Reviews for RECARO Young Sport toddler car seat

My husband and I spent months looking at and doing research on various car seats for our then 1 year old. We finally decided on the Recaro Young Sport model and could not be happier. It has all the safety features that we were looking for (even the side impact protection system that I was afraid my son would find restraining - but then, isn't that the point?) He actually likes to rest his head on the "wings" so that worry went right out the window. This car seat by FAR feels more substantial than any of the other car seats we looked at, the fabric is of outstanding quality and still is machine washable. It has one of the higher 5-point harness weight limits (which was a HUGE selling feature for us). The payoff is looking back at my son grinning from ear to ear in his comfy, new, big-boy car seat. I would definately buy this car seat again - and recommend it to anyone with small children. It is not a convertible car seat - so it can not be placed rear-facing (that would be the only additional selling point - but of course that adds size - something passenger cars don't have a lot of) But if your child is already a year old (AND 20 lbs.) This car seat is a great choice!

I am a safety nut about my daughter's car seats and did alot of research on the internet (and in stores) before settling on this seat. She recently outgrew her Britax Roundabout (also a great seat) and I wanted the seat I purchased next to be her last. Regular booster seats have a minimum weight limit of 30 lbs - my 2-1/2 yr. old daughter isn't there yet plus I still wanted her in a 5 pt. harness. Since Britax doesn't offer a youth seat (with a 5 pt. harness) that converts to a booster I started researching and found this is the safest and most versatile seat offered. As I said, I'm hoping this will be her last seat so it had to meet the height/weight requirements for WI state law for child restraints - this was the only one I could find (minus the bottom only boosters) that did. In any case, she loves her new big girl seat - it is super cushy and the side impact wings don't bother her in the least. My only complaint (and it's minor) is the side impact protection doesn't leave alot of room for big bulky winter coats (with hoods) we need during the winter in the Midwest :o). I love the Recaro Young Sport - the safety it offers my daughter makes it worth every penny.

We searched every local store possible to find a car seat for our 3-year old daughter. She isn't tall enough for a booster so we needed a toddler seat. After looking at the seats in the stores, we were so discouraged because they felt so flimsy and uncomfortable. We also didn't like the triangular buckle used on almost all of them because it pinched her leg a couple of times as we were trying her in them. We wanted a rounded buckle like her Britax Roundabout has. We were hoping not to spend the premium price for another car seat but just couldn't bring ourselves to spend $100+ on something that looks and feels so cheap. We bought the Recaro Young Sport and are very satisfied. It's solid and comfortable. We feel she's very safe and she loves it. The ONLY thing I don't like is the design of the shield that fits behind the buckle. It comes off every time she gets out of the car. Also, the bottom, detachable padding moves when trying to sit her in the seat. I've just taken both off for ease of use and it's still far more padded than any seat we saw in the stores. One note...our daughter is 36" and 30 lbs. She fits fine but I wonder if a husky child would fit in it as well. It seems a bit narrow.

I needed to move my daughter into my son's Britax Marathon (also a great seat) but he wasn't ready for a belt positioning booster. Britax doesn't make one that converts from harness to booster so I started Googling. I researched things to death and this seat has exceeded my expectations. My main concern was comfort since all of them must meet certain safety standards. This seat exceeds safety standards and is incredibly comfortable. I had looked at 'other retail stores' to test comfort of other brands and they are all awful! When you adjust the height of the backrest on some of them the pad ends up in the middle of the child's back or there just isn't any cushioning in the seat. Everything seemed flawed to me in some way. I ordered the Recaro based on reviews and am thrilled with it! My concern was the SIP headrest because it comes out so far that I thought my son would be annoyed that he couldn't see. He doesn't seem to mind at all and has never once made an issue of it. He actually looks really comfortable now when he falls asleep because his head isn't all sideways. The way I figure with carseats is this: If a child must be secured VERY snugly in a seat to be safe, it should be the most comfortable seat they can sit in, right? When we ride for long distances we have the luxury of squirming and shifting, kids don't. So when I see those carseats with hardly any padding, I can't imagine wanting to be in the car very long if I was a toddler. This was truly a great purchase and I have NO REGRETS WHATSOEVER. I wouldn't change anything about it.

When my daughter first got it, she's wake up in the carseat after a drive and start to sing :) Everything just works so PERFECT. We had to purchase a cheap $50 walmart seat to fly with us once and even my daughter noticed a difference. It was ALWAYS a battle to get her in the cheapy. Not with her Recaro though.

Our son loves his new car seat. It is so easy to get him in and out...even when he's asleep! We were impressed with the reported safety features. Hopefully we will never have to put them to the test. We feel we made the right selection for overall comfort and safety. So far it has been worth the investment.

We got this seat (in Midnight Desert) for our almost-three-year-old son, who is about 40" tall and 40 lbs, and had outgrown his Britax Roundabout but was not quite ready for a belt-positioning booster. The seat looks nice and feels very sturdy, unlike some of the less expensive seats that are out there. We are still using it with the harness (have not yet converted it to the booster) and he is very comfortable. He is not a car sleeper at all, and so I was concerned about the SIP head wings, but he is big enough that actually they do not block his view out of the car windows. The seat also fits very well in both of our cars (a 2002 Passat Sedan and a 2004 Passat Wagon) and it is easy to move the seat from car to car whether you use the LATCH system or the seatbelt to secure it. I was very happy with the service from EliteCarSeats when we received the carseat the next day after I placed the order. The only downside so far is I have found that the clips on the harness are not quite as easy to maneuver as the harness on the Roundabout, only because you have to continue to hold the releases down while you remove the chest clip or the two pieces on the belt (instead of pressing the release and having the pieces pop out as they do on the Roundabout). Overall, we are very satisfied with this seat and recommend it highly, especially for a child who is nearly, but perhaps not quite, ready for a booster seat.

I bought this car seat for my first grandchild who was transitioning from an infant seat. She is extremely fair and all other seats left marks on her neck. She just relaxes into the padded harness and seems to really like this seat. It also provides excellent vision through the front window - and the navi system entrances her at 15 months!

I believe this will be the last "special" seat that she will need. It provides a very secure place for her to sit with little to no movement in our vehicles with the latch system. I am very satisfied with my purchase and would recommend it to others with no reservations.

Plus the men in my family were impressed that I was purchasing a Recaro seat!