When it comes to choosing the right car seat for your taxi, it can be difficult to know where to start! A simple google search for car seats reveals over 120’000 results in 0.02 seconds, which doesn’t do much to dispel confusion. But never fear – we’re here to help. We’ve put our team of brilliant researchers to work and having poured over the many car seats currently on the market, we’ve summarized the best car seats for taxis. So, sit back, relax, and let us talk you through the best products available.
Choosing the best car seats is essential for those in both the driving seat and the back seat of a taxi. For parents and guardians, it’s critical to know that your children are going to be both safe and comfortable. Ensuring their safety is actually one of the major reasons that parents and guardians are more likely to choose a taxi over public transportation. For taxi drivers, it’s critical to know that all of your passengers (be they big or small) are going to be comfortable and safe. It’s a core part of your business to ensure your passengers’ safety, in addition to wanting their journeys to be as comfortable as possible! For drivers, you also want to be certain that the car seat you’re investing in has all of the key features that passengers will need, and that it’s going to be able to go the distance! In this article, we’re going to guide you through three of the best car seats for taxis that our research has revealed; the Graco Extend2Fit, Evenflo Maestro, and Britax Highpoint Belt-Positioning Booster Seat. We’ve selected these three car seats according to the age range that can be served, their easiness to install, easiness to clean, and of course, safety features.
Evenflo Maestro Review | £
Features
The Maestro measures 20.5 x 19 x 27 inches, which makes it perfect for children weighing 22 to 110 pounds. The actual car seat itself weighs 14.1 pounds, making it one of the most light-weight car seats on the market! It’s forward facing and has four shoulder harnesses that meet in a central fastening with the two crotch straps. These harness fastenings can be converted into a belt fastening for older children. The design of the seat guides the harness fastening around the child’s shoulder, allowing for a perfect fit – and maximum safety. The seat also comes with a simple LATCH installation system, which uses a simple but strong tether system. Evenflo are an established and trusted brand, with almost a century of expertise.
Review
Pros
- Its innovative design allows it to accommodate its passenger as they grow, making it a favourite among parents
- Customizable to fit child’s shoulder exactly, allowing for maximum protection
- Features cup holders with flexible bands, which helps keep precious snacks secure while you’re on the move!
- Selected as an Amazon’s Choice
- Accredited as a “Best Bet” by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
- Tested to withstand approximately two times the force of the Federal Crash Test Standard
- High value for cost
- Available in a range of different colours
Cons
- Cleaning the seat isn’t straightforward. The seat pad is machine washable, but the child restraint itself cannot be submerged in water and must be wiped clean with a cloth and then left to air dry.
- Only intended for children in the two to five age range, which may not cover the needs of all of your passengers
- Design doesn’t appear to be as sturdy as higher-price seats, although the seat does demonstrate an excellent safety record
- Reviews indicate that straps are sometimes difficult to adjust
- No accessories currently available
Rating
Age range that can be served: 4/5
Installation: 4/5
Easiness to clean: 3/5
Safety features: 4/5
Overall: 15/20
Graco Extend2Fit Review | ££
Features
Graco’s Extend2Fit Convertible Car Seat measures 22.1 x 19.2 x 25.2 inches, which makes it perfect for smaller vehicles as well as larger ones. Its breathable fabric allows for good temperature control on hot days, and it has a rear facing design that’s idea for younger children. It has adjustable shoulder pads, alongside body inserts for infants to ensure maximum safety. It also features 6 different reclining positions, all of which can be used in a rear facing position. The car seat itself weighs almost 24 pounds, and the harness features have the Simply Safe Adjust feature, which allows you to adjust them to accommodate for children of different sizes, and also feature the LATCH installation system.
Review
Pros
- Breathable fabric, allowing for excellent temperature control, especially for hotter days
- Flexible design allows for adjustment to child’s specific size, including removable shoulder pads which are particularly helpful for infants
- Cupholders, well positioned to hold delicious treats!
- Provides an extra 5 inches of leg room thanks to a handy extension panel. This allows for a child to ride rear-facing up to five years of age, which is recommended by the American Academy of Paediatrics
- An Amazon top choice and the number one best-selling car seat for infants
- The minimum weight recommended is 5 pounds, which means that it can be used from birth!
- Possible to move the seat into a forward-facing position for older children
- Excellent safety record
- Popular accessories include a baby car mirror
Cons
- As the Graco is only designed to support children that weigh up to 60 pounds, it covers a smaller age-range than some of the other car seats on the market, such as the Maestro, as children over four would probably not meet the requirements!
- The warning labels are located on the cushions, and due to the nature of the material they are made of, heat up when they’re placed in direct sunlight for a long time. This has the potential to be very uncomfortable for the child riding in the seat
- Not machine washable; would have to be hand-wiped down
Rating
Age range that can be served: 3/5
Installation: 4/5
Easiness to clean: 3/5
Safety features: 4/5
Overall: 13/20
Britax Highpoint Seat Review ££
Features
Brittax is a highly trusted brand in the world of child transportation, with more than twenty years of experience. The Highpoint seat is designed to accommodate slightly older children who weigh from 40 to 120 pounds. It weighs 16 pounds, making it easily moveable, and looks gorgeous in its rich mulberry tones! As the seat is designed for older children, it’s forward-facing, but still features three layers of side impact protection, featuring external impact cushions for extra safety. The spacious design also allows for adjustment to the child’s specific dimensions, as well as a 10-posisition quick adjust head restraint, giving younger passengers lots of ways to get comfortable!
Review
Pros
- Three layers of side impact protection, which incorporate external impact cushions, allowing for maximum safety
- SecureGuard belt positioning clip, which allows for the safest positioning of the lap belt
- The color-coded vehicle belt guide also allows for easy adjustment across the upper thighs, keeping child passengers of many size and shapes as safe as possible
- Reviews indicate that the seat is super easy to install, and it features a simple-to-use tether
- Features two cup holders
- Both cupholders and cushions are machine washable
- The deep mulberry color is sure to turn heads!
- Reclines for added comfort
Cons
- Only appropriate for older children who weigh over 40 pounds. As the seat is not adjustable to accommodate for younger riders, it might not fit all the needs of a busy taxi driver!
- Although the cupholders are machine-washable, the actual cushions are not, which poses a bit of a problem for long-term cleaning!
- The only accessories currently available are seat protectors
Rating
Age range that can be served: 3/5
Installation: 4/5
Easiness to clean: 3/5
Safety features: 4/5
Overall: 13/20
Summary
As an overall solution to the challenges faced by parents and taxi drivers in their search for the best car seat for taxis, the Eventflo Maestro offers the best value for the lowest cost, while also being able to accommodate for the widest range of ages. The Brittax Highpoint and Graco Extend2Fit each offer excellent security but are orientated at very young and slightly older children, each within a smaller range, which makes them a more limiting option for busy taxi drivers who want to be able to secure maximum safety for the widest age range possible. Additionally, neither seat can be machine-washed, which isn’t the most convenient.
Although the Brittax and Graco each have incredible safety features which have received rave reviews from parents, the Eventflo has also been praised by test-safety officials. All of the seats reviewed feature customizable details, although the more expensive seats are able to do this to a greater extent. This means that both the safety and comfort of young passengers in taxis can be adjusted easily and swiftly. With the Eventflo Maestro, both taxi drivers and parents alike can feel comfortable knowing that a high-quality car seat has been obtained without sacrificing safety.
