Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat, Matrix
by Graco Baby
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List Price: Our Price: $119.95 You Save: $70.04 (37%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat, Matrix
Customer Review: So glad I purchased this seat!
Summary: 5 Stars
Our parked car was hit, so we had to replace my 6yr old's booster. I had been wanting to put him back in a five point harness. He was fine weight wise, but he's such a tall kid his torso height was too much for any other seat.
I was told that the Nautilus allowed for a torso height of 21" so I took a chance and ordered it. I figured if he was too tall for the five point we'd just put it in booster mode.
I was so happy when he tried it out, he's still got just a bit of room to go and might be able to stay in the five point until he's 7yr. He can buckle and unbuckle himself. He's even able to loosen the belts for when he wears a heavy winter coat, then tighten it back up. If you have an escape artist this might be a problem.
The seat is rather heavy, but that I like. I figure it will help it stay in place better. The head wrap is very soft for my son, but hard and feels strong from the outside of it. I feel confident that it will protect his head very well from the back and sides. My son says the seat is very comfortable and we both love the drink holder built into the arm.
I was so please I replaced a perfectly good convertible seat my 3yr old had been using to put him in a Nautilus too. He loves the little cubby holes in the arms. They are perfect for stashing small toys.
I found the LATCH instillation goes much smoother with the Nautilus then with our old seats. Removing it is a lot easier too. Our old seats had LATCH belts that were next to impossible to loosen.
We have not tried it as a booster yet, so I cant comment on that aspect. But from the little assembly I had to do, I think they will be great in that function as well.
They are wider then I had expected, and we did lose some room in the back seat so if you need to three in the back seat these might cause a problem.
Over all I'm VERY please with these seats. All the other Mom's now think I'm a car seat Nazi for putting my six year old back in a five point. But the piece of mind I have is worth a little teasing. ;O)
Customer Review: Comfortable for child, solidly built.
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this because my experience with our other Graco car seat has been great. This is a more deluxe version of our earlier seat but without some important features of the older Graco model.
First and most important, with the older Graco car seat the car's shoulder belt can be easily latched into a firm, solid embrace of the baby's car seat so that there is no play or rocking back and forth or side to side. There is no such latch on this newer model and the car's shoulder/lap belt pendulum-type locking mechanism -- which only engages with a sudden stop -- leaves this properly-installed car seat floppy and loose, and you just have to trust that the lap/shoulder belt will actually engage in case of an accident. In my 2000 Subaru Outback there are no lower latches behind the seat cushions like on newer model cars, only an overhead latch over the rear cargo department. So that does hold the top of the car seat firmly, but I would like to be able to firmly attach the bottom of the seat to the car and cannot.
Also, the baby seat's chest straps do not smoothly adjust like on our earlier model. I have reinstalled them three times on this newer model and cannot get them to operate once the child is strapped in. An inconvenience, because the child has to either pull their arms in very close to their body to get the slightly-too-tight straps in place, or one has to make the straps too long, get the child in, and then reach behind the seat blindly and try to feed the straps through properly to bind it tight and that doesn't work very well, especially when it's twelve degrees and snowing outside.
Finally, there is no easy way to secure any of the three baby straps out of the seat for when you're first placing baby in [so that they aren't sat upon] and you end up having to lift baby this way and that to move the latches and straps out from under her body...a minor quibble but ergonomically shortsighted.
So, a fairly well made seat with fairly inconvenient operability.
Customer Review: Love this carseat!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this seat two weeks ago for my six-year-old and we both love it. She's pretty close to 40 pounds and was about to outgrow her current seat. I'd like her harnessed a little longer in one of our vehicles that has "backseat issues". I was thrilled when this seat came out. I really like Graco products and since this was more of a want than a need, I couldn't justify $300 for some of the other higher-weight-harnessing seats.
Putting it together was a little weird. It was difficult to pop the arm rests in. It's supposed to make a click, but it was a very quiet sound. They must be in right, though, because she puts her weight on them getting in and out and they haven't wiggled.
The strap adjuster took some time to get used to. It has a shield over the release so a child can't loosen the straps. But this also means you can't see it, so you have to feel around for it.
The cupholder is great. It actually holds a real bottle of water rather than just a sippy cup. Big kids use water bottles!
I've installed it in my Camry with the lap/shoulder seatbelt and it went in like a dream. It will eventually be in the Jeep Cherokee. Although I haven't tried it in there, I don't anticipate any problems.
The headrest sticks when you raise and lower it, but it should loosen up and that won't need to be done all that often, anyway.
Be sure to pay attention to the specifics. Children must be one year old and weigh 20 pounds (both, not either/or) to use this seat and it's forward-facing only. Even though you can use it at 20 pounds, I'd recommend leaving your child rear-facing until 30-35 pounds (depending on the seat) in a convertible seat. Not only will your child be much safer, you'll get more use out of the Nautilus. Since the Nautilus expires after six years, if you get it for your one-year-old it'll expire when he's seven and you'll still need another booster. If you get it when he's two or three, it'll expire when he's eight or nine and can go straight into a seatbelt.
Customer Review: 4 year old boy = wild animal!
Summary: 5 Stars
My son is a climber, escape artist, messy and clumsy,, hahaha awful combination, he is also the sweetest little guy in the world and I want him safe. we got this car seat when it first came out. I needed something that would keep my little wild animal in his seat no matter what. Money WAS an issue but then so was safety and I was not about to skimp on the latter.
after reading and reading my husband and i decided that we could afford the nautilus and we have been happy with it ever since.
I have worked as a daycare teacher, nanny and I am a mom of 2. I see a lot of car seats.
My daugher is 6 and I nanny for a one year old, 2 year old and 5 year old. I also have 5 yr old and 6 yr old nephews. ALL of them use this car seat when they are with me. It gets a lot of abuse and its still in great condition. SO easy to clean, takes me maybe 2 min to get all the covers off and toss it in the washer. 5 min to put it back together and get it in the car. Easy to adjust for the different size children I use it for and all of them love it.
we've had this seat for 2 years. we still love this car seat. My son is 4 and I can use the harness with no problems or in a hurry (i live a block from the store) we use the seat belt.
My 6 year old daughter uses this when its just me and her and we are going on a long trip. Two of the families I nanny for have decided to use this car seat after their kids have ridden in my car.
we have a new car and my daughter needed a new car seat so we just ordered the pink daisy nautilus from w a l mart.
please remember to READ the owners manual and make sure the seat fits your car and your child properly. My Nautilus does NOT fit into my sister in laws pathfinder correctly.
the "safest seat" is:
One that FiTs your child
Fits your vehicle
Fits your needs
and
most importantly you will install and use the seat correctly every single time (car-seats.org)
Customer Review: 7 & 5 yr olds SAFE!
Summary: 5 Stars
For the past few weeks or so I have been driving myself and my husband INSANE looking for the best deal on the safest car seats (which is what every mother wants). I had been watching clips online about the importance of a 5 point harness--even for older children. Both my children (she's almost 7 & he's 5) have been out of the 5 point harness since they were each about 4.5 yrs old, but with all the research I've been doing, I decided they had to go back. I spoke to my daughter about the safety this car seat will provide for her fragile little body (at 7 she's an average 48.25" & 55 lbs) and she couldn't wait to get it! My son (44" & 48 lbs) was a little harder to convince (he thought it was for babies), but when I showed him pics of race car drivers and their 5pt gear, he quickly got just as excited! With the Graco Nautilus's ability to hold a child up to 65 lbs(!!) and convert to a booster (when really ready), then to a backless when needed, it was a no brainer for me! I have been Oooing and Ahhing over them and their steel re-enforcement since they arrived. It is absolutely worth every penny for my children's continued safety. Did I mention also how unbelievably comfortable it is?! Even I sat it when it first arrived and didn't want to get out! Both my children have the harness straps on the 3rd slot up so I had to take the extra support out which was expected, after all, they're not babies anymore! The whole thing is also very easy to assemble and install, and the recliner is just as easy to use in the car as it is out. If I could change anything about the Graco Nautilus, I would make the cup holder removable. I do love how it is right in the arm rest, but since I can't have it switch sides, one will always be up against the door (If you will only need one seat, this won't be a problem for you if you sit your child behind the driver). My only regret is that I didn't purchase the seat for each of my children earlier!