Features:

  • 3-in-1 harness booster helps protect your child, from toddler to youth
  • Front facing car seat harness booster (22 - 65 pound), high back booster (30 - 100 pound), backless booster (40 - 100 pound)
  • Simply Safe Adjust Harness System adjusts the height of your toddler car seat harness and headrest, in one motion, to ensure that your child is always properly secured
  • 3-position recline helps keep your growing child comfy. children should use the built-in harness system for as long as possible until they reach the maximum forward-facing weight or height for their car seat, and after reaching the maximum forward-facing weight and height, that children 4 feet 9 inches tall or under should ride in a belt-positioning booster seat
  • Side-impact tested for occupant retention with built-in 5-point harness system
Awesome & COMFY seat with a great buckle!

We did a LOT of research for our son's seat. On paper many seats look great, but after feeling them in person we were able to narrow it down quickly. For me, it's all about safety (obviously) but also comfort. My little guy hates the car already so an uncomfortable seat is out of the question. This seat has the BEST padding. Many other car seats have a great insert but the padding on the actual seat is very disappointing. This seat is soft (almost like memory foam) on the actual seat and back. The insert is just bonus on top of that. Not to mention the fabric parts are easy to remove and machine washable. Also, many other seats have a "mushy" clip, like it just kind of slides in and out and you really have to push the button down hard while sliding it with your thumb. This harness audibly clicks open and closed, very satisfying and easy to open with one hand. A few reasons we went for the LX vs just the basic Nautilus 65: even better seat padding and the little pockets that hold your seat belts to either side so you can load baby without having to dig the seat belts out from under him, as well as the no-fuss height adjustment. Also, by purchasing an open-box model (which was completely new and perfect in all the packaging) we were able to get the LX for LESS than the basic 65. Lastly, the recline is fantastic. It's not dramatic but it tips the seat back enough so my son is leaning back and his head can rest against the head supports, not fall forward. The seat itself fits great in the middle row of our minivan on one of the captain's seats. It doesn't block the "aisle" or stick out past the seat on any side. We might remove the shoulder strap pads because they are a little cumbersome and make it a little hard to tighten the belt but they just Velcro right off. All materials and details are high quality and well-designed. This seat is perfect for us!

Consumer Reports Top Rated Car Seat

This product was top rated by consumer reports, and the amazon reviews also spoke highly of it, so I bought it. Upon receipt, it appeared to deserve the ratings. With good side impact protection, good head protection, and a comfortable seat that our preschooler liked. That it looks nice and stylish is also a treat. That it can support a child up to 65 pounds in harness mode (expects agree that a full harness car seat is much safer for a child than any other mode) and up to 100 pounds in other modes makes it a product that we'll use for a long time. Its price makes it a great value. The only negative I had was the adjustment of the seat bottom strap buckle. I'm usually quite intuitive on how to do such things, but my intuition was of no benefit when trying to adjust this. Adjustments are done by first removing the single piece from the seat bottom, and re-inserting the metal clip into another slot (there are 3 in total) either further from the seat back or closer to it. After watching a tutorial video, I was finally able to make the adjustment once. Unfortunately, this setting was till a bit to small for my child, and another adjustment to the largest setting was needed. At that point, after 20-30 minutes of effort and re-watching the tutorial all my efforts failed. I called Graco customer service, and suggested that they send me a new buckle strap so I could simply cut this one out with a pair of scissors and replace it. Since they had already received my product registration card, they confirmed my model number, address, etc. They apologized for my difficulty, and expedited an order for the part free of charge. Now that was wonderful customer service! I was about to rate the product 4 starts due to the difficult buckle strap, but the customer service I received warrants a 5 star review.

Talk about growing with them...

When I was in a car accident with my 7 year old (who is now 8), I was forced to replace her car seat. There was never a doubt that I would replace it with the same one I already had--the Graco Nautilus 65 LX. We have had this model of car seat since she was old/big enough to transition from the convertible car seat and we LOVE it. I am a crazy lady with car seat safety, and follow all the recommendations from Graco about when to transition to the next step. Pros: 1. It really grows with them--she made it to the backless booster a bit ago, but she never minded the high back part. In fact, she misses that now because she says there's nowhere to rest her head now. And we had her in the harness at first which she didn't mind. Plus it lasts for 10 years, which means my younger daughter will be able to use it as well. Score. 2. Installation--just like every other car seat you've seen/owned, this one is pretty much the same. Not easy, but not hard. If you did it with a convertible car seat or any other Graco, you've got this. 3. Cleaning--it's actually really easy to clean and has held up to several washings (but it takes a long time to dry IMO) 4. Comfort--my daughter has ridden in other highback boosters and hated how uncomfortable they are. And she LOVES the cup holder and cubby space in the seat as well (except she stores nasty junk in there, so hopefully your kiddo is cleaner than mine!) Cons: 1. The belt positioning clip was a joke at best. She could have (technically) gotten rid of the highback earlier based on height and weight, but she couldn't actually because of where the seat belt in my car sits. We tried the belt positioning clip, but it didn't work. It wasn't a big deal, because the highback kept it in the right place, so we just left it on longer. 2. The base buckle is a TOTAL pain to adjust, but since you don't have to do it that often--not a deal breaker. Just have all your curse words ready and take some deep breaths. But I mean--prepare yourself. It really is as bad as all the reviews say. Overall--I really do love this seat. I love that I wouldn't have had to buy another one if I wasn't in the car accident. I should also mention that this car seat performed VERY well in the accident. The impact from the other driver was on the same side as this car seat, and my daughter had minimal injuries (she was using the highback with the regular seat belt at the time, and was 72 pounds)--while I as the driver was far worse in just my regular seat. Good job, Graco.

Takes 15 minutes to install if you do it right

If it is taking you longer than 15 minutes, then the issue is on you. To move the crotch buckle (which is NOT described in the booklet and should be), you must pull all the fabric up, especially the extra flap, and through the slat so that the silver buckle is completely flat against the seat on the underside. Only then can you slide the buckle gently to the side and start to slip it through the slat, starting with the short side. Do not let any fabric come through as you turn it on its side. If you need a visual, then there are videos on youtube, which is what I did, without spending 2 hours trying to get it on my own. For the latch strap in the car, after you have hooked them up, when you are pulling the strap to tighten the whole thing, you cannot pull straight up because thats not the angle of the buckle. Put your knee into the seat and pull to the right ACROSS the seat to properly tighten it. My seat does not move even an inch. And of course, do the strap and hook on the back. To loosen the shoulder straps, youll need to push down on the tab under the fabric on the front where the pull-belt is (my other one i would pull up so that i could loosen the shoulder straps). Other than that, my son says the seat is comfy (i used the lower back pillow from his old one) and he loves all the space to fit his toys just like his big brother on his.

Best car seat out there!

I bought two of these babies! One for both of my kids now age 7 and almost 4 these are big but the protection is worth every single penny I paid for them! I have them in my 2018 Toyota Corolla SE with just the middle part open in between. They wash well without losing color or strength in the fabric easily adjustable for both height and weight, switches to high back booster with shoulder strap or just bottom booster easily as well. The five point harness is easily put together or taken apart to clean, latch and come unlatched fairly easily as well. Cup holder, side pockets inside by legs as well so they can store their own little toys and such. Color patterns are awesome if you want some variety but EVERYTHING is just PERFECT!

Great for 5 year old son.

Seat tie down anchors are only rated for 45lb!! You might need to use seat belt to tie down depending on weight. My 5 year old son is about 40lbs, he likes the seat and is comfortable for him. He's probably 3'7" and the head protector still has plenty of room for height. Straps latch nice and he's able to buckle up himself. Only CON is the center buckle needs to be pulled taught and is a little cumbersome for him too do himself when sitting on it. Second con with seat would be the fabric he sits on, it tends to flop around and isn't as firm so it'll fold over or shift when he seats himself, causing that center buckle to need to be pulled out from under him. All in all, seat quality is awesome and my son enjoys it alot. We like the little cubbies in the arm rest for storage. I've used other cheaper seats and they tend to fold in on themselves when tightening down for safety or they never fully tighten, I'm happy to spend a little extra for Graco when the quality shows!!

Mother of six approved!

I have purchased two of these for my son. In the past I had car seats filled one row of my car and some of them took up too much room width wise, but this one is perfect. My son has plenty of room width wise, but it isn’t overly bulky in the car. I love the safety features, but I was mostly drawn to the physical aspects of it. The cup holder is perfectly placed as well as both arm rests have little cubbies for storing snacks or such. My son is extremely picky about his car seats and he will only sit in this car seat. I highly recommend this one. I did plenty of online research looking at safety features and how it would fit in my vehicles as well as how accommodating it was to grow with my son and this was the one I found was the best bang for the buck.

Survived the road trip

Order this seat before a road trip from San Jose to LA for a 2.5 year old. We were looking for something with a little more padding, since a lot of our other ones are a little thin on cushion (but those are cheaper). On top of that, we wanted a seat that can eventually become a booster to cut down on buying another purchase in the future. So far it's been holding up well. The little one had his longest stint at 4 hours in one sitting, which was awesome and made our ride much faster. Quality of fabric is good and it was pretty easy to clean. Some reviewers were complaining of the straps being tight, and I would agree, although I adjusted the length so that I would not have to play with it much. Would highly recommend this seat.

One of the best purchases for my child

This is our third car seat for our daughter. We bought it after we had her in the infant seat and the beloved Chicco Next Fit convertible seat (which we still use in my husband's car). We were tired of using one seat and transferring it to and fro between our two cars and so we finally embarked on the journey to get another seat. My daughter is 25lbs at 2.5yo. She is small but she fits well in this seat. She has the ample space and at the same time it is comfy enough for her to sit in it. We went to several stores to touch and feel the car seats and we finally decided to get this one for the price and comfort level. It is also easy to install and not as heavy as the Chicco that we already have. So far,this is a highly recommended car seat from us.

Simple, versatile, and ensures confidence

This carseat is easy to use and is the perfect last carseat for my boy. I love that this is a harnessed system (which we are continuing to use) that will turn into a high-backed booster seat and then become a booster on its own. The price is right for this to be so versatile and have such high safety ratings. My son is very comfortable while in it and it is easy to use. He loves his cup holder and the cubby where he can store a toy or something else. I definitely recommend this and will be buying another in the future. This will probably be my daughter's next carseat, as well.

Full Reviews