Nuna AACE lx car seat review

The seat also packs a punch when it comes to safety, so you can be sure your child is both comfortable and secure – it meets all the latest European car seat standards and has added safety extras like side protection pods.

And, as the seat is created by Nuna, a global brand who have been producing high quality baby equipment since 2007, you know that it’ll be a luxurious product, with a sleek design and lovely plush materials. All this comes at a premium though – it'll set you back £220, but as our parent tester found, it’s worth every penny.

What were your first impressions of the Nuna AACE lx car seat?

The car seat came almost completely assembled inside a neat cardboard box and I was very impressed at how lightweight it was as I carried it from the front door to the car.

My husband laughed when he saw the sticker on the box that showed the colourway and said it must be a premium product if black is described as “caviar”! This was confirmed when I lifted it out the box and saw a very smart looking seat, with lovely soft fabrics and a sleek design with textured fabric on the shoulder area.

The only assembly required was to pop the cup holder on the desired side and the insert the side protection pod into the side of the car seat that would be next to the car door. These were both added with one simple click and are easy to unclick if you decide to put the car seat on the other side of the car. My daughter was particularly excited about the cup holder and it was nice that this came as standard.

How do you install the Nuna AACE lx car seat?

It was so simple to install, and I had it safely fitted into the car within minutes of opening the box. This was a relief as I’ve sweated (and cursed!) over a few car seats that were heavy and strenuous to install in my time. I did read the quick install guide which had clearly numbered illustrations to help me get it right, although it is a pretty intuitive process.

You simply pull the lower handle under the seat to release the ISOFIX bar with connectors, flip the bar 180° so the connectors are facing the car connectors and then click in place and check the indicators have gone green. One it's clicked in you push the seat back until it's flush to the car's own seat (picture above shows seat before it has been pushed back).

How secure does the Nuna AACE lx car seat feel?

This seat is a safety-conscious parent’s dream as it uses ISOFIX technology to secure into the car in the form of a solid bar (rather than any individual straps that can feel flimsy). The bar flips out when you pull the handle under the seat, so you can easily click it into place. To help give complete peace of mind there’s an indicator on each side too, that turns green when in the right position.

The bar design means the seat is completely solid once in the car and there’s no worry it might move around. Once in place you can use the handle to push the car seat back against the car’s own seat. I loved how much visibility this bar system gave me to see exactly where the ISOFIX connections were, rather than feeling around blindly for the connection like I have in the past.

You can use the seat without ISOFIX however, for example if you’re moving it into another car or travelling in a vehicle without the technology, which is useful to know. Everything is clearly explained by both pictures and in word format in the user manual.

How comfortable is the car seat for your child?

My daughter found the Nuna AACE lx very comfortable and loved the silky material and shape of the seat. She managed to have a nap in it for an hour on one long journey, although before we reclined the seat her head was slipping a little as the head supports are a little shallower than she’s used to in her old toddler seat.

Once we made use of the recline feature though (by pulling the Isofix bar out to make it longer and pushing the back of the seat back) she was catching flies happily!

The recline feature will be more useful in certain cars than others – for example in the Land Rover we could recline it fully, however in the Volvo the unique design of the headrests (Volvo owners will know!) meant it couldn’t reach its full potential as these were in the way.

The seat fabric is very soft to the touch but overall doesn’t feel hugely padded, however it must be comfortable as my daughter used to complain that her bottom was hurting on long journeys but hasn’t mentioned that once in her new Nuna seat.

What are the key safety features of the Nuna AACE lx car seat?

This car seat meets all the current safety standards and then some, so you’ll have real peace of mind as a parent when using it. It has been approved to the latest European i-Size (R129) safety standards and received a 4-star rating in the ADAC child car seat test.

It also comes with a side impact protection pod that you easily slot into a hole on the side of the seat that is next to the car door. It’s big enough to offer protection in a crash but not so big that it wouldn’t impede shutting the door of even the smallest of cars (we tried it in a Mini!). This is paired with energy absorbing EPP foam to ensure that if you’re involved in a crash, the pod and the integrated foam shell of the seat take on as much of the impact as possible.

When you first feel the seat as a whole, it doesn’t feel quite as sturdy as some seats I’ve had, but this isn’t because it’s not strong and premium. It’s just part of the clever expanding design that allows for the shoulder pads to expand outwards, so the seat naturally has to have more give.

The only safety problem for us, and something I hadn’t foreseen, was that my daughter Margot couldn’t be trusted to go from a harness to a seatbelt at the age of 4 like my son had previously.

We had a few occasions when in traffic where Margot thought the car had parked and unclicked her belt. I only knew she had because the car started alerting me to say she was loose! So, if you’ve got a little fiddle fingers child like me, you might want to wait to graduate to a seatbelt until they can be trusted not to unclick!

How do you use a seatbelt with the Nuna AACE lx car seat?

There’s a foolproof belt path guide, so you know that the seatbelt is in the right position, which is always something I worry about when moving from a harness to a belt with a 4 year old. These guides are clearly marked in green just above the shoulder area and you simply slot the belt through them. It stays there between journeys, so you only have to get it right once! This is particularly good if your child is old enough to do their own seat belt, as you know it’s in the right position from the off.

Finally, there’s a small lip at the side of the seat for the belt to go under before you click it in. This looked quite shallow to me at first and like the belt might slip out, but it hasn’t slipped once and is the perfect size.

How adjustable is the seat as the child grows?

The adjustability really is the USP of the Nuna AACE lx car seat. The brilliant 3D Growth™ System, which means the headrest has 17 height settings, the shoulder pads expand and the seat deepens as your child grows, really is a genius offering. Nuna understand that children don’t just grow upwards like weeds but out and along too, so this seat will remain comfortable for them right up to 150cm, whether they grow tall and broad-shouldered or stay small and compact.

And adjusting the car seat as your child grows couldn’t be easier. I managed to switch the headrest height between my 2 very different height kids with one hand and the same with the seat depth. The shoulder area doesn’t need any manual adjusting as it expands in conjunction with the headrest height.

I was impressed at how well the seat worked for both my daughter and son who are very different heights and shapes.

How well does it fit in your car?

The Nuna AACE lx car seat is on the larger size for a 4+ car seat and a bit bulkier than some I’ve seen. However, I tested it in both a small car (Mini) and a large car (Volvo) and it fitted nicely in both, even with another car seat on the other side. When a child who is 150cm with wider shoulders is in the seat it would probably be best in a larger car.

The only issue we had was that our Volvo has very bulky and specifically designed headrests that didn't allowed the seat to recline properly so we had to manually remove these in order to use that feature. This wasn't a problem in the other cars we tried though.

How does the Nuna AAC lx compare to similar car seats?

My son currently uses a Graco Junior Maxi i-size R129, which works well for him, but is a completely different car seat offering as it’s a much more lightweight budget seat (and has no ISOFIX) compared to the Nuna AACE lx. For longer journeys the Nuna is a much more comfortable car seat and feels more luxurious and padded.

We’ve also previously been very fond of Britax Römer car seats and I’d say the Nuna AACE lx and the Britax Römer Kidfix i-Size (£179) are similar premium car seats that are brilliant for long journeys. The Nuna slightly has the edge for me with the 3D Growth™ System though, however it's slightly more expensive as a result.

How easy is it to clean?

As soon as the Nuna AACE lx car seat arrived, I re-instated my no eating in the car rule (that somehow slipped in a moment of needs-must parenting last summer!), so fortunately we’ve not had to machine wash the Nuna AACE fabric yet.

However, with the summer holidays on the horizon (cue suncream, snacks and spilt drinks) I’m sure we will be soon. Thankfully the process looks very easy indeed, with clear pictures showing how the covers come off in the manual.

We have wiped the material clean in situ though when my daughter climbed on it with muddy shoes and it cleaned off beautifully.

How practical is the Nuna AACE lx car seat for parents?

This is a really practical seat for parents, with a cup holder so kids can hydrate themselves instead of screaming for water mid motorway drive. The ease of adjusting the height of the seat with one hand is brilliant too if you’ve got a child or bags in the other arm.

There’s also an area to store the instruction manual underneath the seat so you won’t lose it, and even if you do there’s a PDF version easily accessible online.

The seatbelt guides and ISOFIX indicators are really parent-friendly too – taking away any anxiety that you’ve not set things up correctly!

Finally, even though it has loads of features the seat is still quite lightweight and I found it easy to move it between cars.

What’s in the box?

• 1 x fully assembled car seat
• 1 x cup holder
• 1 x side protection pod
• 2 x ISOFIX guides (only needed for some cars)
• 1 x user manual (although our box had three for good measure!)

Is the Nuna AACE lx car seat worth the money?

While it’s definitely at the top end of what I’d pay for a Group 2/3 car seat, I’d say it’s worth the money thanks to the fact that it’ll last my daughter for so many years (from age 4 right up to 12, if she’s not 150cm before then). If you break that down by years it’s only about £25 per year, and I’d happily pay that for peace of mind that she’s safe, secure and comfortable.

If you’re only doing short journeys it might not be worth splashing out, but as we regularly travel 5 hours plus to visit relatives and go on holiday this car seat is a brilliant option for us.

Where can I buy the Nuna AACE lx car seat?

It's available from John Lewis, Very and Natural Baby Shower.

MadeForMums verdict

The Nuna AACE lx car seat is a brilliant next-step car seat when your child reaches the age of 4 or 100cm. I was particularly impressed by the quality of the seat as well as all the extra comfort and safety features. While it's definitely up there as one of the most expensive seats in the Group 2/3 category it's worth the money (if you have the budget) because the clever 3D Growth™ System means it'll last you until your child no longer needs a seat, plus they'll find it comfortable even when they're much bigger. Even with all the extra features and high quality materials used, the seat manages to be lightweight too so it's very easy to move from car to car. I also found it so easy and intuitive to install and feel happy that my daughter is as safe as possible thanks to the belt guides and ISOFIX indicators.