# Just bought an Evenflo Embrace for my unborn first babe



## scarletjane (Feb 4, 2009)

.... and then I discovered the family safety threads! I searched the forum for comments on the Embrace and mostly came up with negative impressions of Evenflo in general. I've ordered the seat, but I can certainly return it if need be, so I thought I'd get on here and find out if there are any solid reasons that I shouldn't keep the seat. I've got a few weeks until due date, so I'd like to decide something quickly.

I based my purchase on the fact that it was affordable, but also got really high safety ratings by consumer reports and user ratings on various websites were all really positive for the most part. I never thought i'd want an infant seat, as i don't plan on carrying the thing around at all, but from what i've seen on convertibles, they really aren't best for newborns. So.. I thought we'd save up for the seemingly much-loved Britax convertible and use an infant seat until the babe grows out of it. But now i'm second-guessing myself.

Anyone used the embrace? I know there have been recalls on previous models, but each new model should speak for itself, right? I'd love anyone's thoughts, positive or negative.

Thanks in advance!


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

First off: Consumer Reports is a bottomless pit of shameless loathing and filth when it comes to their car seat ratings. They are pathetic, obnoxious, shameless, and generally wrong. If you want to buy a toaster, take a shake at CR, but not for a car seat!

Secondly, the reasons the Evenflo infant seats are NOT liked are the following:

1.) The handle MUST be down while operating the vehicle. The handle is not designed to withstand crash forces in the upright position.

2.) There must be at least 1.5" of clearance between the back of the seat (or handle) and the vehicle seat in front, making it a very difficult squeeze in almost all sedans.

3.) Evenflo infant seats have a long, sordid history of flying off their bases in crashes. So far they haven't gotten one right! They've got some great child restraints, but their infant seats are rotten.

Thirdly, oh, the Britax is NOT much-loved. Really, I promise. It's not even in the top five. There are many better convertibles out there.

If you want an infant seat, your 'best bets' are either the Graco Snugride 32/35 or the Chicco Keyfit30.

If you want to go straight to convertible, the Graco My Ride, The First Years True Fit, and the Sunshine Kids' Radians will all take you from birth to five or six years of age. Remember you want a seat that will keep kids rear facing for 3-4 years


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## dogretro (Jun 17, 2008)

Some newborns do not mind riding in convertibles, really. 2 out of my 3 did not mind at all. The third one hated it, so we bought a bucket. Since I bought it using a stipend check, I dropped the bones and got the Chicco Keyfit 30. It is SERIOUSLY worth every word of hype. I have never had an easier time installing a seat ever & we have had 4 different car seats. You can absolutely leave a bucket in the car and carry your baby ~ we always have


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## TiredX2 (Jan 7, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
Secondly, the reasons the Evenflo infant seats are NOT liked are the following:

1.) The handle MUST be down while operating the vehicle. The handle is not designed to withstand crash forces in the upright position.

This implies that the Evenflo is the only infant carseat this is true for. Is that correct? If so, when did that change? (My littlest is 8 and at that point the only infant seat you could leave the handle up on was the Britax).


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TiredX2* 









This implies that the Evenflo is the only infant carseat this is true for. Is that correct? If so, when did that change? (My littlest is 8 and at that point the only infant seat you could leave the handle up on was the Britax).

Almost all infant carriers allow you to leave the handle bar up. In fact, one company requires it.

The handle gives some anti-rebound action in a high-speed frontal impact, which I'm a fan of.


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## TiredX2 (Jan 7, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
Almost all infant carriers allow you to leave the handle bar up. In fact, one company requires it.

The handle gives some anti-rebound action in a high-speed frontal impact, which I'm a fan of.

Do you have additional information on this.

I found this:

http://www.growingyourbaby.com/2009/...n-some-models/

Quote:

Additionally, I contacted Peg Perego, Dorel(makers of Safety 1st, Eddie Bauer and Maxi Cosi), Graco and Evenflo. Of those manufacturers, both Dorel and Graco told me that their *newest seats* have been engineered so that the handle can be left up if it is locked. Peg Perego and Evenflo both told me that the handle has to be locked behind the baby.
I would be interested in what "newest" is--- the last month, the last year, the last 5 years... because that makes a huge difference!


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

I'm pretty sure that for Graco, "newest" is the seats with 30/32/35# capacity.

That response was written by Britax, and of course it was written to promote Britax.


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## TiredX2 (Jan 7, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TiredX2* 
I would be interested in what "newest" is--- the last month, the last year, the last 5 years... because that makes a huge difference!

Hmm, further reading suggests that Graco started going with handles that could be left up in 2003, meaning all Graco seats in use can be used with the handle up. Of course, the safest thing is to READ THE INDIVIDUAL MANUAL but I would be interested in the years that other manufacturers went to being *able* to leave the handle up.


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

Graco went with 'handle-up' five or six years ago AND made it retroactive to their previous seats.


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## scarletjane (Feb 4, 2009)

Having never dealt with a carseat before, I don't understand what the advantage is to being able to leave the handle up. Is it just convenience, or is it because it takes up more room when it's down? thanks.


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## scarletjane (Feb 4, 2009)

Having never dealt with a carseat before, I don't understand what the advantage is to being able to leave the handle up. Is it just the convenience of not having to push it down, or is it because it takes up more room when it's down? thanks.


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

It takes up more room when it is down, and with Evenflo requiring 1.5" between carseat and front seat, every little bit of space matters.


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *scarletjane* 
Having never dealt with a carseat before, I don't understand what the advantage is to being able to leave the handle up. Is it just the convenience of not having to push it down, or is it because it takes up more room when it's down? thanks.

1. Most parents DON'T put it down, whether it's allowed or not. It's nice to know the handle won't shatter in a crash when it impacts the vehicle seatback on rebound.

2. Space. If the handle MUST be back it makes an infant seat a tight fit in some cars.

3. Anti-rebound capabilities. The handle bar is going to create a slight 'anti-rebound' effect in a rear facing accident, which is a nice touch.


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## TiredX2 (Jan 7, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
Graco went with 'handle-up' five or six years ago AND made it retroactive to their previous seats.

Awesome, thanks. Do you know about any of the other manufacturers?


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## Maedze (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TiredX2* 
Awesome, thanks. Do you know about any of the other manufacturers?

I'd have to read the manuals







I *think* Combi requires the handle to be upright. Dorel (Safety First, Maxi-Cosi, Cosco, and Eddie Bauer), Graco (which cover the majority of the 'average American infant carrier') and Britax allow it to be up. Evenflo (and possibly Peg Perego??) require that it be down.


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## mama2soren (Feb 12, 2009)

Maedze said:


> Britax allow it to be up.
> 
> Huh... we had a Britax Companion (2007 date, I think), and I thought it had to be down? I guess it doesn't matter now, since we haven't used that seat for about 16 months!
> 
> I'd definitely want a seat that would allow the handle to stay upright in the car. It was a pain moving that darn handle down every time, since the mechanism was a tough, and it was a super tight fit getting the handle between the car seat and the seat back in front of it. That alone would be reason enough for me not to want an Evenflo (though the safety concerns definitely top that list!)


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## Arianwen1174 (May 26, 2009)

Subbing


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## urchin_grey (Sep 26, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
1. Most parents DON'T put it down, whether it's allowed or not. It's nice to know the handle won't shatter in a crash when it impacts the vehicle seatback on rebound.

OT kind of, but I put the handle on our ('05) SR down in the ONE wrong position every single time.







I didn't know any better and I pretty much just used common sense at the time when it came to carseats (harness was always snug and that sort of thing) but I assumed it wouldn't be safe to leave the handle up. I learned the hard way that not all of it is common sense.


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## natashaccat (Apr 4, 2003)

Quote:

Thirdly, oh, the Britax is NOT much-loved. Really, I promise. It's not even in the top five. There are many better convertibles out there.
I'm not a tech but as an ordinary parent I have loved my Britax, they've been so easy to install in all the vehicles that we've tried.

Really, is there something else that I should look into for #3? It needs to nest between a radian and a booster and RF as long as possible and the back can't be too long (problem w/another radian). Britax's will do it because the base part is narrow even though the seat is wide.


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

Britaxes do *not* RF as long as possible -- they have only a mediocre weight capacity and very little leg room for older/taller rearfacing kids, and they do not fit newborns. They also have shown not very well in some recent testing forward-facing, and they are outgrown by height long before other higher-weight harnessing seats, so I would not recommend Britaxes for either rear- or forward-facing use.


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## triscuitsmom (Jan 11, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *natashaccat* 
I'm not a tech but as an ordinary parent I have loved my Britax, they've been so easy to install in all the vehicles that we've tried.

Really, is there something else that I should look into for #3? It needs to nest between a radian and a booster and RF as long as possible and the back can't be too long (problem w/another radian). Britax's will do it because the base part is narrow even though the seat is wide.

I agree with chickabiddy. Britax definitely is not a long as possible rearfacing seat. That being said, other seats to look at are the Radian, which you already have, but the new boot for rearfacing is allowing some vehicles to get them more upright than was previously possible. I've certainly had that experience, I own one with the old foot and a couple with the new one.

Also the Graco My Ride 65 rearfaces to 40lbs, and puzzles nicely with the Radian in the same direction, not sure about opposite directions, havn't tried.

The Safety First Complete Air also rearfaces to 40lbs and has a tall shell but can be installed very upright.

The First Years True Fit only rearfaces to 35lbs but if you have tall skinny kids it's a great choice. Very tall harness slots, and if you are using it for a newborn the top can come off so it takes up less room front to back. By the time the top needs to go on you can install it more upright.









Except for the Complete Air I own all of those seats and would highly recommend any of them. I'm pretty sure they all have more leg room rearfacing than the Britax seats, the Radian, My Ride, and True Fit all fit newborns well, and they should all get your child to at least 3, depending on the weight/height of your child further than that rearfacing. (My 3 year, 4 month old is still rearfacing in the Radian and My Ride, and could in the Complete Air as well... he's 34.5lbs so I don't put him in the TF anymore, but he'd fit by height easily).


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## dogretro (Jun 17, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Maedze* 
2. Space. If the handle MUST be back it makes an infant seat a tight fit in some cars.

Also depends on the seat. The Chicco's handle goes so far down that it is more under the bucket than between the seat back and bucket.

You can leave the Chicco handle in any position, the manual says so. I cannot stand to leave it in the up position b/c we rarely take the bucket out of the car and prefer to carry our babies or put them right into the stroller (newborns lay flat in our stroller). If we carried the bucket, it would be nice to leave the handle up.


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## s_kristina (Aug 9, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TiredX2* 
Hmm, further reading suggests that Graco started going with handles that could be left up in 2003, meaning all Graco seats in use can be used with the handle up. Of course, the safest thing is to READ THE INDIVIDUAL MANUAL but I would be interested in the years that other manufacturers went to being *able* to leave the handle up.

I know when we got a bucket seat for dd born 1/02 the Graco manual said the handle could be either up or down. I think the seat had been made in November or December. I seat is gone a number of years ago so I can't check on the exact date it was made. I do know for sure about the handle as I had some fun arguements over the handle being up and was able to get out the manual and point to where it said the handle could be up.


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## scarletjane (Feb 4, 2009)

Thanks to everyone who responded to my post. Your thoughts have been helpful- lots of knowledgeable mamas on here!


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