Since the first Diono Radians were introduced, Diono has developed a legacy of narrow convertible car seats that work well for some specific situations. Their newest entries into the market, the Olympia, Pacifica,and Ranier, continue that trend while offering additional features that build on the well known Radian.
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 re-thread harness, easy to remove cover , and harness holders to make buckling the child easier.
It has come to our attention that many of the Britax ClickTight convertible seats are being shipped without being assembled correctly. The harness is attached an anchor on either side of the seat at the hips. This anchor has a hook at the end that the harness must slide under to secure it. Some ClickTight convertibles are being shipped with the harness on the anchor but slid under the hook.
Since 2009, the IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety), has been annually releasing their booster ratings, based primarily on fit of the 6 year old dummy, and, as we all know, fit is the best indication of performance. No matter how much bling your booster has, if it doesn’t place the seatbelt properly on your child, it can’t do its job.
Phil & Ted’s isn’t a new name in the baby gear scene. They have been a well known name in the stroller world for several years now and have just released a rear facing only seat that is compatible with a wide array of their strollers. They have given us the opportunity to try it out and share our thoughts with our readers.
For the last several years Graco has had two combination seats available for purchase, the Argos 65 and the Nautilus. Both models have two modes: forward-facing harnessed mode and a booster mode that fits most children well. These seats have been around for a while and are two very popular options at CSFTL because they fit a range of children well and have a lot of great ease-of-use features.
Transport Canada has issued a Public Notice for Barbie, Ferrari, Fisher-Price and Hot Wheels branded Teamtex boosters, for irregularities in minimum height required. While the minimum allowed height is 107 cm (42 inches) some seats indicate a 103 cm (40 inch) minimum.
Many of our readers have questions about rear facing installation of the Safety 1st Guide 65. This seat definitely has some quirks, so here’s the down and dirty, step by step installation guide of the Guide 65.
An important part of child passenger safety is recognizing that we want everyone to follow best practice, but we also want everyone to travel comfortably. Keeping back seat passengers cool or warm, depending on the season, can be a real challenge. CSFTL recommends kids ride rear facing as long as possible, ideally until 3-4 years old. Getting appropriate air flow to rear facing Littles is not always easy, even if your vehicle has rear air vents.
The Harmony Dreamtime, one of Harmony’s multiple belt positioning options, serves a niche market in that is one of the few high back boosters still available that may be an acceptable option in a three across, due to its narrow lines and plumb sides. While it doesn’t have the bells and whistles of many of the market’s more showy options, it is affordable, and provides an excellent belt fit in high back and backless mode, and as such, does what it is needed to do.
