Combination Car Seats
Combo seats also do two things: they are a forward facing harnessed seat that later turns into a high back booster seat. The neat thing about them is that the top harness slots are generally higher than those on convertibles, so the harness fits kids that have outgrown the harness by height, but not weight. Kids outgrow the harness on a forward facing seat when they hit either the weight limit, or when their shoulders are higher than the top harness slot. But at this time, one brand of combo seats, Cosco, has top slots no higher most convertibles. Also, there are still several combo seats on the market that have a rear adjuster. That means that every time you need to tighten or loosen the harness you have to uninstall the seat. We can't even believe these are still on the market!
Top Features to look for on Combo seats
- higher harness slots
- front harness adjuster
Top Combo seat choices: (all have higher slots and front adjuster)
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Evenflo Chase
Harnessed from 20 to 40 pounds, booster from 30 to 80 pounds. This one of the cheaper combo seats ($59). It has very nice padding. The shoulder belt guide is also molded onto the seat, but still should be checked to be sure it doesn't allow slack in the shoulder belt.
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Graco Ultra, or Platinum CarGo
These seats have nice, deep wings, helpful for sleeping children. The more expensive versions usually have extra padding, and perhaps more cup holders. One Platinum model includes EPS foam.