Rear-Facing Convertible Car Seat Recommendations?

Welcome to PC jambnine:

Sorry, but you will not find one. If she weighs enough, you should look into moving her to a 5 point front facing system if you want her to not be in the middle and not have to move the passenger seat too far forward for you tall people.

 

I agree...

you can't fit a seat in the middle on a prius and use the LATCH system. You'll have to use just the seatbelt

And there is no way to have one rear facing and the seat all the way back.

FWIW, We have Britax Marathon 70 behind the passenger seat. It ALMOST goes back fully,but it is forward a click or two.

The carseat itself is fantastic and I'm glad we own two...one for each car.

 

I had the same quandry as I have 3 kids. There is a post I printed out from here about Sunshine Kids seats Sunshine Kids Car Seats :: Sunshine Kids Juvenile Products The post was a writeup about how to fit three of these relatively narrow (17") seats across the back of a Prius Gen 2. The wife (in her 2008 Touring Package 6) uses Britax. They're much bigger.

-MKL

 

the infant seat usually goes to over year, no? from what I remember. I have two forward facing full seats in my Prius now, was at one point one seat and one rearward infant seat, neither was in the middle. Might take some fussing but the infant seat seemed to be harder to me than the toddler seat. Infant seat I just looked at goes to 35LBs and 32" tall.

 

I would absolutely not suggest moving any child under 12 months old or under 20 pounds to a forward facing seat. This is contrary to instructions and limits for almost every child restraint sold in the USA or Canada. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics and other organizations now recommend that kids be kept rear-facing at least until they are 2 years old.

The Combi Coccoro and Costco Scenera are among the smallest convertibles and take up less room than most. At 7 months, you can install them more upright than for a newborn and that should help, too. The Britax "70" series of convertibles are a little larger, but still tend to fit where some larger models won't fit. As with many compact cars, there just may not be enough room for a rear-facing convertible right behind a tall passenger up front.

On the other hand, a narrower model like the Diono (formerly Sunshine Kids) Radian or a Costco Scenera should give enough room on either side for passengers in back if you install it in the middle with the seatbelt.

If you haven't found one yet, please feel free to send me a private message and I would be happy to help find one that works for you. I can even provide some photos as I have most of these models on hand.

 

tough to use blanket statements based on manufacturer, Britax and Sunshine both offer more than one model, those models can vary in size from one to the other. Just because one Britax seat can't fit 3 across, doesn't necessarily mean another model won't. And just cause one sunshine seat does, doesn't mean all will. Heck on our particular Sunshine seat the width is actually adjustable based on the size of the kid.

 

Obviously. But she can go to the site and scan for models which will fit. Britax seats with side impact are generally very wide. My wife fits two Britax Advocate seats (22" wide apiece) in her 2008 Prius, and I've got the Sunshine Kids 17" Radian in my car, where I can fit 3 across.

-MKL

 

My sister had the Cocorro for her son in their little 10-year-old BMW 3 series. It sits very far down, so it gives you the most room of any seat we looked at behind a front seat when rear-facing. It was also narrow enough that adults could sit alongside it when in the middle, although not super comfortably for anyone on the large side. She was very happy with it, and just moved to a Britax Marathon when he was about 2 and they moved up to a minivan (he's still rearfacing). It's also a great travel seat, because it is so lightweight.

 

Time of use will depend on the spec of the seat. They usually quote age as a guidline, but weight is the actual spec.
We were (until recently) using a cybex aton baby carrier - specced to 18 months/13 kilos - but changed up to a front facing seat as kid number 2 got too long for it. We went for a Kiddy Guardian pro (up to 12 years), not cheap, but we shouldn't need to buy another one...

 

http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-v-accessories-modifications/101619-car-seat-fitting.html

 

We use the Coccoro and are able to put the front seat all the way back with a side install. It is narrow enough, you can install in the middle. If middle install, you must use seat belt, not latch. Rear facing optimal as long as possible. Newest Guidelines say until at least 2 years old. We had my daughter rear facing until 3, and my kids are off the chart tall. Bones of spine not fully fused until 6. Not something to mess around with. Legs bend easily enough. My daughter is 5 now and misses rear facing.

As Coccoro only goes rear facing to 33 lbs and has a shorter shell, we plan to switch to a Radian with side impact wings and the add on angle adjuster when my son outgrows his Coccoro shell (when less than 1" above the head). Radian a much taller shell and won't fit well in Prius until an angle adjuster is used. Angle adjuster only approved for rear facing children over 1 year. My 4 mos old outgrew infant seat in height at 4 mos, hoping Coccoro gets us to a year! Radian is best for long rear facing. I think newest ones go up to 45 lbs rear facing!
To find a car seat tech to ensure proper install:
Www.nhsta.gov

Great forum for more advice:
Www.car-seat.org