http://www.infobarrel.com/How_to_Choose_the_Best_Child_Safety_Car_Seat
published April 15, 2009
How to Choose the Best Child Safety Car Seat
by lordkhomar
Using a child safety car seat is not only a good idea, it's the law. A good child safety car seat is, of course, safe, but it should also be light weight and easy to use. Choosing the best child safety car seat can be confusing since there are so many styles out there. Let's go through some of the important things to look for when you want to buy the best child safety car seat.
Make sure the child safety car seat supports the LATCH system
Many US cars and trucks today have the LATCH system. This system is an easy to use and secure way to attach a child safety car seat.
Check your owners manual, and, if your vehicle has this system make sure the child safety car seat that you get can use this system.
A child safety car seat should protect your baby
Make sure the child safety car seat has side impact protection built in, many do not. This is no place to skimp on protecting your child. One of the best in this respect is the Britax car seat.
Check the harness that the child safety car seat has
The safest harness out there is the 5 point harness. Choose your child safety car seat carefully, although the 5 point harness is the industry standard now there are still some older models out there using the outdated 4 point harness.
Some convenience features available in today's child safety car seat units
Here are some other things to look for, although not safety related, they can make using the child safety car seat much easier and convenient.
- One handed reclining feature: Some of the best child safety car seat units have one handed reclining feature that makes it much easier to properly position the seat. You'll like this when your hands are full.
- Level indicator: This is another feature that makes it easier to properly position the child safety car seat
- Removable cover: Having a removable cover makes it much easier to keep the child safety car seat clean
- Front adjusting harness: Again, a convenience feature that makes the seat easier to adjust
- Convertible: Some child safety car seats can go from rear facing (infants) to forward facing (toddlers), with this feature you'll get much more use out of the seat
How much does a good child safety car seat cost?
That really depends on the features as well if it's on sale or not. I suggest reading baby car seat reviews on such sites as Consumer Search and Consumer Reports. These sites feature unbiased baby car seat reviews by users just like yourself and often times have the lowest prices listed right in the review. You will, of course, find many useful links right here on this page too.
Here's an example of an amazingly good child safety car seat that does everything right, it's available on Amazon.