I chose the Diono Rainier because it seemed to be the best option for my family. I was torn between the Rainier and the Pacifica. The reason I chose the Rainier was because it ultimately had more padding. Even though they are very close in description/safety/style, I am very happy with my choice and so is my toddler.
Every day we go in the car, I kid you not, my toddler tells me that she LOVES her car seat and that it's comfy. She keeps saying "Thanks for getting me this new comfy car seat, Mommy", "I like seeing things out the window". Those are wonderful words to hear after many miserable car rides in her other two car seats because she just disliked being in them and the car. I never thought it would be the actual car seat that could make her hate being in the car. Since we've installed the Diono Rainier, she is happy and willingly goes in the car. She specifically asks me if we can go somewhere during the day because she wants to take a ride in her seat. After all, it is comfortable and her favorite color. We received it in Glacier, but you can see the other available colors HERE. They include: Orchid, Graphite, Black Houndstooth, Shadow, and Glacier. I really liked all of the colors and thought there was a good variety for both genders.
My daughter is three years old and happy as can be in this seat so that's a plus. She loves being able to sit up tall and looking out the window. She really couldn't do that in her last seat because it was a bucket seat and she was still rear facing. I would have loved to have kept her rear facing til age 4, but this seat is so big that it took up too much room and reclined so far back that the front passenger seat needed to be forward so much that no one could actually sit in it. It's even huge for our SUV and forget using it in the Toyota Corolla. You do have an option to purchase an angle adjuster that will help solve this issue, but at this point, it wasn't necessary for us. So, we went ahead and turned her around forward facing and it fits so much nicer. It's very tall but slender and actually gives a lot more room on the side of the seats that we didn't have before because her old car seat was so wide, no one could sit in the middle if they wanted to.
The main thing that sold me on it was the safety features. On Diono's site they share that the Rainier has extra deep side walls for enhanced side impact. It has aluminum reinforced headrest and can be positioned in 12 different adjustments for height. There is additional head support and EPS foam that surrounds the childs head and body for complete side impact protection. This is wonderful and reassuring. I've researched many, many, many car seats and nothing compared to Diono. It was the safest I could find given the details and customer reviews.
Rear facing, your child can weigh anywhere from 5-50 lbs
Forward facing, your child can weigh anywhere from 20-90 lbs or 57" in height (whichever comes first) and it has a 5 point harness mode
As a booster, your child can weigh 50-120 lbs or 57" in height
The Diono Rainier has the Super LATCH system that can be used for easy installation, but it can only be used if your child is rear facing or up to 40 lbs forward facing, I believe). Because we forward faced and my daughter is just about 40 lbs we tethered it. My husband installed it for me and said that the install instructions were clear but slightly complex to navigate due to the flexible install options (front/rear facing, latch or lap belt, etc).
Here is a list of the Key features and additional features directly from Diono's website to help give you a better idea of everything this seat has to offer:
Key Features
- Full steel frame and aluminum reinforced sides for unmatched safety
- Reinforced extra deep sidewalls lined with energy-absorbing foam give Rainier superior head and body protection
- Comfortably seats rear-facing children from 5 to 50 lbs
- Highest forward-facing capacity of any car seat in a 5-point harness: from 20-90 lbs (up to 57" in height)
- Converts to booster mode for children between 50 and 120 lbs. (up to 57" in height)
- Unique SuperLATCH system that makes installation easy
- Space saving design allows extra room for passengers while providing spacious interior for child
- Folds flat for travel and is FAA certified
- NCAP crash tested, the industry benchmark for verifying child seat performance in severe accident conditions
Additional Features
- Infant body support cushions and memory foam for added comfort
- Energy absorbing EPS foam and side impact protection provides added safety
- Extra-long leg support for comfy road trips and multiple harness and buckle positions for custom fit
- Safestop® energy-absorbing harness
- Additional forward-facing recline position to accommodate different types of contoured vehicle seats, 12-position adjustable headrest, 5 shoulder and 3 buckle positions deliver a comfortable ride.
- Rear-facing tether capability
- Only brand of car seats with SuperLATCH™: with the Strongest Connectors and Secureweave™ webbing it provides an easy and secure installation
- Additional set of harness pads included to use only when the child is over 65 lbs in the 5-point harness
- Expandable sides and long seat bottom allow proper leg support
- Sits low on vehicle seat for easy child boarding and improved safety performance in a crash
- Angled cup holder keeps a variety of drinks upright and within easy reach
- Cover is machine washable and dryable
- Rubber bottom grips for no-slip installation
- Industry leading 12 year product life (from date of purchase)
I love that the life of this seat is 12 years!! I believe the average car seat has a life of like 8 years!!! That's a huge difference!!
Here is a list of our pros and cons. We know there's going to be good things about every product and undesirable things, but that's what reviews are for right? It helps give the company the feedback that they are looking for and in all help them make adjustments and improvements for their future products.
Pros- FDA approved, can be carried onto the plane and actually folds flat! (you do have to
purchase the shoulder straps separately, though).
- Essentially the only seat you will ever need!
- Easy rachet system and the mechanism is nice
- Can register your seat online
- Stylish and comfortable
- Emergency card located in the flap between your childs legs
- Easy for toddler to climb into on their own (I really liked this because there are times
we've been too close to another car for me to try to lift her into her seat, so I can easily
have her get up and in her seat on her own.)
- This seat is an improvement from the Radian RXT
- It's very narrow/slender!
- It comes with both toddler and infant support cushions
- There are 3 crotch buckle positions and 12 height positions
- Good build quality
- Good looking/stylish
- Installs more securely than the other car seats we have used, due to the top tether.
- Our daughter LOVES it!
- Can install up to 4 cupholders (Only comes with 1)
- Love the cushioned pads on the strap and they are removable if needed
-The sides of the seat expand to give more leg room
Cons- Angle adjuster needs to be purchased separately to make the seat more upright and to
rear face.
- Only comes with 1 cupholder (I think many customers would appreciate at least 2)
- I really wanted to extend rear face til the age of 4 but couldn't because the seat didn't
come with an angle adjuster. (However, it can be purchased separately)
- If you use on a plane you have to purchase a separate seat belt extender
- When my daughter falls asleep, her head falls forward (If its near nap or bed time, one
of us will sit with her in the back seat so we can push her head back up when it falls
forward.
- Hard to find the spot for the top tether in rear facing set up. (We have a Honda Pilot)
- The seat is huge, we couldn't fit it in the SUV rear facing without an angle adjuster &
we couldn't fit it in the Toyota Corolla comfortably
- The seat is heavy (Too heavy to transfer back and forth between cars if we wanted to)
- With a newborn, you are unable to take the seat out and carry the baby (but as a much
safer car seat option, I can deal with that)
Overall we are very pleased with our Diono Rainier and would definitely recommend it to family and friends. It's been a wonderful seat so far and I've been using it for about 3 months now. I am so happy that we have had the opportunity to review a Diono car seat because I'm hooked and do plan on purchasing from them in the future when another little one is in the picture.
Diono also offers other car seats (Rainier, Pacifica, Olympia, Radian RXT, Etc..) and accessories that can be viewed on their website at https://us.diono.com/.
If you'd like to connect with them, they can be found on the following social media sites:
Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube.
I've had nothing but great customer service. Every time I had a question or concern, I got an email back in a timely fashion. They made sure I was taken care of and I've been happy exchanging communication.
I am so excited to tell you that Diono is giving me the opportunity to give one Rainier away to a MLWM (Mommy Life With Marya) reader!!!!!!! The winner gets to choose the color they want. This car seat is valued at $379.99. If you'd like to win a Diono Rainier, ENTER HERE!!
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COMMENT BELOW:
Which color Rainier would you choose if you won? Who would this car seat be for?