This seat is AWESOME. It is sturdy, easy to use, easy to clean, inexpensive, comfortable, long-lasting, and more. I had an older version of this same seat (about two years ago) and bought two of this version--the old one for my hubby's car and these two for my minivan. My two-year-old LOVES the soft, cushiony seat--she always takes her shoes and socks off to rub her feet on it, and my 6-month-old loves the extra room and freedom of the bigger seat (she got too big for the Graco carrier kind.) The tilt is very easy to use and it installs fast and quickly--with LATCH--I haven't tried any other method. They fit beautifully into both my hubby's VW Passat and my Hyundai minivan--we're both tall and still have plenty of room to have our seats all the way back and these seats installed in both front and rear facing positions. It also cleans easy--straight into the wash and cool-setting dryer.

I hope this helps you with your car-seat purchase decision. I know I was a little overwhelmed by all of the choices and price differences. This seat was $90 with free shipping (from Amazon via BabyAge, I think--got here in two days!!) when I got it. I did go to a local store first to check these out (it was $160 in the store) I found the cheaper seats (Graco, Evenflo) had thinner padding. The more expensive seats (Brittax, etc.) had lots of colors and similar padding to this seat. I don't really think the kids care that much about the colors--their butts are on them, you know? I like that this fabric seems to hide everything my two-year-old can dish out on it--and then wash easily if it gets stinky. Oh--the other thing I really like about this seat is how easily the straps adjust--I haven't seen any that are easier--if you look at the picture you'll see these little red handles at the top--you simply push/pull these and the straps slide up or down--other car seats you have to rethread the things--who has time for that!?! Also, the arm rests are adjustable--I have them up and out of the way for now--when we transition to the booster, I'm sure I'll bring them down.

Good luck!!
p.s. I've read a few of the negative reviews and have some tips--
1. For the ones who couldn't remove the infant headrest, it is very easy to remove. Unthread the belts from the clip in the rear, thread out through the front and the headrest slides off--then rethread (the instructions are in the back of the book--look under cleaning.)
2. For the tilt--for cars with bucket seats, you will need to use a prop to adjust the front of the seat when rear-facing. You can purchase a $10 adjuster, cut up a $1 swimmers noodle, or roll up a towel--all are safe--and you can ask you car service dept or safety official to help with the install (most local police departments have monthly safety seat checks.)
I still love this seat--I think it is super easy to use.

I have been looking for a car seat for our 7 month old son and wanted to buy a car seat that will grow with him. I purchased the Cosco Alpha Omega Elite 3-in-1 Car Seat at Baby's R Us for $159.99. My cousin was looking for the same seat and found it here on Amazon for $89.99. I could not believe the price difference. In reading the reviews many mention it is the same as the one sold at Baby's R Us. So I ordered it from Amazon intending to return the one I bought for $159.99. I received the car seat yesterday. It looks similar has most the same features but one major difference. The $159.99 version Features EPP energy-absorbing foam which makes the seat much softer, yes it's a small difference and might not be worth $70.00. Also it is a different color and different model number then the Baby's R Us model. But I'm going to keep the one for $159.99 and give the other to a family member. I wanted to write this review to point out the difference so that anyone else wanting to buy this car seat knows that there is a difference between the two car seats. I do recommend this car seat just be aware for the differences.

Buy these at Amazon or other place online since they're almost DOUBLE the price at Toys-R-Us ($169 in Feb 2008).

We bought these car seats for our 1-yr-old (22 lb) twin boys and WE LOVE THEM!! They're really padded, cushiony and roomy, so they were very comfortable for the road trip we just took. Once I figured out how to use the hooks to attach to the LATCH bolts built-into my car (incl. in most cars built after 2002), it didn't take long to install.

They will be easy to adjust as our boys grow, and we're thrilled that we won't need to buy another car seat EVER. As a 3-in-1 car seat, they can be converted and used until the child is up to 100 lbs!

We agree that they'll be too big for small cars. In fact, our boys just barely met the limit to situate the car seat to be front-facing. If they hadn't, I don't think it would have fit in our Toyota 4Runner as a rear-facing seat.

The car seat itself isn't big. The problem is that it requires a lot of width (i.e. looks reclined) in order to be set at the safety level in the back seat.

Otherwise....we love it and would highly recommend it.

The Cosco Alpha Omega Elite 3-in-1 Car Seat is really awesome seat to have. We seem find ourselves buying these 3-in-1 or 4-in-1 items for our child, such as our 4-in-1 Crib. It really saves time & money. This seat feels super comfortable for our daughter, which is important when she has to be stuck in it for a long car ride. She doesn't seem to mind it at all. In fact it sat for 3-4 days in the living room before I used it to replace the old car seat & base type. She would walk up to it & sit in it as if it was her own personal chair. Straps are super easy to adjust too, which is nice when she goes from one day to wearing a heavy winter jacket to the next day wearing only a light spring jacket; darn Iowa weather. The armrests pull out to release & pull back in to lock into place, makes getting her in & out a real breeze. The cup holder is detachable to make more room for others seated next to her. Material is easy to clean & matches the interior of our car(if that matters), pattern also seems like it will hide stains well; if it's not already.

Price was phenomenal compared to other similar offerings for 3-in-1 car seats. Shipping was pretty quick too. Others complained about the seatbelt latch in middle of the seat being too close. Right now for our daughter it is okay where it is, but I could see problems in the coming months. However, on our car seat there is a 2nd slot that sits farther away from the child, which it would seem that you could possibly move out for the adjustment of growing kids. No complaints here whatsoever 5 Stars all the way, solid construction; plenty of padding(our daughter clunks out almost every time); it can grow with your child, easy clean up; option rich; best of all it was the best price for the value that I could find anywhere online & shopping at retail locations.
Funny to say, but our daughter really does love to ride in it. Thank you both, [...]

We decided on this seat after much "customer review" research. Although we were forwarned about the seat being "extremely large", we chose it anyway. I had a Pontiac Grand Am - took up half the back seat. My husband is 6 and a half feet tall, so he could never ride on the same side as my daughter if we had used it rear-facing. Luckily, I was able to use my infant carrier until the day my daughter turned 1. Then I purchsed a Buick LaCrosse which was a little bigger in the back - I still can't put two adults in the back seat. Basically, it fits a medium size adult, a child and the huge seat!

Over the last almost 2 years, the seat was great. Like many others mention, the straps are a pain when they twist, but we got used to that. My problem now is I have 4 months until my daughter turns 3, and she is just 30 lbs. Problem is is that she is about 38-39 inches tall - so the strap you pull to tighten the straps is almost gone. I can't grab it too easily. I can't even phatom putting her in the booster seat without the harness, but we are at wits end trying to tighten the straps each time she gets into the seat. Only gleam of hope is that spring is right around the corner, and we will be using a lighter weight jacket, so hopefully that will give me a little more pulling room....however, she is growing like a weed, so I may lose the battle.

All in all, I would recommend this as a forward-facing seat for a short to average height child.

This seat has a lot of great convenient features. However I ultimately returned it after having it only one day. It is a bit complicated to install and is really large in size. I drive a Jeep Liberty and the front seats had to be pushed quite a ways forward for it to fit. However the main and most negative for me is the pillow that is built in and NOT detachable! Even in the full reclined position it pushed my 9 month old daughters head forward and made it slump onto her chest when she slept! Do these manufacturers not put an actual baby in these seats before they finalize the design?!? If you are looking for a seat for you baby to be comfortable in absolutely don't buy this!! We purchased an Evenflo Triumph Advanced and it is super comfortable for her and based on my research got top marks in the safety tests.

We haven't had the seat that long but the only complaint I have so far is the installation. It isn't that hard to figure out, but it's a pain to do. Other than that, we LOVE it! It seems to be comfortable for our child and very versatile.

Bought one -- my 8 month-old grandson loved it -- bought a second one for my new granddaughter! It is versatile, has soft, comfortable padding and gets excellent safety ratings. Shipment was prompt and the price was unbelievable for a convertible car seat of this caliber. When I have another grandchild, I'll buy it again!

We purchased 2 of these when our twins approached 1 year old. They've held up well for the past 2 years and work great when the kids are awake. It does not obstruct their views out the windows at all. But when they fall asleep, which still happens after a long day at the zoo or a sleepless night, they seem to be very uncomfortable, with their heads dangling to the side or forward. The little pillows that attach to the seat belts help some, but are inconvenient since the kids won't let them on while awake. We always take the car that has the Graco ComfortSport carseats on long trips, and the kids can nap very comfortably with them.
We also have to be very careful when fastening the seatbelt - in the beginning I would sometimes pinch the kids' legs. This also was never a problem with the ComfortSports. I've since learned to hold my finger between the latch and their legs to prevent this, but if I forget to tell someone helping me they sometimes get boo-boos on their legs again.
At almost 3, the kids have also learned to unlatch the chest buckle, since it's a simple button and kids love buttons.
I like this enough that I would not have returned it, but I would have just bought another 2 ComfortSports if I had it to do over again.

Posting a review when you are angry is sort of like going grocery shopping when you are hungry, so I may well need to come back and temper my words after we actually start using the darn thing. For now though: two thumbs down. The LATCH belt is attached to the seat back in such a way as to pull on various other belts, but the connecting piece is not shown any where in the manual. I can't see how it would help secure the seat in place, but I am very hesitant to remove it. The toll-free service number is of course closed on weekends because no one takes care of this kind of chore outside of the regular business week right? Argh. And during the course of all the flipping and flopping and adjusting the seatbelt adjuster managed to flop loose and there isn't a single picture of it properly routed in the instructions. I'm tempted to return it in a heap and go with a different manufacturer, but we'll see if this cool down period lets me stick with it a little longer. Regardless, the owner's manual is terrible.

UPDATE: Half hour later I would say the seat is MUCH easier to install facing forward than backwards, which we decided we had to do b/c there is absolutely no way you can get the leveling lines on the brackets to parallel the ground on a seat that has even a little incline, contrary to the drawings they provide. Verdict so far: if you need to install the seat facing backwards don't buy this model. Our daughter is right on the dividing line, so we are OK with keeping it since she seems quite comfortable in it.

We had to move our 7 month old from his carrier type car seat as he grew out of it. We love this car seat so far. My husband took it out of the box and "played" with it, checking out how it worked and such. He had no problems installing it in my small car. We did use a car seat adjuster (just a more fancy pool noodle thing) so it was at the right angle. No problems getting the baby in and out of it, he really seems to like it...especially since he can now see out of the window. I would recommend this seat.

After agonizing about what car seat to get, between this and the Britax Marathon for a 35lb boy I decided to get this one. The price was great but not a key factor. Did not think the Marathon would fit in our wagon with its size and inclination,(my son likes to kick so the further back the better) though my greatest concern were reports about kids loosening the straps on the Marathon themselves. Tried it in store for myself and was shocked how easy it was compared to the Britax Roundabout we already have and love. So got this one and my biggest complaints are the seats angle that makes it fit better in a smaller car also makes it almost impossible to anchor tightly in my older Camry which has just the lap belt in the middle. Even at its tightest its still a little loose. The biggest problem is the constant twisting of the straps in the eyelets. I don't know if we just got a bad one or what, this rarely happens in our two other Britax seats. If I had to do it all over again I don't know what I would do, there just doesn't seem to be a good 5 point harness for bigger kids out there that works.

As I've read in other reviews: hard to install backwards; straps tangle easily; strap between legs is too short so it's hard to buckle and I pinch baby's thighs. Also buckle is round and black so it's hard to see where to insert the buckle thingies if you don't have good lighting. My daughter hated it. We bought model number 22158GRS, which isn't even listed on Cosco's website, which is weird. On the other hand, I don't think it's "too wide" like other reviews say--lots of seats are much wider. Just think twice about this one.

We currently have this seat installed rear facing for our 11 month old daughter behind the passenger seat of my Subaru Outback. It was easy to install, as easy as any rear facing car seat, with the assistance of our local Sheriff's Department. It looks great and our daughter appears to be very comfortable. My sister has the same seat in her SUV forward facing for her 18 month old daughter. She seems very comfortable, they used their local health department to help with quick and easy installation. We both agreee that with the seat in the rear facing position it seems to take up quite a bit of space, the person in the front seat can not recline the seat much. Once the seat is put into the forward facing position it does not seem to be a problem any more. I would recommend this seat to a friend. My husband also has the same seat in the back seat of his Ford F150, no complaints from him at this point.

I think this is a very nice car seat and affordable too. It was a little difficult at first trying to figure out how to get the infant headrest out but once I read the directions (always a good idea!) it came right out.

I would not recommend this to anyone who has a small car and wants to use the seat rear-facing. We had to wait until our little girl was heavy enough to use it forward-facing because it would not fit in my 2 door Pontiac rear-facing. That was fine becauce she still fit in her bucket seat. I think this purchase was worth the wait.

The seat is well-padded and very sturdy. We have no problems installing it in my little car (no LATCH system) and in my husband's truck which does have the LATCH system. I think if you have problems with installation you need to go to someone who is certified to install car seats and have them show you how to do it. Even if you don't have problems, they can make sure the belts are tight enough and that you are doing it correctly. Most carseats are installed improperly and our children's safety is more imporatant than our stubbornness to "do-it-ourselves".

As far as the child's head falling forward when they sleep, I've yet to see a car seat that keeps a child head from falling forward or to the side. Maybe some of it had to do with how tighly you have their belts. My daughter's head falls forward sometimes but if the top clip is done up and she is secure, she will sleep for a long time with no problems.

The only problem I can relay with this product is that when you need to wash the seat cover, you have to dismantle the entire seat to do so. That is a pain. Otherwise good quality, pleased with product.

In the interest of economy and not purchasing things we don't need, we bought the Cosco 3-in-1. The baby's head falls forward until she is old enough to keep it up at all times becuase the carseat does not recline enough for a small child. This is dangerous.

It does not come wrapped in plastic, merely in its box. No one mentioned is that this is a very difficult carseat to get an infant into. And it's not rated as well for the booster seat as it is for the 25-50 pound rang

Do not buy this carseat unless your hands are stronger than the normal farm worker's hands. I lift hay bales, and control livestock for a living, yet I'm stuck at home until our new carseat arrives or my husband comes home make the carseat straps work. All the buttons are very difficult to push and the averge person will not be able to unbuckle the straps or adjust them in the first place.

I have a four door sadan, but this carseat is so large that it is difficult to see through my rear-view mirror. I cannot use the mirrors that would allow me to see the child's face becuase the carseat is so large.

Overall, the idea seemed right, but the implimentation is all wrong.

I am very pleased with the carseat. It is good quality and rather easy to install. We did have to place rolled towels under the seat to make it level(when rear-facing) because I have a Taurus and the seats are slanted. My son was only 7 months when I purchased it and he fits well into and seems quite comfortable.

We have used this car seat for my son for almost four years now. He started in it around 9 months and he is now almost 5 and we use it as a booster!! It is well worth the money since it can be used for such a long period. We just purchased another one for my now 9 month old daughter to start in. It is easy to install and very soft and comfy!! I would highly recommend this seat to anyone!!

For me, whatever keeps my two 13 month old twin girls from crying in the car and taking nice, long naps is a winner in my book. So, this was a winner purchase. Nothing is perfect, but they both seem very comfortable and snug. It's got a nice feature where you can pull a handle at the base of the seat and the whole carseat leans back so that they are almost laying down. Since they have just switched to these from infant carrier seats, that was a good deal for them. So, although they still seem unhappy when we are driving, I think they just hate the car, not the seat.

I had been shopping around for a new car seat when my son turned 9 months. He was 23 1/2 pounds and 30 inches long--too big for his infant seat. I was back and forth between models because I knew that I needed a seat that would grow with him and would not require another expensive purchase. At 9 months he still needed to be rear facing, but will be turned around at 12 months. I found the Alpha Omega Elite and had heard it was recommended and the price was definitely right. I ordered it, and was excited when it got here. The seat is plush and the headrest and shoulder straps adjust without having to undo everything. The harness adjusts in tightness with one hand. SUPER easy. Now of course, getting it into the car was a huge pain, but most car seats are, so that didn't lower my expectation any. HIGHLY reccomended!

I've had this seat for about 1 week.

Pros:
*Seat went in easily.
*My 2.5 year old likes it.
*Feels more sturdy than the others seats I looked at.
*Nice price.

Cons:
*Straps do have a tendency to twist, no serious problem though.
*I wish the crotch buckle was about 1" longer, it would make buckling-up much easier.

Overall, I'm very happy with my purchase.

I bought this car sat for my son when he turned one. He is now 2 and a half and I am looking to buy a new one already. I was expecting it to last much longer then it did.
First off, the straps get so twisted that one of them actually frayed a little down at the bottom where you can adjust it. Its a constant struggle to have them all lined up correctly. When I first bought it I had it rear facing in my Jeep grand cherokee and the drivers side had to be pushed all the way forward just to fit the car seat in it, luckily I am short. Also I had to use a towel under it to make it level, not that big of a deal but a little annoying. The car seat itself is very heavy, if you are going to be moving it around different cars I wouldnt recomend this one. The cup holder broke fairly quickly and I have had problems purchasing a replacement.
My son likes it though, it is very padded and reclines at different angles so on long trips you can set it back so the kid can sleep.

Overall this car seat has done its job for a year and a half.

Product seems to work well. Wish it reclined more, but other than that it is a real good buy for the money.

After reading reviews we liked this car seat for the functionality, the look, and for the price. We haven't had any problems with it pinching our 1 year old's legs (he is a skinny baby though), and it doesn't even appear to be tight. The ease of height adjustment for the shoulder straps and tightening the harness is very convenient. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it's wide. It's not as wide as some that I've seen, but if you had more than one car seat in the back or need to fit other children or people back there it gets a bit tight. Since he's our only child it's only been inconvenient when we're taking others with us.

I couldn't have been happier to see this car seat on Amazon for such a great price! We purchased an Alpha Omega Elite Eddie Bauer version 3 years ago and completely love that one. This one is exactly the same without having to pay for the Eddie Bauer name. This is an excellent car seat. I completely trust it with my 7.5 month old and my 3 year old in my other one. It is very comfortable and stylish. I can't say enough great things about this seat. Plus, you won't have to buy another one since this also turns into a booster. I own a small Mazda and two of these seats fit comfortably in the back seat. Highly recommend it.

car seat is too bulky and does not recline far enough to prevent infant's head from falling forward while asleep. Can not buckle seat beats on either side of car seat due to the wide width.

I purchase this item last week, it came very quick I was satisfied with the shipment. Like I said I bought this item for my grandson, we went on a 4 hour trip this weekend and he loved it. I love the color and the fabric it feels like velvet and since it is dark when he spills something it won't stain easy. I was looking for a carseat that reclines and this one has 3 position, he was so comfortable and was asleep the whole way. I think this is a good carseat, it does not feel cheap and it look expensive, my daughter said Babies R Us has the same carseat much higher I think she said it was $130.00 or more.

we are very happy with this purchase. it was easy to set up using the tethering system. our baby is very comfortable in the seat. we have absolutely no complaints.

Cosco Alpha Omega Elite 3-in-1 Car Seat
Very nice. Easy to install even though we had to put an extra item in the car to get the seat to lay back far enough for an infant. I took it to our health department to have them help me put it in for the first time to be sure it was correct. I like the fact it will grow with the child.

We purchased this 2 1/2 years ago for our daughter. With our second child on the way I will be purchasing another. Easy to install in all vehicles (and it has logged many of multi-state trip miles). Most of all our daughter can see around it, unlike the Eddie Bauer car seats that have huge wings on the sides not allowing the child to see around them.

This car seat is easy to use, and my baby likes it. The only thing I am not happy is the delivering company, GPS. The delivering guy didn't send the baggage on the scheduled time and left a wrong second-delivery message. I wasted a whole day waiting for the delivery. Besides, the baggage box is damaged, but luckily the car seat is still good.......

Bought this for a grandchild and thought I'd have trouble installing it but managed just fine. It is luxurious looking and very soft and comfortable for the child. Saw almost the same one at the mall for double the price. We're very pleased

This car seat is great!! It was very easy to install and very sturdy.

I would purchase this carseat over and over again. I loved it. The straps are adjustable, my daughter was in this carseat from the time she came home from the hospital until 4 years old (then I had to get rid of it because we were in a car accident, we're fine). If I'd had the money to repurchase it, I would have. Oh and my daughter said "I'm O.K mom" immediately after the accident, which did $8,000 worth of damage to our minivan, it protected her beautifully. The head pillow is removable and the back shield of the carseat slides up and down for different heights. It also tilts and is the only carseat that my child has took road trips in without needing to get out due to being uncomfortable. If your vehicle has the space I would definintly buy this. The price is awesome, you can use this until they are no longer in carseats (up to 100 lbs.)

We have purchased one of these car seats for each of our last three children and we LOVE it! It has a very secure harness and the latching system is one even the most nimble of toddlers cannot manage to get unfastened. This one was a gift to my soon to be neice or nephew, great shower gift.

No complains so far. Good for this price. Only negative i can think is not easy to remove the recline position with one hand.

A good price for the seat but is hard to keep clean and is a little to big for our back seat of the saab. We just can't use the reclining feature in the saab. I would liked to have seen a more cleanable material on the seat rather than that velour like material.

Prompt shipping. Somewhat difficult to get level when rear-facing and took more time than expected to install. Takes up a lot of room rear-facing. Once we switched it to forward, no compaints...easy installation and our daughter seems to love it!! I would definately purchase another one exactly like it!

I got the 2006 model and its so comfortable my kid loves it! Pillow is detachable and it reclines nice. Gotta say I have an Honda Odissey so although its big its not a problem for us.

We received the original Alpha Sport at our baby shower, which we put in my husband's car. Now that our son has grown out of the infant seat, we needed a second car seat for my car. This is a bit bulky to set up, but I like the fact that it has the 3 position recline while still having the stability of the base, so it was a little easier to setup. Also, to help keep the guide level to the ground, you may want to buy one of those foam levelers which are not that expensive (10) dollars which did help. Overall we like it. It looks really comfy and my son seems to like it. One con, the straps are (at least for me) very hard to tighten to my satisfaction; they always seem a bit lax and could be tighter, but overall we're very happy with the purchase. One other thing, it seemed more stable behind the passenger seat -- we have it rear facing -- so the front passenger can't be too tall.

When this car seat was on sale for $90 through BabyAge, it was a steal. My husband has no complaints and he is the primary user. (Actually, our 15 month old son is - my husband is the chauffeur.) I've held off on buying a second one for my car because the straps do twist and they sometimes seem to tighten unevenly. For the price, I can't complain too much, but I'm still waffling about what I'll put in my car.

After reading all the reviews we purchased this seat. It was not easy to install rear facing. We have a 02 Dodge Dakota that does not have the latch system so it was not an easy install.

The other problem with this seat is the straps are very soft and silky which are nice for the baby but they twist inside the plastic holders and are not easy to twist back.

On a good note this seat is very comfortable for my child and she enjoys the extra room now that she is out of the baby carrier.

I think this seat will work much better when we are able to face it forward.

I have had Alpha Omega car seats for all my children and it's a very good product. This one is much improved over the version I bought 4 years ago...the harness system is easier to use and it's easier to adjust. All in all a great product!

great product and price. The only problem might be that it is a little skimpy on the padding for the seat, when the toddler grows.

Love this car seat!! It shipped really fast! My 2 yr old daughter loves it- very comfortable. Fit very easily into my mini van. I would reccomend this seat to anyone!!

We bought 2 - one for each car. It works GREAT in our blazer as a rear facing & its "push in harness adjustment lever" is very convenient - I LOVE IT! My husband on the other hand has had a little difficulty with having it rear facing in his small 2 door car, but once we are ready for front facing it will be just fine. Overall affordable and a good purchase.

After shopping at "the major baby store" in our area our son did research on safety and comfort issues for this chair - vs - other carseats. Since we needed one for his car and one for my car (grandma) he decided on the Cosco Alpha-Omega. The baby loves that he has his own cup holder, the car seat is large and sits high so he can see out of the car window and it is well padded for comfort. It reclines too - a plus for long rides. We are very happy with the purchase.

I have a toddler so I was enticed by having to only buy one carseat until she was a 100 lbs, and it was on sale. It looked comfortable enough,unfortunately we are unable to even use it. It comes with the infant headrest intact. It gives instructions on how to remove it, but after 1 1/2 hours of working on removing it I was tempted to just cut it out. Instead I just returned it since we won't be able to use it. I;m a little disappointed, everything else about it looks good.

I own two. They were easy to install, easy to use. The straps were very twisty, and the buckle was awful if my kids were fighting me. Both kids outgrew the harness by 2 years old, which is WAAAYYYY too young to put them in a booster. Neither were ready/able to sit properly in a booster. Unless you have an incredibly short bodied child or don't care about safety, you'll have to buy another seat that has a higher harness slot height. Neither of my kids were even close to 40 lbs when they outgrew it, btw, I think they were around 30 lbs each. I've owned the first since my son was 4 months old, and he's just turning 5 now; his sister's been using the seat. She's getting a new seat. I bought the first one because it was simply the only one on the shelf way back then that rear-faced over 22 lbs, and at 4 months, my son was 25 lbs.
It also makes for a lousy booster - it's not very adjustible.
Please, the Evenflo Triumph Advance is $129, has a higher slot height, and higher weight limit. The Graco Nautilus (forward facing only) is $150, has a 65 lb harness/ tall harness slot height, converts to a high back booster and a low back booster.
Honestly? If you want to save some money, by a Cosco Scenera for $40 for the first two years of your baby's life, and then a Graco Nautilus.
I plan on destroying my current seats. I hate them, and I would never give them to a friend like I did my baby bucket that I loved.

I just received the carseat yesterday. Although the box was in really rough shape, the seat was in perfect condition. I have not installed it in my car yet, because it was late when I got home from work, but I did check everything out on it to figure out how it works and I sat my son in it so I could adjust everything to fit. He seemed to really enjoy sitting in it. My husband complained that it was not the same seat we looked at in the big baby store and I agree that the fabric is different, but I honestly like it better than the one we had previously looked at. If I find any complaints after we get the seat installed in the car I will post and update, but so far so good.

We've had the seat for about 6 months. In the beginning I pinched my daughter's legs a few times, but now I've learned how the fasten the belts better and to be careful. I called the company this morning and they said they do not currently have an extender for this seat. However, if enough consumers call, they may choose to make a belt extender for the piece that goes between the legs. Consumers should call 1-800-544-1108 and "log a complaint" with Consumer Relations about the strap being too short.

This is a good car seat, but if you're looking for lightweight or easy to clean, choose something else. However, it is sturdy and I won't have to buy another car seat as my daughter grows. If you don't want to spend lots of money on a Britax, this is a great seat. I do like the fact that it reclines. Even though my daughter is over a year, I left it rear-facing so she can sleep better. (reclines farther that way). We did buy a second lightweight, cheaper seat for the second car. Depending on individual needs, I would recommend this seat to a friend.

From a fire and EMS perspective, this chair is horrid in the rear facing position as far as installation goes. My husband just installed it this morning and he said if he encounters one in a vehicle accident he is cutting the car's seat belt to remove the chair knowing what he went through even without a kid in the seat.(EMS personnel don't remove the child from the seat, they remove the seat from the vehicle with the child in it)

He also said to start looking for a new car for him because he isn't moving the seat until it's time to put it facing front.

As far as performance, he thinks that this will be a good seat, if you can get it in your car without throwing it into traffic first.

The shipping on this product took a lot longer than I'd expected - and once the box arrived, I could see why. Apparently, it had been kicked all around the country (it was severely damaged). I feared that the seat would have defects (after all, you aren't supposed to use a car seat that's been in a car accident, and it looked, for all intents and purposes, like this one had!), but once we got it out of the box and hooked up in the car, it's worked out quite well. We've only had a few instances of twisted belts, but beyond that, it seems to be a very good product overall.

Something very wrong here, I received the product and first thing I notice is that the box is completely smashed (this may have been the fault of the delivery company). I open the box and the seat was just sitting in it, not wrapped like most new items are. The instructions were already in the slot in the seat and several pages were missing from the little booklet. I am sure that the seat model is fine but I have a very, very strong suspicion that this seat is used or some sort of return. I would never purchase from this seller.