Britax Marathon 70 Review – Part II (with lots of pics!)

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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 seat.  And if its crash performance data is as good as Britax claims it is – I think we have serious contender on our hands.  In my honest opinion, if you liked the original Britax Marathon 65 model then chances are you’ll be very happy with the new MA70.  For even more info, check out Part I of this review and see our “first look” video clip.  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:

 

More photos of the MA70 installed with models (special thanks to LilypadMom for letting me borrow her 2 beautiful daughters)!

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 extended rear-facing).  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!