# Radian XTSL owners...



## WindyCityMom (Aug 17, 2009)

Hi! I have a question for current owners of Radian XTSLs.

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?
2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?
3) Which cover do you have for your seat?
4) how was installation? Any tips?

And.. Where can I get this seat for cheapest including shipping?









TIA!


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## mamasthree (Jul 15, 2006)

well, we have an XT (not SL, so I got a good deal on it, bought it maybe a year ago?) with the Nassau cover. I love the low profile, seat comfort, kids fit in it good....installation depends on vehicle.

RF I've tried it in my Suburban, and it works with latch, but the install is just ok. It does not work with the seat belt RF...cannot get less than 1" movement. It takes up a huge amount of room RF and as such interferes with my seat. I'm keeping the marathon in for my youngest, and she won't outgrow it before 3, so no big deal.

FF It does not work with the seat belt, I've tried all the tricks and the install just does not work. Bummer b/c that's what I wanted the seat for--FF with my nearly 4 year old, then passing to youngest when the Marathon expires so she could RF longer. Our seat goes RF to 40 lbs, but I will likely turn her around 3 years (my nearly 4 year old weighs 34-35 lbs).

Fits great FF with latch in my dh's truck, a chevy quad cab. Haven't tried it any other way there.

RF in an older Land Rover Discovery, fits b/c it passes b/w the front seats, tough to get less than 1" of movement, seat belt install. Doesn't work FF, can't get less than 1" of movement (no latch in this car).

Wish I'd bought from a place with free return shipping...I'd have sent it back as it is not a good fit in our main vehicle.


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## jillmamma (Apr 11, 2005)

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing? _7 months so obviously RF_








2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age? _I plan to do it till age 4+ like my other DD...should not be hard with a 45 lb RF limit and since she is around 25% on growth charts_
3) Which cover do you have for your seat? _Petal (brown and pink floral) -- I like it a lot_
4) how was installation? Any tips? _We have a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee, and this is kid #3, so I wanted the Radian since it is narrower for 3 across. Other 2 kids are in a Graco Turbobooster (7.5 yo boy) and FF Britax Decathlon (5 yo girl) outboard, and xtsl is in the middle RF. I think in our car, the middle is the only reasonable spot to put it RF since it will fit between the 2 front seats; otherwise the front seats would have to be pushed up too far. I did it with the seatbelt (lap belt), and it was not too bad as long as you put your weight on the edge near the bight (crack) in the seat. It is at a 45 degree recline, and I would like to figure out how to make it more upright, but have not been able to yet (not a big deal for now since she is still an infant, but would be nice when she is a toddler)._

And.. Where can I get this seat for cheapest including shipping? _The cheapest I could see was for $240 at babycatalog.com. We were lucky to have really nice grandparents who got it for DD._









Good luck with your decision!


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## Coconut Chronicles (Aug 31, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *WindyCityMom* 







Hi! I have a question for current owners of Radian XTSLs.

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?
2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?
3) Which cover do you have for your seat?
4) how was installation? Any tips?

And.. Where can I get this seat for cheapest including shipping?









TIA!


*1)* 12 months 2 weeks and rearfacing

*2)* Till at least 2... possibly longer as DS is a little guy (16 lbs 14oz)

*3)* Nitro

*4)* Installation was fine for us... (for reference we have a 2005 Audi A4.)

Not sure where you can find it for cheapest... we were also gifted ours by grandparents.


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## butterfly_mommy (Oct 22, 2007)

I am in Canada so we here it is still called the XT but it is the 45 lb RF limit and was manufactured in Dec of 09 so it is the same as the US XTSL

1) DS is 31 mons (2.5 yrs) and RF
2) I plan to keep him RF until he reaches the weight limit or is at the one inch of shell above the head. He is 37 lbs dressed now so I am hoping to make it to at least 4.
3) We have the Nitro cover which is the red cool max one. However velcro shoes are not kind to this cover








4) It does take up a fair amount of room RF but since DS is older it is more upright and at a 35 degree angle. Installed with Latch was ok. My tip to get a more upright angle is to pull the front foot of the seat out of the bite of the car's seat and try to push the the back of the seat towards the back of the car's seat while tightening the latch/belt. I tried to install it with the belt and couldn't get it tight but I really didn't try to hard. I have a Volvo s40 and my passenger seat is moved up a fair bit but is still usable to shorter people (DH barely fits in and he is 5'10"

I however Love Radians. They are a great seat and so easy for DS to climb in and out of by himself are narrow so that I can still fit other people safely in the backseat. Also DS calls it his racing seat and loves his seat. He hated the bucket as a baby and hated the Enspira seat.


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## St. Margaret (May 19, 2006)

No radian here, but I did just get a great deal on a Frontier and a True Fit Premier at diapers.com (free shipping both ways, no tax I think, not sure). They had a Britax sale 20% off (even the new stuff) and then a mama from my DDC game me her referral code since I had never shopped there, so I got 15% off. PM me if you want a referral code to get the discount. But I'd check around, places like Albee, BRU, amazon, etc just to see b/c sometimes stuff is randomly on sale! Good luck!


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

I had one for about a week from diapers.com - I love that site, cause' they'll pricematch anyone else online, and they always have free shipping & free return shipping, plus theirs always 10-20% off coupons floating around online.

Anyhow. IME, its a very finicky seat install wise, and just doesn't fit in many cars... definetly get from dipaers.com or somewhere else you can send it back if it doesn't work...


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## Skippy918 (Jul 15, 2008)

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?
2 years old and still RFing.

2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?
Until he's at the weight or height limit. He's only 25lbs currently.

3) Which cover do you have for your seat?
The gray plaid looking one. I wasn't picky with covers.

4) how was installation? Any tips?
We have it in the center of the Prius. It's really hard to get it more upright. DH doesn't seem to have issues installing it. We had it in my MIL's minivan this weekend, and it installed more upright, but we couldn't get a really tight fit with the seatbelt like we can in the Prius. I'm hoping it will still fit RFing in the outboard seats once baby #2 comes along.


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## leighi123 (Nov 14, 2007)

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?

Levi turned 3 in July. He is rearfacing (and only 25lbs/35")

2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?

Until he outgrows it rearfacing, regardless of age - at the rate he is growing, close to 6

3) Which cover do you have for your seat?

Nitro - warning, the mesh covers snag if your kiddo wears velcro shoes (mine doesnt so its not an issue but I know it is for some people). Its a 'cool' cover for the hot weather here! Put fray check on your belly pad, I've gone through 3 of them.

4) how was installation? Any tips?

In my subaru, its impossible to install in the center b/c the belt stalk is too long even twisted.
In the jeep it installs easily outboard, but is tricky to install in the center where we have a 40/60 split.


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## Farmer'sWife (Jul 11, 2009)

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?
Almost 2.5 and rear-facing

2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?
At least until 3 maybe longer

3) Which cover do you have for your seat?
Flora - It's super cute and soft. I like that it's girly, but not over the top pink girly.

4) how was installation? Any tips?
We have it installed on the driver's side captains chair of our 07 Odyssey with leather. The LATCH always loosens, so I use the seatbelt and can get it nice and solid. It takes a little effort and practice to get it more upright, but doable.

And.. Where can I get this seat for cheapest including shipping?








I ordered mine from Diapers.com for $215 with price match and first time shopper discounts.

I really like the buckles, the head wings, and the low profile of this seat. My DH however complains about not being able to move the drivers seat back more, but it's in my primary vehicle and the leg room is perfect for me.


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *WindyCityMom* 







Hi! I have a question for current owners of Radian XTSLs.

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing?
2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age?
3) Which cover do you have for your seat?
4) how was installation? Any tips?

And.. Where can I get this seat for cheapest including shipping?









TIA!

1. 3y6m, rear facing
2. Until she starts complaining and/or asking to FF. She was actually FF from 3y until about a week ago, because she really really wanted to FF and 3 was my minimum. Now we've been talking alot about car crashes since I was just in one a week ago, and suddenly she wants to RF again (no I didn't scare them, but they had many questions that were easy enough to answer, like the fact that B sits RF because it's the safest he can be). Actually all 3 of them are RF and they are having fun "spying on the cars behind us"









My 5yo is only 37 pounds and RF in a Complete Air, but is too tall to RF in the Radian.

3. Flora






















4. Installation was super easy, but it's hard to get it very upright. I am actually re-installing right now to try and get it more upright.

Cheapest....sorry I live in AK and the cheap places don't ship here, so I don't keep up on the sales. I do know that I saw a google ad for JustKidsStore that has a 20% off coupon and free shipping for the Radians.


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## Smalls181 (May 12, 2006)

1) How old is your child? Rear facing or forward facing? 4.5 years, rear-facing
2) If rear facing, how long do you plan to keep them that way in terms of age? She has plenty of height and weight left, but we will probably let her FF next spring. I am so afraid of the winters here.
3) Which cover do you have for your seat? Malibu?
4) how was installation? Any tips? The only install issue Ive ever had was RF with latch in a Honda Pilot. Seatbelt worked, though. No other install has ever been an issue, and we have had this seat in at least 6 different cars.


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## Pirogi (Apr 5, 2007)

- DD is 3, RF
- We plan to keep her RF to the height/weight limits of the seat. She is currently about 30 lbs
- We have two seats, one nitro and one eclipse. We are planning to get another soon (lots of cars and a new baby on the way), will probably get bentley or maybe flora. DD would







LOVE







petal, but I don't know if I could handle that.
- Easy install with LATCH in our Honda Odyssey in either outboard middle row seat. We removed the center seat in the middle row and pushed the passenger outboard over, but it makes no difference with LATCH. We tried RF in a Toyota Corolla in the center and outboard passenger positions, but that put the outside seat at an angle and put DD's head too close to the side airbag, at least with LATCH install. We bought a Camry instead, and the seats RF nicely in the center (seatbelt) and outboard passenger (LATCH) seats. I really like that the XTSL can use the top tether while RF, it really seems to secure the seat. But if you use it, definitely use the top tether extension strap unless you have a vehicle with a really good place to install easily. We broke the top tether clip on our first XTSL because it was difficult to get to and it just fatigued the metal to take it on and off. Wouldn't have happened if we had used the extension. We ordered a new top tether to replace the part ourselves, but the clearance is really snug on the tether in the back, and I haven't taken it out and really wrestled with it yet to get it changed out. I just wished we had used the extension in the first place.
We've also gotten a good install on an airplane FF as well as RF (we have to lug it around the airport on a little dolly though, it's such a heavy seat). If you RF on an airplane, be sure to use the seatbelt extender (as recommended by the manufacturer), bc otherwise it is REALLLLY hard to get it out. I seriously thought we were going to have to cut a seat belt and get charged out the wazoo, but DH thankfully finally got it open. Also, RF in coach usually means the person in front of you can not at all recline, so this may be an issue.
We plan to RF DD and the new baby (once he/she fits height-wise) in the Corolla side by side in the XTSLs. We have a Scenera for the new baby for the Odyssey, and we'll use that until it is outgrown or expires next to the third XTSL for DD.

- $215 at diapers.com with price match and first-time shopper discount


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## WindyCityMom (Aug 17, 2009)

Thx for the replies!!









does the first time shopper thing at diapers.com apply automatically?


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## redpajama (Jan 22, 2007)

1. My daughter is 3.75 and RF.
2. We've told her she can FF beginning on her 4th birthday, in less than 3 months. At that point, she'll move into a different seat and we'll have the XTSL down to my 12-month-old (who is currently RF in an older Radian 80).
3. Nitro.
4. My husband worked at it for a while, but got a good install in our Honda Odyssey (middle row, outboard).
5. I agree that diapers.com might be a good bet. I didn't get mine there, but I can't remember where I did get it. I basically googled the name of the seat and then went to a bunch of sites to find the best deal. At the time (~8 months ago) I got it for about $215, shipped.


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