Which car seat is an important decision! Very important!
I think I am living proof that it is possible to spend almost 9 months deciding on a car seat. Second only to the pushchair, a car seat is, typically, the dads favourite arena of play. It is a headache if I’m honest, especially now there all these new regulations and laws about which way the baby is facing. When I was a baby my parents had one basic car seat, belted with the lap belt into the car that lasted me 5 years…there was no fluff and what not…and I survived. It was probably something like this:
Joie is a great brand. You can generally tell whether it’s a good brand or not by the website; This has been a fabulous website for me, with excellent help videos. They sent us the i-anchorsafe system to test out and put through it’s paces. It’s basically a base, with isofix capabilities and a car seat that sits perfectly onto the base. There is also a Gemm infant seat that you can purchase as well, but I’ll come more on to this in a little while. Here’s a very helpful picture:
The Base:
The base is heavy, which to me indicates it is well made. It is similar to most other isofiix bases, with 2 prongs out the back that fit through the seat and clip into the fixings on the car. Now, I must pause here for a moment and let out some frustration… Nissan decided to locate the Qashqai’s isofix fixings 3 inches too low. There is no way on this earth that they are usable. AAAAHHHH! I’m thinking a trip to the local Nissan garage is in order. This did mean however, that I need to belt the base in using the seat belt and this was very easy to do. (Since first writing this post, I have now upgraded to a newer Qashqai and the problem has been solved! Thank you Nissan!)
The instructions were clear and accurate for using the belt to buckle the base in and they also have a video just incase the wife is doing it… That is a joke! The bottom ‘arm’ unfolds and sits on the base of the footwell. Joie have a green light system that when installing the base and car seat, all the ‘lights’ must turn completely green showing you that everything is correctly installed. Very helpful indeed!
Another great thing about this base is that is has 7, that’s right 7, different reclining positions. And each and every position is very easily found using the orange lever which, when pulled upwards, allows the smooth movement to your new position. This is great for if you want your baby/child to sleep or sit upright. Good thinking Joie!
The Seat:
The seat boasts that it can be used from newborn all the way to a child roughly aged 4. That is a massive selling point to me because I do not want to be forking out for a new car seat every 6 months. The way it does this is in 2 ways.
#1 The seat can attach to the base rear facing (for when you have a newborn – 15 month old) and can stay rearward facing for up to approximately 4 years old. At any point it can be forward facing to suit your needs. What a great idea and is unique! The quick release button allows you to take the seat off and turn it round with ease and speed. Not that you’d ever need to this with speed, but I like doing things with speed…it’s what I do…much to the wife’s irritation. *ahem*
#2 The seat comes with 3 inserts that you simply take out when your child outgrows them. The restraints don’t change, just the padding inserts. The belts are big enough and have enough adjustment to cater for all the phases. This again, makes this seat a winner to me!
The straps clip together very easily, so when it’s pouring with rain and you need to strap them in quickly, it’s easy to do so. They are also very easily adjustable using the small button, easily located under the buckle. There is one other addition to the seat which is a little annoying but nothing you can do about it. The roll bar has to be attached. I guess most people use a carry car seat and then change to one of these when a roll bar isn’t need. (Carry car seats use the carry handle as a roll bar.)
Now, this next bit of info needs to be a real consideration. This car seat does not come off the base and straight onto your pushchair. It is not part of a travel system in that capacity. If you want that, you would need to purchase the Gemm infant seat from Joie. Because of this, you need to weigh up what you want out of your car seat. We like this one because the advice we received was a newborn shouldn’t be in a car seat for any longer than 1 hour 30 mins and that time can run away with you if you drive into town and move the car seat to the pram without moving the baby. That baby will be in a car seat position
for a long time. With this seat, you would have to lift the baby out and put it into the separate pushchair, thus making the 1 hour 30 minutes start over.
The seat is incredibly well padded giving ample support to the baby’s body and it meets all the necessary standards, including the new changes. It comes in a small range of colours. This is the first UK government certified i-side R129. It’s also
side impact certified so it really does cover all necessary requirements. For us, this is one of the best we’ve come across. It meets out needs and ticks our boxes. If we did want the Gemm car seat, we could get it but we’re going to see how we on to start with.
We’ve looked at a lot of car seats, and really, what with the huge amounts of traffic on the road, there isn’t another piece of baby paraphernalia as important as this. It’s worth spending time looking at but this one for us was the best we found. When it comes to which car seat, this one is at the top of the pile!
We really do like this car seat and so we’ve scoured the web to find you the cheapest place to get it. If you like what you’ve read and want to go for it, then click here.
The Joie i-anchorSafe system receives an official Dad Network star rating of 5 / 5 stars and receives our award of recommendation.
The last thing we want to leave you with, is a table of some great car seats that have received excellent reviews. Obviously, cost has a big role to play when buying anything for a baby, so we’ve also found the best deals on the web for you.
[table caption=”Best Car Seat Deals” width=”700″ colwidth=”50|250|400″ colalign=”left|left|center|left|right”]
No,Car Seat,Price,Where to Buy
1,Maxi Cosi Pebble,£165,Amazon
2,Nuna Rebl iSize Car Seat,£395,eBay
3,Cybex Sirona,£369,Amazon
4,Maxi Cosi Tobi,£229,Amazon
5,Silvercross Simplicity Car Seat,£169,Amazon
6,Britax Evolva,£79.99,Amazon
[/table]
If you enjoyed reading this review, why don’t you take a look at some of our other helpful guides, tips and reviews.
- Have you decided which baby carrier to get yet?
- Or perhaps which pushchair?
- Which Baby Monitor?
- Or why not download our ultimate (and realistic) list of exactly what you need for a baby?
Since posting this review, we have received some comments about the difficulties some people have had with their baby’s head flopping when they’re sleeping… The Dad Network takes this seriously and so we have been working with Joie to try and help those having trouble. Joie have said this about the issues:
I recently bought this seat, and have been really disappointed.
The problem we are having is that the recline feature seems to be designed only for forward facing use. When rear-facing, you can only really have the seat positioned upright (unless you want it leaning forwards!) This means that the child’s head and body can slump forward if she falls asleep. Obviously this is really dangerous.
So now we either have the option of using it facing forwards, or buying another model. Oh, and the “contact us” feature on their website does not work, so I am unable to ask for advice!
Hi Jeremy,
Oh no! That’s awful to hear about your bad experience. It may be different in different car models? (The Joie Isofix doesn’t work in our Nissan at all, which is very annoying!) We haven’t had the same problem.
Also, I will pass on your concerns to our contacts at Joie if you would like us to? If you agree, I can pass on your email address and ask them to get in touch?
Thanks for your comment.
Al
Thanks Al, that would be great if you could pass my details on!
It did occur to me that perhaps the rear seat in our car (Lexus IS) is more “sloped” than most, but I was still really surprised because the recline setting looked so flexible in the video. If it turns out that I’m doing something wrong or if Joie have a solution, I will happily report back!
I also have the same problem in 2 cars. The seat does not recline anywhere near enough.
Have either of you found a solution at all?
We were having the same issue with our boy. I just called up the customer services number and the lady told me to use the small child insert without the head rest section that can be unclipped using 2 small plastic poppers (previously we had no insert at all as it was really uncomfortable for him).
I just double-checked the manual and it really isn’t clear that the when to use the different sections of the small child insert!! It just says that the small child insert is only for use by children under 60cm and Josh is over that now so we thought that meant just remove the whole section.
Hopefully this makes it better otherwise we will have to get another car seat which will be the 4th! :(
The 4th! Blimey! Let me know if it doesn’t work out. Have you emailed the Joie guys as well? They’re usually pretty good at getting back in touch with some help and advice. They are always developing it and working on improvements. They use this thread quite a bit in fact! (So I’m lead to believe!)
Thanks for your comment.
Hi,
I recently bought this seat exclusively for the rear facing position and am extremely dissatisfied with the recline positions both rear and forward facing. We’ve tried it in two different cars and all 7 are completely upright and totally pointless. My 17 month olds head falls straight down onto her chest when asleep and jerks forward every time the car accelerates, however gently we try. During the few times we’ve tried to use it I’ve had to sit in the back with her, while my partner drove, with my hand on her forehead to stop it lurching forward, this included two separate 5 hour journeys over Xmas. I am not able to drive anywhere on my own with her. In addition, she was violently sick throughout the first couple of journeys, despite never suffering from travel sickness before, and the chest straps don’t come off to allow washing, nor is it possible to clean the buckle or inside the moulded plastic seat, where typically, a large proportion of the vomit seeped! My car (a Chevrolet Matiz) also has low isofix fittings and it was a real struggle to clip the base on, but was achievable (just!) by pulling the actual car seat out form under the isofix base, clipping it in, then shoving the car seat (with difficulty) back under the isofix. I don’t know if this was how joie tested the seat in this model of car (which is featured in their manual for compatibility), but this was the only way of fitting the seat into the car, as its not possible to use the seat belt due to the car having an extended seat belt clip which makes it too high to fit in the base. So far this seat has proved to be very frustrating and a total waste of money! When I can get there (which is difficult seeing as I can’t drive anywhere with my daughter at the moment!) I will endeavour to take it back to the shop as it is not fit for purpose.
Same problem here, to add insult to injury tried nannys maxi cosi & my lo was giggling the whole journey. He look c uncomfortable in the Joie, and if he sleeps always ends up with head slumped :( We have an Audi A4 & Isofix fitting.
Not sure about anyone else but I also find the straps don’t sit against his body although they are tight on the shoulders.
Taking a trip back to the place of purchase today to see if they will exchange, fingers crossed as we’ve given it 4m of trying different things, not sure how understanding they’ll be.
Thanks for your comment – let us know how you get on and we’ll be sure to pass on your comment to Joie.
Same problem here too!!! I purchased 2 bases and 2 seats for my 15 mth old twins!
Got them 2 days ago and every time the babies fall asleep their heads flop forward onto their chest I’m so upset as I spent so much money on these :(
I’m so sorry to hear you have the same trouble. All these comments are passed on to Joie and they are taking them all into consideration for developments. Thanks so much for your comment.
Do you have contact details for joie? I’m struggling to actually get any help I have 2x seats & 2x bases I’m not comfortable using as I don’t think my babies are safe when sleeping, I don’t know where to turn or do I have to pay out another £600/£800 on 2 different I size seats?
I can certainly pass on any specific concerns you have and I’ll raise their awareness to you and your situation. If you have an email you’d like me to forward for you, email it to dad@thedadsnet.com
Thanks,
Hiya, im a mum on a dads site !! I have the same problem, what I really need confirmed is the safety, is my baby safe in this seat when asleep with his head slumped forward ? If I were to crash with him like this would he be safe ? I just can’t see how this can be ? Please help ! Thanks, Aimee
Hi Amiee,
We have just updated the review with some more help and advice directly from Joie – I hope it helps you out. If not, we have also added the customer services email address which may also help. Thanks! :)
Update!!!! Contacted joie who were fabulous they sent me 2 wedge inserts for free and the problem of heads flopping is solved!!! Can’t fault there customer service please pass this on as some inserts are 2 pieces and the newer ones are 3 pieces! The newer inserts have a rectangular wedge which can be used alone and solves this issue! X
Hi do you have customers serves details as having same problem and Google not brining it . Thanks Laura.
I contacted joie on this uk customer services number I was issued the wedge and it solved the problem in both my twin babies x 0844 395 0012
Hi I have recently purchased this seat for my 16 month old and like so many other people my baby head flop forward when sleeping I dont think this is safe for her at all as offering no head and neck no protection I have read about a wedge that joie offer but can’t seem to find or get hold of them can you help in anyway ? Laura
Hi Laura,
The customer service email address in in the post – at the bottom. They should be more than happy to help you out.
Thanks,
Hi thanks for your help I have now received the wedge and working well.. Thanks
I had exactly the same problem. My daughter is 18 months and when she falls asleep her head flops forward. Any idea how safe it is to sleep like this at this age?
One solution I haven’t tried yet is to move the seat to the middle where there is less of an incline. That would involve using the middle seat belt instead of isofix. Is that in any way less safe? (Might not even work if the post that goes to the floor isn’t set out for such short distances?)
A second issue is that our mini Houdini can wriggle out. I’m thinking I might need to buy an add-on that would strap across the chest. Disappointing to have to buy extra pieces on an item that wasn’t cheap to start with.
Reluctant to simply return it because as you say, it does seem to be a quality item and there aren’t many extended rear facing seats around.
Call joie and get the wedge cushion it reclines them more and stops their head flopping
Hi there
Thanks for all this info, it’s great. We have this seat and I have tried using the wedge from within the newborn insert – is this the right fix for the head flopping problem? It made a difference on the first try, but no good since. I also find the shoulder straps get loose – am I missing something obvious when I put my little one in the seat?!
Hi all;
I from Turkey. I have the same problem of floping head while my baby fall asleep. Some of you talked about “wedge cushion” that solve the problem. In order to find a solution for myself in Turkey, I need to see the “wedge cushion” and how it looks like. Is it possible for anyone to send photos of this “wedge cushion”?
my e-mail: makaradag@gmail.com
thanks a lot…
Hey, if you get in touch with Joie customer services they’ll sort you out. They’re really good at helping, so it’s definitely worth touching base with them.
thanks for reply,
I have sent an email to Joie customer services in UK and Turkey 3-4 days ago . But as of now nobody replied me :(
I’m sure they will get back to you buddy. Keep us posted.
Hi
thanks for your help
I have now received the wedge, Joie have sent it to Turkey
Thanks
Hi can someone please forward me the customer service email address as I also need an insert cushion to prevent head slumping forwards when asleep
Hiya,
Here you go: customerservices.uk@joiebaby.com
Thanks :)
Could someone with a larger baby please tell me how you are able to use the new wedge comfortably? My son is 21lbs, 10 months old and visibly uncomfortable with the wedge – joie have confirmed I have it installed correctly. He cries on any journey where the wedge is used. His chin is pushed towards his chest, his chest pushed outwards, and the belts are a real struggle to position correctly with this wedge. I am currently at my wits’ end with this seat, less than 6 months of being able to use it. Joie response is that I should leave the wedge out on short journeys and just use it on long ones where he sleeps – impossible, it is dangerous to try and drive while your child cries incessantly. The maxi cost 2-way pearl DOES recline further (and there is no slumping or crying) so I don’t buy their excuse for it barely reclining. If I put the whole support with neck part in, I can’t get him in the seat! How are people with 18 month+ babies using it?
Hi Sarah, Thanks for your comment. I’m sure that someone will answer who has been in that situation. Unfortunately, we’re not there yet, so can’t help very much. Sorry.
We had similar issues. My daughter is 20 months. I gave up trying to use the wedge and just put up with the fact she slumps her head forwards when she’s asleep. I’m trusting that it’s safe but I wonder how safe it would be in the event of a side impact.
Tempted to turn the seat round but that would be defeating the point. Also my daughter can wiggle her arms free any time she feels like it!
Hiya Sarah can you not take it back to the store? My boy is nearly 14 months but he’s big for his age….we are taking it back to the store tomorrow o the grounds that it is dangerous and does not do what it is supposed to do. If you are unhappy and feel that your child is unsafe then please do something about it….I should have much sooner, I cried so much over this stupid seat and feeling that it wasn’t right! We just need to find a new one and it will be more expensive but it will be worth it for peace of mind after all of this.
Hi, I tried taking it back to mother care, who told me not to use the wedge as my baby is over 9kg. They refused to take it back, saying it isn’t dangerous for his head to be hanging out of the seat! Long story short, I was told it doesn’t happen in my new maxi cosi seat because it is top of the range but I can’t expect that from a Joie, there’s nothing wrong with a baby slumping (this is from someone who has never driven with a child in the car), and that I should sell it on eBay! I phoned their customer services who said they have to stick with the decision made by the store. Needless to say they have now lost my custom permanently.
That’s terrible!! I will let you know how I get on today, I know that one of the managers I have spoken to has had this problem but the wedge fixed it for them. It did for is for a while but not anymore. Joie told us to carry on using the wedge even though my boy is over 10kg and I told them he’s getting squished…disgusting behaviour, worst thing I have ever bought! I know another site has told everyone to get in contact with trading standards as this is unacceptable as the only ones that will suffer is the poor children!
Similar issue with everyone, and my 21mo girl wouldn’t fit the wedge anymore. Reluctant to change her to forward facing as it really defeat the purpose I bought the seat, quite regret at this moment, as initially was planning to get the stages, but the sales person promoting this isofix one.
I have a mazda 5 and the back seat is quite slope down, hence the seat become really upright. I wonder if I can give up the isofix, and lift up the back by stack up the seat with towel and fix the anchor base with seat belt? I just worry it is not a safe setup. :(
Feeling really bad with wrong investment.
Just as a follow up, mothercare told me I should not be using the wedge as it has only been tested as safe for up to 9kg! So I don’t know what to think. Have given up, put the seat up for sale and bought the 2-way Pearl. Very happy with the Pearl but obviously not suitable for younger babies, and not pleased at the additional cost.
I see there’s a new model out from Joie, the ‘Every Stage’. No independent info or reviews on it at the moment from my searches. Does anyone have any knowledge of it, or would you be able to get in contact with them to find out if it reclines more than the i Anchor and Stages, Al, as I’ve tried to contact them on your provided email and through the contact page on their website a few times and have had no response!
Thanks all.
Sorry Al, do you also mind asking them if it will fit in a mkIII Renault Megane Coupe, or if they just have a car fitting list so I can check myself?
Thanks again
I have had this seat since my son was a newborn and he is now nearly 14 months. We had the head flopping problem at 3 months and we received the new insert from Joie which worked until recently, but now my son who is tall for his age has started flopping forwards even with this wedge! I have been in contact with Joie for ages now who have been useless and their only advice was to perhaps get a trunkie neck support thing which has not been tested in conjunction with the seat for safety testing , and upon looking at reviews it does not really work anyway. I have sent them pictures of my son in the dangerous positions that he ends up in and have even invited them to come and see for themselves but they could not be bothered advising me only to go back to the store I got it from. So I will be taking it back tomorrow and getting a new seat that is actually safe and will be speaking to trading standards about this seat….too many people have had issues regarding this and what is the point of having side impact protection if their head isn’t even in it? It’s appalling, what will it take for them to fix this issue that affect so many??!
Hi Tanya,
Thanks so much for your comment. So sorry to hear the trouble you have had and like you say, so many have as well. I’ll certainly make Joie aware of your comment to see if that helps the situation. We’ve just review another car seat (with Ted aged 14 months) so that might help. It will be published in the next few days, so keep an eye out.
I doubt Joie will do anything as I have been in contact with them for ages and they just keep beating over the same ground, it’s a shame because it could have been such a great seat if only it were safe! Will keep an eye out for your post as we obviously need another one to replace it, thank you! I would be interested to hear what else Joie have to say to you after all the comments you have on here!
I really wish I seems reviews before purchasing this seat. It looks great, the reviews are great, the safety standards are what I am looking for. However…. within seconds of my baby falling asleep her head is slumped so far forward I’m worried about both side impact and also her air supply being cut off. I’m hoping that’s the customer services team from Joie will be in touch but I have not had any joy in returning it to the company I bought it from. My wife is refusing to let our Childs travel in this seat unless she sat in the back to hold her head back, which is not a great solution.
Which company did you buy it from? And have you got the updated inserts from Joie? I took mine back to mother care after endless conversations with Joie. We had the new insert which worked for a while until my son got too big for it. I took it back on the grounds that the seat is unsafe and I had photographic evidence along with proof that we had done everything that we has been advised to do and it still did not work. If your seat is still under guarantee they should take it back as if your child is slumping forward it is faulty and the chair is not doing what it is designed to do, and that is to keep your child safe. We have ended up getting the maxi cosi 2 way pearl. So much happier with this and the which? Reviews are slightly better too. Good luck!
Hi
My daughter is 22 months and have had problems with her head flipping forwards whilst travelling and developing car sickness. She doesn’t struggle at all in our other car with a different make of seat
If your other car has flatter seats it could be worth swapping them around. Our Joie seat has the same problem in our Ford Focus but when we put it in another car (can’t remember the make it was a while ago) the seat had a much more comfortable incline to it.
anybody noticed that this is no longer sold – only an ‘advanced’ version is. not sure what has changed.
You can still buy the original from some online retailers (eg precious little ones). Since reading this I have emailed joie with email address above and via their website and had no response (now 2 weeks). Problems with my sons head flopping forward whilst asleep started soon after purchase and so I have not been happy to use when there is a risk of him sleeping as I cannot see how this is safe – I too have been sat in the back holding his head back whilst my other half was driving. We originally thought this was due to bucket-like seats in our Audi A4 but since we have tried in 3 other cars – all similar. The seat was relegated to the occasional use car so he didn’t tend to fall asleep in it but as it can be belted as well as isofix we will be taking it away with us on an abroad holiday with car hire so need a fix for this problem. Our son is now 2 and a half and we have had the seat over a year so out of guarantee….
HI there, I’ll forward this on to Joie. Thanks,
Hi, I’m a mum on a dad site. I have a vw scirocco on purchasing this seat I was advised by the store it would be classed as floating installation also Agreed my joie. So after joie and the store both advised is perfect my for car I brought for my 9 month old son. Since buying a have never heard such a racket. If I hit a pot hole the whole seat rattles. If he’s sat in it I can physically shake the whole seat. I had to emergency break earlier (a car in front missed there exit) my little boys seat made such a bang! I have had it about a month installed a few times to see if I could fit tighter but it is flush against the back of My seat correctly! All Lights are green!! i feel it is a disaster waiting to happen! I’m so upset as I took hours and many store visits to pick the perfect seat for my little boy. Please help me.
Just an update-after no reply to 3 emails after 3 weeks I used the phone number earlier in this thread (couldn’t find one on their website). Customer services were fantastic – it was obvious this was not an isolated problem. She immediately offered to replace the seat with any other from their range and advised me to visit a retailer to look at the options and have the seats fitted to ensure they were suitable before calling them to say which we wanted. I was tempted with the new spin 360 but the recline looked similar to the I anchor so we have gone for the every stage. Although belted only it has a great recline and my son sat in it happily. It was the only one that was comparable in price and would fit our car. It arrived today less than a week after ordering, we are looking forward to trying it! Thanks for your help with emails and to everyone on this thread for posting such useful information!