Graco Extend2Fit Platinum Convertible Car Seat - Hurley

The baby loves the new car seat with its very well cushioned seat and headrest and the two cup holders for his snacks. It was very easy to install with the auto tightening latch connectors (compared to the not platinum ones) and all the guides on the car seat. The only two negatives I’ve noticed is the car seat can run warm where baby gets too hot/ sweaty and the easy latch can only go until 30 or 35 lbs before you have to install with seat belts which can be significantly harder compared to our other car seat (Britax one4life).

I never write lengthy reviews, but I felt this one was necessary. First of all, I’m a self-admitted car seat snob and typically only buy European seats because their crash test standards are higher than in the US. However, my research showed that this seat actually had some of the best crash test results out of several convertible seats. After reading hundreds of reviews, watching a dozen or more install videos, and making a list of pros and cons for several convertible seats, I had it narrowed down to three - this one, the Nuna Rava and the new Chicco Fit4. The reason this seat had an edge over the other two was the quick remove cover and the lower price. My first thought upon removing it from the box was how small it was. Not in a bad way, but it was sitting beside my Chicco Keyfit 30 and didn’t look much bigger. I was excited because, as a smaller framed female, I knew it’d be easy for me to carry to the car to install. I’ve had a Chicco Nextfit and that seat was big and awkward for me to carry. The self-ratcheting latch on this seat made it a dream to install. Probably my favorite install out of six different carseats we’ve had. I had a rock solid, tight install in about 30 seconds. The level indicator was easy to read and I was able to get my 7 month old at a proper recline (at a 2) without a rolled towel and without her head falling forward while sleeping. The padding on the seat could be better. The first time we used this seat was for an 8 hour drive. Although the padding didn’t seem as thick as I’d like, my daughter didn’t complain. I was excited about the fuss free harness strap holders, but they’re basically useless. The buckles come out of the pockets as I’m putting my daughter in every time. Something like the knobs that hold the harness out of the way on the Maxi Cosi convertibles would be better. The rapid remove cover is a great feature that ended up being the deciding factor for me. I haven’t removed it, but it seems easy enough and the fact that it can be done without uninstalling the seat is great. Now for the major con. The harness tightened great until I actually put my daughter in the seat, installed in the car. I couldn’t pull it hard enough to tighten it much at all. But!! YouTube to the rescue. There’s actually a video that shows how to get around this massive design flaw. Reach behind the seat and pull the slack out of the straps. It’ll pull it tight at the shoulders and then you can pull the tightening strap to tighten it as smooth as butter. It’s not hard and doesn’t add any time really. I just buckle her in, use my left hand to pull the slack while pulling the strap with my right hand. That fix seemed much easier to me than boxing the seat back up and paying the shipping to send it back. All in all, I was impressed with this seat. I still may splurge on the Rava for our second seat, but once I got the harness issue figured out, I was surprised at how much I like this seat and how easy it is to use correctly and safely.

Rated safest seat and albee sells it a great price. Shipped fast and was delivered in excellent condition. The seat fits nicely in our Toyota Corolla and VW Golf. We even managed to squeeze it in my sister's ultra compact two door Pegot, behind the driver's seat!