Anyone have experience with a convertible car seat for baby?

Arcticshade

Contributor
:
2017 CX5 GT AWD w/ PP & 2016.5 CX5 GT AWD w/ Tech and Nav
Hi everyone,

Our little one is getting ready to out grow her infant car seat and move on to a convertible car seat. My wife and I have a 2016 and 2017 and were looking for opinions that would work for both cars. Has anyone here recently used one? If so what fit comfortably for you as the driver and baby?

Lastly the Chicco NextFit car seat is the current front runner. But there is like 4 different kinds of them. Anyone have any experience with it?

Thanks!
 
this one is great.

Nautilus 65 3-in-1 Harness Booster Car Seat

https://www.amazon.com/dp/ (commissions earned)

fits great (on my old my 15' cx5 and on my current 17') and once shes ready for a booster seat, you'll already have one. win win lol.

I also happen to get this just to be able to protect the seat from any spills or messes. fits the car seat great and does its job protecting the seat (if you worry about those kind of things.)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/ (commissions earned)
 
I have a 8 month old that currently uses a convertible car seat.

Surprisingly, the infant carrier and rear facing convertible car seat take the same amount of room. We put the car seat behind the passenger seat, so the passenger seat is pushed forward quite a bit. I can just about squeeze in at 5'10" tall. Anybody shorter/with shorter legs can fit more comfortably.

We have a Chicco next fit zip, where you can zip off the cloth cover for easy cleaning and also bought a Britax Boulevard clicktight cool comfort for the CX9. Both are at the $300 mark and rate very high in consumer reports and wirecutter.com crash evaluations. https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-convertible-car-seats/. The biggest differences between the specific Nextfit or Boulevard models are the ARB (anti rebound bar) and fabric types. So you just have to decide if you want the bar and pick which fabric you like the best.

I personally prefer the Britax after using both. Installing the Britax is much easier. It uses the car's own seatbelts and just requires you to push down (hard) on the car seat bottom cushion to get everything super tight. The Chicco next fit is also easy to install with LATCH, but requires you to push down on the seat while pulling up the straps as hard as possible. It doesn't feel as securely fastened as the Britax does.

The child seat belts are also better in the Britax. The seat belts and buckles can stay out of the way when placing the child in. The Chicco's belts are more difficult to keep out of the way, so you're always placing the child on top of the belts, then you have to fish them out from under them. One of the bad things about the Britax is that the button to release the child seat belts is very deep. You have to stick your whole finger in to reach the button. The Chicco's button is more superficial and easier to press. It's a small sacrifice to pay because once the button is pressed, the child seat belts are easier to pull out with the Britax.

The Boulevard cool comfort model means that the fabric and foam are more breathable than the other fabrics offered. So during the summer time, it'll keep the child cooler since the fabric is more breathable. This also means that liquids can more easily penetrate the fabric too.

The Britax shape also makes it easier to reach in to get a good grip on the child to lift in and out. The Chicco side bolsters seem higher, which makes it more difficult to reach in.

The build quality of both seats are really good, but it's just these little ergonomic differences that make me like the Britax one better than the Chicco. They are also both roughly the same size and can fit in the CX5 comfortably.

Pics:
Chicco NextFit iZip in my 2014 CX5
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Britax Boulevard ClickTight Cool Comfort in my 2014 CX5
attachment.php


My front passenger legroom with a carseat installed. I'm 5'10 with a 30" pant inseam.
attachment.php
 
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I have a 8 month old that currently uses a convertible car seat.

Surprisingly, the infant carrier and rear facing convertible car seat take the same amount of room. We put the car seat behind the passenger seat, so the passenger seat is pushed forward quite a bit. I can just about squeeze in at 5'10" tall. Anybody shorter/with shorter legs can fit more comfortably.

We have a Chicco next fit zip, where you can zip off the cloth cover for easy cleaning and also bought a Britax Boulevard clicktight cool comfort for the CX9. Both are at the $300 mark and rate very high in consumer reports and wirecutter.com crash evaluations. https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-convertible-car-seats/. The biggest differences between the specific Nextfit or Boulevard models are the ARB (anti rebound bar) and fabric types. So you just have to decide if you want the bar and pick which fabric you like the best.

I personally prefer the Britax after using both. Installing the Britax is much easier. It uses the car's own seatbelts and just requires you to push down (hard) on the car seat bottom cushion to get everything super tight. The Chicco next fit is also easy to install with LATCH, but requires you to push down on the seat while pulling up the straps as hard as possible. It doesn't feel as securely fastened as the Britax does.

The child seat belts are also better in the Britax. The seat belts and buckles can stay out of the way when placing the child in. The Chicco's belts are more difficult to keep out of the way, so you're always placing the child on top of the belts, then you have to fish them out from under them. One of the bad things about the Britax is that the button to release the child seat belts is very deep. You have to stick your whole finger in to reach the button. The Chicco's button is more superficial and easier to press. It's a small sacrifice to pay because once the button is pressed, the child seat belts are easier to pull out with the Britax.

The Boulevard cool comfort model means that the fabric and foam are more breathable than the other fabrics offered. So during the summer time, it'll keep the child cooler since the fabric is more breathable. This also means that liquids can more easily penetrate the fabric too.

The Britax shape also makes it easier to reach in to get a good grip on the child to lift in and out. The Chicco side bolsters seem higher, which makes it more difficult to reach in.

The build quality of both seats are really good, but it's just these little ergonomic differences that make me like the Britax one better than the Chicco. They are also both roughly the same size and can fit in the CX5 comfortably.

Pics:
Chicco NextFit iZip in my 2014 CX5
attachment.php


Britax Boulevard ClickTight Cool Comfort in my 2014 CX5
attachment.php


My front passenger legroom with a carseat installed. I'm 5'10 with a 30" pant inseam.
attachment.php

Thank you Sushi, your post was very helpful! I'm reading the article now. Any luck with the pics?

I like the idea of ergonomics of the Britax model since the nextfit was super deep. Do you think the marathon model is the best value?
 
Sry about the pics. I had the album set to private, just made it public for everybody to see.

I actually never really considered the Marathon, mainly just because wirecutter recommended the Boulevard.

But some quick research:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKvzUsUmffQ

Apparently the Marathon has the least amount of side impact padding, Boulevard a bit more, and the Advocate even more.
 
Thank you again! Those pictures are super helpful. By chance, did you try putting the car seats in the middle? If so, how did it go? I apologize for so many questions but you are a life saver. :)
 
I did not try to install the car seats in the middle. Since the passenger seat has to be pushed so far forward, I was suspecting that the car seat would touch the drivers seat at my driving position. It's recommended that there is about an inch/finger gap between the car seat and the front seats.

The convertible car seat in it's rear facing position takes the same amount of space as the infant carrier, maybe a tiny bit less depending on how reclined it is. So if you're able to install the infant carrier in the middle seat and not have any interference with the front seats, then the convertible car seat should be very similar.

Glad I could help out another fellow parent!

And just an interesting fact while playing around with the car seats, I installed the Britax Boulevard in a 2014 CRV for comparison. It's well known that the CRV is always regarded as more roomy as the CX5.....BUT THE LEGROOM SITUATION IS THE SAME!!! The front seat has to also be pushed forward quite a bit, to where I also had to squeeze into the front seat with my knees almost touching the dash like the CX5. I thought the CRV would have more space available in the front seat after installing the car seat, but nope...not quite. However, the CRV's cargo area is taller, but just about the same depth as the CX5. After comparing the two, I feel like going with the CX5 was not as much of a space "sacrifice" as I initially thought.
 
Britax fan here too. It's been great...

Also, same thoughts as sushi, I'm a tad taller at 6ft, and I cannot ride in the passenger side, although the lady at 5ft 8in is fine with it. The middle is the same...

It works because I always drive when we're in the CX-5 together, but if not, or I had two children, we'd definitely be buying another car and getting rid of the CX-5...

Good luck with the new seat of your choice, and enjoy that new baby!
 
I have a Front facing seat called side impact tested and rear facing called Chicco fit 2 in the rear. I managed to get myself stuck trying to sit in the middle :D Damn that tunnel is huge and the Armrest pretty much invades into the rear space. Rear seat room in CX5 is similar to Mazda 3 - looks bigger as the height is good. We will be keeping the CX5 and using it. I might go full size sedan next year but till then CX-5 keeps our environmental footprint ok. No appetite for CX-9 even though its the best built Mazda around.
Chicco fit 2 is better than Chicco Fit as it can be used longer. We found that setup for $115 on Amazon warehouse. Already had Chicco stroller so perfect fit for 2nd girl. She has 5 kids that 'hand me down to her' Damn will need to buy her a Rolls when she turns 16.
 
Just an update: I ended up getting 2x Britax Boulevard Clicktight (With anti rebound bar) and installed them in the middle seat of our CX-5s. They work and fit great! Plus by having them in the middle we didn't lose any legroom. I highly recommend Britax Boulevard for anyone looking out there.
 
Glad it worked out for you!

Just curious, is the car seat touching the backs of the front seats? Or is the car seat narrow enough to fit in between?
 
Glad it worked out for you!

Just curious, is the car seat touching the backs of the front seats? Or is the car seat narrow enough to fit in between?

The car seat is narrow enough to fit in between. While you can go all the way back in the front seats, you probably can get about 85% before the baby seat touches. I have about an inch or two of clearance between the front seats and the baby seat. (For what it's worth I am average height at 5' 9")

Thanks again for all your help sushi! :)
 
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