Express Comfort

I have been waiting patiently for epinions to add this product and low and behold here it is!

I have had this car seat for 3 months. I had heard wonderful things about this seat and when I saw the price how could I pass up purchasing yet ANOTHER car seat? The Evenflo Express Comfort Touch is a 2 in 1 car seat. It is a 5-point harness seat for children from 20-40lbs(USA)20-47lbs(Canada), and a booster for children 30-80lbs(USA)40-80lbs(Canada). Canadian and American safety standards are done differently, in Canada the seat is tested in the harnessed mode with a tether, while in the USA it is not, therefore you do have a varience in the weight limits according to how the seat performed in crash tests for both countries. I would NOT recommend this seat to be used by an infant graduating from an infant seat. The Express Comfort Touch in my opinion does not provide adaquate neck support for a younger child. Sleeping will be less than comfortable.

~~~FEATURES~~~
*Factory installed tether.
*Exclusive comfort touch pad
*Built in head and side pillows
*Built in armrests
*3 position adjustable harness
*2 position buckle strap
*Front harness adjuster
*Easy belt trac access
*Molded shoulder belt positioner
*Convenient removable cup holder
*2 piece chest clip
*Child can sleep comfortably in harness and booster mode(in most instances...there has been the odd occasion where her head has flopped forward)

First off let me say that the Express Comfort Touch is extremely comfortable. The "Exclusive Comfort Touch Pad" is exceptionally soft. The fabric itself is also soft, it feels like velvet to the touch. The 3 position harness is very well designed as it will even accommodate very tall children. A 2 position buckle strap allows you to move the buckle to accommodate your own child comfortably, to prevent the buckle between their legs from pinching .The front harness adjuster is a must have, it is just unrealistic to have to un-install a car seat to accommodate for bulky clothing. The easy belt trac access allows for easy installation when using as a car seat. A piece of the padding lifts on the seat back to allow for access to the vehicle seat belt during installation. The 2 piece chest clip is a puzzle type clip that takes some getting used to but ensures that it will be very difficult for a child to un buckle on their own. The 2 piece chest clips are quickly fazing out the old paper clip style chest clip.

When using the Express Comfort Touch as a Belt positioning Booster, it needs to be in a seat with a lap and shoulder belt you CANNOT use this seat if your vehicle is equipped with lap only safety belts. You must remove all belts for using the seat in the harnessed mode, when converting to booster mode. The seat has 2 molded shoulder belt positioners on either side, so the seat can be placed in any seating position(center-rear is the safest...although only newer vehicles have lap/shoulder combination belts in this seating position...my car does so this is where my seat sits.) You simply place the shoulder belt portion of the seat belt into the right belt positioner to accommodate your child and buckle into the latch plate on the opposite side. I much prefer the belt positioners on this seat as opposed to ones on other boosters made by Evenflo and Cosco etc. The others look like a locking clip and you have to kind of weave the belt in. If your child leans forward in these types they do not easily retract back to a tight and safe position. The belt positioners on the Express Comfort Touch are free sliding allowing the belt to slide in and out and retract effectively.

The more cosmetic features of the Express Comfort Touch are the removable cup holder. The cup holder can be placed on either side of the seat and can accommodate a juice box, or sippy cup. The directions on my seat state that it is designed for use only with paper or foam cups. They are obviously covering their backs on the potential lawsuit of a heavy sippy cup flying through the car and causing injury. I do use mine with a plastic sippy cup, this is my decision and its up to you what kind of cup you would use. The cup holder can than easily detach for washing. Pattern selection on the pad of the Express Comfort Touch includes the following
~*~Hamilton~*~ a small beige and navy check pattern
~*~Hoedown~*~a purple blue colour
~*~Manhatten~*~Black
~*~So what Shadow~*~a grey with lighter grey flecks
~*~Westport~*~ Navy with lighter blue boxes(this is what I have) To see the patterns for your self go to: http://www.evenflo.com/pr/car_seat.phtml

To wash the Seat simple remove the pad and wipe all plastic and metal part down with a damp cloth. Place pad in washer, delicate, cold water, tumble dry low heat.

Overall, I truly love this seat, it was easy to install, my daughter finds it comfortable, I find it very attractive. Compared to other harness/booster combos on the market today the Express Comfort Touch is affordable for almost ANY budget.