A car seat is most often perceived as an indispensable attribute for transporting a child under the age of three, however, manufacturers of such products insist that complete safety of transportation can be ensured only if the child travels in a special seat up to 12 years old. Many parents ignore this recommendation, but all indications are that they are doing this in vain.
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Most parents believe that at a relatively conscious age, a child can already be put on a separate adult seat, wearing an ordinary car seat belt. In extreme cases, pick it up and transport it like that. Naturally, both options are unacceptable from a safety point of view in an accident situation. When a child is held in the arms of an adult, in the event of sudden braking, or even more so a frontal impact, he is not protected from being thrown forward at all.
A standard seat belt also gives very dubious guarantees, since it is designed for an adult and does not always tighten to the required tightness, and it is also located too high, so it can wrap around the throat instead of the chest, which is fraught with serious consequences. This is why the age-appropriate car seat is the ideal solution.
Chairs for preschoolers and children under adolescence are not yet so common, but they exist - such models are classified as category 2/3. This group of car seats puts forward certain requirements for its passengers, for example, a child's weight from 15 to 36 kg and a height of at least 95 centimeters. As for the upper growth rate, it differs depending on the model - it can be either 145 or 160 centimeters. At the same time, the parameters of the seat can differ significantly, so it is advisable to "try on" the chair before making a purchase.
The 2/3 concept is implemented in a very simple way - in fact, manufacturers provide two chairs, one in the other. The base is the larger 3, which has all the necessary rigidity and provides the bulk of the necessary protection. A category 2 chair in this case is represented by a relatively thin pad, which is installed on top of chair 3 and provides closer "hugs" for a baby who is too early to use a full category 3.
As the child grows, such an overlay is simply removed, and an ordinary chair for the third age group remains from the transformer. Naturally, a soft pad of the second category costs parents less than a full-fledged chair of the same group - due to this, savings are achieved.
Since children's life depends on the effectiveness of a car seat, before entering the market, leading manufacturers conduct so-called crash tests, when an emergency situation is specially created in the laboratory. Usually, an uncontrolled passenger car is driven into a concrete obstacle at high speed to see how it ends. Of course, instead of a child, a dummy is put in a car seat, but according to its state after a collision, it is judged how effective the model in question is.
The main function of the car seat is to prevent the child from being thrown out of the seat by inertia after a collision, however, the best models are also able to cushion the impact directly.
Kinds
It would seem that a child car seat is not the most difficult design to assume a variety of types. Nevertheless, the classification is highlighted even for child seats of group 2/3. To begin with, it should be noted that child car seats are most often produced in the 2/3 format, however, as an exception, they come across separately and simply 2, and simply 3. The fundamental difference is that 2 are conditional preschoolers, and 3 are children school age younger adolescents.
Most manufacturers understand that any family will prefer one durable chair, so they produce exactly 2/3, whose service life can reach nine years.
Unlike the same baby strollers, where the transformer usually does not provide ideal comfort in any of the possible positions, in the case of car seats, the 2/3 model is the best option, so, although it is possible to buy two separate chairs, it is not at all necessary.
Given that the road can be long, and a child aged 3 years and older may want to sleep at any time, car seats with a sleeping position are especially popular. For such products, it is traditional to adjust the height and tilt of the headrest, but if it is necessary for the baby to sleep, the best models offer the ability to tilt the back. At the same time, the seat seems to go a little forward, but it is still securely fixed with standard car seat belts.
Separately, it must be said about the so-called boosters - these are car seats that do not imply a backrest. They are necessary for those children who, due to their age and size, are no longer so easy to fit into a child seat, but by their height they still cannot fully use the "adult" seat belts. Realizing that this condition is almost always temporary and unpredictable, manufacturers usually make chairs of group 2/3 so that, if necessary, the backrest can be removed altogether, turning the structure into a booster.
Model rating
A child car seat is exactly the kind of product where the highest quality is vital, but reviews show that here, as in any other industry, there are the best models and everyone else. Some manufacturers are willing to slightly reduce the safety indicators so that the final product is cheaper and more affordable for the buyer. Some firms do their best to protect against impact, but convenience suffers because of this. Some companies manage to combine functionality and stylish design in their products. And for some brands, all of these indicators are relatively balanced.
By the way, for this reason, it is rather difficult to name the ideal car seat, since each consumer may have special needs. Of course, the main criterion is safety, but if the child is uncomfortable and he is constantly crying, this will distract the driver, provoking an emergency situation once again. Someone has a child that is too short for a better model, while others, on the contrary, are too tall or overweight.
In a word, there are no unambiguous criteria, so it is worth highlighting several models from those that are rarely criticized.
Cybex Solution X2-Fix
This car seat is a prime example of the fact that the manufacturer may not have huge experience in the production of such products, but still make it with high quality. The brand has a history of some two decades.
However, this model, which is one of the newest, has won numerous European competitions for child car seats. For fastening, the modern Isofix system is used, which provides a reliable connection between the seat and the car. A peculiar feature of this chair is the patented three-position headrest, which allows you to find the ideal position for the child among eleven options, without an adjustable backrest.
In terms of side impact damping, this model is considered one of the best of its kind. There are many videos on the internet describing why this chair is good and showing the results of real, successfully passed crash tests.
Evenflo ProComfort Amp LX Belt Positioning Booster
If a child does not meet the standard parameters for his or her age, it can significantly reduce the number of options available, however, this does not mean that he will have to ride without a car seat. The model under consideration is designed for those children who are distinguished by increased dimensions - in particular, the maximum passenger weight provided here is 45 kilograms.
The manufacturer did not limit itself to the minimum fit of standards, but also took care of convenience, for example, made the armrests soft with built-in cup holders.
Britax Marathon ClickTight
This seat, on the other hand, somewhat limits the maximum weight, since it is only suitable for passengers no heavier than 29.5 kg. But safety is observed here so carefully that many authoritative experts consider it to be the best solution.
The British manufacturer tried to make sure that the seat structure literally hugs the baby from all sides, which will help not fly out of the seat in the event of a collision and mitigate potential side impact.
The engineers did not forget that in many accidents even a child car seat does not save if it is installed incorrectly. To prevent such a problem, the developers have simplified the installation process as much as possible - it is reduced to the simple stretching of a standard seat belt under the armrests.
Maxi-Cosi Pria 85
This model could even be attributed to the group of more multifunctional 1/2/3 transformers, which does not prevent it from meeting the standards considered in this article. Here, the number of potentially child-friendly positions is as numerous as nowhere else. The permissible passenger weight starts from as little as 6 and ends with 39 kilograms.
In pursuit of maximum convenience, the designers did not forget about safety, in particular, great attention was paid to side protection, since in accidents children most of all suffer precisely because of side collisions.
How to choose?
Choosing reliable car seats for children is not an easy task, because there is no room for error. As already mentioned, there is no universal model; you will have to choose a chair separately for each child. To do this accurately, you need to at least know the basic criteria, of which there are quite a few.
It has already been said about age and weight, so it remains to decide on the rest of the parameters.
Compatible with car model
In an effort to provide the baby with maximum comfort and safety, diligent parents often forget that the "ideal" car seat may not simply fit in the back seat of their car. Universal models should fit all cars that meet ECE R14 and R16 standards, but even so, it is advisable to try on the seat, especially if the car is of domestic production.
Semi-universal and special seat models are designed only for certain cars, so first you need to make sure that the potential purchase will fit into place.
Car mount type
You can also fasten the chair to the back seat using standard seat belts, but this option, although popular, is not considered ideal. In recent years, more and more car seat manufacturers are focusing on the Isofix system, which involves holding the seat on special brackets that extend deep into the seat. There are also models with a retractable thrust element, which does not allow the chair to roll forward in a frontal impact.
There are chairs with anchor straps, which are additionally attached to the back of the back.
Seat belts
Protection against the child being thrown out during heavy braking is most often provided by belts with one, three or five attachment points. The more points, the better the impact force is distributed over the surface of the child's body, minimizing the risk of serious injury. As an exception, protection against flying can also be provided by the front table.
In any case, all fasteners must allow for instant unfastening, while it is important for preschool children that they themselves cannot unfasten the belt.
Frame type
Some child car seats do not have a rigid frame, then they turn out to be very compact and cheap, but they can only protect the child from being thrown forward, but not from impact. A plastic frame is already higher safety, since the best modern models resist deformation quite well and can withstand a strong blow, while such a chair will cost parents relatively inexpensively.
The aluminum frame makes the chair as expensive as possible, but at the same time it does not weigh it down at all, and in terms of strength it is an ideal solution, since it perfectly protects against impacts and allows you to maintain the correct position of the child's spine during long trips.
Anatomical position of the back and headrest
Until adolescence, the child's skeleton is still soft and is at the stage of growth and formation, so now it is categorically important to ensure the orthopedic position of the back and neck. There is no specific standard here - it is more correct to say that the seat should relatively correspond to the dimensions and parameters of its passenger.
Given that it is constantly and rather rapidly growing, preference is given to those chairs that allow multi-position regulation of their position.
Do not forget that a preschool child may want to sleep at any time, so a backrest with a sleeping position will be an excellent bonus for a long journey.
Cover material
In the modern world, no one will agree to go to obvious discomfort for the sake of safety, and it is completely impossible to explain to a child why he should sit in an uncomfortable, tightly hugging, in places dirty chair. Therefore, for a start, it is worth letting the child try the seat himself - it is worth buying only if the baby does not show any dissatisfaction.
It is desirable that the fabric itself repels dirt and is fairly easy to clean without washing, however, it is just as important that the design of the chair allows for the possibility of removing the cover for hygienic care. By the way, usually the upholstery is made of synthetic material with a slight addition of natural fibers, however, for the summer heat, a model with a cotton cover is much better suited, which provides improved ventilation.
Marking
There are organizations that professionally assess the safety of child car seats. If a manufacturer with this model has passed such a test, he will not fail to brag about it.
It is recommended that you search the Internet for videos of real crash tests to see for yourself how a potential purchase can protect a child in the event of an accident.
In the next video, see a detailed review of the 2-3 Cybex Solution X2-Fix car seat (Cybex Solution X 2 Fix).
