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Radian 80 Folding carseat
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Submit a Review
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Average Rating based on
1
Review
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Overall Grade
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(8.00)
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Compared to averages for similar items
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Overall Grade
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(9.20)
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Last Update:
December
29, 2009
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Displaying Reviews:
1 - 1
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(Review ID: 1604)
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8 of
8 people found the following review helpful:
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Great Seat but a few flaws, February 13, 2008
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Reviewer: uscgmoose from Seattle, WA
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uscgmoose
saw things this way
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Overall Grade
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(8) |
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Pros:
Sturdy & Folding Seat that can grow with your kid
Cons:
Very tall back and straps are very hard to tighten
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We ordered our Radian80 online from Elitecarseats (which I recommend by the way). The seat arrived promptly, as advertised, and in good condition. I chose this seat because I already have a Britex Diplomat for our car which we generally like, but I wanted a seat that is different for our minivan since we had more room to play with. Primarily I wanted a seat that goes to a larger weight so our daughter can have an option when she outgrows the Diplomat. I also like the fact that the Sunshine Kids website (as well as elitecarseats) has a good video that shows you the benefits of the seat. In general, I am happy with the seat, but there are some issues:PROS:
This seats folds up compactly as advertised and comes with a strap for carrying it.
It is very solid, and feels like it will protect my child.
It installed easily (in rear facing mode) with much less effort than my Britex.
The straps really don’t twist and the chest clip is huge/sturdy and easy to use
Previous problems with short crotch straps have been solved with 3 crotch slots to choose from and you can buy an extra long strap from Sunshine Kids if your child needs it.
You can easily buy new covers for the seat if yours gets too gross over time.
There are several accessories which are nice options, like a carrying bag if you travel a lot.
The seat has a handy emergency card that you can fill out with your child’s info so in the event of an accident, the paramedics/hospital will know how to get your kid’s medical records, etc. A simple feature but it demonstrates how much thought went into this seat.
The seat has a low profile when installed forward facing. It doesn’t have a huge base, which means you can fit three seats across a bench seat and it looks more like a booster seat for bigger kids. We haven’t crossed that bridge yet and ours is installed rear facing, but the seat has a nice compact look when forward facing.
The seat has a tether that can be used both forward and rear facing. As a result, this seat is SOLID when installed. It barely wiggles when you push on it in any direction, which gives me a good feeling.CONS:
This seat is heavy. That’s the price you pay for sturdy. I’m a relatively big guy, so I don’t have a problem with weight. Since the seat folds up small, I’d prefer compact and heavy over light and awkward.
This seat is huge! I’m not kidding and don’t be fooled. This seat is really tall. I have it installed rear facing in a 2007 Honda Odyssey Touring Minivan with the middle row captain’s seat on the passenger side, installed in the middle position. That means the seat is mostly in the middle of the van, but slightly offset towards the passenger side. In this position, I have to have the front passenger seat moved up slightly and I still have to pull the front head rest up all the way to prevent the Radian from hitting it. My dad (whose 5’11�) rode with me in the front passenger seat the other day and said he felt his seat was far enough forward to become uncomfortable for him. This is happening in a somewhat large kid-hauling minivan! So, that means that if you are planning on installing this in your Ford Focus in rear facing mode, you might want to consider the shorter Radian 65. I can’t say that the goddess of car seat nirvana won’t make things work out just right so you can fit this in your sedan, but I wouldn’t count on it.
This is the biggie! The straps are extremely hard to tighten the last little bit. Some reviews I’ve read on the seat postulate that it’s because the straps rub on the automobile seat. I’ve examined the seat closely and what’s happening is the metal clip where the shoulder straps join to the tensioning strap gets caught up in the sharp turn between the back of the seat and the bottom. The straps tighten fine until the clip reaches that curve and then they just won’t get any tighter. The position of the tensioning strap won’t allow you to get a good enough purchase to pull the clip around the bend. As I said earlier, I’m a relatively strong guy and the first time I tried to latch her in, I pulled on the strap so hard that I actually drew blood on my hands from gripping the strap. Even then it wasn’t tight enough (I’m not talking about trying to strap my daughter in for a space shuttle launch, just the normal snug fit recommended). For the interim, I solved the problem by just pushing on the metal clip from behind the seat as I pull on the strap. It tightens nicely and it is easy to do. Unfortunately, this is only possible because she’s in the rear facing position, so I can reach the back of the seat. When we switch to forward facing, I’m holding out hope that she’ll be big enough that the metal clip won’t need to make that bend around the bottom of the seat to tighten the straps. If that doesn’t happen, I really have no idea how you could get the straps on this seat tight enough to be safe.In general, I recommend this seat and I’m happy with it. I don’t know if I will still be able to say that if the strap issue gets worse in the forward facing position. I certainly hope Sunshine Kids listens to parent reviews and addresses this in short order! It seems they have been responsive to feedback in the past since they appear to have fixed the crotch strap problems some have had.
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