car seat to Booster Seat

[Cory's Gal]

I just want to say thank you to everyone on this post for securing your child in a car seat OR booster. No matter how much debating is going on, safety is important to all of us, and ANYTHING, even just a plain seatbelt is better for our children than nothing. I still see to this day toddlers and preschoolers standing up and moving around and even sitting in the front of vehicles on the road with no protection whatsoever! Thanks to everyone for making an effort and wanting what's best for you child(ren)!

 

[lclark0621]

I haven't read any but the first post.

But I wanted to say there is NO way I would put a 3 year old in a booster.

My DS is 4 years old, 45 inches tall & 44 lbs. He is comfortably riding in a Britax Regent in my car & a Britax Marathon in DH's car. He will stay in a 5 point harness car seat as long as possible. I wont switch him just because the law says I can or he is "old enough" for a booster.

There are so may horror stories out there about car accidents & kids in boosters. I am not going to risk it.

My DS doesn't know any other way to ride in a car, he knows his car seat is the safest place for him & that is where he will stay. He even "checks" his straps to make sure he is in tight enough before we pull out.

 

[clori]

My dd is 7.5. She is at least 50 inches tall and long torsoed and weighs 49lbs. I do have her in a graco high back booster since she turned 5ish due to outgrowing our convertible by height. If I decided to go back to a 5 point harness seat which would you recommend looking at based on her height? My 3 year old is in a 5 point harness that I think I can get one to two more years out of it since she is on the short side and under 30lbs so I'll wait to see what new seats are availible then for her.

Another question. I understand that boosters are alot for height issues. What do I do with one of dd's friends who is probably 54 inches yet over 100lbs. Basically we try and not have her in our car since we don't have a booster seat for her but she doesn't use one in her parents cars. Is there a lowback booster to accomodate her weight or does the extra weight take away from the need for the booster. Please don't slam me since this isn't my child and she might have some medical issues.

 

[all4fun]

My dd is 7.5. She is at least 50 inches tall and long torsoed and weighs 49lbs. I do have her in a graco high back booster since she turned 5ish due to outgrowing our convertible by height. If I decided to go back to a 5 point harness seat which would you recommend looking at based on her height? My 3 year old is in a 5 point harness that I think I can get one to two more years out of it since she is on the short side and under 30lbs so I'll wait to see what new seats are availible then for her.

Another question. I understand that boosters are alot for height issues. What do I do with one of dd's friends who is probably 54 inches yet over 100lbs. Basically we try and not have her in our car since we don't have a booster seat for her but she doesn't use one in her parents cars. Is there a lowback booster to accomodate her weight or does the extra weight take away from the need for the booster. Please don't slam me since this isn't my child and she might have some medical issues.

For you 7.5 yr old it depends on her torso length. Best way to measure is sit her down on the floor, back flat against a wall, and mark where the top of her shoulder is, then measure from the floor to the mark. At her age, it will probably be somewhere between 16-20". If she's long torso'd then the only seats that might accomodate her are the Britax Regent which has 20" top slots, or the Radian80 which has 18" top slots - but can accomodate a 19" torso because the mfgr does allow the shoulders to go past the top slots in that seat. Honestly though if she sits well in a booster then IMO a booster is just fine at that age.

For your friends child, some people on other boards have recommended either the Combi Dakota booster or the Safety 1st Prospect low back booster because they are fairly wide. Of course with LBB's the vehicle must have a headrest otherwise the child will have no whiplash protection. Also these have stated weight limits of 100lbs but IMO I'd rather put a child over 100lbs in a low back booster they are technically too heavy for rather than risk them riding in a seatbelt that doesn't fit correctly. JMHO based on lots of reading. I am not a tech. Also I have read that the Britax Parkway booster does not have an upper weight limit. Not sure if that is true or not though. That booster costs about $100 normally so would be more cost prohibitive just to buy for an occasional rider.

hth