Reviews for The First Years C630 True Fit convertible car seat

This car seat was worth every dollar I spent on it. I researched car seats for over a month and decided on this one. It makes a very comfy ride for your child. The only negative I can say about it is if you have more than one kid and a smaller car it is a little big. I have it in the middle of my VW Jetta and when other kids sit next to it there a little scrunched. I would buy this seat again!!

We bought this for our daughter about 5 months ago. I love it! It is a little difficult getting to the strap release while the seat is in the rear facing position, but not enough of a bother to switch it to forward facing...love that she can be RF until 35lbs! Extremely easy to install, both with LATCH or using the regular belt. I have installed it in our Rogue and in rentals (PT Cruiser, Chevy Cobalt, Pontiac Vibe, Toyota Corolla) and have never had a problem with it being too big (even rear facing with the headrest). I totally recommend it and plan on getting another when #2 arrives!

I bought one for me and my BFF's new son!

We have tried many a car seat in our car, and I will say that this one was pretty straight forward and user friendly compared to others. I'll share my experience with you. First, I want to talk about the fit. I put both my 2.5 year old 33'' 25 pounder and my 4 year old who is 42'' and weighs 40 pounds. The 2 year old fit perfectly, and the straps were easy to adjust and tighten. I was very impressed with the way my four year old fit. Her head is nicely supported by the headrest. The straps adjusted easily, and best of all, she had room in the shoulder area. She wasn't crammed in there like she was in a Marathon. It actually seems to fit comfortably. There was one thing I noticed with this one. The crotch strap was a bit tight on the 4 year old. She was not uncomfortable, but there wasn't much room between the crotch strap and her body. There are two levels of tightness, I just wish I could see a third for older children. Okay, without the children in the seat, I immediately started to check out the seat itself. I noticed some things that set it apart from other convertible car seats. 1. The newborn cushions as well as the entire cover UNSNAP (oh yeah snaps - very cool) without having to un-thread and re-thread the straps. Taking the seat off and on is super super super easy. Oh, and by the way, the cover is comfortable. When my daughter's back is against the cover, it's not bulky or bumpy. It's smooth and comfy. 2. The straps are very easy to adjust. There are knobs on either side of the car seat that you pull and then you can move to whatever level you want without having to unthread it. 3. There is a removable headrest (to be put on for forward facing) which is both easy to put on and take off. Being able to take off the head rest enables the seat to fit rear facing in our Mazda Protege with my 6'2" husband sitting comfortably up front. I can't say how many convertibles we've tried to cram in that either didn't fit or they put the front passenger dangerously close to the dash. This one is perfect and it still goes to 65 pounds. 3. Installation was pretty straight forward and easy. Nothing difficult and complicated about it. I didn't like that there was only a tightener on one side (as compared to the Britax which has one on either side). However, tightening the seat was pretty easy. It's as snug as they come. I did have to get into the seat and somehow face the front seat to get the tightest fit, but whatever it takes. Personal experience notes: Before you tighten the seat, remember to snap the cover back to the seat and also pull the strap adjuster (which is on the front) up from under the seat so that you have access to it. Overall, I would say that I'm extremely happy with this seat. We will use this one for a long time. And I like the care that went into making it easy to use, clean, and install. I give it an A. If you are in need of a convertible, try this one (and if you're nervous, use the $5 return insurance). It's worth it. I love it over all of the ones I tried. I've tried, Evenflo, Britax Marathon, and the Radian XT. None fit as well as this one, and none were as easy to use either.

I really like the car seat. It has a lot of padding. It seems very well made. I am using it rear-facing for my 18 month old. I have a Scion XB and it was really difficult for me to install. The seat back is too close to the harness adjuster and makes it really hard to get to when I need to loosen and tighten the harness...

I bought this car seat online. I tried very hard to find this seat in a store before making my purchase. I read a lot of reviews and the reviews were great. I HATED IT. It's big, bulky, heavy, awkward and hard install. You have to remove the cover and padding to use the LATCH system it was very inconvenient. I finally gave up. It cost me an extra $50.00 to return. After returning this one, I purchased the Eddie Bauer 3 in 1 Convertible Car Seat and love it.

Comments from The Staff:

Hello there,
Thank you for your review. I'm SO sorry to hear that you experienced problems with the True Fit. I did want to take this opportunity to chime in. While the True Fit does get 5-stars from NHTSA's Ease Of Use Rankings both Forward and Rear-Facing, ease of installation can definitely be subjective. I literally just installed this same car seat forward-facing in a friend's vehicle using LATCH and I thought it was a snap! I however know that the vehicle the car seat is being installed in makes a big difference. We often times reference CarSeatData.org to people concerned about car seat fit with their vehicle. It's the only resource that exists to specifically to help parents determine how well a car seat will work in their vehicle. I would encourage you to add your experience to their database, as this resource is completely driven by submissions by people just like you.

Ultimately, I am very happy to hear that you were able to find a car seat that fit your needs in the Eddie Bauer 3 in 1.

Again, thank you for your review!
Kelly
Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician
EliteCarSeats.com