[aaronsmom]

My 7 month old DD is 20 lbs and 28 inches. Her infant carseat limitations are 5-22 lbs and 29 inches or less. So, I need to start shopping around for a convertible (want to get it done now so I don't forget when she reaches/surpasses the limits) but we are on a fairly tight budget.
Can anyone recommend a seat for me under $200?
Edit: In case it's relevant we drive a '99 Ford Thunderbird.

 

[chickabiddy]

Under $200, my first choice would be the Evenflo Triumph Advance.

 

[aaronsmom]

Thanks! I'll check it out.

 

[BeckC]

The Evenflo Triumph Advance is a great seat. Other seats under $200 are the Sunshine Kids Radian and the True Fit. I'm not sure how any of them will fit in your car. Your best bet is to take it out to your car and try it. Keep in mind that they can be more upright than 45 degrees, provided that your child has good head control.

 

[BelovedBird]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chickabiddy Under $200, my first choice would be the Evenflo Triumph Advance.

I love mine. Is what what was recommended to me by lots of people. It RFs for a loong time.

 

[Ironica]

You should know that the "real" rear-facing height limitation is where the top of your child's head is in relation to the top of the seat shell. She needs 1" of shell above her head; regardless of her height (well, length ;-), that's when she outgrows the seat. For some kids, that will happen BEFORE 29"; for others, it will happen later... it just depends on the length of her torso in relation to her overall height.

So she may have more time than you think (OTOH, she may be outgrown ALREADY! Eeek!) The weight limit at least is an absolute.

Personally, my favorite convertibles are the Britax Marathon and Boulevard. Disclaimer: I've not yet owned a Boulevard, but I'll be replacing our current Marathon with one when it expires (unless something better has come along by then; we've got 19 months to go). I like the additional side-impact protection, as well as the infinite side-adjust harness (no rethreading, no need to uninstall to change the height, and you can always put it exactly where it needs to go). But if the money was going to make a big difference to me (since the Boulevard is a bit more expensive), I'd be satisfied with another Marathon no problem.

 

[Jes'sBeth]

since you drive a 99 I'd guess that you don't have LATCH in your car which means it's a bit more challenging to install seats (I drive a 99 tercel with no latch. I LOVE installing our seats in latch cars!) Anyway... I would HIGHLY recommend going to a store where you can put the seats in your car BEFORE you buy one of them. You'll need a bit of time to do it (honestly if you would like to do it properly and try 3ish seats in, you'll need an afternoon and it's best if you don't have your child with you because they get bored and it's hard to supervise them. If you must take your child with you, get someone to go with you and hang out with your child in the store while you play with the seats)

I'd look at the Radian, true fit and Evenflo Triumph Advance as well. Britax brand seats are fantastic (and install really nicely with seatbelts forward facing and rear facing in my tercel) but are more expensive. The others are all great seats. Radians are long seats and they will take up a whole lotta space front to back in your car. The seat does NOT need a 45 degree recline because your child probably has great head control. That'll save you a bit of space.

 

[chickabiddy]

Just a note -- the foot used to install Radians rear-facing pretty much forces the seat to be at a 45-degree angle. There are some tricks to get it a bit more upright, but not much. Radians are LONG rear-facing.

 

[PassionateWriter]

i know you said $200 but a BV is on amazon.com right now for $229 and its a great seat. short of that, i loved our MA but the True Fit is a good seat also for alot less (i think its $180 right now). remember Sept. is sale time for Britax too.

 

[TimeWithOurKids]

Pardon my ignorance, but is the True Fit that everyone is mentioning a Chicco brand? My daughter isn't quite ready for a switch yet, but like aaronsmom, I want to be ready when the time comes!

 

[Ironica]

The TrueFit is made by Learning Curve, I believe.

 

[BeckC]

You will find the True Fit under the name: Learning Curve, The First Years, or Compass. They're all the same seat, and it is a convertible.

Chicco makes the KeyFit and it's an infant seat.

 

[TimeWithOurKids]

Ok, thanks!!