We have not used the Graco 4Ever 4-in-1 as a booster seat but are confident that the familiarity of the seat and ease of use will make it the best choice for our family. You’ll see a lot of car seat accessories available for purchase, but Moriarty strongly advises against using anything that didn’t come with the car seat you bought. “Sometimes other equipment, such as padding, can affect how securely the child fits into the seat,” she says. Remember that items around the seat, like mirrors or toys, can become projectiles in a crash. So, parents of little littles, unless you plan to rear-face your child until they reach 40+ pounds (which may be when they are 5, 6 or even 7) then this is not the best seat for you.
Since it is a relatively new model, the NHTSA has yet to release crash-testing data or an ease-of-use rating for this seat. On a day-to-day basis, the Extend2Fit Convertible is convenient and pleasant to use. The sides of the Extend2Fit Convertible are fairly low (the sides of our runner-up pick, the Britax Boulevard ClickTight, are noticeably higher). So it is slightly easier to maneuver your child in and out of this seat.
So, one or two crash tests completed by another organization just can’t give the same level of information! One or two crash tests aren’t going to represent the overall average performance of any car seat across its lifespan. An easy to install, compact, tall, 50 pound rear facing seat for under $200. It really puts it into the area of an astonishing seat for a moderate price. Dual cupholders, always a fan favorite, the easy to adjust harness, the Fuss Free pockets, and the rather revolutionary extender have really made this a spectacular seat.
However, some children may be old enough to safely forward face before they reach 45 pounds, so they may make use of the anchors. To switch the anchors, the manual says to pull the cover aside and slide the lower anchor strap along to the forward facing belt path. It might be easier to simply use the lower anchors rear facing, but when switching to forward facing, just use the seat belt. The forward facing belt path is more open than the rear facing one, so seat belt installation is easier in the forward facing position.
Some testers struggle to tighten the LATCH straps to properly secure the convertible car seat to the vehicle. If you opt to do the rear-facing install using LATCH, you’ll remove the top of the seat cushion and take out the rear-facing LATCH strap (with connectors on either end) from its storage location. Once you’ve adjusted the strap to give you enough length to reach your vehicle’s LATCH anchors, you thread the two ends with the clips through the rear-facing LATCH belt path and connect the clips to the anchors. Of extra legroom allowing your child to ride safely rear-facing longer.
Jessica Booth is a freelance writer who covers parenting, shopping, wellness, entertainment, and wedding content. She has been freelance writing since 2017 and before that, worked as an editor at an online publication for seven years. She has written for sites such as Brides, People, Insider, Bustle, Romper, Refinery 29, Cosmopolitan, Delish, The Daily Beast, Reviewed, She Knows, Scary Mommy, The Knot, and What to Expect. She also has two young daughters and has already been through a few convertible car seats at this point. For those who want to maximize space in their backseat or need to put two or three car seats in their car, this Graco seat is a good choice. In fact, we found that even with this car seat and two adults in the back seat, everyone still fit comfortably and didn’t feel too snug.
The head and back support can only be used until the child is 20 pounds. The lumbar support can be used anytime rear-facing but must be used forward-facing until the child is over 25 pounds, at which point it must be removed. This car seat offers multiple recline positions, which are easy to adjust.
The chest clip pinch is on the left side of the clip and not the center, which is odd in this group, but it wasn’t hard to use and didn’t seem to impact operation during our testing. The 4Ever Extend2Fit offered more legroom than graco convertible car seat her current seat even without the panel extended. When the extension panel was not being used, she was happy to put her feet up on the vehicle seat. His mom likes the seat but prefers the regular Extend2Fit for its compactness.
We’ve used the Graco 4Ever 4-in-1 for a little more than two years with our oldest child. When he was ready to transition out of an infant car seat, we wanted something that would grow with him. We first used it when he was 12 months old in the rear-facing position with the five-point harness.
And it doesn’t have any parts that flare out to compete for space with neighboring car seats or riders. And, as previously detailed, the Extend2Fit Convertible wasn’t as easy to clean as our other picks. The fact graco turbobooster that the cover is machine-washable helps on that front, and it’s unlikely that the lingering peanut butter stains we failed to vanquish would’ve been visible had our seat cover been black rather than light gray.