Car seats and safety

I really wish I could afford to ERF but it wouldn't have worked with DD anyway she was hurting her neck trying to see us. We went straight into a convertible carseat for the fact that DD is half samoan her cousin grew out of his capsule in three months, and from my understanding alot of the ERF seats available although they say from birth or 2.xxx kg they aren't really suitable for a younger child.

RE the tv screen in the front I found this on the AA site (Jack Biddle is a tech guy who knows alot about cars and safety and having worked for the company many moons ago I trust and know his judgement

I]There was a past Warrant of Fitness rule which prohibited a driver viewing a DVD/ Television screen when the vehicle was in motion. With the influx of modern navigation and in-dash screen-based entertainment systems however, a recent revision to the rule was made. Basically, it is no longer a Warrant of Fitness requirement to check to see if the screen can be viewed by the driver. The responsibility falls on the driver to pay attention to the road at all times. Many new vehicle manufactures that incorporate DVD/Televisions in their vehicles ensure the screen is blank when the vehicle is in motion or place the units away from the drivers vision (in the rear of the roof or behind the front seats). We would always suggest an after-market installation follows the same rules. Source [url]http://www.aa.co.nz/motoring/tips/ask-jack/advice/Pages/are-DVD-players-prohibited-in-cars.aspx[/url]

janini - I have a capsule already, so I would be looking at using this from 3-6 months (or when ever bubs grows out of the capsule).
I am pretty sure the car seat my friend has is till 4-5 years old (or 18kgs). She has used it for her daughter until almost 5. I am checking it out on Saturday so I will look at the attachments etc.

To be honnest if I only pay $50 for it and use it for 2 years I will be happy. By then I will have been back at work for a while and our disposable income will be a lot more for me to go out and buy something else.

My only concern was safety.

Plunket has changed their recommendations to rear facing to two years. It will take awhile for this info to start to show up in their literature.

kiwikt, you are aware that the safe n sound only rear faces to 12 kg? And forward faces to 18kg. Where as something like a cosco rear faces to 16kg, and 18kg forward facing. The safe n sound doesn't allow you to use all the shoulder straps when rear facing, so most children outgrow it around 1-1 1/2 years.
So if you are wanting to keep bubs rear facing for longer, then the safe n sound won't be good enough. Yes it is a safe seat. But it isn't the safest seat.
Have you looked at this video clip to show you the difference in rear/forward facing in an accident. Rear facing vs forward facing
I'm not trying to be ott, but I want you to make an informed decision. I get what your saying about using it for a while, then buying another carseat later. I just know that from experience, sometimes it can be hard to justify buying an upgraded model of something you already have, even given safety. As money is always needed somewhere else.
Do you have a local baby on the move franchise. They are usually quite helpful and can show you difference carseats and how they install etc. Which may give you a better idea of what will work for you and your car.
Good luck with what ever you decide.

kiwikt wrote: Interesting discussion. I am currently looking at buying a car seat second hand off a friend. It is a Save n Sound car seat so I am confident it is a good brand. But I have read so much stuff that says you should not buy second hand carseats. I know this car seat is 5 years old (she has used it from birth to 5 for her daughter), it has never been in a accident and has been well looked after. Even if we only use it for a couple of years it means I dont have to spend $400-500 now on a carseat. Any thoughts on second hand car seats?

kiwikt, i just thoughtg i would add that the average life span of a car seat is 5-8 years (as pp said), but this is from the date of manufacture, so it could be 1 or 2 or possibly even 3 years old before your friend used it.

childrestraints.co.nz wrote: All child restraints sold in New Zealand and Australia have a life span on them and this includes seats imported from the United States, United Kingdom, China and Australia. The life span does not depend on how well the seat was looked after, or how many children have used the seat. It is always taken from the date the seat was made (Date of Manufacture date/DOM). Every child restraint has a manufacture date on the seat. Most will have a sticker with the date on the side, or underneath the seat. All seats have a clock system stamped on them, some are hidden under the covers. The manufacture date helps identify how old the seat is, if it has been in any recalls and when it can no longer be used based on its life span.