Our first big purchase will probably be the Car seat as it's not on our list of gift purchases and we need to start buying as we can offord things.
I want the Mamas and Papas Pilko Pramette matching car seat, which is ??100 in itself and then you'd pay an extra ??100 on top for the IsoFix base.

The lady in the shop says it depends what kind of car you have as to whether you'd need the Base and we might not need it. We have a new shape Nissan Micra and I checked the seat belts in the back and they say IsoFix point on them. Does anyone know if this means we will need the base as well - I dont quite get why some cars need the base and others dont - Im easily confused!!

xax

I got the maxi cosi and the isofix base but it can be used without the base and the base can be fixed with isofix or seat belt. Are there any product reviews online where you could find out more???

I'll have to check, so the IsoFix point isnt a seat belt then?! The whole IsoFix concept confuses me tbh! I'll get the hang of it - Im full of daft questions at the moment!!
xax

lol dont worry, I had no idea until the lady in the shop showed me, isofix points are like little metal rails in the back of the seat, the base clips onto them. Still not sure if my car has them to be honest!!! But im hoping to change it anyway cos its too small (peugeot 206)

An isofix base means that you do not need to use a seatbelt around the car seat. It is meant to be a very secure way of making sure the car seat is sturdy. Most modern cars have isofix points in them. You have to dig deep. If you are getting it from Mamas and Papas, they will offer a car seat fitting service for you for free to see if it fits properly. If you can afford it - go for the isofix base.

Pop into m&p, they have a demo seat showing iso fix and a belted fixed base, personally if your car has isofix i'd go for it it was so much more sturdy than the belted option. I had the belted option with my son (who's 8) as isofix wasn't then available but the choice is yours. i was told car from 2006 are guaranteed to have isofix (but don't quote me with checking first)

We have a micra and bought the maxi cosi car seat and also bought the isofix.

Our car seat fitted in our car fine, but as the car had the isofix points, we bought the base as I felt it was the safer option.

Hey hon
I'm getting the M&P Pliko Pramette in city scape. They tried the isofix base in our car (a vectra) and it sat perfectly. TO be honest the only way you know is to take your car to somewhere and get them to try the isofix base (anywhere will do as isofix fits loads.
They did that for us and really helped us.xxx

Even if your car has Isofix you don't HAVE to get it - you can just use the seatbelt if the seat fits. We have bought the Maxi Cosi Isofix Base which allows you to do it both ways so we can have it as Isofix in our car and then use it with seatbelt if we ever had to put it in other people's car.
The base will make it so much easier to get the car seat in and out quickly without faffing with seatbelts everytime plus it did look very sturdy.

I was going to say what Baby B has said - you don't have to get the isofix just because your car can take it. i think it's more a case of if your car is slightly older you might not be able to have isofix, therefore have to have the seatbelt option, but if it's a newer car (which yours obviously is) then you have the choice.
We got the Pliko Pramette (also in Cityscape!) and got the PV carseat with the isofix base because it is supposed to be safer, however I think using it with just a seatbelt is also very safe - and we would use it like that in other people's cars like Baby B (e.g. in my mum's car or if we get a hire car on holiday etc). My advice when you get your car seat - with or without the isofix - is to have a dummy run of fitting it in the car - it took me and my husband about an hour of fiddling around to work out how to do it!!! (we had stupidly left the instructions in the pocket of the isofix base so once the seat was fitted we couldn't work out how to get it out again!!!) Glad we tried it out first, wouldn't want that saga in the hospital car park!!!!

Iso fix is an international fitting. It basically anchors your seat to the car and is the safest and most secure way of transporting your child. It eliminates the risk of buckle crunch or twisted belts which would cause a seat to fail in a crash. 70 % of seat are fitted incorrectly! If you have isofix in your car then use it, most isofix bases can be belted in as an alternative if relative are transporting your child, and certainly maxi cosi and britax have a fit finder function on their website.

The main advantages of a rear facing seat with isofix are the fact it is solid, and will not be compromised in a crash. It is far simpler to fit, and for me reduces the worry of a relative not being able to fit my child's seat correctly, or apply the tension to the belt to tighten it. It is also a lot less fiddly than belting your seat in each time.

If you are unsure, get it fitted, you can also go back to your retailer if you change your car and they will re fit your seat. I work in road safety as my second job and have had a weekend full of car seat fitting!

Any questions just ask!
Bets XxX

Hey hon
I'm getting the M&P Pliko Pramette in city scape. They tried the isofix base in our car (a vectra) and it sat perfectly. TO be honest the only way you know is to take your car to somewhere and get them to try the isofix base (anywhere will do as isofix fits loads.
They did that for us and really helped us.xxx

I also have a vectra 08 reg, would this come as standard with isofix? We've also looked (far in advance i know) but want the M&P combination

Hey sweetie.
Yeah it should do. Our's is an 06 and it came as standard. If you feel down the back of the rear seats inbetween the seat/back you should feel a metal bar, thats isofix.xxxx
Well I'm the same as you and know what pram I want hon, ha ha! xxx

Thanks for that just checked and there are 2 little bars on the rear passenger seat , similar to what i saw in M&P, so glad about this. Just can't believe that you have to keep changing bases when you upgrade to next stage car chair!!

It's good to be organised My oh is worse than me haha

Fab, thats it. Personally I'm going to get isofix for my car. I just think that I would rather be safe. Lady in M&P said to think of the worst situation, i'm in pain, potentially pregnant again, it's raining, baby screaming, people beeping to get in your space in the car park. It's inevitable that you may forget to tie the seatbelt correctly. Obviously once the Isofix is in it's pretty hard to get out but you shouldn't have any need too. In mum's car she would most probably just tie it in but if she plans to have baby on a regular basis (ie weekly so I can work from home) then for ??75 i'm going to buy her a base.
Keep an eye on tesco's for the base, they had it for ??75 a few weeks ago which is better than ??100 in M&P xxxxx