never shop baby seat before, thought this could be useful to some people :)
Mother's Choice Wonder Convertible Car Seat $149 (Save $150) at Target
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webtherapist on 30/01/2014 - 09:59 target.com.au (1033 clicks)
Last edited 30/01/2014 - 10:35 by 1 other user
Last edited 30/01/2014 - 10:35 by 1 other user
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note that Mother’s Choice car seats do not have a CREP rating and have previously been recalled :(
http://www.crep.com.au/crep-results.php
http://www.productsafety.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/9…
http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/1030449There have been recalls on Nissans at times too - doesn't mean you should never buy a Nissan.
Not all seats have been tested for crep, and some of the more expensive models rate poorly.
All I am saying is, don't reject considering this seat on the above points alone.
If you want value in a seat though, you need to be looking for the highest height markers you can get/afford. Whether this is amongst them, I don't know, because I haven't looked.
We bought Mothers Choice for now 3 year old when he was a baby - supposedly a birth to 4 years seat. He was too tall for it by the time he was 13 months old, but it was not one with an adjustable head rest, which they seem to have now. His cousin is in a newer one, will be 2 in May and still has plenty of room in it.
There have been recalls on Nissans at times too - doesn't mean you should never buy a Nissan.
I love dodgey car analogies. Were the recalls on the actual fundamental function of the car? A carseats job is to protect your child in a crash. It doesn't serve any other purpose, so a recall on something like this cannot be compared to a car.
No, but the point I was making is that ANYTHING can be subject to a safety recall at one time or another. It doesn't mean that the entire brand's products are inherently unsafe. On checking the link for the recall posted above, it wasn't a problem with the actual seat itself that was subject to the recall, so much as the anchor point that was provided with it, and which was also sold with numerous other brands of seats and harnesses.
It should be borne in mind that all seats sold in Australia must meet stringent safety standards.
Not all seats have been tested for crep
who decides which are tested?
i have a model that was included in the recall. The recall was for the anchor points which are not made by mothers choice and provided for people whos cars dont have the anchor points attached (most cars do). This recall extended to a huge number of brands, as they all have the same anchor
Here are just my 2cents for new child seat buyers. For those who are willing to spend $300+ on car seat, i suggest importing brands like Britax from USA. Not only it has the same tethering option as isofix ones(called LATCH in USA) but it has far more superior build quality. LATCH and isofix systems are the safest( or idiot prove I should say in terms of installation of the car seat), compared to the normal seat belt harness mechanism that is currently in Australian market. I have read lots of horrific accidents reports due to wrong installation of the child seat because parents are not educated enough on how to correctly install their child seat using the seat belt system. I have compared my friends Britax/safe and sound Meridian($550+ top of the range that time) that he bought locally against my Britax Advocate that I bought from USA(Macys.com). The most notable difference is in the weight that the US has than the Aus ones because of the steel exo-skeleton structure that is has while the local britax are plastic mould only and feels very cheap and flimsy. Also it has far more new technology put in to make the seat as safe as possible. Lastly, it’s made in the USA (if it means anything to you) while the local ones are PRC made just like most of the car seat that is available on the market. Some of you might say, ISOFIX is coming to Australia. I would concur to that, however, ever since the Australian government has legalized ISOFIX last year, I haven’t seen one in the market for sale. Britax Australia said that they are still in research to adhere to Australian standards etc, I say that is just bull#$%@. Britax Europe and Volkswagen invented this system in 1997 (that shows how far back we are in terms of child seat safety) so there’s no excuse for them to delay production for Australian market.
Now we move on to the cons of importing a child seat. The bad thing about importing a child seat from overseas is that you cannot sell it locally as it does not comply with ADR which makes selling of the seat illegal here. Also, any warranty issues need to be dealt with overseas supplier. Lastly, you need to make sure that your car has isofix connection or else you are stuck with the seat belt tethering option.
Therefore in conclusion, for those who desperately needs one right now(if you can accept the cons as mentioned above), importing is the way to go but if you have time on your hand, you can wait it out until they decide to sell it here and the price won’t be cheap locally though as all Ozbargainers know how expensive we pay for everything here compared to the world .The reason you haven't seen Isofix seats in the market yet is because manufacturers were waiting for the new standard to be released before they began producing seats that have to comply with it. We'll probably see ISOFIX here in the next year or so, but they won't be cheap.
Seats manufactured for the overseas market have not been tested for side impact, which is compulsory for seats sold in Australia. We have the most stringent testing standards in the world when it comes to child safety restraints.
EDIT: As an afternote, if you do opt to import a seat, be sure that it has a top tether as well as ISOFIX, as it is compulsory, even with ISOFIX or Latch
The top tether is by default for every child seat regardless ISOFIX or not. That’s what put the seat in place, if not the seat would wobble or even roll in every direction if an accident occur.
That's correct. My understanding is that it's not necessarily a requirement with some overseas seats that have isofix, though?
I went in to check couple of stores in Brisbane yesterday and they seem to have sold out already! seems to be still available on-line
This products is good but I would like to purchase convertible car seats from Babylove which is also suitable for newborn as well as I can use it until my baby will be of 4 years. You can adjust this car seat depending on your requirements and suitability.
http://www.baby-direct.com.au/baby-car-seats-and-car-safety.…
http://www.baby-direct.com.au/baby-cots-baby-furniture.html
http://www.baby-direct.com.au
Have had one of these for a few years. Reasonable seat.