The Maxi Cosi Priori XP child car seat is a forward facing child seat that is installed in your car by using the 3 point car seat belt system. Halfords have reduced this from £149.99 to £89, a saving of £60.99.

• Click here for your Maxi Cosi Priori XP child car seat at Halfords

The car seat is suitable for use from 9 months to 4 years, approximately (it depends on weight - for this seat that's 9-18kg). It has a Side Protection System for maximum protection against side impacts. Other features include the easy to adjust the harness height, the tensioner securely tightens the car's seat belt, single handed adjustment to change from sit to sleep position (4 positions), practical belt hooks retain the seat belt when seating your child. The cover is easy to remove and washable, a necessity when it comes to car seats as any parent will tell you.

Most of the reviews on the site are positive. Here's what one commenter says "I looked all over for a car seat for my daughter that wasnt black but I also didnt want shocking pink! This is the ideal middle ground. Its a really comfy and well designed seat...having the extra hook to put the bit between the kiddies legs out of the way when you are wriggling them into the seat is genious!"

Thanks to dudebar at HUKD!

Most baby items you can do without. Then there's some pieces of baby equipment that are more essential, like a pram, but you can still skimp on what you're paying. Then there are the baby items you absolutely have to have and it is worth spending as much as you can afford. Car seats are one of these. And if you've got a car, then legally you have to use a car seat. There's no two ways about it.

Does everyone? No. It shocks me but I've seen people driving around with mum holding baby in the passenger seat. I've even seen parents I know do similar things - people I know who are well educated, well off, and normally sensible.

Be that as it may, it is a legal requirement for babies, and children, and it is also necessary if you want to save them from death or injury in even a small car accident.

If you've got a budget, then allocate a fair chunk of it to a car seat. You should only ever use a second hand car seat if you know the person you're getting it from really well, so you can be 100% confident that it has never been in a car accident.

Here we look at the best way to pick out the car seat you should get, what you should look out for, and tips on getting it fitted properly.

Click here to read more...

Amazon have reduced the price of this stage 2 and 3 Britax Kid car seat, with side impact cushion technology, down to £79.99 from £114.99.

• Click HERE to go over to Amazon

There are a couple of universal truths and laws that you have to abide by, and deal with, when you have a baby.

1. You're going to need car seats for a fair few years and
2. They can be hideously expensive

The whole car seat 'thing' can be a minefield - the most expensive doesn't always mean the best, cheaper doesn't always mean dangerous and one car seat doesn't fit all, you're going to have to do your research and find the best one for you.  Having had 17 years of car seat experience and had a good look at this Britax car seat, I think this is a very good buy and one worth considering.

The important safety factors are: your car seat fits properly in your car, that there are guides to correctly position the seat belt across your child , that they're protected from side impacts and that the seat will grow with your child.

The important parent factors are: that the seat grows with your child so you're not constantly buying new ones, that it's easy to install and can be transferred into different cars and still fit, that the covers are comfortable and can be washed and removed.

There are, of course, plenty of other things to consider and safety factors to look out for; every single thing you could possibly wish to know about this Britax Kid car seat is available for you to read over on Amazon.

Thanks to werdas at HUKD

Car seats have been the bane of my existence since my daughter’s birth.  We have used five different seats over the last 19 months and still, every car journey is a nightmare, involving screaming, clawing, begging and sobbing (her) and heartache, frustration and tears (me). That may sound extreme, but when you’re doing 70 miles an hour down the motorway and the child you strapped in as tightly as you could without bruising her pops her head out between the front seats saying ‘mummy!’ and her arms and legs are blood-red from where she’s squirmed, contorted and twisted her way out the car seat, you start dreading driving anywhere.

So, I decided that even though she’s only 19 months, it’s time to move away from the bucket seats and get a ‘proper’ car chair. I spent hours trying to find something suitable and finally ordered an own brand chair from Kiddicare. The Super-Tarmac Car Seat arrived within a couple of days (and I received an email on the day to tell me they’d be with me between 9:02 and 10:02 – they turned up at 9:09) and was carefully packaged, without excess stuffing and everything could be recycled, which I liked.

The chair is magnificent. It was really easy to install, with easy to follow picture instructions and labels on the chair itself.  It is high enough that my daughter can see out the window, which has made a remarkable difference to our driving journey as she can be entertained with a baby version of “I spy with my little eye, something…. “.

The Super-Tarmac car seat is suitable for little ones from 9kg to 36kg, or 9 months to 11 years, making it a group 1, 2 and 3 car seat.  It is forward facing using the car’s 3-point seat belt, and comes with its own 5-point safety harness, with chest and crotch pads. There’s a height-adjustable head-rest, and padded arm rests. Considering its size, it is surprisingly light and should fit most vehicles.  And since it’ll be with you for a while, it’s good to know it also has a washable seat cover.

And, the best part? We did a 4-hour round trip the day after the Super-Tarmac Car Seat arrived, and despite a little squirming, a lot of straining against the straps and a bit of a tantrum, she could not get out of it. Despite feeling gutted that she’s so miserable being restrained in a car seat (which is understandable – I hate even the seatbelt), I was inwardly jubilant that she was safe and secure. In fact, in 19 months of driving with her, it’s the first time I’ve actually felt totally confident in her safety.

The Super-Tarmac car seat is just over half-price at Kiddicare, selling at £29.97 instead of £60 and for the duration of the weekend – when the offer ends too – delivery is free.

• Grab a new car seat from Kiddicare

We’ve been scouring the web for a new car seat as our little girl has grown taller than her chair and pretty much hates the bucket seat. This Super-Tarmac seat from Kiddicare is suitable for children 9 months to 11 years, or 9 – 36 kg.

The Super-Tarmac seat fixes into the vehicle forward facing with the cars 3-point seat belt. The car seat comes complete with a 5-point safety harness and chest and crotch pads, it has a height adjustable head-rest so it will grow with your child and padded arm rests for your child's comfort whilst travelling. The seat is lightweight and will fit most vehicles.

It also has a washable cover. As it’s our first ever child-seat purchase, I’m rather influenced by the views of others on it, and with 81 reviewers giving this seat 4.5 out of 5 stars, it seems a really good deal.

The offer ends on May 2^nd and, as I said, delivery is free for the weekend.

Use this Halfords promotional code to get a further 10% off Maxi Cosi car seats. What makes this deal that little bit sweeter is that Halfords currently have selected car seats on sale, with up to 50% off. And this code works on sale items.

Click here to use your 10% Maxi Cosi code at Halfords

• Discount: 10%
• Applies to: Maxi Cosi car seats
• Promotional code: AFFMXC01
• Expires: 2nd March 2011

To use this code go to the Basket page, and enter it in the Promotion Voucher box. You may need to wait a minute for it to work. This seemed to take longer than other sites when I used it.

I tested the code out on the Maxi Cosi Priori XP child car seat. This is in the sale for £119.99, marked down from £149.99. The code took another 10% off this, reducing it down to £107.99.

There's a link on the page to view all other car seats in the up to 50% sale. I didn't look to see if there were any other Maxi Cosi models in there.

Thanks to missgem at HUKD!

This Koochi Helix Travel System is now half price at Argos - it's up for grabs for £59.99 having originally been selling for £124.99.

• Click HERE to travel on over to Argos

Not everyone wants to spend hundreds and hundreds of pounds on, or has the space for, huge travel systems that are the baby equivalent of a Range Rover.

This Koochi Helix Travel System is a nice mix between everything you need from birth to transport your new little around (I'm assuming you're not intending to stay in and be a hermit until they're fully mobile) with the compact size and easy portability of a stroller.

Both the car seat and stroller, which make up the Koochi Helix Travel System, are suitable from birth; the stroller has a multiple recline positions and an adjustable calf rest, along with a five point safety harness.

It also comes with a raincover, a shopping basket and the cover is removeable and can be washed at 30C.

The car seat connects to the stroller and must be used rear facing only - it can be used in both the front and back seats, but if you have front passenger airbags then these must be turned off.

The cover for the car seat is also washable and comes with a hood.

The Koochi Helix Travel System is available in pink or blue and you can choose to collect it in-store or have it delivered to your home.

Thanks to sammy321 at HUKD

The winner of the Pregnancy Best Buy, Mother & Baby Favourite Oct 2004, and Prima Baby Best Buy Nov 2003 Mamas and Papas Primo Viaggio IP Car seat is on sale at Argos for £69.94, half of the original £139.89

• Click here to see the Mamas and Papas Primo Viaggio IP Car seat at Argos

Car seats are so important and recommendations are that you should never use a second hand car seat as you don't know if it's been in an accident or not. At they same time, they are usually so expensive, it can seem like a lot of money to spend in one go – and yet it is essential baby equipment. Most hospitals won't let you drive away without one.

This Mamas and Papas car seat is a group 0+ seat, meaning it is suitable for babies from birth to around 12 – 15 months, or around 13kg. It fits rear and front seats – so long as the front seat air bag has been disabled, and is a rear facing chair as that is what is recommended for babies and children up to ever increasing ages.

This car seat is for use with lap and 3 point seat belts, and is ISOFIX compatible. It has a five point harness, quick release buckle and buckle pad and has side impact protection. For maximum comfort, it has five shoulder positions and a five position headrest (and a removable newborn support cushion), so your baby is driving in style.
The Primo Viaggio IP Car seat is compatible with Mamas & Papas Aria, Ora, O-Zon pram and Skoot prams, has a removable, washable cover and weighs 4.5kg

Thanks to crosswski at HUKD

The Mamas & Papas Trekker Booster Car Seat is half price at Argos, at £19.99, down from £39.99.

• Trek on over to Argos for the Mamas & Papas Trekker Booster Seat

When I was doing my list of must have items before my daughter was born, I remember thinking that the car seat was one of the more expensive items on my list. I remember - foolishly- thinking, “Oh, well, at least it's a once off purchase”.

For the first three months it was a fabulously light carseat that we could actually carry her around in, since we didn't have a pram. By four months her legs were hanging over the end, so we invested in a bigger one, which worked very well, until one day the clasp literally broke in my hand. I still thank heavens we never had an accident with her in that seat.

At a year a friend loaned us a booster seat to try out, but that didn't last long as she was still way too small. We finally found the right age appropriate seat, and although her feet hover near the end, she's at least securely buckled in! So next it'll be a booster seat, but fortunately we have a little time still!

For those of you who don't, however, this Mamas & Papas Trekker Car Seat is a Group 2 – 3 seat, and is suitable for children aged 4 – 12 years, or 15 to 36kg and is approved to ECE.R44.03 standards.

It fits front and rear seats, and uses a lap and three point seat belt to secure it. It also has side impact protection and a removable, machine washable cover.

Going forward it also converts to a booster seat, so hopefully it'll be your last car chair purchase!

Thanks to rustysusty at HUKD

I can whole heartedly recommend this car seat, or rather a slightly older version. This is the same one we bought for my son. Boots are doing a fabulous deal on this car seat, over at their website.

• Keep your little one snug and safe in the car @ Boots

Boots has knocked £42 off the original price of £139.99, bringing it down to £97.99. In addition, as pointed out to us by jrwgas over at HUKD, you can get a further 10% off using the code RTPE66. So that’s £88.19 delivered and double advantage card points too.

The Britax First Class Plus is a combined infant carrier and a car seat. It is rearward facing (birth to 13kg) and forward facing (9 to 18kg). Other features include:

• Click & Safe Audible harness system
• Side impact protection with deep, softly padded side wings
• 5-Point safety harness with one pull adjustment
• Pitch Control system reduces forward movement in the event of an accident
• 5 recline positions

I’ve found the car seat easy to keep clean. It is also easy to get in and out of the car when in forward facing mode too. Which proved handy for me as I don’t drive, so could take son in friend’s cars easily. Now my only real quibble is the button or lever for adjusting the straps when you want to tighten or loosen them. This is for me a right pain in the behind, as I suffer from arthritis in my fingers and wrists and it does require more pressure to operate than I’ve noticed with other seats that I’ve used.

This is a pretty plush car seat. According to Amazon, the Maxi-Cosi Pirori SPS Car Seat has been marked down from £110 to £77. Searching around the cheapest we were able to find it for was at Tesco, for £89, so this is a good price. Amazon are selling this in two colours, the Bjorn (a sort of grey and black) and Desert. Both are pictured here.

• Click here for the Maxi-Cosi Priori SPS @ Amazon

Safety is of course the first consideration when you’re looking at car seats. Second though has to be comfort for the child. The seat needs to be one they’ll be happy sitting in. This model comes with four reclining positions, from ‘sit’ to ‘sleep’. It also has a washable cover, which when it comes to children is absolutely necessary! However one reviewer on the Amazon site was less than pleased with the ease it could be cleaned after their child threw up in one. It is a group one, forward facing car seat, so is suited to children aged from nine months to three and a half years, or 9-18 kg.

Thanks to muffindazzler at HUKD!

With a big age gap, my son is effectively an only child. It is always more fun to have company when going on an outing. Not to mention a lot easier for me so I don’t have to double as mum and playmate. When we go on outings, he usually gets to invite a friend. However, I’m not going to take a child in a car without a car seat. My other half is even stricter about this than me. He won’t take a child in the car without side protection, in case of side impact. So having a spare car seat that fits the bill is a must for us.

• Click here to find your nearest Asda store

It has come to our ears that the Graco Junior Maxi can be found instore at Asda marked down from £25 to £12.50.  Which is a lot less than Mothercare – the store sells the same model for £44.99 online. The Graco Junior Maxi is a high-backed booster seat, suited to ages 4 to 11 (or 33lb to 79lb). For more information about car seats in general, visit the website Child Car Seats.  It provides some excellent videos, information on the law, and explains all the stuff you need to know about car seats, such as which group fits your child.

Thanks to Doolie at HUKD!