by torso height, but she does appear to have about a year of growth left in the seat, which will likely get her to a safe booster age. She is quite tall for her age, so a smaller child (or child with a shorter torso) should be able to harness to 5 or 6 years old in the Safety 1st Enspira.

5 years old, 47.5 inches tall and 50 pounds

This 5 year old model is 47.5 inches tall and weighs 50 pounds. The shoulder belt fit her much better without threading the vehicle seat belt through the belt guides.

5 years old, 47.5 inches tall and 50 pounds

When we used the shoulder belt guide, it pushed the shoulder portion of the vehicle seat belt off her shoulder.  She had an excellent lap belt fit with the belt sitting low on her hips but the shoulder portion of the vehicle belt was not centered on her shoulder and therefore did not fit her well.

6 years old, 42 inches tall and 41 pounds

Our next model is 6 years old, weighs 41 pounds, and is 42 inches tall. He normally rides in a harnessed car seat, but he was willing to test the Enspira’s booster mode for us and let us know his thoughts.

While he was able to obtain a good shoulder belt fit both with and without the optional belt guides, unfortunately his lap belt fit was too high on his vulnerable abdomen, and we would not allow him to go for a test drive in this booster.

6 years old, 48 inches tall and 53 pounds

Our last model is 6 years old, 48 inches tall and 53 pounds.  Like our 5 year old model, this kiddo has a much better shoulder belt fit without threading the vehicle seat belt through the belt guides.  When we used the guide, it pushed the shoulder portion of the vehicle seat belt off his shoulder. He achieved an excellent seat belt fit in the Enspira, with his lap belt low on his hips and the shoulder belt centered on his shoulder.

Thoughts on Booster Mode

We tried the Enspira in booster mode for 3 models and it didn’t offer a consistent vehicle seat belt fit, even for our models who were similar sizes. While the Enspira has a lot to offer in both rear and forward facing harnessed modes, it falls pretty short in booster mode.

Date of Manufacture label, manual storage, and National Safety Mark are all located at the back of the Safety 1st Enspira

Date of Manufacture: The Date of Manufacture Label and National Safety Mark are located on each side of the back of the Enspira’s shell.

Safety 1st Enspira – National Safety Mark (NSM)

Manual Storage: The manual is stored on the recline stand underneath the seat.

Safety1st Enspira’s expiration date is stamped on the back of the seat. Date of Manufacture label is affixed to the left side of the shell

Expiration Date: The expiration date is stamped on the back of the seat.