Does anyone have car seat recommendations for a VW Jetta. I'm due in August and I'm not sure of which one to get. I'm probably going to try to get pregnant again in two years, so I'd like to be able to fit two car seats in the car. Thanks! |
Not sure how tall you are but I had a graco snugride and now a britax boulevard. I kept infant carseat behind passenger seat - unless a one way, will always be curbside. I could have both back there but would likely swap sides with 2nd but im tall. We have two cars - vw is mibe. |
OP, fitting two seats won't be a problem for you, it's whether or not you can fit an additional adult in the back row if you need to. We don't know if you're going to start with an infant seat that clicks into a base installed in your car (many people do this for the first 6-12 mo, but not everyone does it), or skip straight to a regular rear-facing infant/toddler seat, so it's hard to advise you. For infant seats, I think they're all about the same width. Once you get to the infant/toddler seat stage, you'll find a range of widths. Diono makes narrow seats, as do some other companies (they tend to be more expensive). |
I have a a Jetta with the Britax B Safe and Marathon. I have to be honest, if you are even slightly tall, you will feel smushed in the front seat. |
we had a 99 Jetta and a Chico Keyfit 30 in the middle. It was fine. Then we got a Britax Marathon Convertible - also in the middle.
only have one kid |
Orbit has been great in my Jetta. I want to trade in for a Grand Cherokee but just cannot justify parking a new car on the street. |
Our car is slightly smaller than the older Jettas (and much smaller than current model, I think). We had a Cybex Aton for an infant seat, because it is the smallest front-to-back seat out there and also very narrow, so allowed us to move the front seats almost all the way back when it was installed in the center and fit two adults next to it. It also fits next to our Britax Marathon, leaving one passenger seat open for an adult (but I would not call it a comfortable ride). The Britax seats are all pretty good for small cars because the shells are somewhat shorter (but that also means they are outgrown by big babies earlier). The Chicco NextFit is also supposed to be good for smaller cars and will last longer, but not sure how narrow it is. Diono Radian (soon to be replaced by similar Diono Olympia/Rainier/Pacifica) is narrow and long-lasting but you will likely need the angle adjuster add-on to fit it in the Jetta (it does not fit in our car front-to-back without it, and barely fits with it because it is a very tall seat). For another infant seat option, the Chicco Keyfit is also relatively compact--a couple of inches deeper than the Aton if you don't need to move front seats all the way back.
If you don't care about getting an adult in the back once you have two car seats, it's much easier; then you just have to make sure whatever you get will allow you to put the front seat back far enough to drive/ride (because even if you put it in the center now, you may have it in a side seat once you have two car seats in there--so test it both ways). If you want an infant seat for sure, I would start by picking a small/compact seat for that, and then when you get to the convertible seat stage (sometimes not till 9 months to a year) see what's out there at that point. We loved having a small seat just for the ease of carrying it around, too. Moved to a convertible at around 9 months. |
I was asking about both the infant car seat and the convertible seat. Sorry for not being clear. Thanks everyone for your responses. They were immensely helpful. |
I was asking about both the infant car seat and the convertible seat. Sorry for not being clear. Thanks everyone for your responses. They were immensely helpful. |