[iluvgummies]

I need a new booster seat for my four and a half year old. The harness on his is not staying fully tight anymore. I actually have been using just the seatbelt for the last month, but since he is not sitting back/upright I have decided he needs to go back to being harnassed.

Anyway, I'm looking for something that may not exist. I would like a booster that can eventually go backless. However, my DH really likes the side-knob adjust that our DD's convertible seat has. Are there any booster seats out there with these two features???

[amylynne01]

What seat does he currently have? What is his height, weight, and shirt size? Budget?

The turn knob feature you're talking about is only available on the Evenflo Triumph, so you're out of luck there. Should be able to find a combination seat that will go backless eventually.

[iluvgummies]

He's currently in a Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite. He weighs 37lbs, wears a size 4/5 or xs shirt. I recently measured his height but now cannot recall. I know that he is slightly on the shorter end in his 4K class (out of 16 kids, I think there are about 2 or 3 that are shorter than him). Budget...I'd prefer to spend under $200.

Thank you!

[amylynne01]

It is very likely that he's outgrown that seat already. Are his shoulders beneath the top harness height? Many outgrow it when they're wearing size 4T shirts.

Good combination seats are (from least to most expensive):

Evenflo Maestro $80
Harmony Defender 360 $100 (only at Walmart)
Evenflo Secure Kid 300/400 $120
Graco Nautilus $130
Graco Argos $160
Britax Frontier 85 $210

You want a seat that will get him to age 5-6 harnessed. Most kids are not ready for a booster in terms of maturity until that age, and boys are sometimes later than that. Since he is kind of light for being 4, the Maestro which only harnesses to 50lbs may be enough. The Maestro as a booster does not adjust super high, so you will probably need a dedicated booster somewhere down the road. They're around $50, so both seats together are under your budget. On the other hand, the Frontier is one of the tallest boosters on the market, so that would be the last seat he would need. Just depends on what you want to do!

I would recommend going to Babies R Us or Buy Buy Baby and playing with the seats to see which features you like and don't like. Try them out in your car, decide which one is the one for him, and then go home, and search the internet for the best price. BRU and BBB rarely are the lowest prices around.