There are too many issues with the Mothers Choice Emperor car seat to recommend it. The shell is very small, so you’ll need to turn your child forward-facing earlier than with many other seats. Its manual rethread harness means the harness is often in the incorrect position once forward-facing, reducing how securely your child is held — and the risk of an incorrect installation is high. Any money saved upfront is likely to be spent again sooner, buying a replacement seat.
⚠️ Limitations of the Mothers Choice Emperor
Despite being labelled a 0 to 4 year baby car seat, very few parents get the full 4 years out of it — average usage is closer to 2 to 2.5 years. The short usage life comes down to the small shell, limited head adjustment, and lower height markers.
📏 Small shell and lower height markers
The Emperor’s small shell means you won’t get the full 0 to 4 years of use out of it. Many people claim it’s great for smaller cars, but there are better, narrower small-car seats out there, like the Graphene and the Quattro.
↩️ Rear-facing
The Mothers Choice Emperor works well in rear-facing mode — installation is stable and secure, and the harness is easy to loosen and tighten. That said, unless your car has a high roof and low seats, placing your child in rear-facing mode can be difficult due to trouble loosening the tether strap.
➡️ Forward-facing
Due to the limitations above, we’d class the car seat as a fail in forward-facing mode and can’t recommend it for that stage. We’d suggest purchasing a new extended rear-facing convertible car seat instead, to keep your child rear-facing for longer before switching to forward-facing.
Statistical research conducted by the Monash Research Centre found that over 70% of Australian child seats aren’t fitted correctly, putting many young Australians at risk.
There can be any number of reasons a child seat fitting doesn’t meet Australian safety standards — hiring a professional baby seat installation expert means Melbourne families can avoid these risks.
You no longer need to stress. The experts at Baby Seat Installation Melbourne are ready to help — call Anthony today on 0420 516 587.
❓ Frequently asked questions
Is the Mothers Choice Emperor car seat safe? ＋
When should I turn my baby’s car seat to forward-facing? ＋
How do I adjust the harness on the Mothers Choice Emperor? ＋
What is a convertible car seat? ＋
What’s a better alternative to the Emperor? ＋
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