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this seat is amazing, yes it can be a chore to clean and it is large in comparison to other seats but its size only makes more comfort for child. my son is 16 months old and last week we were in a major auto accident totaled our car and an electric pole went into our car next to my sons car seat. He was okay only a small bruise from the impact pushing the seat belt into his skin. The Emts could not get over how great the seat protected him we hit the pole going 70 mph and i was told he should of been hurt pretty badly but his car seat saved him. One of the Emts even said he was going to buy the same seat for his child after seeing it save my sons life. I am very lucky in my opinion i had this seat and seems to me the emts thought so too
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This is the 1st review I have ever felt compelled to leave. I purchased this car seat a little less than a year ago and have been very pleased with it and then a few days ago I was struck head on by a drunk driver traveling at about 50 mph and my 3yr old son walked away from the crash completely unharmed. I can not tell you how thankful I am that he was uninjured and that his car seat performed exactly as it should have if I could give this car seat 10 stars I would I have already ordered another one to replace the one that was involved in the accident.Best Deals for Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite 3 in 1 Convertible Car Seat, Lamont
This car seat is a fantastic product at an amazing price (at the time we purchased it in 11/2012 it was $110). While researching a car seat for our first child, my husband and I were excited about the prospect of the Alpha Omega Elite's three-way conversion but were dismayed when we could not figure out how to install it rear-facing without being excessively wobbly, no matter what we tried.So after 5+ hours of researching online, reading manuals and watching online instructional videos on YouTube (such as the one for the Safety 1st Complete Air, which is **NOT** the same model but still offers a visual for parents like us who have never installed a car seat before), my husband set out towards our car with determination in his eyes!
Before we begin, here's some facts about our installation of an Alpha Omega Elite in "Lamont":
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* Our car is a 2004 Chevrolet Caviler (4-door)
* We used the LATCH system. Our car does not offer the LATCH system in the middle backseat, so we had to put it behind the passenger's seat. My husband also attempted the seatbelt installation in the middle, but he could not tighten it properly because the belt was quite stubborn and kept twisting after being thread through the carseat.
* Upon first attempt it was installed behind the driver's seat, but due to our car's size that required the driver's seat to be pushed up all the way. This made it extremely difficult to move between the pedals, and we felt like that posed a hazard we weren't willing to take (especially when driving around our little one)!
Rear-Facing Installation Tips w/ LATCH
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* Read your car's owner's manual and the Safety 1st instructions. We did not know until reading our car's manual that a 2004 Caviler does not offer LATCH in the middle backseat.
* Make sure your car is on level ground.
* Use a rolled up towel/blanket, as suggested in the manual. Ours was the size of CD once rolled-up.
* Connect the LATCH hooks as instructed.
* Consider putting an object/tool through the tightening loop to help provide grip/leverage as you pull on the straps to tighten them. My husband used the handle of his groove joint pliers, similar to these: Stanley 84-024 10-Inch Bi-Material Groove Joint Pliers.
* As you tighten, put as much of your weight as possible on the carseat. My husband tried using his knee, but ultimately just used his hand due to lack of space in our backseat.
* My husband then used the head of his groove joint pliers to give one more good pull. While pulling, he also shifted the carseat side to side while still making sure to apply weight. This allowed him to achieve additional tightness.
* Check for movement/wobbliness. Ours will not even budge at the belt path after my husband applied the above methods. Threading the handle of the pliers though the loop seemed to be what helped him most. He just couldn't get a good enough handle on it with bare hands.
Additional Thoughts
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Make no mistake -installing this car seat requires A LOT of patience and you will probably lose your wits before it's in, but keep trying. Even though we are satisfied with how it is installed now we still plan to have the installation looked at by a NHTSA-certified inspector , just to ease our minds. Please consider doing the same, since according to AAA almost 75% of carseats are not installed properly these days.
We hope these tips help ease parent frustrations. Good luck installing your Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite!
Honest reviews on Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite 3 in 1 Convertible Car Seat, Lamont
I bought this as a second car seat for my husbands carand was extremely pleased upon opening the box. The first seat we have is another brand and, while it is fantastic now that it is installed, it was NOT user friendly straight out of the box(which is why I chose another model/brand for the second seat)THIS seat seems well made, is very nice to look at and was incredibly easy to "set up" for my sons height etcI routed the LATCH system for rear facing and took it out to the carAND THAT IS WHERE THE "GOOD" ENDED... There is a "line" on the 'shoulder strap guide' on top that indicated that it must be 'parallel to the ground' for the rear facing positioning to be correct... To make that happen, we had to literally push the seat in front of the car seat up to the dash board AND bend it forward beyond where any person could sit in itThere was a HUGE gap now they tell you that you can use a pool noodle or rolled up towels to get the recline angel correctbut you would need about 6 of themSo, I tried it in my husbands carsame thingonly worse, he has 'bucket seats' and it left an even larger gap to filland the seat still had to be moved all the way forward. I requested a refund/return number since the seat wont work, and they said they would refund 90% of the purchase price AND I have to pay the return shippingwhich, even with the slowest method was $47! So, i'm losing close to $60 total if I return this, and if I dont, I have to hold onto it until my son is twothe new recommended age to turn a child forward facing... its a lose, lose. My best bet is to try to sell it for the purchase price myself(to someone with a large SUV or truck)BOTTOM LINEIf you own a carDONT BUY THIS SEAThowever, if you have a rather large vehicle, it is a very nice seat...
(there are reviews online -that I saw AFTER buying this seatstating you can remove the base in the rear facing position... BUT that must be for older modelsThis years model is made so the base doesn't come offand the instruction manuel even states NOT to remove is)
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite 3 in 1 Convertible Car Seat, Lamont
Please take a moment to review this car seat, it may not be for everyone but let me tell you about our experience. We purchased this for our first child when he was out growing his infant seat (Baby Trend by the way is the best infant seat available, but that's another story). It can be rear facing but may not work very well as it's a little awkward. We flipped him around after about a month and really enjoyd it as a foward facing seat. It is heavier and bulkier than some, but please don't let that deter you. I would prefer something that's a little stouter. We have had it installed both ways, with the seat belt through the back or with the anchors. Depending on how accesible the anchors are is whether we decided to strap in and not because of an issue with the seat. The cover comes off easily and washes very nicely. We had the black and green style, which showed spills but what car seat isn't a little dirty. Our son always sat comfortably even when he was older (2+). Straps are easy to adjust, and hardly every twisted!! I will admit the recline feature is not helpful, which is part of the problem as a rear-facing seat. We reclined the actual seat back and had no further problems with heads flopping forward, etc.When we purchased this seat we wanted something safe obviously, but I don't think we fully appreciated that until we had to live through it. We were recently in a major two car vehicle accident which totalled my husband '06 F-150. My son was unharmed other than some scraps from flying glass and some bruising/rash from the shoulder harness. Without a doubt this seat helped saved my son's life. It brings tears to my eyes just typing this. The seat was in good condition with only some signs of stress/wear from the impact. I know there was a recent study of car seat safety and this car seat received a less than favorable rating which I'm wondering is why the price is less (when we purchased it, it was nearer $200.00) but never the less, in a real life situation this seat is a good purchase.
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