New Dad - Best Car Seat for the Wrangler?

[MDRubicon]

Come 2021 I’ll be a proud father of a future Jeeper... I recently purchased a 4-door JL and I’m looking for new-born (or convertible) car seat recommendations, factoring in the size of the backseat.

FYI: I’m 6’3 and it would be great if I don’t have to sit up close to the wheel, however it’s worth it if I get to drive my Jeep vs. a minivan (not that there’s anything wrong with a great mini van)... but let’s not make this a debate about the Jeep being a good family vehicle.

Please let me know what you use, lessons learned with your car seats in the JLU and overall recommendations.

Thanks!

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[emptyminded42]

Welcome and congrats!

Here's my situation: I am 5'10", ~190 lbs and mostly torso, so I sit pretty close to the wheel/pedals and my wife is 5'8"ish and she's been able to comfortably ride shotgun in front of the infant seat (Chicco) and the toddler seat (Britax) in all our vehicles, including the smaller Mazda3.

Context for car seats in general - you will need a infant seat that holds them from newborn to approx 1 year and a second seat from 1+. You generally flip the second type of seats from rear-facing to forward-facing sometime between 2-3 years old once they are too tall or too heavy to meet the rear-facing requirements. The longer you can keep them rear-facing, the safer.

Also, I find it much, much easier to put the car seat on the passenger side. It's easier to see them in the mirrors, easier to reach them if you need to give them something, and they will affect you passenger's seat position instead of yours.

On to specifics:
While my kid outgrew her infant seat before I got my JLU, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend ours - the Chicco KeyFit30. It's easy to get in and out of any vehicle, has outstanding safety ratings (or did at the time we bought it 2.5 years ago), and the bases are easy to install and not outrageously expensive to buy a spare so you have one in each of your vehicles. It has two pieces - the base that stays in the car 24/7 and the seat that is removable that you can load the baby into while you're still inside and carry out to the vehicle and set into the base. Very easy to click in and remove.

Once your kid is about a year old or so, you'll need to put in a rear-facing seat - you won't be able to load the kid into the seat and then set it on the base, unfortunately. So we bought a Britax Marathon which again had outstanding safety ratings at the time (1.5 years ago) and it's able to be used both rear-facing toddler and forward-facing toddler. It is very easy to mount in the car (you use the seatbelt, not the LATCH mounts) but it's HEAVY and bulky. I'd recommend not counting on moving it between cars regularly. Rear-facing does take up a lot of room. I'd say in the Jeep, the rear-facing Britax would make no difference in my seat position if it were behind me. However, add another half a foot and it probably would. All depends on how you're built and how you sit.

Babygearlab is a great website for reviewing all kinds of baby stuff - strollers, seats, etc. We found it invaluable.

You should also go check out brick-and-mortar stores to test fit different seats to make sure they will work for all your vehicles and drivers.

 

[Abend]

While my kid outgrew her infant seat before I got my JLU, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend ours - the Chicco KeyFit30.

I can't recommend that seat enough - it fits great. Before we bought her jeep, my wife had a craptastic Buick Verano (the expensive version of a Chevy Cruze) with virtually no back seat and it was literally the only infant seat we could get to fit in the rear-facing position. In the Jeep it had all kinds of room and left enough room for my two older boys to sit next to it.

On the other hand, I'll argue a bit with the Britax recommendation - I hate that thing. I got stuck with it in my Jeep and my wife has the Chicco NextFit even though she's the one who wanted to try a different seat for the second jeep. The Britax weighs approximately 1/4 ton and is a royal pain to get secured so it won't wobble around. Once you do, if you mount it using the LATCH system, you will find yourself tempted to just cut the straps out because you will bloody your fingers trying to remove the hooks. The Chicco works perfectly with the LATCH mounts in any of the 3 positions in the rear seat and has a fancy strap that basically works like a block and tackle to give you a significant mechanical advantage when tightening it. It's also a bit narrower than the Britax so it leaves more room for the other kids. If you ever want to move it between vehicles or take it out to haul adults in the back seat, it takes under two minutes and there isn't even the slightest temptation to swear.

Lastly... congrats on the new Jeeper!

 

[MDRubicon]

Awesome feedback - you’re the reason I appreciate this forum.

Thank you for taking the time to share such great info. It’s not easy navigating all of the info (and miss-info) out there, let alone trying to find meaningful data as it relates to JLU.

Thanks again & Happy Friday!

 

[JJSix]

First, Congrats!

So my situation, I've had my JLUR for just over a year now and I have a just turned 5 year old and a 2.5 year old and they love my Jeep (though they love mom's van because they can watch movies too but I digress). We have the same car seat for both kids and its the "Graco 4ever all-in-one convertible car seat" and I have zero regrets with this seat as both the wife and I have 2 in our vehicles.

About the car seat, it has some huge positives and a few flaws as well that I can tell you about.

First, best thing about it is that it's the only car seat you ever need, it is intended to be mounted all 4 major ways: rear-facing, front facing, high-backed booster and booster. You can change the angle that the seat works in the base so that's very horizontal when rear-facing but then moved to a more vertical position when sitting forward. Its very easy to make these adjustments, as well as raise or lower the head-rest and the buckle attachments for the 5-point harness. It can be mounted with either the seatbelt or the LATCH system as well so its easy to install (I prefer the LATCH). Comes with 2 cupholders and both my kids like them, even if they mostly end up putting a toy in there. Meets/Exceeds all safety standards and is rated for 10 years of use. Another really nice thing is that you can take all the fabric pieces off and wash them when they inevitably get disgusting. Lastly, they are relatively cheap for what you get at about $200+ as they can be the only seat you ever need to get as your kid gets older.

For the downsides, well they are rather heavy so whenever you do have to move them out for some reason, its a bit of a pain although not terribly difficult. Also, it is convenient to have the carrier with base for a newborn and these don't have that advantage.

While I do love these seats, we would stick with that type of option for about the first year and then move a seat like the Graco, much easier to keep them asleep when getting in and out of the Jeep.

Good luck!

 

[SecondTJ]

Safest place for the baby is in the middle of the back seat. With a KeyFit30 you can easily swing them in and latch it to the base in the middle. No worries about front leg room until #2 comes along

 

[Oncorhynchus]

Britax Marathon. Heavy, bulletproof, not easily relocatable, expensive, bulky. When the kids were little our daily drivers were a European sports sedan and a compact crew cab pickup truck. Tried to avoid taking babies around in the truck. The sedan had the latch system and the truck had the belt system. Therefore it was not such a big deal dealing with the Britax’s lack of portability since we made it a point of using the sedan as much as possible. When the Britax was locked in with the latch system it was really solid. When locked in with the belt system it had a little more play.

When they got bigger switched to Graco with the convertible booster seat with removable back. Lightweight, inexpensive, easy to secure with the shoulder belt.

 

[hannah]

Congratulations!

We’ve been using a Nuna Pipa Lite on the passenger side of my husband’s JLU. I’m 5’7” and I had super low expectations for the legroom. I thought my knees would be jammed up against the dash, but it’s not quite that bad. Very little extra space though. We plan to extended rear face, because it’s the safest option, so it’s just something I’ll have to deal with for a few more years.

I can tell you that the rigid latch on the base makes for the easiest installation ever in the Jeep. Literally takes 2 seconds.

 

[unsavory]

Safest place for the baby is in the middle of the back seat. With a KeyFit30 you can easily swing them in and latch it to the base in the middle. No worries about front leg room until #2 comes along

Totally agree! Put the little one in the middle. We loved the Keyfit 30.

 

[jvanloon]

I can't recommend that seat enough - it fits great. Before we bought her jeep, my wife had a craptastic Buick Verano (the expensive version of a Chevy Cruze) with virtually no back seat and it was literally the only infant seat we could get to fit in the rear-facing position. In the Jeep it had all kinds of room and left enough room for my two older boys to sit next to it.

On the other hand, I'll argue a bit with the Britax recommendation - I hate that thing. I got stuck with it in my Jeep and my wife has the Chicco NextFit even though she's the one who wanted to try a different seat for the second jeep. The Britax weighs approximately 1/4 ton and is a royal pain to get secured so it won't wobble around. Once you do, if you mount it using the LATCH system, you will find yourself tempted to just cut the straps out because you will bloody your fingers trying to remove the hooks. The Chicco works perfectly with the LATCH mounts in any of the 3 positions in the rear seat and has a fancy strap that basically works like a block and tackle to give you a significant mechanical advantage when tightening it. It's also a bit narrower than the Britax so it leaves more room for the other kids. If you ever want to move it between vehicles or take it out to haul adults in the back seat, it takes under two minutes and there isn't even the slightest temptation to swear.

Lastly... congrats on the new Jeeper!

I’ll second the Chicco Keyfit and NextFit. Our kids have moved on to the the full height boosters at 6 and 8 but we went through the progression of both those seats on a JK and then a JL. They were great seats and highly rated from a safety perspective.

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