Britax Marathon Convertible Car Seat Granite

Safety first is a good rule of thumb, and one that Britax certainly heeds. The Marathon offers features you might find on many other car seats, such as convertibility, a five-point harness, and the LATCH system. But Britax enhanced and then went above and beyond the norm when creating the Marathon.

The Marathon can be easily rear-facing installed with today's LATCH system.

Located near a vehicle's seatbelts, factory installed anchor points provide a secure and easy LATCH connection. In conjunction with this push-button release system, the Marathon also offers Britax's Versa-Tether®, an anchor aid that provides additional security in the forward facing position for children weighing more than 50 lbs. The Versa-Tether® fastens the top of the car seat to factory installed automobile anchor points, minimizing the possibility of a head injury.

The Marathon can also be safely used in cars without the LATCH system.

It should be noted that the Marathon is larger (28"H x 19.5"W x 25"D) than most car seats, and can be a tricky fit, especially in the rear facing position in a smaller car. Allow for 31" of backseat space to properly accommodate this model. With its bigger size this car seat is also heavier than many. Completely empty the Marathon weighs nearly 18 pounds. But these same features are what allow the car seat to have a higher weight capacity and therefore last well into childhood.

A simple handle pull allows the car seat base to be reclined when rear-facing.

Comparing Britax Car Seats
If you're debating between the Britax Marathon and the Britax Roundabout, think of the latter as the little sibling. They are identical in comfort and convenience features, but the Marathon has a higher weight maximum, and is therefore larger than the Roundabout.
The Britax Decathlon is also similar to the Marathon, but offers two features you might need. First, the Decathlon offers additional padding for newborns with an infant positioning system, giving more peace of mind to first time parents. Second, the Decathlon offers an adjustable three-position crotch strap, which makes the seat more comfortable for toddlers consistently at the top of their height percentage.