I LOVE this carseat

I was searching for the perfect booster seat for my 3 1/2 year old son when I came across the Recaro Vivo Booster Seat. I looked at their website and all of the safety features and compared it to other top of the line seats like Britax. My son was transistioning from the Britax Marathon so safety is very important to me. When I saw all of the safety features I decided to go with the Recaro Vivo over the Britax Parkway or the Monarch. I liked the deep head and body wings that cradeled my son and the side impact protection that they offered. Even though I have a car with side impact airbags in the front and rear you can never be too safe when it comes to your child. The seat is very stable and fits perfectly in any seat in the rear of the vehicle. The seat offers three reclining posistions so that you can get the most accurate fit in your car. It also is adjustable and fits children through the age of ten. The bottom also detaches for when the child outgrows the back support and they can be in the base for even longer. I am extremely happy with this purchase and my son loves his big boy car seat.More detail ...

Great seat with some drawbacks

We've tried our Signo G2 rear-facing in the center position in a Civic (compact) Prius (midsize) Frontier (4-door truck) and Murano (crossover SUV). Our 15 month old is 31" tall and 22 lbs; a bit smaller than "average."

CONS:

*He has no leg room in the rear-facing position in all of these vehicles; knees are always bent too much.

*Due to the huge base the seat sits very high so it's hard to get him in and out without hitting his head in the Prius. Couldn't even get him into the seat in a Civic.

*Belts get twisted (for my wife) and are hard to smooth out while trying to get him strapped in. After removing the child straighten the belts and use the convenient belt-clip pockets.

*Need to place a rolled up towel under the base (per the manual) in an attempt to get more leg room or create a safe angle.

*Hard to get more slack in the Latch belts when moving the seat from car to car.

PROS:

*Latch straps are permanently attached to bars on each side of the seat. You can't appreciate how convenient this is until you get frustrated with the stupid design on the Sunshine Kids Radian 65SL. But that's another review.

*Shoulder strap height is adjusted by turning knobs on the back of the seat. Also 100 times better than the Sunshine Kids' complicated system.

*I've read that it's the safest seat out there (German design?).

*Very plush and appears to be very comfortable. Much more padding and head protection than the Sunshine Kids.

*So snug it feels like part of the vehicle. (Sunshine Kids has a little too much play).

*Easier to choose this model than going through the 20 or so Britax options. With Britax every seat is missing something you need until you get to the most expensive model. The Signo G2 seems to have everything that the most expensive Britax has. No "pick your options" games with Recaro.

*The huge base does keep all the belts neat and tidy (Sunshine Kids has belts hanging all over the place). This larger base also allows him to see out the windows.

ONE MORE PRO: If you don't think customer service has a place in a product review skip this last one:

*Recaro's customer service is Excellent! I found a toll free # (not the one in their manual). There was no menu to navigate through and the call was answered within 2 or 3 rings. We purchased the original Signo there was a slight problem they again answered the phone promptly and sent a new G2 immediately. Alternately I emailed Sunshine Kids a relatively simple question; they never responded.



**Update 1/20/10: I've increased my rating from 3 to 4 stars after seeing many other cheap plastic seats that seem to weigh about 5 lbs. The Recaro is heavy sturdy and secure. Switching to forward-facing solved the "no legroom dilemma" but it's still hard to get him in and out in any vehicle since it sits so high. The belt system is awesome compared to the mangled web of belts on the Sunshine Kids all of which are difficult to adjust.More detail ...

Very safe high quality pricey car seat

First of all after a thorough searching you realize that the most important features should be considered in your decision are:

1) Baby's Safety: 5-point harness side head supports side body supports

2) Baby's Comfort: body and head room cushion material seating position neck pads easy locking/unlocking of belts

3) easy of installation: LATCH system good guidebook

4) Adjustability: Height harness level tightening of belts

5) Convertibility: car seat <-> booster seat

6) Material quality: Cloths plastics belts cushions locks

7) Price



I bought this car seat a month ago so bear in mind that my experience with the longterm outcomes is limited. I have a 2 1/2 year old kid who is in the upper limit of a normal weight and height range for her age. I bought this car seat online and picked it up from fedex. It took me 5 minute to install it in my car which was easy and fun with LATCH system. Its head side supports are the most important feature of this seat and they really serve their purpose. When my kid wear her jacket and hat room for her head becomes a bit tight but it is still comfortable and actually it is helpful when she falls asleep. 5-point harness is a great feature and I highly recommend to buy a seat with harness if your kid is under 4 years old. I will try to use the harness as long as I can. I have not used this seat as a booster yet but it seam it will be ok because the slots for car seat belts are well positioned. Its head support and harness level can be adjusted and easily but you have to do it before installing the seat because the releasing button is in the behind and unreachable when seat is tightly pressed to rear seats. you can tighten belts in the front and it is quick and easy. The quality of material is good and I really like the texture of the cloths. this product is one of the priciest car seats in the market. The average price for a descent car seat with most of the above features is around 120- 170 but if you consider buying a safe car seat with high quality I think it worths to spend more. Overall I am very happy for choosing this car seat and I give these scores (out of 5):

1) Baby's Safety: 5

2) Baby's Comfort: 4 ( a bit tight head room)

3) easy of installation: 5

4) Adjustability: 5

5) Convertibility: 5

6) Material quality: 5

7) price:3 (pricey)



Follow-up:



It's been 1 year since I wrote my review and my experience is still a good one. Off course after one year of covering the seat with all kinds of food and snacks it is time to wash the clothes but so far the seat has been great. So far no wear and tear and locks are still working good. Overall I would say I am happy with my purchase but it is still a one year experience and considering how much I've paid for it I am planning to use it much longer and I will keep you updated!More detail ...