Harness-to-booster seat help needed!

[Logan Sapphire]

My son, who turned 3 a couple of weeks ago, has a very long torso (16.5" from butt to shoulder and 40" overall). He is RFing in a Diono Radian in our primary car, but is FFing in a Britax Roundabout 55 in our second car. He has now outgrown the Roundabout completely, as his shoulders are above the harness slots. Time for a new seat

My daughter has a Frontier 85 SICT and we'll also get a Britax harness-to-booster for DS, since he is tall. Has anyone looked into the new Frontier 90 or Pinnacle? They have a 1/2" taller harness height and go to 90lbs and have a very easy seatbelt installation system. DS will most likely not make it to 90lbs, even in booster function, as he's pretty lightweight. Is it worth it to pay the extra money for the new seats or should I just save money and buy the 85 SICT, which may well go on sale due to the new seats coming out.

 

[Kunzite]

First, I'm jealous that he's still able to RF at 40". I guess my toddler has a longer torso than I thought because he's about 36" and only has around .5-1" or so before he hits the height limit in our Radian I'm willing him to stop growing for a year or so! I knew he grew last week because I suddenly had to teach him crisscross applesauce out of nowhere!

I think I would be very tempted by the extra harness height, easier install, and front adjust harness of the 90 over the 85. I guess it depends on how much the price difference will be when/if the 85 goes on sale. For me the 90 would likely be worth it.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

Kunzite, PLEASE measure your son's torso height and let me know!!!! He must be all torso!!! Are you sure he's 36" and not taller?? Very tall child! I hear you about stopping growing. Supposedly when they turn 3, their torso growth is supposed to slow down and they grow 1" of torso per year (growth is more in the legs), but who knows!

In Drew's Radian, he has .75-1" of room left, last I checked. Just in case you happen to have one, an epi-pen jr. box is exactly 1.5" thick and makes a perfect ruler to check shell room

 

[Kunzite]

Yep, 36" is pretty close. His absolute favorite "toy" right now is the tape measure so we end up measuring him quite a bit Looks like his torso is about 16". I couldn't get a great measurement because he was furious I wanted him to sit still! I think he has a long neck too. My DH is the one who measured how much room he had left so I guess I'll need to do it myself for the peace of mind. Fingers crossed that you're right and he's not as close as we thought. OR maybe since his torso is so out of proportion to his legs maybe he'll only grow in the legs from now on! You've given me so much hope.

 

[qtiekiki]

I think I would get the 85 SICT after the price drop, if I were you. I don't think the 1/2" is worth it. Plus the seated shoulder height for 85 SICT is 13-24.5 vs 15-23 for 90, for booster use. I don't know they may never get up to the 23 or 24.5 in torso. We have two 85 SICT for my 4 years old DD (turning 5 at the end of July) and 3 years old DS. I measured DD a couple month ago, and her seated shoulder height was 18.5.

ETA: DD is 45".

 

[Kunzite]

So I got a better measurement and we have closer to 1.5" left before hitting the height limit. So excited! I'm going to cross my fingers for all leg growth from now on.

LS, I was thinking that for me I'd go with the 90 purely for the easy install but I forgot the fact that you're likely a pro with the difficult 85 install already. In your case I would be tempted by the $$ savings.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

Kunzite, great news! It's so hard to estimate torso growth! While we wait to decide on which Britax model, I installed his backup Nautilus. (He's not strapped in because I just wanted to check the headrest height.). He only has one more harness slot to go in that seat. I also tried him out in his sister's Frontier and I think he has 3 more harness slots, as opposed to just the one with the Nautilus. I'm also attaching a pic of him in his Radian...getting close to the top!

 

[Kunzite]

LS, in case you didn't see Kohls has the 85 for $182 before tax w/ free shipping. You can stack codes SAVEABUNDLE & MAYFLOWERS. They only have the red SICT for that price but all of the other 85s.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

LS, in case you didn't see Kohls has the 85 for $182 before tax w/ free shipping. You can stack codes SAVEABUNDLE & MAYFLOWERS. They only have the red SICT for that price but all of the other 85s.

Thanks! By the time I hemmed and hawed over this purchase, the Kohls' stacking codes weren't valid I also missed the Diapers.com 30% off sale on the Frontier 90, but since we need a new seat now, I ended up getting a 90 from Albeebaby for 25% off ($18 more than Diapers.com).

We'll see how it goes when it arrives. I'll let you know if the install is as easy as advertized.