If you are a parent with a small child and own a car with ISOFIX fittings, then you may have also taken the seemingly impossible challenge of trying to find ISOFIX car seats. If you don't know what ISOFIX is, see the explanation below. Note that ISOFIX seats can also be secured the old fashioned way using a seat belt, so they are also good for when the grandparents visit and want to take the kids out in their old banger :-)
Despite the fact that these are the safest and most recommended car seats you can buy and it is now a legal requirement in all new cars, it is still strangely hard to buy them, and virtually impossible to find one for Group 2 & 3 which is suitable from 3 up to 11 years (Groups explained below).
We searched high and low for many weeks, even mothercare do not stock them, so we then decided we would have to resort to buying online, which was not really our favored solution as when it comes to child seats you really want to test them out in the flesh and make sure they are suitable. But even finding one online proved to be a challenge, as most of them do not have the ISOFIX connections built in, you need to buy a separate ISOFIX base that the seat slots into, which can easily double your cost and can do so without you realizing as on most web sites we found that the seats will actually say they are ISOFIX but do not specify that they require an ISOFIX base, so you could easily buy the seat and then discover that you cannot use it unless you also purchase an ISOFIX base.
It is actually quite easy to tell if a seat has ISOFIX, if you look at the picture above you can clearly see the ISOFIX latches protruding from the rear of the seat, if you cant see these then the seat is not ISOFIX.
We were actually only able to find 2 models of car seat with ISOFIX for Group 2-3, one of which was the Jane Indy Team Plus and the second was the
Evolva 2-3 Isofit Car Seat (ISOFIX) Carseat ZURICH
as pictured above, which is the one we purchased as we already own a Britax and have been very happy with it, it also came in a nicer colour :-)
At time of writing we also found only 1 web site which stocked the Britax and that was www.newcastleprams.co.uk
Evolva 2-3 Isofit Car Seat (ISOFIX) Carseat ZURICH
What is Isofix and how do I know which cars have it?
ISOFIX is a standard system for fixing child seats into cars without having to use the adult seatbelts - it reduces incompatibility problems, reduces the risk of misfitting and improves the protection provided for the child. It has taken a very long time to develop and agree standards though - the AA gave an award to the team that first developed the concept back in the early 1990s!
All new car models introduced since early 2006 have been required by law to be fitted with 'Universal' ISOFIX anchorages for a minimum of two seating positions. To be 'Universal' ISOFIX requires three anchorage points - two sockets where the car seat cushion meets the back and one behind the seat that connects to the top of the child restraint to stop it rotating forwards.
Many cars built before 2006 were fitted with two-point ISOFIX i.e. they have the two sockets at the back of the car seat cushion but not the third anchorage point to hold the top of the child seat. Child seats with two-point ISOFIX will have been tested and approved for use in specific car models and will come with a model application list.
ISOFIX anchorages where fitted will be labeled clearly - check along the gap at the back of the back seat cushion and in the boot floor behind the back seat.
What do the groups mean?
GROUP O+
Up to 13kg (birth to 9 to 12 months)
A rear facing seat which can be used in the front or rear of the car.
GROUP 1
9kg to 18kg (9 months to 4 years)
A forward facing seat, which can be used in the front or rear of the car. These sometimes have a choice of upright and reclined positions.
GROUP 2
15kg to 25kg (4 to 6 years).
A forward facing seat or booster, for use in the front or rear of the car. The booster seat lifts the child and positions the adult lap and diagonal seat-belt correctly.
GROUP 3
22kg to 36kg (6 to 11 years).
A forward facing seat or booster, which can be used in the front or rear of the car. The booster seat lifts the child and positions the adult lap and diagonal seat-belt correctly.
Feb 18, 2009 at 3:00 PM Hi,
I myself am Dutch and found a good article on Isofix here: http://www.kinderwagensupply.nl/Isofix/
My question is: is it mandatory in the NEtherlands as well (or in other EU countries?). I want to take it into account when I buy a new car next motnth and it doesnt say so in the article…
Thanks!
Aug 13, 2012 at 6:41 AM Hi, are they legal to have in Victoria, Australia?
Thank you, Gab.
Apr 17, 2014 at 3:59 PM Hi, I have a 2006 volvo with the required anchorages for an Isofix car seat.
My question is "Should the attachments also have been provided to enable an Isofix seat to be fitted".
Volvo sells the attachments as an extra option.
I live in the UK.
Thanks, Sandy