Rear Facing Car Seats

IT'S THE LAW IN NEW BRUNSWICK! Infants must be secured in a rear-facing seat until at least one year old and 10 kg (22 lb). The weight limit on most rear facing seats is 22 pounds unless you are smart when you buy your first seat. (Child Safety Link)

Safety First - Bad Customer Service.
The first infant car seat we tried was Safety First. The buckles on Safety First dug into our newborn's legs. I called the company right away and customer service told me they could send me new buckles, but they would probably be the same. Luckily, Walmart took the seat back and we purchased the Evenflo Aura system. I noticed that all the Safety first seats were off the shelves and a month later they returned with new buckles. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but I doubt it. I was so dissatisfied with the Safety First customer service that I vowed to never purchase any item from them again. I haven't kept that promise.

Evenflo - Affordable Solution. Great Customer Service.
We finally purchased the Evenflo Aura travel system from Toys R Us. We mounted it in the center so the two front seats could give it added security by securing the sides of the seat. Without the front seats, I don't feel like the seat would handle a side impact. I believe this is a flaw with all infant car seats when your car doesn't have a special belt to mount the seat. It was a sturdy affordable solution.

I was initially concerned because my newborn's head tilted forward when the car seat was locked in the stroller. I called Evenflo to discuss this issue. Customer service confirmed my car mount step by step to confirm safe installation. They discussed the car seat and stroller situation and addressed all my concerns. I was so impressed that I decided to buy an Evenflo high chair.

I recently noticed that the latest model of the Aura System has a wider head cushion for newborns. I can't confirm but expect that the newborn's head would not tip forward when the car seat is mounted in the stroller. Perhaps someone can tell me.

I liked the handle on the Evenflo car seat more than other models. It is quite comfortable. The stroller was a good fit with the car seat and had nice cupholders and a small section for your wallet and wipes. The wipes container did not match the dimensions of wipes so I used it for additional storage. Also, I wish I had cut out the net division in the basket under the stroller because it slowly tore as I threw items into it while shopping.

The Evenflo company has amazing customer service and their products are durable and affordable. This appeals to many new moms who have to spend so much on their new baby. I wouldn't want to deal with a company who can't instill confidence in their products - especially since I was also dealing with postpartum hormonal surges.

Graco - Wait for the Sale.
I didn't even consider Graco when purchasing a stroller car seat system. At the time they were only available at Toys R Us and Sears and seemed extremely expensive. What I didn't realize was that both stores mark up their baby items and then have Baby Days Sales at least once every two months. The Graco systems looked great and on sale they are affordable. Hopefully, if you buy Graco, you won't need their customer service. I hear Graco is the same company as Safety First, as is Eddie Bauer.

Conclusion
There are lots of other car seats that are affordable and if I had to do it all over again, I would go with Evenflo or Graco. I liked being able to drop the car seat into a stroller so I don't think I would have purchased a 3 in 1 car seat. I might have purchased a system with a lighter stroller as once my baby was out of the car seat and ready to sit, I bought a lightweight convenience stroller.