I had to review this car seat because I know what it's like wondering how a car seat would hold up and protect your child if you ever were in an accident.I found out how great this car seat is the other day when I was involved in an accident.
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br /I bought the Marathon when my daughter was 6 months old and used it rear facing. The seat was SUPER easy to install and always very secure. wouldn't budge at all once it was buckled in.(I only used the shoulder/lap belt as I can't use latch in my car). I turned the seat forward facing a month or two after my daughter turned 1. She is a very large girl, always has been, and while I wanted to keep it rear facing there was just not any room for her legs anymore.Apprehensively, I turned the seat forward facing and again it was very very sturdy. Now I must re-emphasize just how easy this seat is to install.All you have to do is put it in the seat, I put my knee in the seat and kind of "stand" on my knee, run the seat belt through the back. Then there are some little things that you turn down on the side of the seat. I can't really figure out how to describe them, but that is what you use to hold the belt in place. None of those ridiculously hard to use metal clips that take 30 minutes to get on the belt. This is so easy to install. I could move it from one car to another in about 5 minutes, and definately be sure it was installed properly and securely.(I did take it to the fire station before and they checked it and said it was installed perfectly) So if you need a seat that you can move around with ease from one vehicle to another this is the one.
br /Now for the safety of this seat. I eventually bought the Britax Regent because the part of the buckle that goes between the legs on this seat with pinching my daughter legs, who is almost 3 now by the way. So I bought the Britax Regent(another review, but not as sturdy and definately not as easy to install!) I then moved the Marathon into my mom's car because we do ride with her quite a bit. I figured since she wouldnt be riding in that seat as much as she rides in my car she could tolerate the snug buckle between the legs.
br /So, we were driving the other day when out of nowhere this clueless woman slams very hard into the back of us. Now we were in a lane, about to turn left onto another road, she hit us hard enough to knock us into that other road, full of traffic. The officer seemed to think she was probably going 30-40, maybe more. My mom and I were instantly having neck and back pain. I kept asking my daughter if she was hurting anywhere, she said "wee, that was fun!" Obviously she didn't feel the impact. I checked the seat and it was still just as sturdy as before, she had no marks from the straps on her, but they were secure. I was very very pleased with how well this seat did. I fully expected her to be hurt somehow but she wasn't. Now I have got to replace the seat for my mom's car because the Regent won't fit into her car not to mention once you get that thing in, you don't want to have to move it elsewhere, ever! I am seriously thinking about buying another marathon to put in my mom's car. This seat has everything you're looking for. Comfort for the child, Easy installation, Sturdy fit, and I would say it did excellent in a crash. I don't think you could go wrong with this seat. Especially if you run into the problem of other seats not fitting properly in your particular car. This seat fits in every kind of car I have tried, from camry to mustang to accord, and some others. You will not be disappointed investing in this seat.

I really like this carseat. My husband and I had trouble deciding on an infant car seat because there were lots of similarities between the brands. We decided on the Britax. Thus when looking for a convertible seat, we naturally first thought of Britax again, but looked at others as well. There was no comparison in the convertible seats. The quality of the Britax is just SOOOO much better. Yes, it's more expensive, but isn't your baby worth it?! Would definitely buy again.

This car seat gives you excellent function, comfortable sitting for your child to lounge in and ease of use. In addition to the great features which make it the Mercedes of car seats, this one is useful until your child is forward facing 65 lbs. Great length of use.
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br /I love it and so does my 9 month old daughter.

My 8 month old had outgrown his infant car seat at 4.5 months of age, and we were desperate for a convertible car seat that would be safe, but also grow with our very large boy! We love this seat and can't be without it. We travel often, and have borrowed or rented other carseats (both were well-regarded brands)on a couple of occasions. They felt flimsy, unsafe and uncomfortable after our being used to Britax. It may be pricey, but for all the $$ spent on our child, this seems to be some of the wisest. We did so much research to make sure our car was safe, and this seems like such a small amount to improve on that even further. I can't say enough about it--If I could give 6 stars, I would.

We bought this car seat for my daughter when she was about 7 months old. Before we got it to the car we took it out of the box and let her look at it. She crawled up in that seat and looked so cozy! I was jealous. When people see it they all say the same thing, "It's plush!" I feel good because I know she's safe. I know she's comfortable and I feel better knowing that too. We had this car seat for almost three years until the airline LOST IT! Now we are going to have to buy another one just like it!
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I WAS PLEASED WITH THE ENTIRE PROCESS--FROM THE PRODUCT TO THE DELIVERY. MY SON PREFERS THIS TO HIS INFANT SEAT. I FEEL SAFER AND MORE SECURE WITH THIS SEAT AS WELL.