Britax Marathon vs Britax Regent

[ClarabelleCowFan]

We just bought the Britax Marathon today on clearance at Target and got it home and put DS2 in it only to find that he already needs the highest slot on the shoulder straps. I hate to drop the $$$ on this seat if he is going to outgrow it in another year.

Does anyone have the Britax Regent? What has been your experience with it for a TALL child? DS2 is 38" tall already and 33lbs.

I looked at the Britax Frontier but it gets consistenly bad reviews.

We have him in a Britax Roundabout now but he will be out of that soon.

Any experiences with the Marathon or Regent?

Thanks!

 

[dismama]

We have the marathon for DD 2yo, and just moved DS 5yo to the frontier from the marathon. DD is already on the 2nd highest slot and she is about 33", but DS is close to 48" and we just moved him out of this seat about 4 months ago. He still has a little room in the marathon, about .5-1" but we got a new seat since I didn't want to be stuck scrambling for a seat last minute. I noticed between 2-5 a grow down in slowing compared from 1-2 so that may help. If you are concerned about the seat being outgrown and the amount you spent, I would return the marathon and upgrade to the regent if your child is already forward facing.

I am not sure what reviews you are looking at on the frontier, I have this seat and installation was difficult the first time, but now that I am more familiar with the seat and my car it works out no problems.

 

[binab]

We actually own three Regents.

Our DD(6) has always been around the 95th percentile for height and about 90th on weight. She wasn't even 3 yo when she outgrew the height on her Roundabout - when I tried her in the Marathon, it didn't seem like she'd be comfy in it for long so we opted for the Regent. She is now 55 lbs and 48" tall and she still fits very comfortably in the Regent. Also they are soft, cozy seats so she sleeps comfortably in it and never complains about sitting in it even though her friends are all riding in boosters now. I plan to keep her in it as long as possible...

 

[Pirate1+Princess4]

Regents are being discontinued, so you might want to start shopping around.

Not sure how big your child is, but I had a friend whose average sized triplets rode in Marathons until they turned 7. One was probably a bit over the top slots, but still fit within the shell. Keep in mind that kids often grow more in the legs and less in the torso at this stage so he may have more time than you think in Marathon before you have to start looking at a booster.

I'm all for extended harnessing. I "just" took my last 7 year old out of her Graco Cargo and she's still under 40#, but is too tall for the top slots. The first one didn't move to a booster until she hit was 6 and 40#. If I had Marathons, they would have been in those. Unfortunately, only Roundabouts fit in our van at the time when they were rear facing.

I wouldn't rule out the Frontier yet. Try going to www.car-seat.org for detailed and personal recommendation. Those guys are as crazy about car seats as Dis-ers are about Disney. Very friendly and informative folks.

Some love the Frontier, others would recommend something else. A popular recommendation is the Graco Nautilus. More affordable than a Frontier, yet is a forward facing harness that can be used as a belt positioning booster later.

 

[christymarie]

We have a Regent for our 6yo who is 45 inches and weighs about 53pounds. He fits great in it and even has a higher strap slot we haven't used yet. It's a great alternative to boosters since he tends to escape.

 

[letsgoagainsoon]

We just bought the Britax Marathon today on clearance at Target and got it home and put DS2 in it only to find that he already needs the highest slot on the shoulder straps. I hate to drop the $$$ on this seat if he is going to outgrow it in another year.

Does anyone have the Britax Regent? What has been your experience with it for a TALL child? DS2 is 38" tall already and 33lbs.

I looked at the Britax Frontier but it gets consistenly bad reviews.

We have him in a Britax Roundabout now but he will be out of that soon.

Any experiences with the Marathon or Regent?

Thanks!

I know you didn't ask about it, but we have our DS5 in the Graco Nautilus and we really like it. He loves having the little compartments and cupholder too.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

We have the marathon for DD 2yo, and just moved DS 5yo to the frontier from the marathon. DD is already on the 2nd highest slot and she is about 33", but DS is close to 48" and we just moved him out of this seat about 4 months ago. He still has a little room in the marathon, about .5-1" but we got a new seat since I didn't want to be stuck scrambling for a seat last minute. I noticed between 2-5 a grow down in slowing compared from 1-2 so that may help. If you are concerned about the seat being outgrown and the amount you spent, I would return the marathon and upgrade to the regent if your child is already forward facing.

I am not sure what reviews you are looking at on the frontier, I have this seat and installation was difficult the first time, but now that I am more familiar with the seat and my car it works out no problems.

The reviews on Amazon trash the Frontier over and over. I haven't seen one in person and don't know anyone that has one.

DH really likes the Nautilus but we sat DS2 in the one on display at Target and he seemed to sit so straight upright (even in their "reclined" position) that there is no way he would be able to sleep in this seat. We take LONG car trips - 14 hours each way to the grandparents house - so I need a super comfy seat for him. He also seemed to be sitting on top of the crotch strap in the furthest position already - not any growing room there at all.

DS2 has a very long torso - we have to get a size bigger in shirts just so they are long enough. DH and I are both pretty tall so no doubt DS will be as well.

We love the Roundabout but the Marathon just doesn't look like it would last him much longer.

Hate to hear that they are phasing out the Frontier. They are on Amazon now for $189 with free shipping. That's a GREAT deal on them!

 

[Colinsmom]

The Regents are being phased out, not (as far as I know) the Frontiers.

DS6 is in a Regent and still has room to grow. He's about 54-55" tall (way off the charts for a 6yo) and will probably be in the Regent for another year, give or take. I think that he outgrew the Marathon 3 years ago? My memory is fuzzy on that.

DS3 can ride in the Regent, too (lowering the straps from where big brother has them) but he looks so small in it! He's about 38" tall, give or take, maybe more as he outgrew his Roundabouts last year. It also sits low in the car and makes it harder for him to see out the window. He can still fit in the Marathons left over from big brother and prefers to ride in those.

If you have younger kids to pass the seat down to, I'd go with the Marathon for your 2yo. If he's the last one, then I'd look at the Regent (if you can find one), the Frontier and the Nautilus.

 

[Manda]

DS enjoyed his Regent and it was plenty big (I could actually sit in it - it's that big). It drove me absolutely nuts though. All the reasons that I loved my Roundabout were absent on the Regent - the straps twisted constantly, the cover was constantly sliding off, etc. It was just a royal pain to deal with. And once I got it in my car, I could basically never take it out. And when we bought our new car, I couldn't even get the actual seat into the back seat of the car. Not even laying it sideways and sliding it in. I ended up putting it in the trunk and waiting at the car dealership with my son while my husband drove to Target and bought a new seat for him.

 

[dismama]

I would take amazon reviews with a grain of salt. I haven't looked at them for the frontier but have looked at them for other products and at times it seems that people that write amazon review lack common sense, or just right reviews on second hand knowledge. If you are truely interested in the frontier I would find a store locally that has it and go check it out. Even try to install it in our car, if the store will allow, and make a decision then. The frontier does not recline and does sit rather upright, but I would expect that from any seat that is going to convert to a booster. DS sat in it for a 5 hour car trip recently and did not once complain.

 

[BigEeyore]

We recently got the Frontier and it's a great carseat. When we were shopping, the only negatives we saw on it was that it was difficult to install. DH installed ours w/ no complaints.
Why we went with the Frontier - it was time for older DD to move from regular carseat to booster seat, but we were not comfortable putting her in a standard booster b/c they are not secured to the seat. Just didn't seem very safe to us.
The Fronteir has many different height adjustments on the shoulder straps, as well as ways to adjust the crotch strap. It also has nice padding around the head so your child has good support should they fall asleep in the car.

 

[WDWorBUST]

We have a regent for a 5 year old who is 49.5 pounds and 46.5 inches tall. I LOVE the Regent - but it is HUGE!! I also have a Graco Nautilus and it is great too. I will tell you that DD doesn't sleep well in either of them.

 

[Bren's Mom]

A CPST here. Definitely look at the Graco Nautilus. Us techs love this seat! The Frontier has alot of issues with installation in many vehicles, in some vehicles it's simply incompatible. And it's very pricey, out of reach for many parents. The Nautilus has taller harness top slots than a Britax Marathon so it will last longer by height. It converts to both a high back and no back booster. The harness is good for 6 years, the boosters expire in 9 years from date of manufacture. And most kids sleep just fine in it.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

The Regents are being phased out, not (as far as I know) the Frontiers.

DS6 is in a Regent and still has room to grow. He's about 54-55" tall (way off the charts for a 6yo) and will probably be in the Regent for another year, give or take. I think that he outgrew the Marathon 3 years ago? My memory is fuzzy on that.

DS3 can ride in the Regent, too (lowering the straps from where big brother has them) but he looks so small in it! He's about 38" tall, give or take, maybe more as he outgrew his Roundabouts last year. It also sits low in the car and makes it harder for him to see out the window. He can still fit in the Marathons left over from big brother and prefers to ride in those.

If you have younger kids to pass the seat down to, I'd go with the Marathon for your 2yo. If he's the last one, then I'd look at the Regent (if you can find one), the Frontier and the Nautilus.

DS2 is the last one (or better be!!). I like that the Marathon sits higher in the car and allows him to see out better but I don't know about spending the money for something he will outgrow in a year.

We have a regent for a 5 year old who is 49.5 pounds and 46.5 inches tall. I LOVE the Regent - but it is HUGE!! I also have a Graco Nautilus and it is great too. I will tell you that DD doesn't sleep well in either of them.

Ugh. I know boosters are a whole different type of seat but this drives me nuts - that they don't recline even a little bit to allow for kids that nap. We have captain's chairs in the middle row (where DS sits) so I guess I need to measure to see if the Regent would even fit.

A CPST here. Definitely look at the Graco Nautilus. Us techs love this seat! The Frontier has alot of issues with installation in many vehicles, in some vehicles it's simply incompatible. And it's very pricey, out of reach for many parents. The Nautilus has taller harness top slots than a Britax Marathon so it will last longer by height. It converts to both a high back and no back booster. The harness is good for 6 years, the boosters expire in 9 years from date of manufacture. And most kids sleep just fine in it.

Which types of vehicles seem to have issues with the Frontier? We have captain's chairs in the middle row of our Yukon XL but a bench seat in our Jeep. We have a cheap Cosco 5pt booster that we use in the Jeep (DS2 rarely rides in it) that is also our travel seat that we carry with us on plane trips. I'm not a fan of this seat at all and definitely want something more sturdy for our everyday vehicle.

I appreciate the input. Keep it coming! I wish I had the $$ to order all of the car seats at 1 time and put them 1 by 1 in our car with DS in them to see which one works the best for us.

 

[JohnsonsFour]

We have two Regents in my SUV and a Marathon and Parkway in my husband's sedan. (The Regents will not fit in his car)

We've worked our way up the Britax family. We started with the Roundabout and then to the Marathon. Like I said, both kids sit in Regents now. The Regents are huge but will last for a long time. My kids think they are very comfy and have no problems using a 5-pt harness when most of their friends ride in boosters. If you don't want to get a Marathon and Regent, I would just go straight to the Regent. The peace of mind that our kids are still in 5-pt harnessed seats is worth it to us.

 

[WDWorBUST]

The Regent fits just fine in my moms minivan. It fit in our Jeep Liberty, but I like to keep DD in the center of the backseat and with that seat no one else could sit back there. Fortunately it's just the three of us, but it's really really big. The Nautilus has been a great seat, and I was a diehard britax fan. The only time dd fell asleep in the nautilus her head fell forward in a very uncomfortable looking position. The nautilus does have a recline so maybe we need to look at adjusting it. I also need to pull it out and reinstall it with the seatbelt since DD just passed the 48 pound mark and is too heavy for the latch install now. Also, and this is SO trivial, but the Nautilus has an AWESOME drink holder.

 

[Bren's Mom]

OP, what is your ds2's age and weight? I'm not sure if the 2 is his age or designating that he's the 2nd child.

If he IS 2, and he is truly up to the top slots on the Marathon then that is one REALLY REALLY tall child. Since the Regent has the tallest top slots of any seat on the market you'll want to get one of those ASAP before they're gone.

If he's older than that, his age and weight will help me give you the best advice.

As for cars the Frontier doesn't work well in; off the top of my head I know that 3 of us could NOT make it work in an Acura MDX. We were finally able to get it installed with the seat belt using the long belt path but it was so difficult we were not sure the mom would ever be able to replicate it herself. (She didn't think so either!) What you have to keep in mind with ANY new seat you're purchasing is that you can only use LATCH to a certain weight limit (generally 48lbs but can be more or less depending on your car seat and the vehicle manufacturer's instructions). So for any seat you consider you'll want to try it out doing both a LATCH and then (separately) a seat belt install. Many people don't do this and install with LATCH and then 2 years later hit the weight limit for LATCH and then find out their car seat isn't compatible with their vehicle for a seat belt install.

Also, if you pm me your location I can help locate a tech for you that can assist you with installation if you need.

 

[stephie1012]

is he 2?
My DS is going to be 2 and is 31lbs and still sits RFing, its much safer than FFing.
My DD has a regent but she is 40" and 40lbs, i sat DS in it just for giggles and he is way to tiny for the regent. im shocked hes outgrowing the marathon. Where are the sraps at? how much room does he have til he reaches the top slots? the seat is outgrown when his ears go over the shell for forward facing.

 

[emh1129]

We have both the marathon and the regent.
My 17 month old is rear-facing in the marathon.
My 4.5 year old is in the Regent and has plenty of room to grow into.
We love both seats.

I was going to say- you could pass the marathon down to your next child when your ds outgrows it, but I see that you mentioned he's the last So nevermind about that..

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

OP, what is your ds2's age and weight? I'm not sure if the 2 is his age or designating that he's the 2nd child.

If he IS 2, and he is truly up to the top slots on the Marathon then that is one REALLY REALLY tall child. Since the Regent has the tallest top slots of any seat on the market you'll want to get one of those ASAP before they're gone.

If he's older than that, his age and weight will help me give you the best advice.

As for cars the Frontier doesn't work well in; off the top of my head I know that 3 of us could NOT make it work in an Acura MDX. We were finally able to get it installed with the seat belt using the long belt path but it was so difficult we were not sure the mom would ever be able to replicate it herself. (She didn't think so either!) What you have to keep in mind with ANY new seat you're purchasing is that you can only use LATCH to a certain weight limit (generally 48lbs but can be more or less depending on your car seat and the vehicle manufacturer's instructions). So for any seat you consider you'll want to try it out doing both a LATCH and then (separately) a seat belt install. Many people don't do this and install with LATCH and then 2 years later hit the weight limit for LATCH and then find out their car seat isn't compatible with their vehicle for a seat belt install.

Also, if you pm me your location I can help locate a tech for you that can assist you with installation if you need.

DS is 26 months old and weighs about 33lbs and is about 38" tall. DH and I are both very tall so he gets it honest. He's napping now so I can't measure his seated height. (ETA: the photos of him below were taken over a year ago just before he turned 1.)

We're in Harford County, MD. Thanks for the help!