Britax Marathon 70 Review – Part II (with lots of pics!)
The last few days have been really hot here in NY. Like sweltering, broiling hot. But the Marathon 70 wasn’t even breaking a sweat. In fact, she looked pretty fantabulous in her red bikini. Yeah, yeah… I know – it’s an aftermarket, unregulated bikini that will probably void the Britax warranty but seriously, on a 100 degree day - you pick your battles. ;)
All jokes aside, the Marathon 70 is shaping up to be a really nice convertible child restraint. And if its crash performance data is as good as Britax claims it is - I think we have serious contender on our hands. IMHO, if you liked the original Britax Marathon model then chances are you’ll be very happy with the new MA70. For even more info, check out Part I of this review, see our “first look” video clip and visit our sponsor, Kids N Cribs’, Marathon 70 page. Of course there is also a lot of great information, including a nice video clip, on the Britax website.
Measurements (all are somewhat subjective since nothing on this CR is a straight line):
- Top harness slot height: 17″
- Bottom harness slot height: 9″
- Inside shoulder width: 14″
- Side shell depth: 7″
- Crotch strap positions: 5 1/2″, 8″
- Seat pan depth (leg room/thigh support): 12″
- Overall height of shell (without raising headrest above shell): 24″
Lock-offs:
Recline Positions (fully reclined #3 position must be used for rear-facing, semi reclined #2 & fully upright #1 are for forward-facing). FWIW, there is very little difference between the semi-reclined #2 and fully upright #1 positions.
SafeCell Technology:
Misc photos:
Edited to Add: More photos of the MA70 installed with models (special thanks to LilypadMom for letting me borrow her 2 beautiful DDs)!
Baby is 3 months old and 15 lbs. Ideally, for a baby this young, the seat should have been installed with a single pool noodle *in this particular seating position* to make it a little more reclined and closer to a 45 degree recline angle. However, baby didn’t seem to mind and feel asleep in the seat almost immediately.
Big Sister – almost 5 years old- 39.8 lbs, 45″ tall (and more than happy to be the poster child for ERF). Technically, she still fits in this seat in the rear-facing position although she’s very close to the 40 lb RF weight limit and she’s also very close to outgrowing it RF by height as well (head 1″ from top of *shell* - not from the top of adjustable headrest). Straps were positioned several inches below her shoulders with the headrest in this position but I wanted the focus to be on the top of her head in relation to the top of the shell.
Now forward-facing:
Part III of this blog review (Marathon 70 Installation Comments) is now posted HERE!
Reader Comments
Thanks for all the info and pics! It looks pretty reclined in that #3 position for rear-facing, so I’m looking forward to the upcoming installation part of the review to see how it looks once installed.
Thank goodness they changed their lock-offs. These actually look well-designed.
OMG, I love the bikini. lol
The lock-offs look great!
I hope she has sunscreen on!
Seriously, thanks for your efforts to get info out to the rest of us.
That fully reclined position looks awfully awfully space-consuming. I hope to see pics of an RF install and kiddo in there soon!
why is fully reclined mandatory for RF? i would think if the child is past infancy, you could use position 1 or 2. anyone know why??
I don’t know for the new models, but with the older models, they required the fully reclined setting for RF because installing in the FF/upright positions frequently caused the recline mechanism to break (meaning you wouldn’t be able to use it FF past the RF weight limit).
Looks nice! Thanks Kecia for the review.
I have read the older models worked car in mid sized cars RF’ing & wondering if you are going to look at this new seat in a car? Not just a van?
ANNE- Yes, install photos in our Ford minivan and our 2000 Honda Accord are coming soon! Stay tuned to the blog!
Hi
love your site– I am trying to decide if I can fit the new marathon in my car– my old marathon fits nicely between two boosters– is the new marathon the same dimensions as the old? I am having a hard time understanding the measurements. thank you for letting me know!
MEGAN – The new MA70 has a different base and it sits a little lower on that base than the original model. Therefore it’s impossible to say for sure if it’s going to work in your specific situation. Best advice, as always, is to “try before you buy”.
Would you use this seat for “Big Sister” FF now…? How much more room does she have before she would be too tall?
AMY – she still technically fits both RF and FF in those pics so I wouldn’t have a problem with her using the MA70 in either position. Estimating how much growing room she has FF will depend on where you feel comfortable drawing the line. Since the harness slots are slanted you gain more room height wise if you’re measuring to the top of the slant (closer to the neck). Hopefully Britax CS can clarify if we should be going by the top or bottom of the slant (or somewhere in between).