Car Seats and Isofix

[terryd]

Hi all,

We're expecting our new arrival(s) in the spring and are looking to buy our car seats. It has to be the Maxi-Cosi due to the buggy we have, but we can't decide on whether to get the Isofix or non-isofix base.

Does anyone have any recommendations for the X1?
We've got leather seats, so I would guess we would need some kind of seat protector.

Also, does anyone who has newborn seats in the car find that there isn't a great deal of room to fit them?! We tried some Graco seats and had to move the seats so far forward that I couldn't drive!

Thanks
Terry

[mario486]

Originally Posted by terryd

Hi all,

We're expecting our new arrival(s) in the spring and are looking to buy our car seats. It has to be the Maxi-Cosi due to the buggy we have, but we can't decide on whether to get the Isofix or non-isofix base.

Does anyone have any recommendations for the X1?
We've got leather seats, so I would guess we would need some kind of seat protector.

Also, does anyone who has newborn seats in the car find that there isn't a great deal of room to fit them?! We tried some Graco seats and had to move the seats so far forward that I couldn't drive!

Thanks
Terry

Hi Terry, my son is 7 now so on a booster seat so I cannot comment on infant seats. However, I can comment on Isofix. Its an ISO standard (ISO 13216) and is the safer option of the two. A lot has been written about it, eg http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice...standards.html but in a nutshell its safer as the seat itself anchors directly onto the chassis of the car. On a more practical point I also find that moving the seat between cars is also easier as you don't have to fiddle/thread the car seat though the child seat.

[ocosta]

Hi Mario,
Do you have a booster with isofix?
Witch one? I trying to find one.

[nathan35]

Originally Posted by terryd

Hi all,

We're expecting our new arrival(s) in the spring and are looking to buy our car seats. It has to be the Maxi-Cosi due to the buggy we have, but we can't decide on whether to get the Isofix or non-isofix base.

Hi Terry,

Maxi-cosi seems to be a good choice, since it scores very well in all the tests I've seen. We opted for the isofix base (so-called Familiy fix), and are pretty happy with it.

On the positive side:
- I feel kind of safer when the seat is firmly attached to the car, as opposed to straped by seat belts;
- it is much easier to attach/remove the seat (possibly with the little one sleeping inside) to/from the base, than when using the seat belts;
- you can attach the next baby seat (up to 3-4 years old) to the same base (but not the one after 4 years);
- the baby seat which goes with the family-fix can still be attached with seat belts, if you occasionally need to use it in another car, or on the front seat (provided you can switch the airbag off).

On the negative side:
- when you need to upgrade for the next seat (9 months - 3 years old), there is only one type of maxi-cosi which goes with the family base, it is pretty expensive as compared to the other ones and may not be the one you like most; in particular, you cannot use the practical rotating seat (axiss) with the family base:
http://www.maxi-cosi.com/gb-en/carseats/toddler/axiss

I don't have leather seats in my car, but is does not seem like the base is particularly aggressive to the upholstery. Much of the base's weight rests on a leg which extends to the car's floor, rather than on the seat itself. Still, there is some clearance between the base and the seat, so you may want to put a towel in there to protect the seat.

I am not very tall (1m70) so I don't sit too far from the steering wheel, but I have tried to push my seat as far as I could backwards, with the maxi-cosi on, and it could go pretty far. So I don't think space for the maxi-cosi should be an issue.

hope it helps,

N.

[mario486]

Originally Posted by ocosta

Hi Mario,
Do you have a booster with isofix?
Witch one? I trying to find one.

Hi ocosta, I call it a booster seat but its actually a stage 3 kids seat for up to 12 years or 36kg. After that children may use the adult seat in the UK.

Anyway its the Britax Kidfix, have a look here http://www.britax.co.uk/car-seats/car-seats/kidfix

I seem to recall Recaro also made one.

[mario486]

Before I forget, one other thing. If you are using non-Isofix seats the seat belt must be fastened when there is no child in the seat. In an accident a unsecured seat becomes a missile inside the car.

Funny how few people actually remember to do this.

[terryd]

Mario/Nathan... thanks for the advice.

The two products I was considering were both bases into which the seat clips into, so from a usage point of view, they are both the same once fitted... it all comes down to how that base is secured (easyfix via isofix, easybase via seatbelt).

I'd ruled out the family fix base, mainly due to cost of the base, and cost of the only one seat that can then fit it post 9 months. I tried the easybase in Halfords and it seemed ok, but they didn't have any isofix versions. It's good to know that somebody has used one of these in the X1 in real life though... I'm only 1m78, but was surprised at how much space a rear facing seat takes up!

I was leaning towards the easybase as it's £80 cheaper for the two, but I'm now swaying back to the isofix version!

Thanks again.

[nathan35]

Mario:
Thanks for the info about the Britax Kidfix, I thought there were no isofix stage 3 seats. That's reassuring.
And also thanks for the reminder about always attaching the seat. Though I must say I'm constantly worried, with a relatively flat and long boot (trunk) like in the X1, that, in case of accident, the lugguage can penetrate the cabin, as you said, like a missile. Which is particularly worrisome when you have someone sitting at the back in a rear-facing seat...

Terry:
True, the rear facing seat takes a lot of space, but not that much! The isofix option is definitely more expensive, but seems to me more reliable. Though both are certainly good enough.