They felt like it was harder to lift their child into the seat as they got taller and noted that the calf extender that comes with the seat doesn’t seem to do much. This option is also graco convertible car seat nearly double the price of some competitors and doesn’t convert into a booster. Once the seat is in the most upright recline position, it takes up very little space front to back.
As long as your child is rear-facing, this can be done without fully uninstalling the seat, but it’s not the easiest thing in the world to do. As mentioned, the Boulevard is part of Britax’s family of ClickTight seats, along with two other, similar models—the base model Marathon ClickTight and the now retired Advocate ClickTight (still available at some retailers). Their install methods are identical, and many of their features are the same. The main difference is in the layers of padding throughout the seats. The Marathon has the least padding of the three, and it typically costs about $50 less than the Boulevard. The Boulevard and the Advocate both offer the Click & Safe Snug Harness, which gives an audible click when the harness is properly tensioned, whereas the Marathon has a standard harness.
The buckle for securing the harness straps is straightforward to use. The original writer of this guide was Rebecca Gale, a Washington, DC–based reporter whose articles on policy and parenting have appeared in outlets including The New York Times, Slate, and The Washington Post. As part of the research and testing process, Rebecca became certified as a CPST herself; she’s also the author of Wirecutter’s guide to the best booster car seats and a mom of three. The Britax Boulevard ClickTight, our runner-up pick, is being phased out, as is the Marathon ClickTight, a less expensive convertible car seat that we list as an Other Good in this guide. We are now testing the Poplar and Poplar S and will update this guide with our findings. At 5 years, 40 pounds, and 44 inches, this model is just barely old enough to use a booster properly all of the time.
If your chosen option is challenging, you may not use it as the manufacturer advised, or you could become chronically frustrated. This group has budget-friendly options with winners and lower-priced seats to meet your needs and safety goals. Seeing so many reasonably priced options perform so well with standout crash test analysis results was refreshing.
Many large toddlers and preschoolers struggle to stay rear-facing in their car seats because at a certain point they start to feel squashed. The Extend2Fit Convertible addresses that problem by adding an extension panel to the seat that pulls out to provide 5 inches of extra legroom in rear-facing mode. graco car seat Kids can remain rear-facing in the Extend2Fit Convertible until they reach 50 pounds, the highest capacity of the seats we tested. The Extend2Fit Convertible’s LATCH install system can be used for children who weigh up to 45 pounds, the highest LATCH weight limit of any of the seats we tested.