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Hi, I have a very tall and heavy toddler, over the 18kg mark and not yet 2.5 years.  I've got restraints in two vehicles, and after reading the Britax Bulletin on heavy toddlers, I intend to keep him harnessed until he's 20kg.  He's in a Meridian AHR (and Maxi-Rider 2 in my work car). At 20kg I'll use a Protecta harness. 

His shoulders are a bit above the highest slot height in the Meridian, and about a cm lower than the highest in the Maxi II.

Obviously I'll need to replace the AHR shortly as he's too tall, but want the highest slot height for the replacement.  Can you advise, of the convertibles that you mention in your explanation around extended harnessing, which has the highest shoulder slots? 

Also, any word when/if the Maxi III AHR will hit NZ, and if it will have the same or more slot height than the Maxi II?

Thanks

Hi Delgirrrl

Well, your options are certainly limited for sure. The Maxi Rider II has probably one of the highest slots for harnessed seats, on the market.

To be honest, past 20kg I'm not sure there is much I can suggest. All that really comes to mind, is turning him rear-facing in a seat such as the Brio Zento which does rear-face till 25kg, so that would give you about 5kg, but there's no knowing how long it will take him to gain that 5kg. The bonus for that would mean you don't have to particularly worry about where the slots are in relation to the shoulders. However, being that he is obviously quite tall, his eyes might be at or above the top back of the seat, it's doubtful really, but it's something worth checking out if it is within your budget.

As for the Maxi III AHR, I have no idea when it will "hit" NZ, or even if it will, that's something you would need to contact Britax Childcare Ltd about. In any case, the weight limit would still be 18kg for the inbuilt harness.

Thanks Bonnie - I'm looking at the Brio Zento for my 5 month old  :) 

The other thing I'm considering out of desperation is importing a Britax Frontier from the US.  I realise it may not be legal, as I don't think they meet NZ standards, but other than that, what are your thoughts on this?

Of course I'm not asking you to recommend anything illegal, just to comment on the safety of such a seat.  I mean, are the US standards such that this would be a bad idea, safety-wise?

I can't really comment on the legalities, as you know yourself it is technically illegal. And I can't really comment on the safety of the seat - as it's an unknown really without access to crash test documentation and so forth. However, my biggest concern would be going to the trouble of getting such a seat, and not knowing how to install it properly. Considering easily 70 - 80% of car seats have at least one installation error, misinstallation is an easy thing to do. Though, if you did live in Auckland I would be more then happy to help in that regard :)

Thanks Bonnie - I'm not in Auckland, I'm in Palmerston North, but if I do get a frontier I'll find a tech to check the install - hopefully they'll assist despite the legal status of the seat...

But your figure there about incorrect installation caught my eye - I'll be going to get my existing installs checked next week!

Thanks for providing such a helpful service :)

You're welcome!

A bit on the tech bit though.. do keep in mind that it will be difficult for the fact that a) most likely the technician would not have experience with your seat and b) quite a few do lack the expertise and skills sometimes needed to install seats. But of course, I'm always an email away!

Good luck!