If you've read our “About
Us” section, you know that The Delightful Child is owned
by Laura King and Jill Manty, two stay at home, work at home
moms. Between the two of us, we have 8 children. The safety
and well-being of our children is important to us, as we are
sure it is to you. To keep our children safe in the car, we
have both chosen to use Britax car seats. We would like to
share with you why we have chosen to entrust our children's
safety to Britax.
Britax car seats are easy to install. No matter how
wonderful your car seat is, it will not function properly in
a crash if it is improperly installed. Newer cars with a
LATCH system provide an easier and safer way to install your
car seat. Britax car seats come equipped with LATCH
compatibility. However, even if you have an older car that
does not have the LATCH system, Britax car seats are easier
to install. The have a built in seat belt lock system, so
you don't have to wrestle with seatbelt locking clips like
many other car seats. This makes it easier to get your car
seat in as snugly as possible.
Britax consistently scores well on consumer tests. In the
NHSTA ratings for ease of use, Britax car seats scored an A.
Consumerreports.org gives Britax's Roundabout and Marathon
the highest ratings for convertible car seats. Britax's Star
Riser booster seat scored an excellent rating (the highest
score possible) in all three areas rated.
Britax car seats provide protection for a wide variety of
sizes. Recently Britax has started making an infant car
seat, The Companion, which won the 2004 JPMA Innovation
award. Intended for children from 4-22 pounds and up to 30
inches tall, The Companion provides superior side impact
protection with a head pad that inflates for a custom fit.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants
remain in a rear facing car seat until they are one year old
and weigh 20 pounds. Many infant car seats are rated only to
20 lbs., and many parents end up switching to rear facing
convertible car seat from their infant seat before they're
really ready to because the infant seat no longer
accomodates their child. The Companion could be the only
rear facing car seat you ever need.
In the convertible car seat category, Britax provides 3
options. The Roundabout holds children from 5-40 pounds.
Rear facing, it holds children from 5-33 pounds, which is
great if you happen to have a baby who reaches 20 pounds
before their one year old birthday. The Roundabout has a 5
point harness, which is considered to be the safest option
in car seats.
The Marathon car seat holds children rear facing from 5-33
pounds and forward facing up to 65 pounds. Since we have
both had at least one child who weighed more than 40 pounds
long before we felt comfortable putting them in a booster
seat, we have really appreciated having the option of using
a 5 point harness past that weight. It is possible to skip
the Roundabout and go straight to The Marathon or The
Wizard, but, depending on how many car seats you will need
to fit in your car, this may not be the best option. Both
have a larger “footprint,” which would make it difficult to
fit multiple Marathon or Wizard car seats on the same seat.
The Wizard is similar to The Marathon, but it has more bells
and whistles. It has the same weight limits, but some really
neat features. Neither one of us have this model because it
wasn't out yet when we bought our last car seats, but some
of the features make it worth the $20 difference in price.
One of the features that would make it worthwhile is the
infinitely adjustable harness height. Basically, this
feature means that you never have to unthread your harness
belts again. Instead, there is a knob on the side that
enables you to slide the harness up and down to the perfect
height for your child. Additionally, The Wizard has enhanced
side impact protection, making it one of the safest car
seats on the market.
Britax convertible car seats have a few “neat” features that
do not impact the safety of the car seat, but do make them
more user friendly. For one thing, they have velcro tabs
that allow you to keep the harness belts out of the way and
untwisted while your child is getting in. They also offer a
small piece of material that slips over the base of the belt
so that your child is not exposed to hot plastic burns in
the summer. The puzzle piece harness clips make it more
difficult for a child to let themselves out of the car seat,
if you happen to have a Houdini child in the family (on the
down side, it also makes it more difficult for a child to
buckle themselves into the car, but in our opinion this is a
small price to pay). Finally, the latch or button that
loosens the harnesses is much more easy to operate than
other car seats we've tried. Roundabout's button control
gets especially high marks.
There are few true youth car seats on the market. Britax
manufactures the Husky car seat. While the name could be
more flattering, those with larger children will appreciate
having the option of a 5 point harness for children from
22-80 pounds. The Husky has many of the same features as
Britax's convertible car seats, but it is not approved for
airline usage.
There are less expensive booster seats on the market, and
many of them are very safe. However, as with the rest of
their car seats, Britax has engineered their booster seats
to the highest standards. With 3 seats to choose from,
almost everyone can find a Britax seat that appeals to them.
The original Britax booster is the Starriser Comfy. We have
not been as impressed by this seat as many of the other
Britax seats, but they have made some improvements in the
newer models which may make it more appealing. The Starriser
Comfy seats children from 30-80 pounds and up to 53 inches
tall. Eighty pounds may seem like a weight that is far
beyond when children would be out of a booster, but many
sources now recommend that children remain in a booster seat
up to the age of 12.
The newer Britax boosters are engineered with safety in
mind. They have paid particular interest to side impact
safety, since it is the second most deadly car accident
(after head-on collisions). Both the Parkway and the
Bodyguard have True Side Impact Protection, which is
Britax's unique engineering process for protecting your
child in the event of a side impact crash.
The Parkway is nicely padded, which overcomes one of the
problems with the Starriser. It looks more like a Britax. It
fits children up to 60 inches tall and from 30 to 100
pounds. Additionally, it has cup holders, a slip resistant
base, and open loop belt guides. I have one booster (not a
Britax) that has a belt guide more reminiscent of locking
clips that come with many car seats. It is almost impossible
to get the belt adjusted properly. An open loop belt guide
has become a must-have for me.
The Bodyguard fits children weighing 40-100 pounds and up to
60 inches tall. My oldest would probably enjoy this booster,
as it is modeled after racing car seats. Like the Parkway,
it is engineered for increased side impact protection. The
Bodyguard also has built-in lockoffs which keep the seat
more securely in place. One of my boosters falls off the
seat almost every time we take a sharp corner. This would
help prevent that from happening. It would also keep the
seat in place when unoccupied so that it didn't go flying
around in case of braking sharply. Finally, The Bodyguard
expands higher than any other booster in the industry-- 30
inches.
If you are ever involved in a serious accident, you may be
eligible to exchange your Britax car seat. Some people are
not aware that once a car seat has been involved in an
accident, it should no longer be used. Britax recognizes
that the expense of a car seat might prevent people from
taking this important safety precaution. In response, they
have chosen to make it their policy to replace Britax car
seats that are involved in a crash, with proper
documentation. For more on this policy, see
http://www.britaxusa.com/education.cfm?id=0A5BACC4-D29C-4C86-BEA0002F08F25EC7.
Some insurance carriers will also replace your car seat if
you are in an accident. Check your policy to see if this is
true of your carrier.
Although we have bought Britax car seats through local
stores, one of the most inexpensive places to find them is
online. Baby Universe has some of the best prices on the
web, when you take into consideration their free shipping.
By the time you pay taxes at your local dealer, you will
generally have paid the same price, if not more. Baby
Universe carries a wide variety of Britax car seats, as seen
our
car seats page. In addition, they carry many other
brands at reasonable prices.