Diono Monterey 2XT Latch 2 in 1 High Back Booster Car Seat with Expandable Height & Width, Side Impact Protection, 8 Years 1 Booster, Yellow Sulphur

I have two kids (5 and 7) both with slight autism that are outgrowing their Graco convertible seats. With their seat’s expiration dates also closing in, I decided to go to make the leap of faith to regular seat belted boosters. I feel like I looked at every single one on Amazon before choosing these for their convertibility and price point.I was a little disappointed realizing that there’s no anchor with these, just the latches. I assumed anchoring was included in latch system, that’s on me. Obviously it’s because the seat transforms into backless, I guess I just thought the back would have that part. Oh well.The seatbelts ARE a little hard for kids to do themselves because of how wide the base is and how most buckles are designed to be flush with seats but hopefully the kids will get the hang of it. I will buy a seat belt buckle booster and see if that will aid the children in their independence.Side note! This may come off a little OCD but it bothered me. I ordered these two black seats at the same time, and they came with different accent colors… Literally changed the number in cart from 1 to 2. One seat has a GRAY Diono with a RED tag and one has a WHITE Diono with a GRAY tag. I included a picture but it may be hard to tell due to lighting. At first I thought they must have different manufacturers dates or be different models some how but nope they are exactly the same date and everything. I can’t even exchange one because who knows which one I‘d get back lol. Don’t judge me, pray for me lol.

I do wish the limits of the Diono seats with extra protection were as high as this one, but I’m glad they have something that goes to such high height limits, and this still has very good safety features beyond the requirements. Our son is very tall and I was glad to find a seat he could use for such a long time. We’ve had this over a year now—two of these actually, and the quality has been very good. My son also finds the seat very comfortable. We have two extremely hard to fit vehicles—Volvo 2012 XC60 and 2013 XC90, and this seat actually fits and works with the non-removable headrests and jut forward. These are a very good value for the money because of the high height and weight limits. Glad to have found these.

The daughter outgrew her baby car seat. We researched and this one had some great features, looked nice enough, and can eventually just become a booster, giving it a little more life over the long run- but in the meantime it provides the head guards and backing while she’s still of the size where those are needed. Cup holders are a must, and this has them!Once it’s securely anchored, she’s using the vehicles seat belt herself, and usually manages fine in the Odyssey, but struggles to reach the buckle in the CR-V, so as I’m wary of getting an extension, I just buckle her in still.As mentioned, I bought another for the other vehicle- just so I can avoid moving this one back and forth for any quick trips or daddy-daughter outings. Once the son is older and needs a bigger seat, I may move the second back to the van, but would strongly consider buying at least one or two more just for convenience.

This was the third booster seat that I bought for my 6 yr old son. After a terrible car accident, I want comfortable putting him in a backless booster but he’s a big kid so I needed a larger size booster. Love the ability to widen the shoulder space, the seat is the widest version I could find, and the arm rests are well padded and open wide so they don’t press into his hips. Great padding, love the easy latch system! Perfect for a big kid who you want to keep extra safe!

I will agree with another reviewer on this seat. There is hardly any cushioning in this seat. It is all harder foam and the cover has hardly any cushioning. I choose this because I have the Diono Radian RXT(2018 model and a solid seat)which has a little more padding. My son is 8 and has out grown the 5 point harness of the RXT(he is small for his age). The RXT does convert to the booster, but I chose to get this booster because it looked to be more specific for the purpose, and cost is not as much of any issue for me when considering my son's safety. This booster has the larger sidewalls for side impacts. This is important to me because I will be moving my son from the center seat(unfortunately, because of my truck not having a shoulder belt in the center). Looking at other brands, I don't feel like the other seats would be that different in regards to comfort or cushioning, and this one seems safer looking to me. I like the look of the Monterey versus other seats because the sides and the head protection seems to be the largest that I have seen and it is reinforced with aluminum. It looks like a Nascar seat. If it's good enough for Nascar, it is good enough for my son. I will say that I did add about a half inch of "luxury" cushioning to every part of this seat to provide more comfort and, I feel, more safety. I cut and molded them to fit perfectly. There was plenty of room under the cover to do this and I think it filled it out more. The cover seemed loose without it. I am like BASF. I don't make the products that I buy, but I make them better, ha! Another reviewer stated that he did not think this was a safe seat, because he said when you pick up the seat from the back part, the bottom falls off. I will say that they could have designed this better to snap together so that doesn't happen. The other reviewer also said that he was afraid that the back would come off in impact. That is not possible, because of the way it goes together, and once you put it in the car and "latch" it in, the back cannot come off. It only comes off when folded backwards to the flat position, which happens when you pick it up from the back. Again, this could have been designed better for transitioning to another vehicle or just removing and carrying it. Overall, I think this is as safe of a booster seat as you can get and I like the Diono products versus others in regards to design and safety features. They could do a little more in regards to comfort and padding for additional safety, so I would not have to modify it. A little extra padding would not cost that much to add and would definitely make this seat the best on the market, along with a locking mechanism for the back rest to the base. .....just my 3 cents. I will have to see about the buckling and shoulder strap issues that others have expressed once I have used this more.

This seat was easy to assemble and install in my vehicle. It is well built and heavier than other booster I have encountered. It has two straps with latches to secure the seat to the vehicle unlike some I have encountered and returned. Granddaughter likes it and it appears to provide adequate protection so I would recommend this seat.

Love it.