An important thing to note is that the LATCH system setup can differ from vehicle to vehicle, so you should check your car’s manual to see exactly where you can find the anchors. For comfort and quality, we review the materials and overall construction. We analyze the padding, fabric, and foam and how well they come together compared to the competition. We consider how each seat’s design graco convertible car seat contributes to a baby’s potential comfort, parent use, and durability. While some have prongs that pop out somewhat independently, and others have chest clips that slide apart smoother, none were that challenging or impossible to use. The Cybex Sirona S does have a smart chest clip that provides alerts and information about car temperature and if a child has been left behind.
BestReviews and its newspaper partners may earn a commission if you purchase a product through one of our links. The 4Ever earned one of the best scores for ease of use of everyday features in the group. The HIC or head sensor also recorded lower results, almost a third of the highest recorded forces (lower results are better for both). graco turbobooster Overall, we believe the 4Ever test results and analysis indicate that this seat potentially offers an additional margin of protection. Families who are interested in a similar seat may be better served by the Graco Extend2fit or the Graco 4Ever All-in-One instead. You can see the abundant legroom the Extend2Fit offers both girls.
But in practice, we didn’t find that the extension panel added much room, especially compared with the panel on the Graco Extend2Fit Convertible. (My almost-3-year-old’s legs were scrunched up, even with the Rava’s footrest extended.) Also, the higher sides on the Rava made it difficult to get a large, almost-3-year-old into the seat and buckled. Additionally, our Frost-colored test model (it’s a pale gray fabric) didn’t perform well in our food-and-drink test. Grape juice, peanut butter, and jelly left stains that we couldn’t get out with spot-cleaning.
Interestingly, the Clek Foonf and the Clek Fllo both have lock-offs but were challenging to install despite this and didn’t score well for this installation method. All Clek seats last nine years from the date of manufacture before they expire, and they have a three-year warranty, if you register the seat within 90 days (one year if you don’t register it). The Foonf performed well (PDF) in the NHTSA’s front-impact crash testing, with good Head Injury Criterion (HIC) and chest acceleration scores.
We chose this on purpose to mimic late-model vehicles better and to see if faster speeds helped differentiate the seats from one another. All seats in this review are assumed to have passed the federal guidelines and should be considered safe. Based on test results, those we identify as better than average are options that potentially offer an additional margin of safety over the average seat. We take convertible car seat testing very seriously because the stakes are so high. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) states that “car crashes are a leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 13.”
The Sirona crash test results are slightly below average, and while considered safe and performed better than some, if your goal is rotation and better crash test results, the Sirona might not be the one for you. The Baby Jogger City Turn is a rotating seat in the rear-facing installation with significantly better crash test analysis results. While this option doesn’t rotate in forward-facing, we think most parents won’t mind, given the potential for an additional margin of safety. However, if your goal is full rotation and you enjoy comfort, quality, and ease of use, we believe the Sirona is the seat for you. The Extend2Fit offers better crash test results than our budget-friendly option, and with sales, you can often find it for a cheaper price than other award winners in this lineup.