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Maxi-Cosi Priori Convertible Car Seat - Penguin
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Manufacturer: Dorel Juvenile Group Inc.
Find all by Dorel Juvenile Group Inc.
Model#:
Weight: 19.70lbs
Height: 26" | | Width: 21"
Length: 18.75"
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Average Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
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Retail Price: $199.99
Online Sale Price: $199.99
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Features:- The Maxi-Cosi Convertible Car Seat grows with your child from infant to toddler mode
- It provides the ultimate in comfortable and secure transportation
- Includes EPP foam for energy absorption
- Removable car seat pad features luxurious padding
- Four- position independent recline easily adjusts to desired position after it is installed
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The Maxi-Cosi Priori Convertible Car Seat features the Independent Recline System, which easily adjusts the seat to four positions while the child is in the seat. Harness holders keep straps out of the way, vehicle seat belt locks ease installation, and a removable, plush seat pad keeps children comfortable on long rides. Like the Mico Infant Car Seat, the Priori features energy absorbing EPP foam. The Priori Convertible Car Seat is appropriate for children 5 to 35 lbs. and 19" to 36" in height (rear-facing, for newborns to approximately one year old), and 22 to 40 lbs. and 34" to 43" in height (forward-facing, for children approximately one to four years old. Features: - Independent Recline System lets you recline the car seat while installed
- Four independent recline positions are adjustable while your child's in the car seat
- Side Impact Protection with energy absorbing foam
- Harness holders keep harness straps out of the way
- Easy to install with 3-point seat belt and push button LATCH
- Rear-facing 5 to 35 lbs. and 19" to 36" in height
- Forward-facing 22 to 40 lbs. and 34" to 43" in height
User Submitted Maxi-Cosi Priori Convertible Car Seat - Penguin Reviews
November 10, 2008
Love this seat!
We have a sports car and this car seats fits perfectly. It is not as bulky as other car seats and the sleek design is so stylish. It feels stong and sturdy and my son loves it.
October 26, 2008
Looks great, but hard to buckle!
I purchased this carseat after agonizing for weeks and reading all good and bad reviews. I also considered the Britax Marathon and Roundabout but ended up going with the Maxi Cosi in the Chili Pepper color.
The Pros:
The seat looks really nice. The color is definitely girly pink but I loved that for my little girl. The fabic is soft enough, and fairly plush.
I also like that you able to recline the seat while your child is in it however it did not recline as far as I expected it to, it was enough to allow for more comfortable napping. I have not used this feature yet as my daughter is still rear facing (and the upright to fully reclined feature is only used forward facing).
I did not find that it was all that difficult to adjust the strap height or to install it in the car. Reading the instructions was helpful and I probably could not have done it without them.
The cons:
I have found that it is difficult to tighten the straps once my child is seated. I'm hoping that as the seat gets more "broken in" it will get easier. It takes a lot of pulling and adjusting the chest clip. It never seems to get as tight as her infant seat did.
The biggest con is definitely the buckle. It takes just about all my strength and sometimes more than one try to unbuckle this thing!! My thumbs actually hurt after a day of practicing a few times. I discovered that if you put one thumb over the other and press with all your might you can dislodge those things, but it's not easy. It almost makes me miss my Snug Ride! I guess the positive side of it is that I don't have to worry about my baby releasing herself and getting loose in my backseat.
I have had some second thoughts about purchasing this seat and probably would have gone with the Marathon if I had a chance to do it over again. In all it is a very nice looking seat but the buckle is frustrating and it takes a little more effort to make sure the harness is adjusted tighly.
October 12, 2008
love it, but the straps are too short!
We switched to this car seat when my son was 6 months and already 22 lbs (when he outgrew his Maxi Cosi infant seat, which I also loved). I love it. It looks nice, reclines nicely, seems comfortable for my son. Seems safe and secure. But he is now almost a year, and almost 30 lbs and over 30 inches tall and the straps are nearly too short for him. I think I can squeeze another month out of this seat before needing to change. And I really don't want to. I want to keep this seat until he reaches 40 lbs and reaches the top slots of the harness (we have one left to go). So... Sadly, I would suggest buying something else.
August 3, 2008
Better than my Britax...
I bought the Maxi Cosi as a secondary seat for my husbands vehicle. I already had a Britax Marathon which I was pretty pleased with. I ended up putting the Maxi Cosi in my car and am using the Britax as the secondary seat because I liked the MC so much. I have a VERY difficult car baby on my hands. At 15 months he has NEVER fallen asleep in the car - even as a tiny baby he would wail whenever we were in the car for more than 15 minutes. I have had the MC for three weeks and he has fallen asleep in it twice now on the 10 minute trip from the grocery store. The recline feature is my favorite and whenever I see him start to look drowsy I lay him back and off to dreamland he goes! It is such a relief to know we could do a longer trip now and he is comfortable enough to sleep. The only negative thing about the seat so far is that the buckle is very difficult to depress. I sometimes have to try multiple times or use both hands to push it hard enough to get it to let go. Although, with the Britax my son had also unbuckled himself a few times so while it is a pain to try to unlatch this one it might be better than having one that is so easy.
June 3, 2008
There are better options
The Priori is an ok seat. The construction and design are both good. The seat cover is well-made and nicely cushioned. The seat makes good use of EPS foam in the head area. And the independent recline is a nice feature. We returned our seat, though, because although this is a good car seat, there are better car seats available (namely, the Britax Roundabout, which is now our main car seat for our 8 month old).
When we compared the Priori to the Roundabout, we found that the Priori has a lot of minor but still irritating deficiencies. Here's what we didn't like about the Priori: (a) the crotch buckle doesn't release smoothly, (b) the shoulder straps seem too narrow and appear to squash my son's neck (especially around the shoulder strap pads), (c) the recline adjustor's main component is a cheap-looking spring (exactly like a spring you would expect to find on a Cosco or Safety 1st seat), (d) the plastic seat frame is black and thus will get hot (we live in Atlanta), (e) out of the box, the plastic base had an ugly white stretch mark, which can be a sign of cheap plastic, (f) the seat doesn't come with a level (neither does the Roundabout), (g) the seat is not designed to use its top tether in the rear-facing position, (h) the seat was manufactured eight months ago (that's a long time when you consider these car seats "expire" in five years), (i) the seat doesn't clearly state where it was made, (j) the warning label that is sewn into the cover is paper not cloth, (k) the seat was made on a Saturday (September 22, 2007) (how good can a car seat made on a weekend be?), and (l) the Priori's straps are not as silky smooth as the Roundabout's straps.
In sum, the Priori is a good but not excellent car seat. If you can find one reasonably priced, it might be a good secondary car seat for your child. But with gas prices where they are now, I'm pretty sure that my driving volume won't be high enough anymore to necessitate anything but a primary car seat. If gas prices drop or if I'm wrong about needing a secondary seat, I will probably buy a reasonably priced Graco or splurge on another Roundabout.
June 2, 2008
Excellent baby seat (but there is one downside)
I raed the reviews of this seat and there is not much more to say about its quality. I disagree with the reviewer that said it was hard to secure. All baby seats are hard to secure, so in that regard this seat is no different.
The one downside to this seat is I think we will have to replace it sooner than some other models as its only rated up to 40 lbs.
Still this seat has gone in all my cars, on an airline, and everywhere in between. So it rocks!
April 25, 2008
great option for a medium sized seat
we bought this seat after the recaro signo proved far too large for our subaru outback. while this seat only goes to 40 lbs, i'll take that as a solution for now and be happy that i can see out my rearview mirror. the seat is comfortable and my 13 month old seems to like it a lot. others have complained about the difficulty with changing the height of the straps, but i found it easy. overall the seat does not seem as plush as her peg perego infant seat, but it feel safe and fits our car well.
February 28, 2008
Shoulder Straps TOO SHORT!
I really liked this carseat when I first started using it, last summer, when I had a 7 month old in lightweight clothing. Now that she's 15 months and has been wearing sweaters and winter coats, the main fault of this carseat is now VERY apparent: the shoulder harness straps are FAR TOO SHORT for kids living in cold climates! It's a struggle to get her little arms in and out from the straps with all the winter clothing in the way. It will only get tighter as I have to reposition the straps to the next higher "hole" as she grows. A super carseat in regards to safety, strap holders, recline, LATCH hookup, etc. Just be wary if you'll be using it in a cold climate... I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to friends here in Minneapolis.
I definitely prefer my Graco ComfortSport with the GracoPedic Foam over this one; the straps are extra long and my daughter seems to like it just as much as the Maxi-Cosi, and I bought it for $[...]instead of $[...].
February 6, 2008
LOVE it LOVE it LOVE it.....
We were excited to use the seat right away and even did an immediate test drive! Not only is it rated super safe, but our daughter is very compfy and can handle longer car rides. Yea!! We chose the penguin color so it would go with our black leather interior (vavavoom! looks great!). Although we had concerns about its size, it fits nicely in our PT Cruiser with room to spare. We love love love the easy recline, as it's a must have for when she conks out due to such a cozy seat. FYI..I did extensive research prior to making our decision and was quite surprised at the negative comments I had read on these seats. We haven't had any problems with the buckles, bulkiness, fabric etc....
December 18, 2007
Excellent styling, very safe, and overall, a good buy
I really would love to give this seat a 5-star review, but there are some negatives that weigh enough in my mind that I have to rate the seat a 4.
First, I think this seat is a good buy for the money. For $200, you get a 4-position recline, EPS foam padded sides to make the seat comfy, nice material and styling that is easier to clean than the material on the Britax seats, and a cup holder. My son has fallen asleep in the seat and in 5 minutes was so deep asleep, he didn't budge even if we slammed the car door to try to wake him up. He had stopped falling asleep in his infant seat a long time ago. I love the Euro styling. I actually got the "Night Owl" color, but decided to post here to consolidate the reviews. The seat matches the interior of our Civic Hybrid almost to a T! While the seat doesn't go up to the monster 65lbs of some other convertibles, our son is rather light for his age and we have a small car. We can upgrade to a booster seat later and 45 lbs is a decent weight limit. If he continues being in the 3rd percentile for weight, he won't reach 45 lbs until he's 7 or 8. The little plastic hooks on the side are nice for keeping the straps out of the way while getting the child settled into the seat.
For the cons, yes, the seat is a pain to install. The diagrams in the instruction manual are only semi-clear as to where you store the latch straps if you need to use the lap/shoulder belt for installation. Once you get past that part, actually getting the carseat installed only takes about 5 minutes. So perhaps this con is more about the instruction manual, which is only in English, by the way. Nowadays, many manuals have Spanish also, this product does not. Read the instructions very carefully about how to use the locking clip, etc. When I actually followed the instructions, it was easy to secure. So if you like to skip instructions and just expect it to install like a breeze, this seat might not be for you.
I commented on another review that the buckle didn't seem larger than the buckles I've seen on Britax seats. I don't have a Britax or use one myself, but I've helped my friend unload her kids plenty of times and they have Britax seats. I think the buckles are a pain in general. I'm not particularly fond of the pads that go around the straps to protect the neck. My son always looks like he's getting a bit squished. I have to say that my son is very secure when strapped in. He can't really wiggle around much at all. He was very good at lifting up his torso to look around in his infant seat. There is a little padding/cover for the buckle you have to contend with while buckling. If you don't keep the material out of the way, you won't be able to buckle. Sometimes it gets folded in, and it interferes with buckling.
Overall, I think my son is comfortable in the seat. I think he is safe, and I think the seat is attractive. So I am satisfied enough. With a bit of practice, I can undo the buckle easily now. I just have to have no shame about jamming my hands down my babe's crotch to reach around the buckle. I like the recline features, and I think it was a well-thought out product. Maybe the instruction manual could be better. The installation is so-so, as long as you read the manual...if you can.
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