Cosco Scenera-Touriva 5-Point Convertible Car Seat

My second daughter is growing out of her infant car seat. So I've been prowling stores and researching front-facing car seats.
According to care seat safety experts, all car safety seats available for purchase in the United States must meet very strict safety standards established and maintained by the federal government.

So it came down to cost, features, and what would work for our child and our vehicle. All infants must be rear-facing until 1 year of age AND 20 pounds. Our baby is 20 pounds and will be a year old in three weeks, so we would be using the car seat we chose primarily as front-facing.

The Cosco Scenera-Touriva Car Seat at Wal-Mart made the final cut. For one thing, it was less than $50. It has the same safety specifications of many pricier car seats. And it had the features that we had determined over time were important to us as a family. The overhead shield type of restraint does not work in our car so the 5-point restraint harness is essential. The Cosco Scenera-Touriva Car Seat has a 5-point restraint with the 2-piece chest buckle that ensures a child cannot unbuckle himself easily.

The brown and black fabric cover is easily removed for washing. Some models have the over retained in so many places that it isn't truly washable. Since this is for my second child, I know how often a car seat cover needs cleaned! The padding is thinner than in some other models we looked at, but overall, I was pleased with this car seat cover. The base of the car seat is nice and sturdy. We have "bucket" seats in our car so this is a feature we definitely need. It has three shoulder harness positions and two chest harness positions to allow for your child's growth. The AAP recommends that the shoulder straps be at or above the child's shoulders when in the front-facing position.

The harness adjustment of the Cosco Scenera-Touriva is in front and easily maneuverable while the child is in the seat. This is a plus during the winter when a child needs the straps a bit longer for a coat and shorter for sweaters or sweatshirt. The harness straps in the car seat should still be very snug and it is important to remember to tighten the straps back up when the child is not wearing a coat or heavy clothing.

Like most car seats of this type, it is capable of rear-facing for up to 30 pounds and front-facing for toddlers 20-40 lbs. Some convertible car seats have a higher weight limit than 40 pounds, but neither of our girls are very big for their ages, so they will want to move into a booster seat at 40 pounds anyway.

The Cosco car seat was easy for me to install. We won't be taking it out and reinstalling it frequently, but it is important for me to be able to do safe quickly and safely. The recommendation is to have the car seat move less than an inch in any direction after installation. The Cosco Scenera-Touriva comes with the LATCH system, but since our car was built before the year 2000, we still need to use a locking clip on the seat belt to make sure the car seat is secure. For those interested in US products, the components and assembly of the Cosco Scenera-Touriva 5-Point Convertible Car Seat both originated in the USA. But perhaps the coolest feature is the built-in cup holder. I won't be handing cups over my shoulder to the backseat and trying to receive them back in the same fashion…or risking those cups landing on the floor and rolling under the seat to be found by smell a week or so later!

Safety…check. Features we needed or wanted….check. The price? Can't be beat! We haven't "graduated" my daughter to front-facing yet, but she seems to be enjoying sitting up straighter and having more leg room in the Cosco Scenera-Touriva.