Tell me about car seats - for over 12kg (post capsule) - and a Britax/Safe N Sound Q?

Right now, DS is in a Safe and Sound Unity capsule. We purchased 1 capsule and 2 bases so we can move the capsule between cars with the comfort of knowing that the bases were properly installed by professional installers. Before we know it, DS is going to be too big for his capsule.

I understand that car seats don't have bases so I guess this means we will need 2 car seats (if we want to be able to use both cars with DS and still have the comfort of having them professionally installed) - is this right?

What car seats would you recommend? and why?

Also, are any of the Britax branded models from the US or UK identical to any of the Safe N Sound models sold here?

I had the Safe N Sound Meridian AHR for both my babies and thought it was great - seemed nice and comfy for them, great for rear facing and then still has a long life once you eventually turn it to forward facing - I think it goes to 18kgs but don't quote me on that? It is all one "thing" though so yes, you would need one for each car.

We just got a letter from the RAC (not sure what your Vic equivalent is?) that had the recent car seat results from capsules through to boosters - it was done in conjunction with the other States' RAC equivalent. Google RAC and then search for child car restraints and the links are at the bottom of the page. HTH

I guess I am a little confused as I'd like DS to be rear facing for as long as possible given that it is significantly safer. Are there any seats that are built to go rearfacing for the entire time a child is in the car seat?

currently in aus the limit is 12kgs or 12months rear facing
my children have Safe N Sound Meridian AHR for my toddler and Safe N Sound Maxirider AHR for my almost 3
the maxirider is still the safest booster on the market and is 8kgs-7years my son started using his booster at 2years old my daughter will be 19months as weve got another bub on the way so will buy her a maxi rider AHR

A child has to be in a booster/harness until 7 years so no...no car seat will rearface till that age.

Overseas carseats are illegal to use here as they do not meet our safety standards...you can be fined and your car insurance voided if yo uuse hem. The longest you can rearface at present in any australian carseat is 12 kgs although there is currently a lobby for amending the standards so seats that will rearface longer can be sold here (such as ones sold in some scandanavian countries).

You also have to take into account height as well as weight...we bought a 12kg rated capsule but they only go to 70odd cms in height....DS topped that at 9months and 9kilos so we had to fork out for a convertible carseat to keep him rearfacing for as long as possible. We went with the Platinum AHR AIR as it the safest reversible carseat on the market at present....but not cheap. this should last him till 4 yrs or so when he will need to go into a harnessed booster.

Yeah Unfortunately there is no seat in Australia that accommodates rear facing beyond 12kg. I have been luck that my kids have not hit 12 kgs until well over 12 months. I also contacted the maker of my seat who said that testing goes beyond 12kg but our standards don't. So I was happy to leave them a bit longer over the 12 kg mark.
Also, Im not sure if you had a seat from overseas that didn't comply with AUS standard that you would have any insurance cover if you happened to be involved in an accident with that seat in use.
I often wonder this as you see overseas seats listed on ebay & such but I didn't think it was legal to actually use them in the car here?

eta - thanks Mel, you answered my post while I was posting :)

I've done a fair bit of research since my post this morning and it is unfortunate that there is no Aussie rear facing seat that will take you beyond 12kg as apparently it is much safer. And it is technically correct that using a non-Aussie car seat is illegal here. However, if it is indeed much safer, that may be a risk I am willing to take - what's a fine compared to safety???

What I find interesting is that Australia seems to be very strick in terms of the mechanics of the car seat (meaning the requirements in terms of the build and installation are top requirements) but in terms of usage requirements (only allowing the sale of rear facing up until 12kgs), Australia seems to be behind.

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A child has to be in a booster/harness until 7 years so no...no car seat will rearface till that age.

Overseas carseats are illegal to use here as they do not meet our safety standards...you can be fined and your car insurance voided if yo uuse hem. The longest you can rearface at present in any australian carseat is 12 kgs although there is currently a lobby for amending the standards so seats that will rearface longer can be sold here (such as ones sold in some scandanavian countries).

You also have to take into account height as well as weight...we bought a 12kg rated capsule but they only go to 70odd cms in height....DS topped that at 9months and 9kilos so we had to fork out for a convertible carseat to keep him rearfacing for as long as possible. We went with the Platinum AHR AIR as it the safest reversible carseat on the market at present....but not cheap. this should last him till 4 yrs or so when he will need to go into a harnessed booster.

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Mel do you have a link with the info re insurance being voided as my SIL is planning on getting a car seat from Swedden and I was having this argument about TAC and insurance not covereing her baby if she had an accident, but she felt that a fine was ok if he was safe.

DS1 because forward facing not long before I had DS2 as I needed the car seat for baby.

DS2 is still rear facing at nearly 15 months, I need to weigh him again to see how long till I have to face him the other way.
DS1 is in a maxirider AHR
DS2 a Meridian AHR both are made by S and S

I spoke to my car insurance agency as i was going to import one and they said if the car was involved in an accident and the seat didnt meet australian standards it would void the claim......PHI said the same thing...i can't speak for TAC as I didn't speak to them. You can also be fined if you are caught with one installed but then again I am not sure exactly how observant a police officer is going to be of the exact make and model carseat you have in the car at the time.

Be careful with buying overseas though, just because it rearfaces longer doesn't make it a safer seat...make sure to look very very carefully at all the safety and crash test ratings of the various seats.....some of them are worse than our forward facing seats.....some are really good options but some re really dodgy.

Here's my question - void what claim? not the claim for the damage to the actual car, right (I mean, the car seat has nothing to do with the car)? So, would it void the claim for the replacement car seat (if so, so what if your child is unharmed/less harmed than he/she would have been in a forward facing)? This is what I don't get - other than a possible fine from a very observant police officer - what could happen? OR, worse case scenario - if your child was hurt, would it mean that you couldn't claim on your health insurance/medicare - now that's a serious issue. Note, I am assuming that the seat being used is just as safe if not safer than an Aussie certified one...and I agree, plenty of research needs to be done but there are some really good options out there...and there are Britax seats in the US and UK (Safe N Sounds maker) that rear face for longer, have excellent safety ratings, and cost hundreds less than what I would say are the equivalent Aussie models (and I'm talking about the top of the line models).

Here's an interesting statistic:

"New research has found children are safer in rear-facing car seats. A 2007 study in the journal Injury Prevention showed that children under age 2 are 75 percent less likely to die or be severely injured in a crash if they are riding rear-facing."

its against the law to face your child backwards after 12 months of age in Australia, regardless of weight.

Its not just a fine from an officer you need to worry about its a charge for child endangerment which could see you go to gaol ... Just use a Seat that meets Australian standards.... your ds will be able to be in a rear facing one for a whole year yet....

where did you find that law M2R...my son is still rearfacing at 15 months and will be until he hits the 12 kilo limit. I have no intention of turning him until then...he will most likely be close to 2 before that happens.

No way I would have turned the girls before 12 months, dd1 was still in 000's until 14 months can you imagine turning a little one that small!

Mom2Romone - That's ridiculous if that's the law - it is so much safer to rear face for as long as possible - there are videos on youtube showing why (with child crash test dummies) - I will be rear facing my child for as long as possible in a very respectable foreign seat. Australia is well behind the times in terms of this policy and I refuse to endanger my child when it's not necessary to do so.

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its against the law to face your child backwards after 12 months of age in Australia, regardless of weight.

Its not just a fine from an officer you need to worry about its a charge for child endangerment which could see you go to gaol ... Just use a Seat that meets Australian standards.... your ds will be able to be in a rear facing one for a whole year yet....

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That is not true the only law is not to turn before 8kg or 6 months minimum, and most rear facing car seats have a max weight of 12kg. DS1 was only turned at 17 months as neede car seat for DS2 and DS2 still rear facing at 15 months.

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its against the law to face your child backwards after 12 months of age in Australia, regardless of weight.

Its not just a fine from an officer you need to worry about its a charge for child endangerment which could see you go to gaol ... Just use a Seat that meets Australian standards.... your ds will be able to be in a rear facing one for a whole year yet....

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That is not true the only law is not to turn before 8kg or 6 months minimum, and most rear facing car seats have a max weight of 12kg. DS1 was only turned at 17 months as neede car seat for DS2 and DS2 still rear facing at 15 months.

ok a friend was charged with having her two year old backwards. In court they showed "proof" of the law requiring you to turn them at 12kgs or 12 months which ever comes first. DS is only 12 kg now but has been turned since this incident happened with my friend... when ds was 14 months...

She was charged. She had the child in a minor accident and facing the wrong way ( backwards )

Im not going to argue about you tube videos :) they are clearly international and have nothing to do with Aus or the law...

this incident happened in nsw.... anyhow, do what you like but she no longer has custody of her child...