To put it simply, a convertible car seat is a safety seat for your child that can be used for many stages of your child’s life. There are four main types of car seats for children’s safety. The infant seat is for infants of course. They are installed rear facing in the vehicle, so the child’s head is pointing towards the front of the car. These seats start out at 4 to 5 pounds and go up as high as 35 to 40 pounds.
The next stage of seat is the five-point harness front facing seat. The car seat is installed front facing in the vehicle, and the child is strapped in to the seat with a five-point harness. The car seat itself is connected to the car with the car’s seat belt, or the LATCH system. The weight range is usually 20 to 40 pounds, although higher weight limit seats are being developed for additional safety.
The child will next move in to a belt positioning booster seat. The purpose of this car seat is to guide the seat belt over the child at the right points. The seat usually has different loops for the car’s seat belt to travel through to get the belt positioned right.
A backless booster is the last stage of car seat your child may need. The main purpose is to raise the child up from the car’s seat to help the seat belt be better positioned on them. The booster seat does not change the natural path of the seat belt though, just positions the child higher so the seat belt aligns with the child in the proper spots.
A child convertible car seat combines two or tree of the single use car seats in to one. One very popular kind of convertible car seat combines the infant seat with the five-point harness seat. The car seat is installed rear facing when the child is an infant, until the rear facing weight limit of the seat. The seat is then installed front facing. A good example of this kind of seat is the Britax marathon 70. These kinds of car seats usually expire in 6 to 8 years. It is possible it is the only seat you will need to buy until your child outgrows it and is ready for a booster seat.