If you want your child to travel business class then the MAX-FIX Car Seat from Britax is the one for you; it is extremely comfortable and well padded, and the chair has side wings like one of those comfy armchairs in a gentleman’s club!
It is installed with the ISOFIX system, which is a bonus if you have to move the seat over to different vehicles as it just clicks in and out.
The seat can be tipped for a sleeping child (seven positions in all) and this is done by turning a small wheel until you reach the desired angle. For newborns there is a foam insert for better support which can then be removed as the child grows. Another good design feature is that the covers are all easy to remove for washing, and you can do this without involving altering the harness straps. These harness straps are themselves well padded and comfy-looking, giving the whole thing a fairly expensive and well upholstered look. At the back of the chair there is a pull-down flap where you can store all the relevant manuals plus of course The Very Hungry Caterpillar…
A lot of thought has obviously gone into all the safety features, but obviously the biggest nod to current research on infant car seats is the fact that this is a rearward facing seat; this seat can be used from birth to around four years (0-18kg), which sounds a long time for a child to be in a backward facing position. However, you only have to check out the crash-dummy videos on the Motor.co.uk and rearfacing.co.uk websites to be convinced that this is a very good initiative; in Europe and Scandinavia, children stay rearward facing until the age of four, whereas here we put our children forward-facing at nine months.
The only problem comes when you have been using a forward facing seat and then change over to the other type - initially Dylan, aged two, found it difficult not to be looking in the direction he normally faced, but eventually he came around to his new seat, and is now fine with it. Although there is a bar which allows some foot room, I suspect a large/tall child might have a bit of an issue with foot space.
All in all though, this MAX-FIX Car Seat is a lovely plush looking seat which is not only really comfy but also complies with the most up-to-the-minute research, reassuring you that your child is travelling in optimum safety and comfort.
PWT rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
The MAX-FIX Car Seat retails at £275 – for more information and details of where to buy visit Britax