[sjones0812]

It has come time to turn my daughter around in the e93.

I currently use a Chicco keyfit 30 and it has worked well...but she has out grown it.

I am looking to see what front facing car seat will work/fit in the e93....I know it's a tight fit.

I have looked at the Recaro seat and they look good...but not sure how they will fit.

If anyone has advice, pictures, ext.... that would be helpful.

[richpike]

Two thoughts:

1. Any front facing seat will likely take less room than the Chicco rear facing.

2. We had our daughter in a Keyfit 30 too (but in a E90). She's now in a Graco Nautilus 3-1 and it is awesome. I'm really big on safety for the car seats, so I like to see what Consumer Reports recommends - here is what they say for the different types:

Infant:
#1 by a long shot is the Keyfit 30

Convertible Car Seat (probably what you'll want now - tie between four seats):
Britax Boulevard 70 CS
Britax Boulevard 70
Evenflo Momentum 65 Deluxe
Britax Advocate 70 CS

Toddler:
Graco Nautilus 3-1 by a long shot

I know the Recaro is the "cool" seat for a car person to get, but they are not rated highly by Consumer Reports.

Good luck!
Rich

[sjones0812]

We have a Diono radianrxt convertible car seat in the Explorer. It is nice and narrow but looks to tall/ big for the e93. It has great safety ratings...was between that and the Britax.

The Britax was just too big and the sides are very high so it is hard to swing her out sideways in the truck....had to do an awkward lift and turn.

I am going to uninstall it from the truck and try it in the vert....just a pain to take it out.

[mr_milo]

We have the Britax Roundabout 55 based on my wife's recommendation. She ran a car seat program with the local government and CHP for a while, so I trusted her choice. She said the 65s & 70s are over kill unless you have a very large or overweight child. The 55s are about all you need until they are into a booster seat.

Our son isn't front facing yet so I haven't place him in the E93 yet but we bought the Roundabout 55 with that in mind. Hopefully it works out.

[Surly73]

Since the infant carrier days I've always used Britax. Their Marathons were too large for my E39 rear facing (let alone any 3 series) but the Roundabout fit just fine.

I now have two Frontier XTs in the back of my E90 (Tuesday was the one year anniversary of my E39 being totaled) with no issues. Both kids are still running 5 point belts, though my oldest is started to complain. I retold the story of my collision just a year ago and how I'd rather have them in real seats rather than sitting on glorified phone books. Luckily I was alone in the car when I was hit.

[bobse]

Recaro since birth for my son. He's now 5 yrs old and really happy with it. No need for tethers since the seat does not move one bit using the latches. I use this car seat on my ML and my E90 without issues at all.
Some people have issues with the straps getting tangled, hard to adjust and the weight though.

[frankthetoad]

Originally Posted by mr_milo

We have the Britax Roundabout 55 based on my wife's recommendation. She ran a car seat program with the local government and CHP for a while, so I trusted her choice. She said the 65s & 70s are over kill unless you have a very large or overweight child. The 55s are about all you need until they are into a booster seat.

Our son isn't front facing yet so I haven't place him in the E93 yet but we bought the Roundabout 55 with that in mind. Hopefully it works out.

How tall are you and have you tried the Roundabout in your car yet? I've got two kids- 3 years old and 7 months. I'll have a rear facing and front facing seat in the back seat of my E90 325i. I'm 6'5" and have done a quick fit test...and it seems like it will work, but it's going to be cutting it very close.

[mr_milo]

Nope haven't tried the roundabout in the e93 yet. I tried his previous "B-Safe" infant seat but that would only fit if I didn't have a passenger. His first birthday is in a month so we are still figuring out if we are going to go with the law (>1 year, >20lbs) or the new recommendations of 2 years.

I am 6' so it would be interesting if we need to keep him rear facing until 2 years. I might give it a try tonight but I really don't think rear facing will work in the E93. You might have better luck in the E90.

P.S. His legs are already getting pretty cramped rear facing so I really don't know how long we could realistically keep him that way.

[frankthetoad]

From my research, it seems like the Roundabout 55 is the smallest of good car seats. Guess I'll be putting him behind the passenger (RF) and my 3 year old in his larger seat behind me (FF). I'm sure it's going to be tight, but they'll only be riding with me to and from daycare (~3 miles).

From what my wife beat into my head.... ....I suggest RF until 2 years of age. It seems to be the consensus safety-wise.

[calicolorado]

One more family using the Britax Roundabout here. I have it forward facing in the center seat. I'm 6'-5" and everything fits with my seat in the correct position. My daughter loves facing forward-I can now narrate the drive for her. Lots of fun!

[walmark]

On topic question about LATCH: I checked instructions for installing different car seats using the LATCH system, and it seems you attach the seat to 2 lower anchor points and then to one tether on top. My e93 has the 2 lower anchors, but due to the rear cover moving there is no upper tether. Is this an issue? Do you still use the lower LATCH and skip the tether or do you use the seatbelt instead for installation?

[mr_milo]

I plan to just use the two lower latch anchors. They will work better that the seat belt since they are easier to adjust / tighten.

I was also going to try and rig something fr the top but it's going to be hard due to the lifting deck & rollover protection bars. Might not be doable.

[marakbai]

Originally Posted by mr_milo

I plan to just use the two lower latch anchors. They will work better that the seat belt since they are easier to adjust / tighten.

I was also going to try and rig something fr the top but it's going to be hard due to the lifting deck & rollover protection bars. Might not be doable.

Acknowledging this is a very old post but did you happen to rig anything for the top tether? It’s needed here in Canadas so I’m desperate to find a solution. Please and thanks to anyone with advice.

[marakbai]

Originally Posted by walmark

On topic question about LATCH: I checked instructions for installing different car seats using the LATCH system, and it seems you attach the seat to 2 lower anchor points and then to one tether on top. My e93 has the 2 lower anchors, but due to the rear cover moving there is no upper tether. Is this an issue? Do you still use the lower LATCH and skip the tether or do you use the seatbelt instead for installation?

Curious to know what you ended up doing. We apparently need the top tether here in CANADA yet the car doesn’t come with one and dealers don’t seem to know a retrofit. Mind you in Europe on vacation we only use seatbelt but want to be as safe as possible.

[walmark]

Originally Posted by marakbai

Curious to know what you ended up doing. We apparently need the top tether here in CANADA yet the car doesn’t come with one and dealers don’t seem to know a retrofit. Mind you in Europe on vacation we only use seatbelt but want to be as safe as possible.

I ended up using the seatbelt, as it was the only way to secure a child seat with 3 point attachment. Worked well with the retracting ratchet system (if you pull the seatbelt out all the way, it will start ratcheting back and won’t let it get any slack) for a few years before I sold the car - no shifting or rattles.
There is no easy way to add a top tether to a e93, unless you disassemble the seat back and attach it to the frame. I’m not sure if they addressed it in the following vert generations.

[marakbai]

Originally Posted by walmark

I ended up using the seatbelt, as it was the only way to secure a child seat with 3 point attachment. Worked well with the retracting ratchet system (if you pull the seatbelt out all the way, it will start ratcheting back and won’t let it get any slack) for a few years before I sold the car - no shifting or rattles.
There is no easy way to add a top tether to a e93, unless you disassemble the seat back and attach it to the frame. I’m not sure if they addressed it in the following vert generations.

Thanks so much. I’m inclined to do the same; our seat allows for isofix and seatbelt so hopefully even better 🙏🏼