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Joie Spin 360 Gti Car Seat: the feedback review thread
DanielleMFM
admin
Hello.
This is the feedback thread for those of you who are testing the Joie Spin 360 Gti Car Seat as part of our latest MadeForMums Product Test.
Please give us your feedback on this thread by answering the following selection of questions and providing your pictures.
Everyone who leaves quality feedback by answering all our questions and provides pictures (and is part of our product test) will get to keep the seat tested.
1. What did you think of the Joie Spin 360 Gti Car Seat when it arrived? We’d like your answer to include comments about how it looks and feels, and what your initial thoughts were about how you and your child would like it.
2. How did you find installing seat into your car? We’re particularly interested to know how long it took and how clear the instructions were.
3. How compact and streamlined did you find the car seat? Please tell us what car (make and model) you fitted the car seat into.
4. How did you find adjusting the car seat to fit your child? Please mention your child’s age and comment on the on-the-go recline function and the adjustable headrest and harness.
5. How would you rate your child’s comfort in the car seat? If they can talk, please tell us what they say about how comfortable it is to sit in, both initially and when the car is moving.
6. What did you think of the 1-handed 360° spin function? Please comment on how useful you found it.
7. What did you think of the car seat’s safety features, including the integrated leg support and side impact protection?
8. Would you recommend the car seat to other parents and carers of a child the same age as yours?
Now please upload your pictures
Note: Any comments and pictures you post on our Feedback thread may be used Joie for their future advertising and marketing material. See full Ts&Cs here.
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2. Installing this seat was a doddle! I’ve really struggled with installing car seats before because of the weight and size making it tricky to manoeuvre into the right position. I didn’t find that to be the case with this one. I had it installed in about ten minutes and that included me double-checking everything to make sure it was correct. The guide was very clear and straightforward to follow. The only thing that I struggled with was trying to fit the plastic isofix guides into the car- they didn’t fit so I did without them.
4. Adjusting the car seat to fit our daughter was very easy, although I did find the headrest mechanism a bit stiff at first. It’s easy once you’re used to it though. The recline works well and is great for naps to avoid the stiff neck! The harness is pretty standard for car seats. It was not really any different to those I’ve used previously. The shoulder straps are very well cushioned and I think my daughter is definitely more comfortable with these. She is 28 months old.
5. I would honestly say that as far as car seats go, this one gets 10/10 from us for comfort. Our daughter falls asleep almost as soon as I start the car and stays asleep most journeys. It’s very stable and cocoons her well. We’ve tested it with both short and long journeys and she is very happy in it.
6. I do love the spin function and the fact that it can go all the way from rear to forward facing means it will definitely last our daughter until she outgrows this chair size. I found the mechanism a little difficult to reach with it being on the front of the chair, as our child is rear-facing currently. It means you can’t see the mechanism and have to feel for it. It’s not a huge problem but I do find it a bit difficult to manoeuvre with one hand.
1. When the car seat arrived, my initial thoughts were how big it was. We have never had a car seat like this before and I was a little worried how it would fit in my car. However, when we took the car seat out of its packaging me and my partner were both extremely happy with the look of it. We have it in all black and it is smart, stylish and compact. We felt the car seat to feel what it would be like for our 5-month-old and it is extremely soft, and we could imagine how comfortable she would be in this one compared to her old car seat.
2. When installing the car seat in the car we found it really easy to do, I believe it took us about 15 minutes altogether and that was with checking all parts of the installation over multiple times. The instructions were clear and precise, we particularly like the images in the instructions which made it easier for us to understand.
3. We fitted this car seat into our Vauxhall New Shape Corsa, as previously mentioned I was worried it was a little big at first as I have never had a car seat like this. However, once this was in the car, I was so shocked at how compact it was. There is still so much space in the back of my car as it really does not take up a lot of room. Even in the recline position, there is still plenty of room for the front seat passenger to have their seat in a comfortable position.
4. To be honest, at the beginning I struggled making my child comfortable, she is 5 months old and I could work out weather she needed the wedge and head support cushion or not. However, I immediately contacted the Joie Customer Service Team on Facebook messenger and they responded the same day. I sent them pictures of my child in the car seat and asked for help adjusting the car seat to make her comfortable. The customer service is 10/10, my little girl now is extremely comfortable in her car seat and sleeps so well during any car journeys. A little adjustment on the adjustable headrest and harness and the removal of the head support was all it took to make her comfortable and content. An added bonus is that it reclines, therefore she is laying slightly back making longer journeys more pleasurable.
5. My little girl is only 5 months and therefore cannot speak but I can tell from her behaviour’s and facial expressions that she finds this car seat comfortable whilst driving and at a standstill. Even when placing her into the car seat she seems happy.
6. I am so amazed at the 360-spin function, it makes life so much easier. I am recovering from a recent minor surgery and leaning over to plug my daughter into her old car was hurting me. This function means I can easily spin the car seat towards me with one hand and plug her in without straining myself. My daughter also has a little giggle when I spin her back to the rear facing position.
7. The safety features on this car seat are incredible, I can’t believe how cushioned and secure my girl is in the seat. I particularly like the side impact protection which my old car seat never had, and again this was easily added to the car seat itself. Also, the integrated leg support is a great feature to have.
8. I would definitely recommend this car seat to others with children of the same age as mine. I have already been telling so many people about it, especially my family who are amazed at the style and security of the seat.
The car seat came in a very big but well packaged box and was nicely presented. The grey colour in which it came was very nice and not really dark like I find many seats are. The seat seemed compact and works well with the base attached to the seat already. The inserts for a smaller baby looked very comfortable and soft. With my child being at the topper end of the height limit at 103cm I did have concerns how he would fit even with all inserts removed, but once seated with the seat stretched out to his correct setting he fit comfortably with no concerns. The spin function gave great appeal for ease of getting my child in and out of the car.
The car seat was extremely easy to install in my Peugeot 3008 and took less than 5 minutes. It was simply a case of locating my isofix points, extending the car seat arms out and clicking in to place until green and flush against the seat of the car. The leg then falls in to place with a button easily found to adjust its height. I particularly liked how you can have the seat at different points on the base away from the seat. As an example I had it set on its furthest point to allow leg room if rear facing and back room for the recline if forward facing. The instructions were very clear and easy to follow. I did also use the car seat in a Peugeot 208 for a one offjourney and again was easily uninstalled and then reinstalled. In this car the isofix points aren’t as clear to see so it was very helpful that the car seat came with guiders to slide in to the cars seat material to open up the isofix points.
The car seat fits well on to a rear passenger seat and stays within the seat parameters. The car seat was installed into a 2019 Peugeot 3008. I would easily fit a passenger between two car seats if installed in the back of this car. The seat did not feel bulky and was slim fitting to the cars seat where it was installed.
Adjusting the car seat was extremely easy. All inserts were removed by un popping them off the seat with minimal effort. The headrest slides up and down using a lever located at the top back of the head rest. This in turn also adjusts the harness height which was very helpful and quick. My child testing the seat is 3 years old and 103cm 17kg at the time of testing and fit well and comfortably within the seat. The recline function is easy to access and change at any time. We used it mostly in a reclined position to allow for sleeping of which he did not once flop his head forward.
The seat is solid and firm but well padded and appears comfortable. When asking my child he stated he was comfy. He did not once complain when using this seat. The seat was used for a multitude of journeys from short to longer up to 2 hours. He was able to fall asleep easily in the seat in both a forward and rear facing position.
I personally was not able to use this one handed. The location and mechanism of the handle made it difficult to reach as when in a rear facing position the button is up against the back of the car seat it is installed against. I would need to pull up the leaver and then spin the seat with my other arm. This would be more beneficial if they could integrate it in the base rather than the seat where in a rear facing position is not an easy button to locate and use. However, once the button was located it worked well and the spin mechanism is smooth and seat easily rotated.
The car seat overall appeared safe and was not inconvenient in any way. The SICT was easily changed from side to side depending on which way I faced the seat with a quick release button. The integrated leg does not take up much of the footwell and easily adjusted and noted to be safely installed. The green indicators for a correct install are reassuring that the seat is safe to use.
This car seat overall has been very easy and comfortable to use for my child. My child is nearly at the maximum limits for the seat and still sat comfortably in both a rear facing and forward-facing position. The spin feature allows for an easier harnessing and quick seating of my child and allowed me to tighten his straps at non awkward angle, easily seeing his harness was safe across his body. With how easy the car seat is installed it is a good seat if needing to be used in multiple vehicles as it allows for a quick uninstall and reinstall. Despite my child being at the top end of the limits he still had adequate protection of the seat surrounding his body and head. I would certainly recommend this car seat to any child of a similar age who is within the limits of the car seat.
2) It took 15 minutes to install the isofix and seat into the car. The instructions to fit both items were clear and easy to follow. I was surprised at how quick and easy it was to fit and was very pleased by this.
3) We have a KIA e-Niro, which is a spacious car. The car seat is bulky, so even though it does fit perfectly into 1 seat space, due to its design the middle seat would need to be kept free so that you can manoeuvre the seat as you wish. I am unsure of how comfortable you would be fitting it into a smaller model car. It also may be uncomfortable if you wanted two people sat in the back alongside the baby in the car seat.
4) I really struggled to get Lela comfortable and safely strapped into this seat. Lela is 17 months old, slight but tall. The manual I felt was very basic, so I logged onto YouTube to watch tutorials and joined a Facebook car safety group, called Car Seat Safety UK. The on-the-go recline function required two hands, but was easy to do once I got the hang of it. I struggled to adjust the head rest and harness at first, but the tutorials I watched were very helpful in showing me the correct way to do this.
5) Initially when seating her, there was a little grumpiness as adjusting the straps took some time. When the car was moving Lela loved it. She enjoyed being sat quite high and being able to look out of the window. We had no whinging and after some time, she nodded off easily. This is where the rear and front facing incline options are great. I just felt at ease seeing her very comfortable as this made the journey to London more manageable. Her whole body language was calm and relaxed.
6) I found the 1 handed 360 spin function excellent. It is very slick and smooth and will not wake a sleeping baby when you want to change positions and have them reclined.
I have used other chairs which 'move', and they have been much more clunky in comparison to this one.
7) It was the first time I had seen the side impact support and at first I was dubious if it would make any difference. How ever as soon as I closed the door I understood what a valuable feature this was. It definitely helps to ease your mind as an additional safety feature. The leg support is also a nice feature which I haven't seen on many of the other car seats I was looking at.
8) Yes I would totally recommend this car seat to other parents. Like I said, initially adjusting the car seat was a little difficult. The Facebook Car Safety group allowed me to send pictures to check that Lela was correctly positioned in the seat. This is the first car seat where we have had no tears when being put into the seat, (I can deal with grumpiness!) and the 360 function is slick and smooth. I believe this is a safe and reliable seat for children aged 17 months and upwards.
1.When the car seat first arrived I was very impressed. The car seat looked very well padded, very comfortable, had enough room and you can tell it was made using high quality material. It also looked very safe.
2. The car seat took between 5 and 10 minutes to install - it was really easy. It's fairly heavy and a little awkward to carry as a unit (lifting it into position was probably the hardest part) but I managed to do it by myself without any assistance. The user manual was very easy and simple to follow. It's pretty fool proof. Despite all the functions being on green I have found that the car seat wobbles and can be moved side to side by pushing it much more than our other Joie 360 ispin car seat (I'm not sure if this is part of the new safety features). My husband also noticed this.
3. I fitted the car into our 5 door Ford Puma (2022). The car seat is fairly bulky and whilst it fits into 1 seat, with two car seats in the car, the middle seat cannot be used. It's fairly heavy and a bit awkward to lift but the design is made for staying put in a car once installed, so the weight is only relevant during installation.
4. I found changing and adjusting the fit for my 19 month old son fairly simple. We already own another model of Joie car seats (the Joie ispin 360) so I am familiar with most of the functions as many are the same but I feel it's clearly marked up and easy to use regardless. The recline function is great, it's really easy to use and has a wide range of movement, great for when your child is due a nap. The adjustable head rest is simple to use. I found the harness straps much more difficult to adapt and did have to google how to do it.
5. The car seat is extremely comfortable. My son absolutely hates being restrained in anything (car seats, prams, high chairs etc etc). We have had a bit of fuss when initially strapping him in, which is why the 360 function is essential in my opinion. Once he is clipped in he seems very happy and soon forgets that he is restrained. On longer journeys we have done (4 hour round trip), he has fallen asleep quickly and easily and looks comfortable even whilst asleep.
6. Personally, I haven't been able to use the 360 spin function with only one hand. It's taken both hands to move it so for me it's not useful. I am very petite (5ft1 and do wonderful if that's part of it?). My husband however can use the function one handed, so I know it does work. I've got to say I much prefer the positioning of the button on our other Joie ispin 360 (it's located at the side). I've found myself accidentally pressing the recline button when trying to rotate it, which has been quite frustrating. For me personally it was a mistake for Joie to move it - I assume it was in order to make it a single handed function but as that doesn't work for me, it's made it harder work.
7. The car seat’s safety features sound brilliant on paper but in reality it doesn't feel much different at all to our Joie ispin 360. When your child is secured in, it feels safe and is well padded. The side impact protection is another added layer (but again this is a feature on our other Joie). I like that they have including the integrated leg support, it comes up much higher than our other car seat. Personally, the amount it can be wobbled is a concern. It feels much less stable by comparison to my Joie ispin 360.
8. I would recommend this car seat to other parents of similar age children because of its high specs, safety, comfort and quality. My son is happy in the car seat at 19 months, still rear facing. I have to say as an aside, there are features of this car seat that I much prefer to our other Joie (e.g. the recline button and it's positioning) but I don't like where they have moved the rotate button to.
2) Installing was a bit tricky. I was familiar with the process as we already have a Joie Spin 360 and it was exactly the same in terms of installation. I attempted to do this by myself which took about 15 minutes double checking everything, but it definitely would have been quicker with a second person due to its bulkiness and heaviness. However the actual concept of installation is simple and the instructions are clear, along with the YouTube video to double check everything is correct. I love that once each element is correctly fitted you get the green confirmation on the actual seat making it easy to see quickly it's installed correctly. There is some wobble but this is usual for isofix seats (although it does seem to wobble more compared to the standard Spin).
3) I was pleasantly surprised with how compact the actual seat was (especially compared with the standard Spin). You can definitely tell straight away comparing the two it is more streamlined. This was even more beneficial for me as my car (Volvo V40 crosscountry) notoriously has small rear doors that don't fully open, so I was concerned about the seat knowing this. However this only made it a bit trickier getting the seat into the car. Once it was in and installed it has provided so much more room compared to the Spin.
4) So, my major issue I have had (and am still having) with this car seat are the inserts. Whilst it is simple to pop on and off each aspect of the inserts, I found the instructions completely lacking and explanation on when to use and not to use each part of the insert. This can make the seat more customisable for comfort but for my 11 month old daughter it has been difficult to find this fit. I have had to send photos to a Facebook support group and am still in the process of trying to find a good fit. She has had an awful heavy cold whilst testing this seat so hasn't been in the mood for going in and out of the seat, removing this piece of insert, adjusting the headrest etc it feels like it's been never ending.
I like the on the go recline, this has been easy to use and seems to have made the car journeys more comfortable. I really like the harness, it is easy to use and doesn't bother or irritate my daughter. I especially like the bits of elastic at the side to pin them out the way to make putting my child in the seat slightly easier. I have found the headrest stiff and awkward to adjust and even managed to catch my finger in the process.
5) I would say my daughter has been pretty comfortable (depending on which inserts have been used - it's been a bit trial and error 🙄). But she has managed to fall asleep in it which she hasn't done since being a newborn. She also, for the majority of the time, doesn't cry in it which I would assume means she is comfortable.
6) As we already have a standard Spin I was familiar with the spin mechanism but I did find this tricky at first (especially with the two levers next to each other for the spin and the recline functions) but I was used to this by the time this seat arrived. I do struggle to reach the lever as I have short arms (especially when wearing a watch) as the chair is up against the seats in the car.
7) I like the safety features of this seat, the leg support provides extra comfort and the side impact protection provides additional peace of mind. It is great to use a seat from a reputable brand with high safety testing for rear facing seats.
8) It's difficult to say whether I would recommend this seat. I love the spin feature, especially with my car where it is difficult to open the back doors fully, but for the same price I would probably recommend and extended rear facing seat as any babies over the 50th centile (like mine) will outgrow this seat before they can use a booster seat so like myself I will need to purchase another seat when she outgrows this one. But I would recommend this seat for anyone looking specifically for a spin seat as it is jam packed with safety features. It's just a shame I personally have struggled so much with the inserts and trying to get a good fit.
Considering she was so full of cold, I was lucky to even get a smile 🙈
2. The car seat is quite heavy. I really liked the idea of the isofix adapters to help guide installation of the car seat. This is something that I haven't come across before. I did struggle with installing the car seat. It was challenging for me to get the angle correct to ensure the Isofix fitted correctly. It took me around 20 minutes to install which is alot longer than my other 360 car seat which I use. In addition i found it fiddly having to press the isofix adjuster button first, and then maneuvering the car seat to fit correctly. Whilst the manual instructions were sufficient, to confidently ensure I had installed the car seat quickly and to speed up the installation time, I find the Joie videos on YouTube to be far more valuable and more clear.
I would advise having 2 people installing the car seat, this would make the process quicker.
My biggest concern here was although all indicators showed green, I felt the car seat was really wobbly and not sturdy at all. Using my hand I could rock it side to side with quite a bit of movement. My other 360 spin car seat never rocked as much as this.
I ended up trying to reinstall the car seat but it made no difference.
I did a quick google search and found that others had experienced the same problem with different Joie 360 spin models. This made me nervous in using the car seat so I decided to record a video showing the car seat installation and the rocking movement and sent it to Joie customer care using Facebook messenger and they responded within 24 hours. The service here was great. I was told I had installed the car seat correctly and that "with all combination car seats, there is an element of movement allowing the shock from the impact to disperse into the structure of the car seat rather than baby/child in the event of a collision. An isofix car seat does not perform as seatbelt fitted car seats and that a seatbelt fitted car seat when secured correctly presents a rigid fit, as opposed to an isofix car seat that will move side to side and can appear to rattle in transit. This is due to they type of car seat and base that have moving components. We can confirm that the movement and noises neither effect the car seat safety." This provided me with the reassurance that I needed.
3. How compact and streamlined did you find the car seat? Please tell us what car (make and model) you fitted the car seat into.
I have a large car, Volvo XC90 so I thought the car seat would be fine. I was surprised that infact the car seat is quite bulky. It took up more space than my current 360 spin car seat. Saying that I am lucky that my car is big and spacious that 2 adults could still sit comfortably in the back seat. If you have a smaller car you may wish to test out how much space it will take up in your car.
What surprised me was that the car seat is marketed as 'tiny footprint, huge spin' with 'one of the smallest spinners around' I found this to be misleading as I was expecting this to be compact and take up less room than my current maxi cosi 360 spin car seat.
4. My baby is 13 months old. I found that I had to play around with the inserts to see if the additional back support was required or not, in the end I ended up removing all the inserts, this was the only way my baby could sit comfortably. The headrest was easy to maneuver up and down.
When my baby was in the rear position it was tricky to access the recline function due to gap between the car seat. After a few attempts and figuring out the position of the recline function, i got used to it and it became easier. The one thing I didnt like was the spin button and the recline button are both next to each other (one on top of the other) that I would easily choose the wrong one.
I had to refer to the manual to figure out how to adjust the straps as it was not intuitive. This is because unlike my current maxi cosi car seat, the button to adjust the straps is hidden under fabric. For older kids this may be a good feature, so they dont have access to the button, but as I have a baby I found this annoying as sometimes I would be fiddling around under the fabric to access the white button to adjust the straps. Again once you get used to this, it become a smoother quicker process. I do like the shoulder pads and thought they were well cushioned and easy to adjust.
When I read that the car seat had 5 reclining positions, I was excited as I find that most 360 car seats do not recline that far back to allow for a good sleeping position. When I tried the recline positions, I felt that there are only small marginal differences between the 5 positions. However overall I felt the recline positions were the same as my current Maxi Cosi 360 seat so was fine with it. If you are looking for one that lies more flat then I would suggest looking at Cybex.
Again i felt the headrest was very well cushioned. I also liked the side buckles to hold the straps before putting my baby in the car seat.
The harness buckle was easy to use.
5. My 13 month baby is on the smaller size, but she looked comfortable in the car seat. It is well cushioned and padded and on several occasions she fell asleep. I also found that the car set sits higher up, so she enjoyed getting a better view out of the car window. In comparison to my current 360 car seat, i found this Joie one had a higher cushioning around the sides of the car seat.
6. I found the one handed 360 function easy to use, however my problem was more the position of the button. Its very close to the recline button so I often got them mixed up.
7. The car seat has some great safety features. The side impact protection is something which i have not come across with my Maxi Cosi 360 car seat and this was a lovely addition.
8. Its difficult to give a definitive answer.
My recommendation of the car seat would depend on the answers to these 3 questions 1) how important is a relatively flat recline position to you? 2) Do you drive often on uneven country side roads with rough terrain? 3) How big is your car seat and do you regularly travel with 2 other people in the back car seat.
As mentioned above I was concerned about the movement and rattle of this car seat, it was alot more than my current maxi cosi car seat. Near my house on occasions to bypass traffic I drive through a shortcut path which is uneven and quite bumpy. When I first used this car seat down the hill on this uneven path I found the car seat rocked too much and rattled so much so that my baby's head was moving side to side with quite alot of movement. Because of this I stopped using the short cut route and stuck to main roads. If someone had to regularly drive on these kind of terrains I would not recommend this car seat.
I did find my maxi cosi 360 spin car set quicker and easier to use due to simplicity of the design, however I found this Joie car seat to have more padding and to be more comfortable. As I can avoid the country road, I have decided to keep the Joie car seat in my main Volvo xc90 car which i use on a daily basis with my baby and have moved the maxi cosi 360 car seat to my husbands smaller car which we only really use for short (10 minute) journeys or for emergencies.
2. Installing the car seat took me just over 5 minutes, however I needed assistance with lifting the car seat into the car as it was quite heavy and I am quite petit. Once the seat was in the car, I did find adjusting the ISOFIX connectors and aligning them a little bit fiddly but I give that to it being slightly heavy to move around and also me having long nails at the time. My husband on the other hand installed it single handedly in less than 2 minutes (he has also fitted a similar carseat previously -Joie signature). I found the instructions in the manual and video easy and straight forward to follow. I feel the video was much more valuable to me as I could visualise the instructions and feel confident before attempting to fit the car seat. Having the green indicators gave me the confidence that I had installed the seat properly and that my son would be safe in it. I also found that this car seat had alot more movement if shaken than my son's current car seat and my other son's 360 car seat. I was not too concerned however as the indicators assured me I had installed it properly and once driving it didn't move around.
3. We fitted this car seat into my 2018 Mini hatchback. I found this seat very compact and streamlined for a 360 group 0+/1 seat. It fit very well into my car, filling only the seat it was installed in. We could use it in all the recline positions and still have enough space left for the driver or passenger to seat comfortably in front, even for my 6ft tall husband. However to fully utilise the 360 function the middle seat would not be able to be used. In our case this was not much of a bother as we, use two car seats so they would not be enough room for a person to seat in the middle seat anyways. We also value the 360 spin feature much more for the ease of putting the children in the car. When placed side by side with the Joie signature 360 you can see that there is definitely a visible difference in size but without compromise on comfort and other great features.
4. My son was 10-11 weeks over the period of testing, however he is on the 90th centile for his weight and 75th centile for his height. Adjusting the car seat to fit my son was very easy as he just needed the infant head support insert removing. This was easily done by detaching the snaps connecting it to the newborn insert body. He still needed the newborn insert body and wedge. I also had to move the shoulder pads slightly down which was also straightforward to do once I looked in the instructions manual to see how do it. Looking at the instruction manual it looked like it would be fairly easy to adjust the car seat as he gets older as the instructions on how to remove the inserts, wedge and adjust the shoulder straps where clear with pictures to accompany the instructions. I did however find the instructions are not very clear on exactly when you would need to remove or adjusts parts of the seat, it just says when the child is not comfortable. I guess this is because of the variation in height and weight of children even at the same age. I do however think maybe a video with children in the car seat showing things to look out for that suggest it is time to adjust the headrest, shoulder pads or remove parts of the infant inserts would be very helpful. As my son is still a newborn I liked the fact that the seat has 5 recline positions, we used it at its most reclined position and found it easy to switch if needed. I do however think the positioning of the recline and rotate button is not ideal as it is easy to go for the wrong one especially when using it rearward facing. You have to reach in with your hands blindly. The harness was easy to adjust once the sit was rotated to face me. I also appreciated the loops on either side of the seat as it removes the harness and buckle out of the way when putting the baby into the carseat. This is handy as you need both hands to put a newborn into the seat. We didn't need to adjust the headrest , however when I tested it out I found that although the positioning of the adjustment lever is great it was quite stiff and hard to move up and down.
5. With regards to comfort I believe my son found the seat quite comfortable, he didn't make a fuss when being placed or buckled into the carseat as he does with his current infant car seat. He was also happy to seat in the carseat for longer journeys and fell asleep whilst in it a couple times. We were able to utilise a baby car mirror to watch him through the rear view mirror as unlike the infant car seats with the lifting bar there is obstruction in the way.
7. I really liked the addition of the detachable side impact protection as this is something we have never had in our other car seats and knowing that it provides just that extra protection is really good. Safety is aways a big factor in choosing car seats and knowing that it has extra features such as the integrated leg support and side impact protection puts my mind at ease as a parent.
8. I would definitely recommend this carseat to other parents and carers with newborns particularly if your child is on the higher centiles for their age as they will get fair use of the seat as opposed to getting an infant seat first. The newborn insert is well padded, soft and comfortable so you do not have to worry about the seat being too big for a newborn, as your child will be well secured in the seat. it is also great that the infant headrest can be detached separately to the rest of the insert so you can use the infant body insert for longer. I would maybe only suggest getting the darker colour if planning to use this as the main carseat for the duration of the recommended usage. I would also recommend it to parents or carers with smaller cars but looking for a 360 carseat of this age range as it is very streamlined and compact.
@Tbabez @Purplesponge17 @sylviaudomhiayeAn_F6NZ6 we're sorry we're a bit late in replying to you, and picking up on things here that Joie can help with to give your child a better experience using this seat. We're going to reach out to Joie, and we'll come back to you about this asap.
@PurpleSponge17 We’re sorry to hear you’ve been finding it difficult to know which part of the inserts to use. The inserts fill the void behind your child’s back and the seat and keep them in the correct position for travel. As you know, the inserts have 3 parts and, as a guide, you should remove the head support between 4 and 6 months, the top insert between 9 and 12 months, and the back wedge insert between 12 and 15 months. So, for your 11 month old daughter we’d advise just using the back wedge insert. You can remove this back wedge insert when your daughter’s shoulders no longer fit comfortably.
"Please do check that the harness pads are close to your daughter’s neck before securing the harness, and that the harness is coming out of the seat shell at a height that’s level with your child’s shoulders. It looks, from your picture, as though you’ve done both of these correctly but, if you can make adjustments via the headrest, if you need to."
@SylviaudomhiayeAn_F6NZ6 We’re sorry to hear you had trouble reclining the car seat. Our Spin 360 GTI has 5 on the go recline positions for both rear and forward facing that can be altered by squeezing the adjustment button at the front of the seat (image 13, page 9 in your user manual).
"But we can see you’re using the car seat in its forward-facing mode – and, in this mode, it will be positioned at a more upright angle than it would be in rear-facing mode, for safety reasons, and therefore you won’t be able to achieve the same level of recline.
"We do recommend that children are seated rear-facing up to the age of 4: perhaps you’d like to give that a try and see if the recline suits you better that way?"
@Tbabez: We’re so glad to hear that you found the service from our Customer Care team to be so helpful, quick and reassuring. And we’re also delighted that you were impressed by the Joie Spin 360 GTI’s side impact protection.
"We can see, however, that you’re still concerned about the movement and rattle of the car seat and the side to side movement of your baby’s head within the seat, especially on your bumpy path.
"As our Customer Care team may well have explained to you, an ISOFIX car seat will move from side to side and even appear to rattle once you’re on the road. This is because, unlike a rigid seatbelt-fitted car seat, an ISOFIX seat and base have moving components. We completely understand that this may sound concerning – especially on your very bumpy path – but we can confirm that it absolutely doesn’t affect the seat’s safety in any way. In fact, the element of movement allows the shock of any impact to disperse into the structure of the car seat, rather than into your child.
Do take a look at this link to get an idea of the normal movement expected with an ISOFIX seat: https://youtu.be/vtXzehjYJR4 "
Thank you all for your great feedback: it’s so nice to see those lovely pictures of your children in their car seats!