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BRITAX to raise prices! Effective 8/8/05....

1K views 27 replies 20 participants last post by  dallaschildren 
#1 ·
If you are considering a Britax product, their prices will increase an average of $ 50.00 as of midnight Sunday 8/8/05. Buy one now before the price hike.

Dallaschildren
CPA tech and mom to 2 sons in seats
 
#2 ·
dang. $50 is quite a price jump when most other brands cost around that much.
 
#3 ·
Good grief! It's a good thing I didn't get a Britax for baby #2 (DS1 has a britax marathon in each car...DS#2 is getting an evenflow triumph for each car because we couldn't afford another $500 in carseats). That makes the marathon a $300 carseat...that's ridiculous!
 
#5 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by AllyRae
Good grief! It's a good thing I didn't get a Britax for baby #2 (DS1 has a britax marathon in each car...DS#2 is getting an evenflow triumph for each car because we couldn't afford another $500 in carseats). That makes the marathon a $300 carseat...that's ridiculous!
I *think* that basically they are going to make the marathon a firm $250 price tag. Basically, I get the feeling that B&M stores are complaining to britax that the online stores offer too good of a deal (we got our marathons for $207 shipped while I was pg last time from babyage.com). I think that is why a lot of brands end up setting firm prices on their products, b/c B&M stores complain about online discounters. At least that is what my DH and I agreed on when we discussed the britax policy last night. I think it's also kind of like how you cannot use coupons on certain brands when you go to dept stores... like henkels, caphalon, dyson, etc... some brands are VERY picky about that stuff and have strict, "rules" for their retailers that they are not allowed to discount on certain things.
 
#6 ·
Oakly does that. if you put thier product on sale without thier OK they will pull your distributorship. But my guess is if they are raising prices they are going to raise everyones and the B&M stores will just get screwed out of thier profit margin.

It seems odd that they would announce a price increase.
 
#8 ·
Their product might be a great one but I will not buy from them because of the prices. They were too high before and are now going to be much too high for the average family. I don't like the thought that a poorer family can not buy the safest car seat because of the price.

just my thoughts...
 
#10 ·
Good grief! I wanted to buy another Marathon for my dad's truck, which DS rides in usually once a week or so, but another $50 is rediculous! I can't afford to get it tonight (I blew out a tire this weekend so ended up spending $170 getting 4 new tires) but I don't think I'll ever be able to afford another $275 (adding in shipping since they aren't sold anywhere near me) for a carseat. Such a shame, since I love the MA I have in my car.
 
#11 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Kathryn
That sucks. I still buy them though. I have a horrible fear of dying in a car crash and I want nothing buy the absolute safest for my baby.
Yeah, but according to Consumer Reports, they're not even the safest carseats on the market. I think the Evenflow Triumph scored higher. I can't remember what the marathon's issue was, but I think it had more to do with latch than anything else (which is why we still have ours...we don't have latch)
 
#12 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by AllyRae
Yeah, but according to Consumer Reports, they're not even the safest carseats on the market. I think the Evenflow Triumph scored higher. I can't remember what the marathon's issue was, but I think it had more to do with latch than anything else (which is why we still have ours...we don't have latch)
Hmm. Everything I've ever read has said that they are right above the Triumph and the car seat inspector said the same thing after we got into our crash. Do you have a link to what you're talking about so I can read it?
 
#13 ·
Consumer Reports frequently rates items as being "better" than other items, but generally, IRL experience with people who are in the field shows that CR is incorrect.

Either way, this really sucks
 
#15 ·
wow,we just bought our decathlon yesterday and that was 296(this is with tax)looks like i scraped by with the skin of my teeth!!!
here's a question too though,we replaced our roundabout for the decathlon as I was told that car seats expire after five years,anyone else heard this.our round about is five years old and pretty well loved but still very clean and usable,
just interested in other thoughts,
cheers ladies,
 
#16 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by AllyRae
Yeah, but according to Consumer Reports, they're not even the safest carseats on the market. I think the Evenflow Triumph scored higher. I can't remember what the marathon's issue was, but I think it had more to do with latch than anything else (which is why we still have ours...we don't have latch)
I have both and definately prefer the britax. We don't have LATCH in our cars and we found the britax much easier to install. also the triumph is so wide that if the baby falls asleep, his/her head slumps over and looks really uncomfy. i get nervous that in a crash their head could snap back. the britax is much easier to adjust the straps too.
 
#17 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by minimunklemama
here's a question too though,we replaced our roundabout for the decathlon as I was told that car seats expire after five years,anyone else heard this.our round about is five years old and pretty well loved but still very clean and usable,
just interested in other thoughts,
cheers ladies,
I've just heard this from a friend, too. It's not like they're made of cheese or something, so I'm doubting this. Does anyone know for sure?
 
#18 ·
Wow! We got one just in time. I ordered it from Baby Universe for $199 and free shipping. I just checked and they are $249.99 now, still with free shipping.

I'm not sure about about the 5 year time limit, but after 3 years with dd's previous seat, we felt it was time to get a new one. Her old one had been beaten and battered enough.

I'd be interested to know if there was a time limit though.
 
#21 ·
I thought the time limit was because the plastic can break down. Seats that expire should have the expiration date stamped on them, otherwise I think it's 10 years from date of manufacture, assuming you've checked for any recalls. I was just reading about this last week, I think on the NHTSA site.
 
#22 ·
Look on your seat. Many newer seats actually have an expiration date stamped on them. For seats with no expiration date on them, the recommended time frame is 5-6 years. There are two reasons for considering seats "expired" after a certain amount of years: 1. Crash standards and other improvements required by the government change. It is doubtful that a seat made 10 years ago, for instance, would pass today's crash standards. Another example: LATCH attachments were introduced on seats 2 to 3 years ago and older seats would not be so equipped. 2. Some have said that changes in temperature over time will weaken the plastic shell of a seat. I do not know if this is true or not.

Keep in mind that it is debateable, even among "experts" just what the life of a safety seat is. There is no question that seats over 10 years old should be retired. The debate ranges in the five to 10 year period. The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) recommends a 6-year life. Six years is also the time that Century products use for expiration dates, which are molded into the plastic of their seats. So, six years seems a reasonable to me.

Dallaschildren
CPS tech and mom to 2 sons in seats
 
#24 ·
I have a friend who has a chidlren's resale shop and so is very knowledgeable about the life span of carseats. The average is 7 years. If you live in extreme temperatures and your car is often exposed to the elements, then 5 years is a safe bet. For example, I live in Houston where it gets really, really hot. So to be on the safe side, I would replace one after 5 years. But if you live in milder climate and you have not been in a car accident, I think you could be confident with 7 years.
Gossamer
 
#25 ·
*I did most of my car seat research 5 years ago*

But at that time we deceided on Britax and have stuck with them and been very happy, not only for the safety factors, although those were first and formost, but also for customer satifaction/ease of use ect. I heard too many stories IRL and online about hard to instal, straps twisting, with other brands ect.

For us when it's our children's safety in the car 100 vs 250 isn't even a choice, when you think I go places daily with the kids in the car, and they will be in these seats for years.
 
#26 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by magemom
CR ratings

if that worked, you will see Evenflo Titan 5 then Roundabout then Evenflo Triumph 5. I have both Evenflo seats.

Consumer reports has certain parts of their website free, the car seat link is one of them.
Yep, I think that's the article I read.... I was surprised that the marathon was actually rated the *lowest*... A few years ago, it was rated among the highest (which is why ds1 has 2 of them).
 
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