by Adrienne Hodges posted in Products

When I told my husband we'd be test-driving the Diono Radian rXT, his reaction surprised me.
"Awesome! Let's install it front-facing."
I was chagrined. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children are five times safer riding rear-facing. But my husband had a different safety issue in mind: heat safety. We live in Phoenix where our dashboard thermometer reads upwards of 100 degrees daily in the summer. What's more -- our subcompact car has no air vents in the back seat.

We're accustomed to pre-cooling the car, but on 110 degree days, the air conditioning definitely struggles, and our 20-month-old daughter gets the least of it. So it seemed we were in a lose-lose situation: sacrifice our toddler's safety or her comfort. And then the Radian arrived.
The first thing I noticed about the Radian was how heavy it was. The Diono website jokes it's "worth the weight," and I quickly learned why. Unlike our old car seat, the Radian has a full steel frame like the frame of a car. This makes sense to me because ideally your infant car seat should be a seamless extension of your vehicle.
For such a hefty piece of equipment, Diono designed it to be remarkably portable. It arrives folded flat and secured with a red Velcro strap. Transporting it to my car was pretty painless, and additional straps can be purchased that allow for shoulder- or back-carrying. These will be a must when we fly to visit my parents (the Radi...