Baby Trend Flex Lock Review

I was very excited to get this car seat because it had recieved excellent reviews from Consumer Reports in their crash test ratings. However, the car seat was extremely difficult to install using LATCH. Neither my husband or I get the base to fit tightly in the seat. The LATCH components on both sides broke as we were trying to install it. We then tried to install it with the regular seat belt, but couldn't get a tight fit with that either. A car seat is only supposed to be able to move about one inch from side to side when it is installed correctly, and with LATCH and the seatbelt the base moved at least six inches side to side. We couldn't get it any tighter. It might work better in a different car, but we drive a very popular SUV, so I imagine that a lot of people would have trouble installing this car seat. I, myself, have installed several different types of car seats over and over again. We have three children and have used at least 7 different car seats. I have never had a problem fitting them into the seat of the car-either by LATCH or seatbelt-like I did with the Flex Loc car seat.

The seat itself has some nice features. It is easy to tighten the harness on the baby, and you can change the position of the harness up or down without having to re-thread it. It is also easier to carry than some carseats, but the handle is difficult to move up and down.

If you can get a good fit with LATCH or your seatbelt it might be a good car seat for you, but be aware that there is an issue with installing it it some cars.