Easy Reference Chart for Carseat Weight/Height Limits

[1stTimeMama4-4-10]

I've been looking all over for this information and thought it might be useful to create a thread on this topic - the carseats I see mentioned all the time are:

First Years TrueFit RF 35, FF 65
Graco MyRide 65 RF 40, FF 65
Safety First Complete Air 65 RF 40 FF 65
Evenflo Triumph 65 RF 40 FF 65
Sunshine Kids Radian RF 40 FF 65

I didn't list Britax because it seems that universally people do not recommend them because children grow out of them so quickly and so they must be replaced by one of the above before the child is ready for a booster.

Perhaps people who have owned these could weigh in on which they prefer and why, and which they dislike and why. Also if there are additional carseats that I did not list, that would be helpful also.

[1stTimeMama4-4-10]

The only seat I have used is the First Years True Fit - the price was right ($100 brand new). I am generally very happy with it - the biggest drawback right now seems to be the rear facing weight limit.

DD is 6 months old and we transitioned from a Chicco Keyfit 30 about a month ago because she was a non-stop car screamer. She seems MUCH happier in the TrueFit and usually falls asleep in it. Her head sometimes lies in what looks like an uncomfortable position, but she seems happy enough so I'm not going to mess with it.

I compared seats at Babies R Us, and I was not happy with most of the seats because none seemed as comfortable or padded as the TrueFit. The install was fairly easy and the front seat is almost all the way back with the seat rearfacing, which is AWESOME! We drive a 2009 Rav4, and the backseat is fairly small. The footprint is large, but not as large as some of the seats I saw.

The only thing I am unsure of is whether we will need another seat to keep DD rearfacing as long as possible. I don't know about the height limits on the seats listed in the first post, so I'm not sure DD will outgrow the seat by height or weight first.

[sapphire_chan]

Thing is, the posted height limits are meaninglessness. A kid with really long legs could fit safely until 40" while a kid who is all torso and a large head could be out of room before 36".

I'm actually not a huge fan of the "proper use" clause, because by that standard a LOT of kids would be turned forward too early. One manual even has people turning the seat when the child's legs are bent. (graco I think)

[MJB]

Some of the Radians RF to 45 lbs.
I think all of those (not sure how tall the Triumph is) will last most kids RFing to 4 and FFing to 6 by height. I'm judging based on my 75th %ile kids. The MyRide (and, I think the Triumph) are a little shorter than the rest but will still last most kids to 4 and 6. The others might last a bit longer (to 7-8 FFing on the CA and Radian).

[chickabiddy]

Originally Posted by MJB

Some of the Radians RF to 45 lbs.

And forward-face to 80#, though it's pretty much moot because very few kids will get past 65# before outgrowing it by height.

ETA that I do not think the MyRide will get most kids to age 6 by height, nor will the Complete Air and Radian get kids to age 7-8. My shortish (~40%ile) kid would have outgrown them by height before age 7.

[Farmer'sWife]

These speadsheets list the stats for pretty much all of the current seats in the US.

http://sites.google.com/site/carseatmeasurements/

[MJB]

Originally Posted by chickabiddy

And forward-face to 80#, though it's pretty much moot because very few kids will get past 65# before outgrowing it by height.

ETA that I do not think the MyRide will get most kids to age 6 by height, nor will the Complete Air and Radian get kids to age 7-8. My shortish (~40%ile) kid would have outgrown them by height before age 7.

Huh. My boys are 75th %ile and my oldest fit until 7, and my 5 yr. old is in a CA, not even at the top setting yet. I imagine it will get him until 7 also. Guess this is one of those proportion things, although I don't think of my guys as having short torsos.

[TiredX2]

Originally Posted by Farmer'sWife

These speadsheets list the stats for pretty much all of the current seats in the US.

http://sites.google.com/site/carseatmeasurements/

Wow!

[chickabiddy]

Originally Posted by MJB

Huh. My boys are 75th %ile and my oldest fit until 7, and my 5 yr. old is in a CA, not even at the top setting yet. I imagine it will get him until 7 also. Guess this is one of those proportion things, although I don't think of my guys as having short torsos.

I would have to say that the majority of kids will probably outgrow a MyRide between 42" and 45" (a 50%ile boy is 43" on his fifth birthday). The Complete Air is about 1" taller, so will give about 2" more overall growth, (a 50%ile boy is 45" at 5y8mo).

Obviously kids come in all different shapes, and YMMV, but 8 is pretty unrealistic for most kids in Complete Air seats.

[1stTimeMama4-4-10]

Originally Posted by Farmer'sWife

These speadsheets list the stats for pretty much all of the current seats in the US.

http://sites.google.com/site/carseatmeasurements/

Thank you! This is fantastic.