Infant Car Seat Recommendations

Hi,
I had them both and loved them. The Boulevard is smaller and my daughter outgrew it so we went to the marathon. If I had it to do over I would have just gotten the marathon. but they are both great

My 22 month-old is in a Sunshine Kids Radian 80. I just moved her at 17 months because she didn't outgrow/hit the weight requirement until then. I do like it very much. It's received very high safety ratings and is very user friendly. As the other mom noted, it folds for travel and is narrow for easily fitting more than one in most cars. I also like that my daughter will be in it until she no longer needs to be in a booster since it will accommodate a child up to 80 lbs. (There are also height limits which some children reach well before the reach the weight limit, but as my daughter is tiny, I don't think this will be an issue at all.) My new baby will arrive shortly and though my husband has stated that he wants to get him a Radian also, I prefer to use a traditional baby carrier for him so I can take him in and out of the car while still in it. Also the rear-facing feature on the radian seems to take up more space. Once he outgrows the carrier, he'll definitely go in a Radian. The ONE negative for me is that front-facing the seat sits flush against the car's seat back with no recline and when my baby falls asleep, her head droops even with the head support. I have heard of others who had the same problem but were able to find other cushions, etc to solve the problem. (Even with this drawback, I still do love this seat.) I have already washed the cover 3 times and one of those times my 14 year-old step-daughter did it and was able to put it all back with ease. The first 2 times just because of spills from her sippy cup, etc. This last time she had an accident where her diaper exploded, so I am very happy at how easy it is to remove, clean, and re-attach.

Anyway there is my plug. Good luck to you regardless of which product you choose. There are many great ones, so I completely get what a hard decision it is. BTW I chose this one out of the 3 recommended/mentioned by the Kyle Miller family/foundation?? Here is a link to the sad info regarding this family. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azgBhZfcqaQ

The Marathon will last longer as it has a higher weight max. We have always used the Britax Marathon, safe safe safe! I would highly recommend spending the extra money and getting that one.

We loved the Roundabout. My son liked it and was always very comfortable in it. I like that it washed well and easily. We have now moved on to the frontier.

Their are two different categories of convertible car seats - regular-sized convertible car seats - like the Boulevard, and will hold more weight, and compact convertible - like the Diplomat. They are supposed to be the same as far as safety goes. I believe the Boulevard and Diplomat are the two latest models - the other ones will be older models of these two. And Britax seems to be the gold standard - they are a lot more expensive though. We got both of ours on sale - one from a local store, and one from allbeebaby.com.

We have several car seats (2 kids + multiple cars) including the Britax Roundabout. We got that because the marathon is just HUGE. If you are planning more kids eventually, or think your kid might be tall, you might also look into the Sunshine Kids Radian 65 or 80. We have 2 of the Radian 80 - works great for both our 3 year old and our 10 month old rear facing... and there's still enough room for an adult in the back. With the Roundabout, we would always clonk my older son on the head getting him in and out of our sedan. With the Radian - he can be in a 5 point harness until he's 80 lbs! It also folds flat. One "downside" is the weight of the carseat (steel frame), but my husband and I both carried one while travelling - you can wear it as a backpack in the folded configuration - it worked beautifully. A great choice!

Hello,
The main difference between the boulevard and the marathon is that the boulevard has side impact protection. They both hold up to 60 or 65 lbs. I love my boulevard and feel better with the side impact protection. The boulevard also has a dial/wheel thing on the side to adjust the straps as your child gets taller, rather then having to take it out and re-thread it. If you go to the Britax web site they have a great comparaison feature.
Best of luck,
C.

I'd suggest going to a store that carries both seats and try buckling, adjusting the harness, etc., and see if you like one more than the other. A few other seats you might want to consider are the Compass/First Years TrueFit and the Evenflo Triumph Advance, which have similar height and weight limits to the Marathon and Boulevard.

the following summarizes the differences between the Britax Marathon, Decathlon, and Boulevard, from http://community.babycenter.com/post/a991035/faq_and_car_...
(note: this was written before the rear facing weight limits of the Britax seats were increased to 35 lbs.)

“Marathon- The most basic model of the three. It harnesses to 65 lbs, rf 5 to 33 lbs. It has a rf tether, ff and rf lockoffs. Has the lever style harness adjuster, 4 harness heights, and the crotch strap does not adjust. It is very padded and comfy just like all the britax seats, and has about a million cover choices. Will last till the child is ready for a booster most likely. Good for children that need to rf still (under 33 lbs).

Decathlon- Harnesses to 65 lbs, rf 5 to 33 lbs. Has rf tether, ff and rf lockoffs. The ff lockoffs may damage seatbelts. It has a push button style harness adjuster, 4 harness heights (rumor is they may be a little taller than the ma/bv), and a three position crotch strap that gives 1 more inch of room as compared to the marathon and boulevard. It has infant inserts so is great for a small baby. It also has a removeable toddler head pillow. It has more limited cover choices than a marathon. Will last till child is most likely ready for a booster. Good for very small babies because of the infant insert but a ma/bv may be a better choice for an older child that won't need the infant insert.

Boulevard- Harness to 65 lbs, rf 5 to 33 lbs. Has rf tether, ff and rf lockoffs. It has true side impact protection (the "wings"). Has a lever style harness adjuster, and instead of having to remove the seat from the car to adjust the harness height you just turn a knob on the side of the seat, and it does not have an adjustable crotch strap. It has a removeable infant pillow so is also a good choice for a very small baby. Will last till the child is most likely ready for a booster. Good seat for any child. Especially one that will have to be on the side of a vehicle without side curtain airbags.”

We absolutely love our Britax Marathon! Well worth the extra expense to know our little girl is safe and comfortable. She used to HATE riding in the car but with this seat, she's much more comfortable and can see out much better. Happy camper now! Yes, it is definitely huge. But if you only have one or two children, it's not so bad.

The Boulevard has the side impact "wings". It is more expensive, but I felt it was well worth in. My son has always seemed very comfortable in his carseat.

I have a Britax and they are so nice. The only difference in them is how mych weight they hold. I believe the Marathon will last the longest because it holds the most weight. They are also rated the safest car seats. I am getting another one when my 4 month old is ready for it and I will probably get the Boulevard.

Like Elaine suggested, do your research on the internet, find 2-3 different brands that you think look like possible options for you and then go to a store with your baby and try them out. I select 3 different brands and was lucky enough that Lullaby Lanes in San Bruno had all 3 brands in the store. I had my daughter sit in all of them and ended up deciding on the Britax Boulevard (this was also my favorite based on my research due to the side impact functionality but it was definitely also the most expensive). She was only 6 months old when she outgrew her infant seat so I needed a carseat that would fit a small baby and be able to grow with her. The other brands that looked good through my research turned out to be too big for her at the time she needed it. - The Boulevard came with an infant insert that made my daughter fit snug in the car seat.

Good luck - it's a jungle out there when it comes to car seats :-)

We have the Boulevard and love it. My daughter uses the side impact wings to rest her head!