Britax Frontier Booster Car Seat Rushmore Review

As my barely 3 year old daughter approached 40lbs, I needed a car seat solution to last a few more years. At first we tried a simple Booster, but I was very unhappy with how it moved around in the car, only held by the seat belt. I did much research, including Consumer Reports (which had an amazing review of car seats that chart restraints, weight and height limits). I was surprised how few choices there were for harnesses above 40 pounds. Our criteria was Harness system higher than 50lbs, convertible to booster beyond harness, LATCH system, safety and comfort.

We had great experience with our Britax Roundabout seat (up to 40lbs), so we decided to invest in the higher end Britax Frontier seat, rather than a few other choices that were less expensive, but also didn't bring the safety equity that comes with Britax. We figured that she would use this seat for the rest of the time she's in a car seat and we didn't want to sacrifice quality for cost.

We've been using the seat for about 3 months now. It's very sturdy and solid, as you would expect from Britax. It's a bit wider than some, which gives the child more room, but also take up more room in the car. I like that you can adjust the height of the seat from adjusting the back, rather than rethreading the harness straps. There is nothing "skimpy" on this seat. It has the padded protector on the crotch buckle, the rubbery chest strap protectors to keep it from twisting, and even padded neck protectors. I like the Side Impact flaps because in addition to safety, it allows my daughter to lean against and fall asleep.

The only thing I'm not wild about is the strap loosening mechanism. In the Roundabout, it's a red button on the front bottom, which I could push and loosen the straps with one hand. On this one, it's the kind you have to lift the lever to release the pressure, and it's buried in the cushion a little. I'm sure it's to prevent an older child from doing it themselves, but I can no longer release and loosen all with one hand.

One more comment, last week one of the harness straps came off while driving. This was a known problem and recall from older versions of the seat, but it was supposed to be fixed. It's due to consistently only pulling one side of the harness when loosening. I called Britax and once I provided all the Serial # details from the seat, they asked me to return the seat for inspection (at their expense) and they sent me a brand new seat. I was pleased and impressed with their responsiveness and concern for safety. Just installed the new seat yesterday, so I hope this one doesn't have any issues. Both seats I received were produced within 2 weeks of when I ordered them, so they don't have a lot of excess inventory hanging around; I liked that I was getting a "fresh" just off the production lines seat.

I consider a quality car seat an investment in my child's safety. While the Britax ones are a little more expensive, I truly can see the quality difference. And no, I don't work for Britax. Just a satisfied customer.Get more detail about Britax Frontier Booster Car Seat Rushmore.