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Review of Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat

NB: Alicia was sent the car seat in order to review but all views and opinions are her own.

What is it?

A versatile child car seat with isofix that will carry children from birth to 18kg rear facing and from 9kg to 36kg forward facing.

Could you use this car seat on the plane? Why not check out this Guide to airline approved car seats.

Facts – Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat

Cost: RRP £250

• Group 0+/1/2/3 car seat
• Suitable rearward facing from birth to 18kg/4 years (approx.)
• Suitable forward facing from 9kg to 36kg/12 years (approx.)

Features of the Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat

• 5 recline positions: 2 rear facing and 4 forward facing for tilt options at every age
• Side impact protection
• Guard Surround Safety™ panels provide extra side protection and can be individually activated for extra room in vehicle
• Reinforced steel inner seat shell
• AutoAdjust™ side wings widen as headrest is raised to accommodate growing children
• One-hand, 10 position height adjustable headrest
• Grow Together™ multi-height headrest and harness system adjusts simultaneously and require no re-threading of the harness.

Link: www.joiebaby.com/product/every-stage-fx

What we thought of the Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat

I reviewed a Joie every stage™ fx LFC (– the LFC simply means that the seat is branded in Liverpool Football Club colours and that proceeds from the sales go to the charity, the Liverpool Foundation which provides opportunities for children and young people.)

We had previously used a Joie Stages car seat that is similar in many ways and so we were pretty familiar with the design and junctions.

The Joie Every stages fx has been mostly used to transport our 3-year-old in the rear facing position although to be fair he is probably getting close to the 18kg limit and will soon need to use it in the forward facing position. However, the beauty of this seat means that it has also been used to transport our youngest who is under 1 years old.

The seat is very well padded and our 3-year-old commented that it was “very comfortable” when he first got into it after using the “Stages” seat previously. There is a removable padded area that goes around the hips and bottom which helps with customising a good fit for whatever size of child you have. We did not make use of the isofix fittings because that is only for use in the forward-facing position only. The seat in the rear facing position was fairy easy to install and felt very secure when fully installed (– much more solid than the “Stages” seat had felt).  The buckle and harness were very easy to adjust, and the harness was reasonably easy to tighten but still required a fairly firm pull to get it really tight around the child. The head rest is very simple to adjust and can be done easily with one free hand. Our 3-year-old has been very happy travelling around in this car seat (for more info on travelling with car seats click here) and it supports the child in a good position when they want to have a sleep. The fabric covering the seat as well as the overall build quality is tough and robust as you would expect if you were wanting to have a single seat for 12 years!

We have been using the seat for the best part of 4 months and it has done a great job at safely, securely and comfortably transporting our eldest around in the back of “Dad’s van”.

We have not had the opportunity to use it in the forward-facing position although I would imagine that the isofix fixings would make it even easier to use.

The Good Points of the Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat:

Comfortable with plenty of padding.

Robust and strong construction.

You can use it from birth to 12 years old (approx.)

Side impact protectors.

Steep recline means sleepy children!

The Bad Points of the Joie Every Stage Group 0+/1/2/3 Car Seat

The seat in the rear facing position is installed with the seat belt and you have to lift the child over the belt to get them in.

You need a fairly long seat belt to be able to install the seat.

The seat is quite heavy and bulky, making it cumbersome to move about if transferring it from one vehicle to another.

Tightening the harness requires a fair bit of strength.

Overall thoughts

We have generally been pleased with the seat in the rear facing position and our son is pretty adept at climbing into it himself, so we don’t tend to have the issue of trying to lift him in. It has stood up well to wear and tear over the time we have used it and our eldest has found it comfortable.