Maxi Rider or Maxi Rider AHR

Hi, I have now made up my mind to get the Maxi Rider. What a splurge. But, I'm not 100% sure whether to get the AHR version or not. Ok, it's supposed to be a little safer. Not sure how much of a difference it really would make. But I am leaning a little to the AHR.

My main concern atm is that in DD's current car seat, when she falls asleep, she slumps forward. I want one where she can sleep comfortably as she sleeps most of the time when in the car.
With the AHR, I'm not sure whether it would actually help her keep her head up properly because of the side protection, Or whether it would push it forward a little because of the added bulk behind the head. Also, does it get quite hot in it with all that extra padding around her head? DD is a very hot child, and especially her head sweats a lot.

Althouh it really doesn't count but apart from being cheaper, I actually like the designs of the plain MR better than the AHR version.

If you have one, can you please let me know how well you think your child sleeps in it? I just don't want to spend this amount of money just to regret it again. If I should decide to buy the AHR but then later on find that the head support hinders her rather than supports, is it removable?

Thanks for your input.

Saša

its the AHR for me !! my DS has one and so does my DD , when DD grows out of her capsule she will sit in it , i bought 2 at the same time so i got a discount , pram warehouse has them for cheaper than most ! i paid under $400 for mine ..its safer and a bit of luxury for your little one .. its their saftey on the line ... the sales lady said save money or save lives ??? i didnt need to think about wich one i wanted :lol: a good selling line that one :)

hey
I have the ahr in the maxi rider and the meridian in our cars and my daughter seems to snggle into the head rest to go to sleep

We're going to get the AHR for Oskar and the bub will have the Meridian we have now once it's out of the capsule. AHR is there for their safety and IMO worth the extra for that.

AHR

We got our for our DD when she was 6 months.. she loved it.. and still does and she turns 4 in a few weeks.

Never really had an issue with head slumping.... only occasionally when she was in a deep deep sleep but yeah.

I cant brag about them enough. they are worth EVERY CENT!

We paid $319 for ours, but that was 3.5 years ago....

I wasn't really all that worried about the cost, as I reckon it's worth the extra money seeing that it will last for about 5 years. I was just wonering whether the head restraint makes it more or less comfortable. But you guys have pretty much convinced me. It's so hard to decide when you haven't actually taken your child for a drive in one. So it's always good to hear from people who have seen them in action.
Charmalea, thanks for the tip with pram warehouse. The Loganholme one isn't too far away from me, so I'll be saving about $60! I will need another one down the track, but I won't get 2 at the same time, even if there is a discount. It would have to be huge, since bub #2 won't need the seat for at least another year.
Thanks everyone!
Saša

Arrrgh, to further complicate things, I have ad another thought:
I might get a normal car seat for DD to use now (like a Meridian). I think they recline more than the Maxi Rider. Is that true? Then, when bub #2 has to get out of the capsule, s/he can go into this new car seat and I can buy a Maxi Rider for DD. Or is that really silly? Should I jsut get a Maxi Rider now, and when bub #2 is too big for the capsule, I can get a second Maxi Rider...

Have you looked at the Infa Vario Max? It is much like the maxi rider but safer. It was the highest rating booster seat and we use ours with a H harness for the boys.
Add to that it's a lot cheaper for a better seat. I paid $120 each, then $30 for the harness.

i would just go the two maxi-riders. ds has got the AHR one and he loves it. falls asleep in in much better than he did the meridian. he snuggles his head into the side. it looks heaps comfyer

The Vario Max is a standard booster, only suitable form 14kg. DD is only 20 months old and weighs around about 11-12kg. So she's too little to go into the Vario Max. But thanks for the suggestion.
Sasa

What is AHR? :redface:

We got the regular Maxi Rider for Zander at around eight months & still love it three years later. We've never had Zander slump forward in his as it reclines a little bit, he just rests his head on the wings.

AHR is Active Head Restraint. It is an adjustable head rest that gives additional side impact protection. (Fancy Word for mor cushioning on the side of the head - lol)

Aah ok, so it's the same as the normal Maxi Rider but with extra cushioning on the wings. Good idea!

I had the meridian ahr for DS as a baby and then purchased the maxi rider when he was ready for a booster seat. Personaly for my son the ahr or not he still slept/sleeps quite comfortably in both. I do notice though that he looks so small in such a big seat (he's 2 yrs) i think the ahr may have made a difference to that but i'm still happy with my decision. I don't think the ahr would push your daughters head forward in any way, IMO either way you are making a good decision, they are both good seats.

i would wait till baby is too big for the capsule then move them straight into the maxi rider . DS was getting too tall for the normal ones (eg , up to 18kgs) so we moved him in to a rider when he was about 13kgs ... just afterDD was born ..

DD was tiny when born so in one day i bought a capsule and 2 maxi riders!! they love me at PW!!
and the other seats are in my mums car .

Just a quick update, I did buy the Maxi Rider AHR. I do like the seat. But unfortunately, if she falls asleep, she still slumps forward. I guess she would do that in any of the convertible forward to booster seats. The Meridian reverse to forward convertible) has a much steeper recline and would probably have been the better choice, but wouldn't last her for nearly as long as the MR.

Sasa

i think the AHR has a recline :think: not a huge recline

Yeah, it does and i've set it up with the recline. but it's just not enough :-( It does actually look like the recline should be enough, but her head still slumps forward. Maybe it's just her...
But at least it's not her whole upper body annymore.

I wouldn't buy either... I would google "safety 1st prospect 2 in 1"

6 year warranty - ssafer seat - it is the only one which passed the crash tests well over the Australian Standards with 60Kgs of weight - the standards only need to pass with 36Kg of weight!

It is also the only one with Memory foam for better side impact protection and about 100 bucks cheaper.

Thanks for the tip, Frank. Unfortunately, it's too late, I've already bought the MR AHR. But I might investigate for next time.
Sasa