The Safety First Grow And Go Or Graco Slimfit? Read Before Buying!

Graco Slimfit and Safety 1st Grow and Go have similar specifications for rear-facing, forward-facing, and high back or belt-positioning booster mode.

Their differences are the minimum forward-facing height, minimum high back booster weight, minimum high back booster height, and maximum high back booster height. 

Although the Slimfit has a lower minimum weight limit than Grow and Go for forward-facing, I believe that parents will prefer to maximize the rear-facing capacity of either seat (40 pounds) before they switch to the forward-facing mode, as suggested by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The same principle applies when parents decide when to switch children to their high-back booster seat.

If the body physique and weight of the child are still within the limits of the forward-facing mode, then a parent will most likely still use the harness system of a child restraint rather than hurriedly switch to the vehicle seatbelt.

There is no rush to move right away to the booster mode. In addition, there is a 5-Step Test that the child must pass to use the booster mode of his/her car seat.

All these points do not weigh much on parents’ decisions on which car seat product to buy except for the maximum high back booster height. Some children become taller faster than they gain weight.  

The maximum height that Slimfit can accommodate is 57 inches, while the Grow and Go can accommodate up to 52 inches.

This could mean that Slimfit can be used up to when the child is about 11 years old while the same child can use the Grow and Go for only until he /she is about 9 years old.

This 2-year difference could help parents decide that the Slimfit will be a more practical choice than Grow and Go. 

Saving Space/3-Across:

Neither of the two can be described as “really” slim or narrow seats but the Graco Slimfit will be more preferable to save space because of its unique feature that parents could take advantage of if they want to save space in a car or accomplish a 3-across setup.

We can rotate its 2 cup holders to be folded in half to create additional space of about an inch so parents can arrange the Slimfit in a 3-across setup or allow other passengers to have more seating space.

Example combinations of car seats’ placement for 3-across:

1. 2 Slimfits forward-facing at the left and the right + 1 Slimfit rear-facing at the center
2. 2 Slimfits at the left and the right + an infant seat at the center 
3. 1 Slimfit rear-facing or forward-facing at the left or right + narrow car seat at the left or right + infant car seat at the center 

Installation:

One of the most common complaints about Grow and Go is that its LATCH is difficult to tighten, besides its basic J-hook style LATCH connector.  Also, many users have found that installation with the seatbelt seemed not secure enough.

The push-on LATCH connectors of Slimfit are well-appreciated by many parents, who also claimed that LATCH installation was easy - same with the seatbelt installation. However, some reported they had difficulty in tightening the belt straps.

Recline:

When choosing between a bubble level indicator and a single line indicator, parents will most likely choose the former, found in Graco Slimfit.  Slimfit also has more recline settings than Grow and Go.

Lower Anchor Weight Limit:

The higher weight limit for the lower anchors in Slimfit means that you would need to wait until the child weighs 45 pounds before you change its installation using the vehicle seat belt.

With Grow and Go, you will need to do the installation mode switch when the child weighs 40 pounds. 

Country Of Origin:

This is one thing that matters to some people who prefer to buy locally-made products. When asked to choose between Slimfit and Grow and Go, these people will probably choose the latter. 

Steel Frame:

Again, this factor could be a specific preference by some parents. Not because a car seat has no steel frame, it is already insufficient protection for children.

In fact, we could find many car seats with durable plastic frames effective in protecting children from harm.

Air Travel:

Some Amazon customers also said they could install and use the Grow and Go on the seats of airplanes, although they did not specify which Airlines.

Some also parents shared that they took the Slimfit car seat when they traveled by air. One family flew across the country and noted that the Slimfit was installed well on the seat of the American Airlines plane while the armrest was down.

Another parent said that the Boeing 737-800 plane seat could have a width of 17.5 inches, and they installed Slimfit onto the seat with the cup holders turned in.

Seat Weight:

The Graco Slimfit is heavier than the Safety 1st Grow and Go because of its steel frame. Yet, some parents could still carry this car seat as a travel car seat for their children.