I have been really concerned that my sister might have to walk home from the Birthing Center with her new baby. My baby sis has been getting rounder and rounder, and I had seen no signs of baby gear around her house. I thought she was thinking that babies came with all those extras.

Since I’m going to be a first-time aunt and since I love to do research, I volunteered to be the official baby car seat buyer. I have two boys, so I’ve had a lot of experience with car seats and have owned horrible one as well as three really good ones.

Infant vs. Infant to Toddler Seat or System.

A new baby is small. This may seem like something that everyone would know, but you don’t really realize just how small until you pick your first newborn up. I still remember thinking that I would have to clean between Caleb’s little tiny toes with dental floss.

Your two options are Infant Car Seats and Infant-to-Toddler Car Seats. The infant seat is small and varies in terms of top weight, but generally the max is no more than 20 lbs. The Infant-to-Toddler is large and bulky but will go from around 6 lbs up to 35 or so. Weights do vary by manufacturer.

Infant-to-Toddler is more cost effective, but most parents like the small size and other newborn centered features on the infant designed model. So, if you can afford the infant model (or can get that for a gift), then I would say that the Infant seat is the way to go.

Infant Standard vs. Infant Travel System.

If you decide to splurge on the Infant Car Seat, then you’ll need to decide whether you want to get the seat or the Travel System, which is a combination of the Infant Car Seat and a Stroller.

Again, cost comes into play. The Infant Seat is lower priced than the System. You can get a decent Infant Car Seat for around $50 while the System price is $150 and up.

Do keep in mind that you will almost certainly want a stroller too and factor that into your decision. While you’ll pay slightly more in most cases for the System vs. separate pieces, you will have more conveniences with a System. The pieces are made to work together.

Working the System.

You have three main pieces with a Travel System. You have a car seat base, the car seat, and the stroller.

The base is anchored in the back seat of the car and stays there. The car seat latches into the base for driving and then can be lifted out and used as a carrier or placed securely in the stroller when you arrive. The stroller can be used with the infant seat or as a traditional stroller without the infant carrier seat.

Another thing to consider is that while the Infant Seat will only be useful for up to a year or 20 lbs, the stroller will carry you through to the umbrella stroller years. Most toddlers graduate to an umbrella stroller around age 2.


Why I went with the Evenflo On the Go Travel System.

There are a variety of Travel Systems on the market. Most of the big name baby companies have some version of a seat/stroller combination.

The big drawing card for the Evenflo System is the price. It runs about $150 while the average cost for most brands would be $200.

Of course, cost doesn’t mean anything if the system is not safe. The 2001 models are rated high though I would suggest watching for recalls. Many baby items are recalled over time, so it is a good idea to watch the news or the home page for your product. Evenflo has a good site at www.evenflo.com.

Speaking of Safety.

If you do have an older model of the Evenflo On the Go or if you buy second hand, then LISTEN UP! You need to check out these notices about the older Systems.


Pre 1988 Models—The handle on your System may not lock in. The seat can lunge forward and dump your baby out. You need to get a repair kit for this problem. See the following review.

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml98/98076.html

Pre 2000 Models—The pins in the base can get bent. This means that the car seat is not latched in tight. The seat could come out in a car accident. Again, you can get a repair kit for this and correct the problem. See this link.

http://www.evenflo.com/sn/index.phtml

Both of the links provide pictures so that you can look at your Travel System and see if it matches. Even if you bought recently, you may have an older model. PLEASE CHECK!

One other note I would make about older models in the Evenflo line is that most of them have the 3-point harness. Five point is considered much safer. You can’t upgrade the harness construction.

Now I have the Evenflo System!

I read about car seats for about a month. Epinions is a great place for information on car seats. Another good place to check is at the American Pediatric Association page. They rate and list the safe models.

After talking to my sister who is getting more pregnant and cranky by the day, she decided that she wanted an Infant to Toddler. I bought the Fisher Price Safe Embrace, which is a solid seat but very large and bulky.

Then . . . I stopped by Good Will and there was a new model used Evenflo On My Way Travel System. Although the stroller was at the back of the store and the seat up front, I knew what I had found. For $16 ($12 on the stroller and $4 on the infant seat with base), my sister would have the Evenflo! This was perfect, since she wanted a car seat for her car too and had been looking around.

ONE WORD OF WARNING—Be careful with used baby items like car seats. A seat involved in a wreck should be thrown out. In this case, I could see through all that dirt that this was a new seat and stroller. In fact, it looked like it had been given to Good Will because it got baby goo on it.

The Clean Up.

My sister has had problems with morning sickness (all day) and is probably days or minutes from delivery, so I did not think that my great find would look very special in the shape it was in. I could, however, tell that the yucky stuff was surface only. This is almost certainly why the System had not sold.

I consigned a lot when my boys were little (and we desperately needed the extra cash). Clean up made all the difference, so I learned to be an expert at getting the boys things in top shape for resale. The local shops were always thrilled when I brought in my things to consign. What a claim to fame huh?

Anyway, I would note that the Evenflo is very easy to clean up.

How to Clean A Baby System.

First take everything apart. With some models you need a screwdriver, but this one is hands only. The only tricky part was getting the car seat cover off. You go to the back of the seat and take out the metal clip. Then you thread the straps including the metal and plastic through one strap hole. It looks like it won’t go through, but the pieces fit exactly through the strap holes.

Put all the cloth pieces in the washing machine and put the plastic parts in the bathtub. You may need to spot clean the cloth in some places prior to washing. A scrub brush really helps a lot on the plastic parts.

I used Tide with no additives for the cloth and then line dried. For the plastic I used a baby shampoo.

The System looks almost brand new. The only marks on the set are where the car seat rubs against the base. That has a little black mark. I tried finger nail polish remover. That got most of it, but I can see a very faint black rub mark. I doubt anyone else would see it though.

The Test Driving.

I must admit that the first test driver for the system was Sugar Cat. I got that seat and stroller looking brand new and had it sitting in the kitchen. I walked in, and Sugar Cat had assumed that I bought him a new bed. He was curled up in the car seat under that little canopy and fast asleep. (I recleaned and hid the System after Sugar finished his nap).

Next the boys and I tried out all the pieces to make double sure that everything was OK.

Here is what we liked.

Everything was easy to figure out and use. The hardest part was adjusting the handle on the car seat, but even Eli could do that (age 8).

The handle on the car seat is great other than the adjusting. It is designed so that you are not holding your hand knuckles forward with the old seat design. This is much easier on the arms and shoulders.

We liked the canopy on the top of the car seat. That will keep the sun out of baby’s eyes.

The stroller was easy to fold up and fit in the trunk of a Toyota Corolla.

The double wheels on the front made for easier and tighter turning than our traditional stroller with only one set of front wheels. Do note that some parents have cited problems with the older models and the wheels.

The little peep window is nice in the top of the stroller canopy. You can lift up to see a child in the traditional stroller position and then close to keep the sun off the baby. This is especially nice since my sister and her husband are very light skinned.

Storage is great. They have a pocket part up high and a lower basket for packages.

Here is what we did not like.

The system is a little heavy. I would hate to carry it very far. Of course, the solution is to open up the stroller and roll everything.

The stroller part does take up most of my trunk room in the Corolla. I probably don’t need to buy so much stuff anyway!

The baby will outgrow the car seat part within a year or 20 lbs. But, my sister does have the Infant to Toddler seat already.

All in All.

I am thrilled to have the Evenflo On My Way System for my sister who is missing church this morning, which is very rare. HUM?

Evenflo is rated high by consumers and is approved in terms of safety. It is also a very handy and convenient system.

The only concerns I would have would be with older models. If you have one or get a hold of one, then do be sure to get the kits and correct the problems.

Ready and Waiting.

The Evenflo System is ready and waiting. I think I better take it on over this afternoon. If my sister heads to the Birthing Center before I get there, she does have the Infant to Toddler set up and ready to go. My first niece or nephew will not have to walk home after all. He or she may be naked though. Maybe I better head to the baby clothing section at the mall.






Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 16 Good Will
Age Range of Child: 0 to 12 Months