We got two Chicco nextfits because we loved our infant Chicco seats, but I HATE the convertible Nextfit. It is impossible to get the straps to tighten enough.
What car seat have you found to be fairly easy to tighten in the rear facing position?
ETA: I'm specifically referring to easy to tighten when buckling in your LO, rather than during installation.
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21616 posts
I don't have a ton of experience with other carseats, but we have the recaro and use the latch system and it's SO easy. I hate installing carseats period, but the actual tightening is easy peasy.
cantaloupe / 6885 posts
I find our foonf tightens really well, maybe even better than our keyfit
GOLD / pomegranate / 3688 posts
We have a Britax Pavilion and we got it specifically because it has a clicking mechanism that tells you when the straps are tight.
clementine / 828 posts
I don't have experience with other car seats but I find that the diono tightens easily. You just need to pull a strap at the front in between LO's legs.
pomegranate / 3980 posts
We have the evenflo tribute sport and it is super easy to tighten the straps, I love it!
pomelo / 5258 posts
@Mrs. Blue: I hate tightening our NextFit so I don't. I unbuckle LO and wiggle her out rather than loosening the straps. DH thinks I'm ridiculous so he always loosens. I get so mad when I put LO in the car after her takes her out.
Having described my method I should say that I always check the tightness after strapping LO in.
papaya / 10473 posts
Do you have the version of the strap covers that has Velcro? Chicco had us cut our original strap covers off, and they sent us Velcro ones, which made the straps a thousand times easier to tighten! They know that it's an issue. You could give it a try!
blogger / pomelo / 5361 posts
@Corduroy: Seriously! My husband has been insisting that it's getting "easier," but I think that's crap. Hate. It does seem super well built and safe, which makes me even more irritated that it's so hard to operate.
blogger / pomelo / 5361 posts
@grizz: No, ours don't velcro. I called and they said that I could order velcro ones. I know I'm being petty, but after I paid that much for two car seats, I kinda feel like they should just send me the velcro ones if they know it's an issue, ya know? We just bought them, so I can still take them back if i want to just get something else. So, after switching the shoulder straps, you don't have any problems tightening it anymore?
papaya / 10473 posts
@Mrs. Blue: No issues at all! I'd push for them to send you the velcro covers for sure, but if they won't it's great that you can still return the seats! There's NO way I'd still be dealing with ours if they hadnt replaced the strap covers.
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
@Mrs. Blue: they didn't charge us for replacement ones.
wonderful cherry / 21504 posts
@Mrs. Blue: This is one of the seats we are looking at, but I don't want to fight it every time!
@grizz: @Smurfette: So they are still selling them with the terrible strap covers? Ugh.
papaya / 10473 posts
@Foodnerd81: No, I think they changed them permanently! The second one we got has the new strap covers. We love them both now that we changed them!
wonderful cherry / 21504 posts
@grizz: Oh great-- thanks! This is one of my top 3 choices, probably (pending how they fit in our car).
honeydew / 7687 posts
@Mrs. Blue: Britax britax britax! So easy compared to others I've messed with, all of the convertibles (we specifically have the boulevard)
grapefruit / 4085 posts
We have a Graco My Ride 65 and a Britax Marathon. They're both good, but I find the Graco to be super easy to tighten.
hostess / watermelon / 14932 posts
I love the graco myride 65. i pull the straps from behind her to get a good fit and then pull the strap.
blogger / pomelo / 5361 posts
@grizz: @Foodnerd81: definitely check because we bought ours a week ago at Target and neither one had Velcro straps.
grapefruit / 4056 posts
I find my diono radian super simple to tighten (and I stall for that matter)
blogger / grapefruit / 4836 posts
I have the next fit and have the same problem. I have tk pull so hard it visibly lifts the car. Insane. It is worse in the cold. We removed the plastic piece around the release button (it actually came off accidentally but we left it off) and it is a lot better but still kinda tough. Such a bummer. We love the seat otherwise. We got ours in November.
kiwi / 635 posts
Nextfits manufacutred in October 2013 or later will have the removeable velcro shoulder straps. We have one from Oct and one from Sept and got lucky that the Sept one had the new strap design.
coconut / 8475 posts
I love our peg perego but to be honest, my MIL's britax marathon is frikkn amazing at install. You don't have to tighten it. It is very user friendly.
honeydew / 7504 posts
In my car I have the Foonf, which is super easy to tighten. Hubs's car has a Graco MyRide65, and it is a pain in the ass to tighten - I hate using his car because of it.
blogger / pomelo / 5400 posts
The Britax Marathon has straps that are easy to tighten. I don't think install is as easy as the Nextfit.
We also have the Diono Radian RXT. That's definitely not as easy.
cantaloupe / 6059 posts
Another vote for Britax Marathon. I've never had a problem with tightening the straps while putting in DS.
papaya / 10560 posts
Britax marathon! I got it because you don't have to re thread the straps and the bottom buckle is super easy to adjust.
GOLD / squash / 13464 posts
I will say it does get easier as your LO gets bigger and the seat wears in. This was a struggle for is when we first got the nextfit but now it's really not an issue anymore.
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22646 posts
we have the britax pavilion and the advocate, super easy on adjusting once they're in and buckled 
grapefruit / 4663 posts
We love our graco my size 70 (there's like 4 names for the same seat). It's sooo easy to adjust. it's just a pull of the strap below to tighten. I bought another for my DH and mil's car after getting mine
clementine / 824 posts
We have a Peg Perego and a NextFit. We love the Peg. Hate the NextFit!
The NextFit is such a pain to tighten. And we can't adjust the angle to be more upright because then you can't pull the strap at all. She is still RF and the strap isn't accessible in a more upright setting.
persimmon / 1153 posts
New strap covers definitely help with the Nextfit. I would call again and tell them you will go return them if they don't send new covers for you. It's very easy to over tighten in the Nextfit, IMO. I usually tighten first, do the pinch test and move the chest clip into position. It took a few weeks to get used to it but it's way easier now. Seats made after October, I think, come with new straps covers and longer crotch straps.
pomegranate / 3160 posts
@shopaholic: Ugh, ours is so tough. It's also a pain to loosen
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