There are tons of reviews online about the Foonf already. In short, we wanted to get another car seat for my husband's car and we decided to give this a try. Mainly because its safe. There is a much heated debate regarding car seat safety and many parents believe that the price of the car seat does no equate to the safety of the car seat. In my opinion, I agree to a certain a certain extent. I believe that the price of the car seat does not equate to a an unsafe car seat. All car seats must reach safety regulations. As a parents, I hope we never have to find out the truth. I say this because I don't want any child to be put in a situation where we will settle whether the car seat is safe or not. In the meantime, I don't take chances with my child. She's my life so I will go buy the most expensive seat I can afford and read the reviews to ensure its the safest.
Now on to the Foonf, this thing is HEAVY! I love it! The weight of it gives me the security that its strong and being so heavy means its force will require more to move it. I think that is what I remember from Physics in high school?? But, other car seat professionals have dissected this car seat and its steal bars in the back is not to be messed with. Its smaller than the Orbit Toddler car seat that we have but my daughter actually has more room in the Foonf. She does sit rear facing at 25 months which I'm extremely proud of her for putting up with looking at nothing in the car rides. But with the Foonf and Orbit, I know I can probably keep her in till 3 if she allows it. SAFETY FIRST!!
Installation: The manual is a lot to look at and I just didn't bother. It gave me a headache just thinking I had to read all that. Instead, Clek has made YouTube videos step by step on how to correctly install your car seat. DO THAT! Its so much easier watching a video than looking a drawing and reading. I also felt that by watching the videos, I was more confident that I was installing the seat correctly.
Fit in Car: We put it into my husband's full size sedan and it fit perfectly rear facing. We put the car seat in the middle because I feel that is the safest position as we only have 1 child right now. The downside which isn't limited to the Foonf but all of our car seats is that you loose the other 2 seatbelt buckles on the side. So really, no one else can sit back there. With the way the latch is installed in both my SUV and my husband's sedan, the middle position does not have its own designated Latch therefore causing you to reach over the sides and covering up the buckle. For first time parents, choosing the middle position shouldn't be too much of a problem as you don't have other kids in the back anyways. Or, you can always drive a minivan!
My daughter's reaction to her new seat: She loves it! She seems very comfortable. She wouldn't get out of it when we got to our destination.
Cons: These are what I don't like about the Foonf and mentioned by other reviewers as well. The crotch pad will not stay still. It just keeps falling out so that can be frustrating. The other is that the magnets do not exist for the 2014 models. We have the magnets on our Orbit and LOVE it. Its saves the trouble of pulling it out from under your child. Last but not least, I miss the orbiting base on the Orbit. It does make it so much easier to get your child in and out.
All in all, I'm still satisfied with the Foonf and love it. All the cons that I mentioned can be fixed by Clek easily. And at the end of the day, the most important non negotiable thing about a car seat is its safety. I can deal with the rest. I love the Foonf and the Orbit as they both allow my daughter to seat rear facing longer. She loves them both so I'm a happy parents.
