Looks like I will be doing three across in my Outback later this year: 1 FF, 1 RF, and one bucket, which means new car seats! My oldest will be 4 at the time... should I get a harnessed booster when it is time or replace her bulky convertible with something slimmer? I don't really know if there is a difference at that point in usage. She'll be in the middle and responsible for climbing in and out herself (will still get help buckling the harness).
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Definitely a harnessed booster. They have lower sides usually, which will make climbing in easier, and when she is ready for a high back booster you already have it. No sense in paying for the rear facing function if you will never use it. Just research narrow harness to booster seats. We have a britax frontier, which I like a lot, but it’s still pretty wide.
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Harnessed booster. So much easier to get climb in and out, my 4 year old has been in one since about 3 I think. We have the Graco Nautilus and it's been perfect.
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I would get a combination seat (also called a harness to booster). It makes more sense to get a seat that will be utilized in all modes. You will definitely need narrow seats for all three to make them fit though.
For narrow combination seats I would look at: harmony defender, graco tranzitions/ways, and the chicco myfit.
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@Foodnerd81: Okay, being able to RF or not I thought was the only difference, but then I read somewhere they don't have as much side protection with a harnessed booster (which I don't know how much it matters in the middle...)
@graceandjoy: @catgirl: Thanks for the recommendations!
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@Ms. RV: also while the graco nautilus is a great seat it will be way too wide to do three across in an outback, just as an FYI.
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harnessed booster. Look at the chicco my fit, grace waze/tranzitions, Both are pretty narrow. I wouldn't worry too much about side protection, their noggins are pretty well padded in a harnessed booster and if your LO is in the middle, he or she will be cocooned by the seats next to her.
I recall reading somewhere that the outback has a hump in the middle seat? Just make sure all can be tight independently; i don't think graco allows seats to touch each other.
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Harnessed booster (combination seat) 100%. You might need new seats depending what your other seats are.
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@catgirl: My MIL has it 3 across with 2 Diono seats (1 RF, 1 FF). I wouldn’t recommend it because even though it fits it is tight. I’d consider a harnesses booster seat the 4 y/o may eventually be able to buckle on her own (the Graco makes all of the seats too close together for this to be possible).
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@Littlebit7: @Ms. RV: graco seats can touch but they can't overlap each other. Though if they are touching they do need to be independently secure. The middle seat hump in the outback can make seat installation challenging but certainly not impossible.
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@Becky: I didn't mention Diono seats at all? (Definitely wouldn't be a good choice for a forward facer and not really the most helpful even for the rear facer).
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@catgirl: I feel like Diono's are too tall for RF. I think I am going with a Graco Slim Fit for the RF.
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We do three across with 2 clek flloos and a peg perego high backed booster. My 4 and 5 year olds are in the cleks and they are a great narrow option while still being super safe and providing excellent support if the kids fall asleep. They are pricey but I thought it was worth it to keep my kids in a convertible a little longer.
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@JCCovi: How easy is it to climb into the Flloos?
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@Ms. RV: They have no problem climbing in and getting their straps on. My 5 year old can buckle herself but my 4 year old can’t yet. That might just be him though, because I transported another kid his age and he had no problem buckling himself up.
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@catgirl: Sorry, I was referring to the Graco!
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