jump to a Chicco MyFit coupon code
I love when a new car seat comes on the market that solves a common problem for caregivers.
The Chicco MyFit is the only combination seat* in Canada with a high enough harness height to truly accommodate taller-than-average kiddos until they’re ready for a booster seat.
Plenty of kids are well served by convertible or all-in-one** car seats and can use the forward-facing mode until they are ready to safely use a booster seat. But some kids are just tall beans! And some kids need to be harnessed longer than other seats on the market allow, for reasons of health or maturity. And for some families, moving an older child to a combination seat while passing down their convertible seat is a practical solution, and the Chicco MyFit’s many easy-to-use features and comfortable padding may make it the right choice for them.
*A combination seat is a seat that forward-faces with a harness and converts into a booster.
**A convertible car seat is a seat that rear-faces with a harness and converts to forward-facing with the harness; all-in-one seats convert between rear- and forward-facing and into a booster.
The first thing that stands out about the Chicco MyFit is the high-quality fabric and padding and smooth-like-butter harness. This is the smoothest harness adjustment I’ve ever used. The harness tightens evenly and easily, every time. This is a premium seat and it’s obvious straight out of the box.
Chicco MyFit features:
- Easy conversion from harness-mode to high-back booster mode
- 9-position headrest that lifts up with one hand to adjust harness height
- 4 recline options designed to provide a good fit in a variety of vehicles
- Built-in LockSure lock-off for vehicle seat belt installation (required at a child weight of 40 lb/18 kg)
- Removable cupholders that fold in if necessary to create more space
- Comfortable contoured design with dual-density padding
- Optional crotch pad (that actually stays in place!) and optional shoulder pads included (chest clip pads are mandatory)
Chicco MyFit forward-facing fit to child:
- 25–65 lb (11.3–29.5 kg)
- 54″ or less (137 cm)
- Minimum age 2 (best practice recommendation is to continue rear-facing until the child outgrows rear-facing mode on their convertible seat)
- Lowest harness height: 13 in (33 cm)
- Highest harness height: 20 in (51 cm)
I have no complaints at all about child-fit in this car seat, and neither do my kids. My 6-year-old daughter rode comfortably in it on our 13-hour drive to Vancouver from Calgary. The head wings provide great support for naps and the padding is ample. My daughter is small for her age, at roughly 43 lb (19.5 kg) and 46.5 in tall. She has tons of room to grow with the harness.
My taller twin is 35 lb and 38″ tall, and he was eager to test it out in the living room while he was still rear-facing in the van!
The harness is relatively narrow but the included shoulder pads prevent any discomfort.
Chicco MyFit booster fit to child:
- 40–100 lb (18–45.3 kg)
- 38″–57″ (97–145 cm)
- Minimum age 4 (best practice is for the child to be at least over age 5 to use booster mode)
- Highest booster belt guide position 20.5″ (52 cm)
I am not always a fan of booster-fit in seats that convert into boosters. A lot of times, booster-fit is poor to barely adequate.
The seat belt must always sit close to the child’s body (no floating in front) and be centred between the child’s shoulder and neck. The lap belt must ride low on the child’s hips, not on their belly and not too far down the thighs.
I am happy to report that the MyFit provides good belt-fit on my daughter who is 6.5 years, 43 lb (19.5 kg) and 46.5″ (118 cm) tall.
Many seats that convert into booster mode lift the child so high up that it becomes very difficult or even impossible for them to buckle themselves without help. That the child can now buckle themselves is one of most caregiver’s favourite reasons to booster; however, we must always check their work. Because the MyFit is a low-profile seat, the child can easily reach to buckle.
Many seats that convert to a booster lack a high enough shoulder belt guide for kids to use for very long. Keep in mind that the shoulder belt needs to sit slightly above the child’s shoulders, so at 20.5″ high, many kids will be able to use this seat until they’re ready to switch to a backless booster.
Chicco MyFit important installation notes for both lower anchor and seat belt install:
Harness Mode Overhang: Ensure that the base of the seat does not overhang the vehicle seat by more than 3″ (7.6 cm).
Vehicle headrests: The vehicle headrest must not put pressure on the back of the car seat. If your vehicle allows (check the manual), you should remove the vehicle headrest to prevent this. However, in a vehicle with non-removable headrests, you will want to do a test installation prior to purchase in case the seat is incompatible. (You will find this information on manual pages 58–59.)
Installation angle: Unlike most other forward-facing seats, the MyFit has an angle indicator that must be respected. This means you must be parked on level ground when installing and ensure that the seat recline keeps the angle indicator bubble within the correct range for harness mode.
Level lines: There are level lines etched into the base of the MyFit that are supposed to be parallel with the vehicle seating surface (manual pages 58–59). As long as you ensure that the base is flat on your vehicle seat and not floating at the front or back, and the angle bubble is correct, you’ll be good to go.
So far I have used the MyFit in harness mode in our 2014 Odyssey, a 2014 Mazda 3 and a 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander.
Chicco MyFit lower anchor installation
The MyFit features premium push-on lower connectors that are easy to tighten because you can simply pull up the seat cover and pull the lower anchor strap from the inside of the seat. (This is THE trick to getting a secure installation using lower anchors.)
You can use a lower anchor installation for a child who weighs up to 40 lb (18 kg).
Before starting your install, remove the top tether from its sleek storage compartment on the back and toss it over the seat back. Secure it once the lower anchor install is complete.
Which seat recline you use will depend very much on the shape and slope of your vehicle seats, and this will likely take a bit of trial and error.
When not in use, the lower anchors are stored inside the seat, not dangling on the outside, which is definitely a nice feature.
Chicco MyFit seat belt installation
@carseatcubs Is this the right seat for you? Check my full review, linked in my profile. Use Q&A for questions. @chicco.usa #carseatsafety #cpst #carseattiktoks ♬ original sound – Car Seat Cubs / Maman Loup
The MyFit features a seat belt lock-off which means you do not have to pull the out the seat belt to lock it. It’s a different type of lock-off than other seats you may have seen that use a locking panel over both the lap and shoulder belt. To lock the seat belt on the MyFit, the shoulder belt is routed through the silver tab on the side of the seat once tightened. It may take a bit of practice to get used to.
Getting a good seat belt install may mean trying it out using the different recline options on the seat (only use the reclines that keep the bubble in the acceptable range.) The MyFit seat belt install is trickier than other seats with lock-offs, so don’t be discouraged if at first you don’t succeed.
Routing the seat belt through the belt path on the MyFit is a DREAM. No scraped knuckles. Lift up the cover and you can pass the belt right through. Once the belt is buckled, it’s time to tighten. This takes some muscle and an understanding of where to apply pressure. Rather than trying to push the car seat towards the vehicle seat back, you want to compress it downwards into the vehicle seat pan. The back of the MyFit does not need to be fully in contact with the vehicle seat back. It is normal to have a gap at the bottom of the seat, and often this is what is needed to get a solid seat belt installation.
Try tightening the seat belt first using your arm: if you can get the right amount of leverage, place yourself inside the vehicle, facing the car seat, stand up (as much as you can), place your hand on the centre of the MyFit’s seat pan and push down into that arm. Compress the MyFit into the vehicle seat while you use your other hand to pull slack out of the shoulder belt. Once the seat belt feels tight enough, grasp the shoulder belt firmly and route it through the silver lock-off on the side of the seat. Tug from side to side and front to back at the belt path. If the car seat moves too much, try again using a different recline. If you cannot get enough purchase using just your arm, either try with two people: one compressing and one pulling on the seat belt or very carefully use one knee in the seat to compress downwards. Note that you should not be kneeling your entire body into the seat nor standing in the seat to tighten.
Chicco MyFit booster use
Converting the MyFit into a booster is easy peasy lemon squeezy. The most finicky bit is using the snaps and elastics to put all the fabric components back into place. (I really hate this part!)
When you lift up the cover, you’ll find a place to store the harness and the crotch buckle. You will need to remove the harness covers and crotch buckle cover, and you can store them in the same compartment as the harness and chest clip.
The MyFit has an angle indicator for booster mode also (quite unusual, so don’t be surprised if other seats you’ve used do not have this). Make sure you are doing your initial installation on a flat surface. As with harness mode, the vehicle headrest cannot interfere with the headrest of the MyFit. You can use any of the seat reclines required to get an appropriate fit in your vehicle.
You can secure the MyFit using the lower anchors if desired and if you are using a seating position equipped with lower anchors. The tether is not needed and can be stored. If you are not securing the seat with the lower anchors, always buckle it in when unoccupied so it doesn’t become a projectile.
What we love about the Chicco MyFit
- Its super-high top harness height means it is likely to truly accommodate a child up to the height maximum of 54″ (137 cm). Note that there are seats on the market with a HIGHER height maximum but significantly lower top harness height. What this ultimately means is that, barring a child with extremely long legs and a very short torso, the child would outgrow the seat by harness height well before reaching the standing height maximum. This high harness height is THE solution to keeping kids high on the growth curve for height in a 5-point harness until they are truly booster ready.
- Narrow design CAN make it a suitable option in a three-across scenario. Some vehicles simply cannot accommodate three restraints, so it is not a miracle solution by any means.
- Premium fabrics and padding make it ultra-comfortable. The crotch buckle cover actually stays in place thanks to an ingenious little fabric tab that stops it from constantly slipping off.
- The smoother harness adjustment is AMAZING. No more fighting to tighten a harness evenly: this harness is the best I’ve ever used.
- Low profile means the seat is more functional in booster mode than others we’ve tried.
Things we love less about the Chicco MyFit:
- The price point is high. I think its features and functions are very valuable, but it is not in everyone’s price range.
- The elastics and snaps on the cover are fiddly and require patience to re-attach when converting between modes.
- The « level line » is near impossible to see on the base of the seat and its importance is unclear given there is already the angle indicator bubble.
- Headrest interference will make this seat incompatible in certain vehicles.
Bottom line: If price isn’t an issue and you have ensured your vehicle head restraints won’t cause problems, then the MyFit is the seat for you if you need to accommodate a tall child OR you just want to spend the money for a frustration-free harness.
If your child is still in an infant seat but measuring high on the growth curve for height, you may want to factor the MyFit into your overall car seat budget as you choose your next seat. No convertible car seat on the market can rival the harness height of the MyFit, but you still need to safely rear-face until (ideally) well past age 2 before moving into a combination seat. For very tall children, the Graco Extend2Fit is a top choice for rear-facing, and I would recommend then switching to the MyFit when it’s time to forward face.
Buy the Chicco MyFit:
- Find the Chicco MyFit via its Canadian distributor, Elfe Juvenile Products: use code Mamanloup15 to take 15% off all Chicco products until Dec. 31, 2023
- Amazon affiliate link (Canada)
- Amazon affiliate link (USA)
Not sure which car seat is right for your kiddo and your vehicle?
Remember that Canadian caregivers can always book a virtual or in-person consultation with me at Car Seat Cubs!
Laisser un commentaire