Maxi-Cosi Priori Convertible Car Seat, Phantom

Comment: I am very happy with the seat. My son is 3,5 years old and 41 lb now. He still in the seat but it is summer, we are looking for the high back booster now.
The only negative I have is that it is pain to remove the fabric for wash. I could not put it back and had to ask for my husband's help.
Love sleeping position on this car seat. My husband has other car seat that my coworker gave me for fee and I have to seat in the back with my son if he falls asleep because I have to help to support his head.

Comment: I, like a lot of others on here, was smitten with the cute color choices for this seat from the get go. I bought the orange/turquoise/brown color because my car is burnt orange. I did a bunch of research and this seemed to be a really great quality car seat, along with the cute factor. I purchased this seat last spring. Now, not even a year and a half later, the mechanism that secures the straps when you tighten them has apparently worn out. I tighten the straps and then pull on them at my son's shoulders and they pull right back out. For a couple months, after tightening the straps, if I would push on the button, it would lock into place but now it won't even do that. I don't think that a $[...] car seat should break after only a year and a half of moderate use. Maybe I just got a lemon because I loved the seat up until that point. My favorite feature is the little clips on either side that you place the straps in after unbuckling your child so when you place them back in, you don't have to hold the straps out of the way, or pull them out from under your child. I'm getting ready to purchase another car seat and I think I'll go with one a little less pricey and so I won't be so ticked if it breaks in a year.

Comment: Maxi-cosi Priori convertible carseat in gipsy-

I read so many reviews on this seat and now that it is here and we're using it I really disagree with a lot of the bad reviews it has gotten. It works great for us. My 2 1/2 yr old fits in it really well, (she is a 50% percentile kid if that helps you get an accurate size for her age) and I am not worried about her growing out of it. It took us maybe 15 minutes to get the straps moved up and have it installed in the car. The latch features on this seat are so much easier to use then the past 3 car seats we've owned. It is very secure in our car and it doesn't take up nearly as much space compared to our last seat, which is a big deal because we have to squeeze 3 kids in the back of our jetta. My daughter usually isnt able to see out the window and the first time she rode in it, it was like she was seeing everything for the first time. She was soo happy looking out the window and telling us everything she saw. And the first time she rode in it she fell asleep and I was so happy to be able to try out the amazing recline feature. The recline feature is a huge bonus and I know it will come in handy with all the trips we take. I know some other reviews talked about the fabric being poorly constructed but I would have to disagree. I know we haven't had it long enough to wash it but the construction looks like high quality and i am not worried about it coming apart. Overall I love this seat and would recommend it to anyone. My husband who is the biggest skeptic loves this seat and suggested we should buy another one for our other car.

Comment: Overall, we've been quite pleased with our Priori. Enough anyway that we purchased a second one for our other car. Figured it's always better to go with something you know, especially when spending this kind of money. Mainly, we purchased the original one because of the high marks it received in the at-the-time latest edition of Baby Bargains.

My criticisms are similar to ones previous mentioned. The crotch pad is a bit hinky to maneuver sometimes...it kinda flops and doesn't stay out the way as much as one would like it to when placing the child in the seat. At first use, I found the buckles/latch incredibly difficult to remove. Pressing that button required a lot of strength, but with time I've noticed this is no longer that much of a problem.

I should add that in my husband's Passat the seat fits beautifully rear-facing, but in my Golf, the seat takes up enough room that the front passenger seat is quite bunched up to the dash. There is definitely not enough room for a person to ride there comfortably or safely. We're just dealing with this though since our hope is to have our son ride rear facing until he reaches the 35" height limit.

But aside from these things, the seat has worked very well for us. I especially like its modern design and the choice of colors, and my son always appears rather comfortable while riding, awake or asleep!

Comment: I had this seat for my first kiddo. It was the first upgrade from a baby car seat and he loved it the instance he was put in it! It is comfortable sturdy and believe me if you have the latch system installing it is a breeze. There are a lot of pros on this seat and I confess a few cons but nothing is perfect.

Lets do the pros first, Ok admit it every one, it is such a stylish and fun looking car seat! It is compact and weighs much less than most of those monstrosities out there (except the combi cocorro new seat) It latches with ease to the latch system. Unlike what some reviews claim, the cover is easily removed and machine wash safe and re-installing it is a breeze. My son loved the recline position and his cute big head never dangles forward like a rag doll! Now last and MOST IMPORTANT it is really really (and I mean REALLY) Safe and sturdy! we actually and sadly put it to the test! We had a BMW 3 series and got rear ended (we were at full stop at a stop sign) by a Ford F450 truck going at 45 miles per hours (and he never stopped! yes an F450, didnt know they made 450's!)but thanks to the wonderful german engeneering and the amazing Maxi-Cozi the car was polvorized but my son got out with not even a scratch (obviously he was in the back seat). SO to answer every parent's main question YES IT IS VERY SAFE AND STURDY!

Cons; I have to say this is frustrating and the only reason I did not give it a five, the belt buckle is very short, dont know why they made it this way. It gets tricky to get your child in the seat with the winter gear on, honestly in summer it is no problem at all. ANother con, but really not a big of a deal, the blets twist a lot.

So in a nut shell,
pros: safe, sturdy, washable, compact, reclining and comfy, cool colors
Cons: short bottom buckle, magicly twisting belts

I do recomend it and I am actually buying a new one too! (you have got to change car seats after a major crash)