Customer Reviews

Chicco Keyfit 30 Infant Car Seat and Base, Fuego

5 star:		(124)
4 star:		(34)
3 star:		(16)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Please ignore the reviewer who rated the seat one star due to the rebound issue. I am a certified child passenger safety technician and this is NOT a safety concern. Almost all rear facing seats will rebound in a crash. The only ones that won't are infant seats with rigid LATCH (the only one currently available in the US is the Baby Trend Latch-Loc with rigid LATCH) or one with an anti-rebound bar like the Britax Companion and convertible seats that tether rear facing (all Britax convertible seats, Sunshine Kids Radian, etc). As long as your seat moves less than an inch in any direction AT THE BELT PATH (i.e. on an infant seat with a base, right at the seat crack where the other poster said it was tight) it is safe. The Chicco KeyFit is a very good seat. It is without a doubt one of the best on the market currently. It installs like a dream and fits small babies very well. As a tech of seven years, I would not hesitate to recommend this seat or use it for my own child.

I did a lot of research on infant and convertible car seats before my daughter was born. We have a small two-door car, so I needed a narrow car seat that wasn't going to take up a huge amount of space. The Chicco Key Fit 30 fit the bill! (Although I did purchase the Extreme pattern, not the Adventure) It is a wonderful car seat, easily comes in and out of our small back seat and my daughter loves it. She is also a tall and slender baby, so the 30" height limit is great, as she would have grown out of other infant car seats already (at 6 months she's 25 inches and just 14 lbs). We were also involved in a car accident just a few weeks ago and the car seat kept my baby amazingly safe. While the rest of us were in pain from the accident, my baby was all smiles. Sadly we have to replace the original seat, but will be buying the exact seat again. If you have a small car and want a well made, safe car seat, the Chicco Key Fit 30 is the one for you!

This is a great infant car seat. As stated in the description, you're able to keep your baby in a much safer rear-facing position for a longer period of time. In the event of a crash, what this means is that your baby's body won't take the brunt of the impact, the seat will do most of the work.

Originally, I was considering more flashy and expensive European car seats, but then I spoke with my neighbor. Part of her responsibilities in working for our local police force involves helping parents properly install their car seats. She let me know that many of the infant car seats on the market aren't worth the hype, but she highly recommended the Chicco Keyfit 30 for the reasons I stated in the paragraph above.

Indeed she was right. Not only is this clearly very well constructed, including neat details such as bubble levels on the base, but it's also stylish and functional as well. Most importantly, it's a snap to install... PROPERLY! And that's a feature not many other car seats can boast.

My husband and I originally purchased this on the recommendation of a friend. We liked the way it looked and it had pretty good reviews. We knew it was for safety, but I was attracted to the style and extended use (due to it lasting up to 30 lbs). Now our baby is 6 months old and on her second Chicco Keyfit 30 car seat.

We were in an accident when she was 5 months old and rolled our SUV one and a half times, landing upside down. She stayed put - she started crying but there wasn't a scratch on her, thank God. As a precaution we took her by ambulance to Dell Children's Hospital, but she checked out OK with all of the doctors there. They told us to keep doing what we had been doing, and that the car seat not only saved her life, but saved her from minor/serious injury. Our doctor also told us that having your child in an infant seat as long as possible is the best way to keep them safe.

We went onto Amazon the next day and ordered the exact same car seat (you have to replace ANY car seat after an accident). Here's a pros/cons list from our use so far:

Cons:

- Hot, low air-flow fabric (we live in Austin and she does sweat in it during the summer)
- Size makes it sit higher in grocery cart "seat" section than other car seats
- Ummm, I can't really think of another con :)

Pros:

- Stays locked right-side-up and up-side-down in accidents
- Lasts up to 30 lbs instead of 25 lbs like other seats
- Totally washable (she's projectile vomited in it *and the keyfit stroller* 3 times, and I've machine washed every bit of it)
- The base makes it easy to take in and out of your car without unstrapping the baby (my in-laws LOVED this feature)
- Stays put with either the seat locks or a seat belt securing it (the base was secured with a seat belt in the accident)
- Level on base and instructions on base make installation easy (you don't even have to refer to the manual)
- Ability to lock into the stroller makes shopping trips easier

Lets face it folks. The likelihood of your child hitting 30 lbs without growing out of this seat is VERY narrow.

This seat is the epitomy of a First Time Parent purchase.

The styling is excellent.
The italian name is exotic
The latch system is convenient
But the price, while expensive, is still affordable.


But lets face several issues this product falls short in:

1st - Its a very, very large seat. When sitting level, it will hit the backs of my seat (im 6' and need legroom) of my durango, and my wifes endeavor. That is a fullsize and a midsize SUV this hits. Sedans usually have more space, since they sit at angles.

2nd - The base needs to be able to extend more to help you create a level surface. We had to cut a foam "Noodle" to help level the base out. the adjustment was too small.

3rd - It is too narrow. Base should be AS WIDE as carseat. Many SUVs have sectional bench seating. 60/40, 40/20/40; etc. Depending on where exactly the latch is, you may combat trying to place this carrier on a crack when placing the seat in the middle (which you will do if you are buying this most likely. Most parents purchasing this seat will use for 1st child)

4th - Height. Being it is a 30 lb seat. It is much taller (which causes clearance issues). It also makes it all that harder to adjust pacifiers, toys, etc.

5th - Must use two hands to adjust the bar. You are supposed to keep the bar in a forward position when driving (vs leave the handle up). You need two hands to do this. So that means crawling in your back seat to reach over. No simple one handed operation

6th - Now this may or may not be a con. Not all shopping carts or portable carseat holders in restaurants are safe and solid. So this is at your discretion. You cannot set this in the top of a cart. This makes grocery shopping impossible or comical. I have been seen at local supermarket pushing a stroller AND pulling a cart. Or walkinbg around with a bulky carry while my son was in the crook of my arm and i was buying groceries. Now the stability could be argued. However, when you first go into the store, all you have to do is buy that pack of water, soda, etc ,and throw on the bottom of your cart. You can also think that your spouse will be there to help. I am a dad. My wife is tired. She needs a break, especially since we were all learning this. Us leaving to grocery shop so she could nap is what happened. This seat was a huge pain in the ass.


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Now for the pro's.

The straps NEVER bunched up. This is HUGE. I hate my friends/family car seats that did this.

The 5 pt harness was really spaced well. Our son was small. Some carseats have a vertical track that doesnt take into consideration that at 7 lbs the babys neck/shoulders is MUCH smaller than at 15lbs

The Latch system was EXTREMELY easy to use

The belt system was EXTREMELY easy to use. This ease of use is training grandparents how to use the system. They get it in 1 demonstration, it is considered EXTREMELY easy to use.

The material NEVER faded. It still looks new after countless cleanings of diaper blowouts, spitup, snack mess

The material was incredibly easy to clean

The handle had very easy to maintain your grip rubber. This is a godsend in winter. Bare plastic is stupid with gloves on. I have actually slipped on ice (being in Northern US in winter) and i never lost grip on this thing.

The material was free of stupid logos, seams, and labels where newborns stick their soft/sensitive heads

The padding was soft enough for comfort, especially bouncing around in my SUV, but still very secure.

The color choices will literally make ALL female staff flock to your carrier. My wife couldnt believe how much I abused that privelidge. As some woman would be ga-ga-gooing over my child, I would say, thanks, by the way my hands are full, could you please go get X, Y, and Z for me and my little man?

....Awesome :)



Perhaps we shouldve bought more expensive. Many of the shortcomings I have seen in this seat are present in other seats in its pricerange and below. So if we narrow those issues out as a general problem with almost all seats, you can sum this review up as:

1) It needs to be able to go into shopping carts, especially if single parents unless you dont mind asking for a staff member to push a cart for you.

2) Chicco needs to come up with a 1 handed option to release latch on BOTH sides. on handle (not a evenflow wierd push down, which is demostrated when its on a floor, not in the middle of your car, and you have to lean against wheel wells and running boards filled with dirty slush to get to it :) )

I spent my entire pregnancy trying to decide which car seat to purchase; I made the right choice. The seat is light enough that even with a C-section and a 9 lb baby I don't have trouble carrying her around, the straps loosen and tighten easily so we can get her out even when she is sleeping and perhaps the best thing about this seat is that it easily and QUIETLY snaps into and out of the base in our vehicle. We can get the baby in and out of the car without waking her! With our first child our infant carrier was nearly impossible to attach to/remove from the base and were constantly waking the baby because of the difficulty getting the carrier off/on the base.

The cover material leaves a little to be desired (it is kind of rough) but it seems to clean up well.

Overall, I would absolutely recommend this car seat.

Purchased the Chicco Keyfit 30 Infant Car Seat in Fuego. It was one of the higher safety rated (not by amazon customers) car seat at the time when we purchased it at a very good price from seller Baby Age. It came exactly as described and we are happy with it so far. I have not tried to install other car seats but the Keyfit 30 fits well in both of our cars. I feel that it is one of the more compact seats out there, it does not feel bulky at all and the build quality feels more sturdy compared to the Graco Snugride. Also because other family members have the same seat/base, which would make it easier to swap bases, trade cars, or pick up each others child if needed to. I know there have been some talk over the years about the fitment and the lightweight stollers issues and artilces, so i listed four lightweight strollers that we looked into below.

Light weight strollers that i have tried that fits well with the Keyfit 30

Baby Trend Single Snap N' Go Stroller
Pros: We chose this stroller because it was light weight and compact compared to the Chicco trevi/Travel system. When the Keyfit 30 is on it, it feels secure even without the recommended straps. The basket is big enough and easily reachable. The wheels are smooth and easy to turn. Easy to fold. The car seats sits low on the stroller which mad me feel comfortable.
Cons: I think it is a little bulky when folded up. May take up a lot of trunk room just like the Kolkraft and the Graco.


Maclaren Easy Traveller Stroller
Pros: It is the lightest stroller of the four that I tried. The wheels are a bit smoother because of the larger circumference and a bit easier to turn just like the Baby Trend. Feels secure even without the recommended straps. The easiest to fold up, and when folded it is almost as compact as an umbrella stroller, this is very useful if you have a smaller vehicle.
Cons: Not a bulky stroller, but feels very large and looks big when the Keyfit 30 is on it. This is not a very big deal but just seems unproportional. The handle bars are taller than the other three brands which made it uncomfortable for my wife (standing at 5'2") to use. The basket seems a bit hard to reach, and also have no cup holders which may be purchase separately.


Kolcraft Universal 2 Infant Car Seat Carrier
Pros: Very much like the Baby trend but a few cons that made me choose the Baby Trend over this one.
Cons: A bit heavier because of the solid plastic piece under where the Keyfit 30 is placed. I felt that the build quality was better and the open/close mechanism was smoother. The seat sits a bit higher than the Baby Trend.

Graco SnugRider Infant Car Seat Stroller Frame
Pros: Again Very much like the Baby Trend
Cons: The Keyfit 30 may fit a little too snug, as i was afraid that the materials on the seat would get worn out too quick. I think the basket is a bit small.

I recently had a Peg Perego and that was so ridiculously heavy I had to buy a new car seat. This is the best one I have found! It is modern looking, the safest on the market, SO easy to install, and my daughter looks very comfortable in it. I also love that the weight max is 30 lbs instead of the usual 22lbs. You will not regret this purchase!

**Update at 8 Months** ... Babies may outgrow this long before 30 pounds! My son is 18 pounds, and 29 inches tall, and is now too tall for the seat (It is rated for 30", or when his head is 2" from the top).

This has been such a great car seat, I am so sad he outgrew it so quickly that we now have to buy a convertible one. After a 5-day drive cross-country and several plane trips, it still looks new.

*********original review, 6 months ago*********

2 months along I'm pretty happy this was the biggest splurge in our baby purchases, and that we rearranged our budget for it (pricey car seat, secondhand baby clothes) rather than buying a cheaper car seat. Considering how long we'll use it, and that it's so highly rated for safety and ease of use, it made more sense than spending a lot elsewhere.

The pros:
-- Highly Rated by Consumer Reports
-- Easy to use
-- LOVE the newborn insert for babies under 10 lbs, since most aftermarket car seat additions for floppy newborns compromise the safety of the seat.
-- The Adventure fabric is indeed more breathable than some others
-- It is easy to rock the baby to sleep in it (not in the car of course).
-- Little One seems very comfortable in it.
-- We've had no problems with his head flopping around (from the size of 8.5 lbs, 21")
-- Pops into the base easily
-- Comes apart well for washing
-- The handle is very comfy over the arm, being rounded. I have noticed a lot of car seats have handles with square edges.

The cons:
-- He does get a little bit sweaty in the seat (even though we ordered Adventure, which Chicco's customer service had said is a more breathable fabric). We combat this with a burp rag flat behind his back for one thin layer of wicking, and with a cloth (cotton) diaper with a wool cover (no synthetics). He gets very uncomfortable in it, with a disposable diaper or a PUL diaper cover.
-- The canopy does not pull up or down well
-- It's immensely annoying to have to push buttons on both sides of the handle, to move the handle
-- No slot to set it on a grocery cart. True that's not the safest spot for the car seat but it'd be nice to let parents choose.
-- It is heavy
-- The base is frequently out of stock so take care to get the spare well before you need it

I researched extensively and tried several car seats before settling on this one. We have used it for almost 11 months now and have never been disappointed. I did not notice a toxic smell. My baby was a little sweaty in it during the summer months, but not more than I would expect from any enclosed seat on a hot day. This seat does not clip onto shopping carts but it is considered unsafe to place your car seat on top of the cart rather than inside it anyway. Installation was really simple and secure with the latch system and the adjustable tilt on the bottom. The only drawback I found is that although the seat holds a child up to 30lb, it also has a length (height) limit of 30 inches. My daughter is a quite chunky 22lb and is already 30 inches tall at 10 1/2 months. So, unless your baby is on the small side, don't expect to use this seat much longer than 10-12 months. I would definitely purchase this seat again. It worked great with her Trevi stroller and the combo came in handy on MANY occasions. I loved that it was roomier than other infant seats and with the newborn pads and head pillow, Leah always looked very comfortable in it.