The BEST car seat…

So I get this question a lot… what is the BEST car seat for my baby?

Here’s the secret… the best car seat is the seat that can be installed correctly in your car and is being used per the manufacturers guidelines (preferably along with best practices).

There is no BEST.

There is however seats that make me cringe when I see them come in…

Any seat that was purchased at a yard sale, thrift store, or received at the dump is a bit NO GO. You just can’t be sure of the history. No matter how awesome that deal was, you just have NO idea if the other owner was in an accident, if they treated the seat with care, if the washed the fabric in fabric softener (stripping the fire retardant material)… you just have no idea.

Any seat over the date the manufacturer recommends – most manufacturers recommend 6 years of use. Now – daily use, for 6 years… frankly… most seats are so nasty after this, that I think it warrants throwing out just for the gross factor. But there is a bigger reason – first technology changes so rapidly… for instance… just a few years ago they were still producing those car seats that have the shield that goes over the head. They are no longer producing these… because they just are not as safe as seats with 5 point harnesses.  Getting replacement parts for older seats is also hard. Does the seat suddenly implode at 6 years? No – but thats the date the manufacturer puts on that seat, and I’m sure if there was any sort of failure, they would throw their hands up and claim it’s not their problem. There is also general wear… car seats are exposed to a lot… really hot and really cold temps, liquids on the seat and harness, and stress points from heavy use… So don’t use an expired car seat.

Obviously any seat that is broken or “rigged” to work… is a big no-no.

But back to the “BEST” car seat…

I always tell parents to make sure that they know the limits of their seat… seats have various weight and height limits. There is tons of information online about observed harness height and weight limits. There are many new seats on the market with harnesses that have 65lb + weight limits… the issue is, I don’t know many seats that would realistically fit a 65lb child… for most, this is just unrealistic because of the harness height and shell height.

Here is a nice list already comprised by another blog: http://www.carseatsite.com/recommended_car_seats.htm, but the car seat market is changing so rapidly, and the choices are already expanded from this list!

If you have a question about a specific car seat for your vehicle and child, email me first before you buy so you don’t have buyers remorse! I’ll be able to tell you if it will last your child a while or not, and if it’s a good buy.