Evenflo Symphony Sport Freeflow All-in-One Convertible Car Seat

I am on my second and will soon be on my third Symphony convertible carseat. When my son was 9 months old, we were sideswiped by an SUV going at a high rate of speed. They hit just forward of where my son was seated. Even the first responders were surprised how well the carseat performed. (It's worth the extra effor to make sure the carseat iss properly installed!) My full-size SUV was totaled, and I had bruising. My son had ZERO injuries. ZERO. With the latch system, I find these carseats pretty easy to install, and have used a rolled up towel under the carseat to help, as indicated in the instructions. Most of the complaints I see in the reviews are due to improper installation or impatience. The seats are comfortable and have the cushioning and cozy materials found on much more expensive carseats, and the material cover is easy to remove and washes well on gentle in the washing machine (which seems to be a complaint about the much more expensive carseat brand). The five point harness on my carseat is fairly easy to tighten. Even now, at 6 and a half years old, my son cannot unbuckle the chest harness by himself, which is a good thing. (He's not yet tall enough or heavy enough to need to switch to the booster seat.) My one suggestion is to figure out a way to ensure the 5 point belt isn't loose in the tummy/chest area while being tight in the hips and shoulders for more slender children. I highly recommend this carseat!

We just opened the box and went to install the car seat, it is missing the Latches that connect to the anchors in the car.

I bought this carseat as a second seat for my husband's car and have had nothing but issues with it. I am not able to install it properly using the latch system or the seat belt. Also, the angle of the lower clips push in awkwardly into my child's stomach and looks very uncomfortable when she is straped in enough.

They sent me a return car seat it was dirty

Very nice seat. My grandson loves it!!!!! Great price and good quality. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a quality product as a reasonable price that ships quickly

I’m sure this car seat is going to work out, and this may seem silly, but it came in ready for front facing, and although the directions are very thorough there’s stuff I had to look up online in order to get it set back for an infant. If it’s an all in one I would kind of think that’s the way it would have come in to begin with. pretty frustrating because I had to take off the cup holders in order to get under the cover to move the rear facing strap forward. The screw is neither flat head or philips, it’s square and comes with no tool to help.

I like the product. Getting the seat to be as secure as I would like it to be is a little challenge but overall a good product.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I was lucky enough to be able to test the Symphony All-in-one car seat through the Stellar Product Testing Panel, and it came at just the right time as we have been playing musical car seats between cars. My 4-year-old is content with the seat she currently uses, so we use it with my squirmy 2-year-old son. I mention squirmy because, I have found with other car seats it has been a struggle to get him to sit still long enough to get the belts tightened and pulled up through the shoulder however, this car seat is a game-changer. It tightens from the bottom, which at first confused me, but has easily become my favorite feature and it makes tightening straps fast and easy. I also love that it has the "freeflow" feature as cars can often get hot during MI summers and after long rides, he seems comfortable and sans a sweaty back which tended to happen in his last car seat. There are a few worries I have about the seat, one is that the crotch buckle doesn't have different notches to move it closer or further out/in although it fits my son fine, I could see it being an issue for a smaller child. Lastly, it looks nice and seems comfortable but it does run on the wide side in my van it works great, but if you have a smaller car I could see it taking up a large amount of space. Overall I think it's a great value for the quality you are getting!

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] * Thanks to the Stellar Product Testing Panel for providing me with this convertible car seat. This car seat came in right on time. My two year old son would fall asleep on his other cars seat and his head will not be still,this car seat gives him a great support. The cooling fabric is perfect for this current humid weather. He doesn’t complain that he os hot. I had some trouble figuring out the harness, easy to pull up and down. My favorite features are the fabric and the reclining positions.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] At first look this car seat looked a little bulky but in fact it is not. It's on the lighter side, was easy to install however o did have a hard time tightening the anchor but my husband got it just fine. My son is still rear facing and he fit extremely well he's tall for his age. I like that the cup holders have an elastic side so that different sized cups can fit but my son also puts his snacks in there so he couldn't do that. I like how the straps pull from the bottom I don't have to worry about them scratching my sons neck. I don't like how the buckle at the bottom sits pretty high and it cuts into my sons stomach. I really like this car seat and the fabric how comfortable my son is on short and long trips. I received this convertible car seat from the Stellar Product Testing Panel.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] My daughter is 15 months old, so I only tried the seat rear facing. It was your average install using the latch system (meaning never super easy but also not crazy hard). Overall this is a good value for what you are getting - a safe convertible car seat with some extra features! It's going to take up about the same amount of space as other seats in the same class (it's not slim and probably won't fit in the middle of two other seats). The cooling fabric is a new feature for us, we haven't tried any seats with this yet and I was a little bit not believing it would work, but it definitely did. I'm always worried the cool air isn't getting to my daughter since the seat is rear facing and there aren't any vents over her head, but the fabric definitely helped keep her from sweating (we just had a heat wave in NY). I have two favorite features - 1 is that it clearly shows on the straps where the buckle should go and 2 - is how easy it is to adjust the shoulder straps - like nothing I've ever seen before in a carseat! It also says on the buckle where it should go. The harness was super easy to adjust - another great feature because it pulls from by the legs and not the shoulders. I've always found that it was hard to get the straps to the right tightness and this seems to work so much better! The cup holders are already installed and do not come out (which is great) AND the one side stretches for larger cups! Although the seat feels lighter than other convertible ones, I don't love that the plastic feels "cheaper" than other seats we have. I don't know how else to explain it other than that. I don't feel unsafe using it, it just feels cheaper, but it could just be a lighter weight plastic they are using. The directions are pretty straightforward and the seat has a nice spot in the back where you can store them which is a bonus! I was given this convertible car seat to try as part of the Stellar Product Testing Panel.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I was lucky enough to test this product out in the newborn stage, toddler rear-facing, and child booster seat and all three kiddos loved it. My seven year old thought it was comfortable enough albeit too clunky. My 2.5 month old fit right in though I felt like she was way too small in it. However, my 2 year old is absolutely loving her new car seat. She’s still rear facing but you can tell she’s much more comfortable sitting in it. We just took a two hour trip and when we took her out of the chair she wasn’t sweating like she normally would have been. The fabric is definitely more cooling than other car seats we’ve tried which is a huge win for us, especially in the summer. It was easy enough to attach to my car with the LATCH system and it surprisingly was pretty lightweight. My toddler had an accident in the car seat and we were quickly able to remove the fabric, throw it in the wash, and easily reattach it to the seat. This car seat is a major win in our family. I received this product as a part of the Stellar Product Testing Panel.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] When I first got this car seat I was a little concerned. For starters you can see small bits of styrofoam at the lower corners and the boasts of “rollover tested” had me questioning just how safe it was in other crashes. Thankfully, we haven’t had any accidents while using this seat so I can’t say anything to that, but it does review well safety test wise so I feel absolutely comfortable putting my kids in it. If you don’t read any further, the best part of this car seat is that it tightens at the bottom. Over three years of pulling on my kids shoulders and finally straps that tighten at their legs instead. Not their crotch, the back of their legs near their hips. This one feature has made me love this car seat as much as any other seat I’ve used. Lately we’ve had some 80-90 degree days and nobody is comfortable in the car. The AC helps a ton and we all manage just fine on longer trips, but I imagine being strapped into a car seat in somewhat like having a blanket wrapped around you. So far, my almost four year old has not complained once about how hot he is in the car in this seat. Might be a fluke, but I will take this as a win for the car seat. He is more than happy to tell me when he has a complaint about anything. The headrest is very easy to adjust as it’s just a pull handle at the top of the seat. I both love and don’t love that the shoulder strap adjustment isn’t linked to the same handle. It’s great that they are separate and I can actually pick which is closest for him, but I do love just making one quick adjustment. The reality is though I adjust it every couple of months, not every few days and I prefer the closeness to the convenience. I haven’t yet had to clean the fabric and hope I can keep that up so I don’t know how easy it is or isn’t to get off. He loves the cup holders because they have a fixed side and an elastic strap side so his cups go in easily and stay put. This car seat wasn’t on the top of my list, but it’s worth taking a second look and maybe putting it on yours. I’m so thankful that I was able to test this through the Stellar Product Testing Panel because I had no idea such a great choice was out there. The only reason I knock a few points off this seat is it is wide. It’s amazing for comfort and now that I’m not beckoned to sit in the back seat with the kids I don’t mind, but if I had tried to fit two of these car seats and myself in the back seat I’d have been pretty squished. If you have a wide car, definitely check it out.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Right out of the box I found the Symphony All-In-One Convertible Car Seat attractive and simple to navigate. One of my favorite features of the Symphony seat is the FreeFlow cooling fabric and extra padding that make the seat comfortable yet cool, even in the humid and hot temperatures of the South. I have another Evenflo seat with the same fabric and I have loved it. I also loved some unique features of the harnessing system. There are visual reminders on the harness to position the shoulder straps at shoulder level and the chest clip at armpit level; it’s always nice to have these important safety reminders to ensure a good fit every ride. The Symphony harness also loosens and tightens at the hip attachment point instead of at the shoulders like other car seats I have used before. I really liked this feature and found it easier to adjust the harness to get a good fit at the shoulders and hips. My biggest complaint about this seat is the inability to adjust the crotch buckle. Without a crotch buckle adjustment available I felt like I couldn’t get a good and safe fit for my toddler. The crotch buckle sat about 2-3 inches in front of his body, allowing him to slide down and not have proper positioning in the seat. I have a toddler and an infant, so I love the versatility of an all-in-one seat that can grow with my children and can be adjusted to fit either child, however, I do not feel like this seat provides safe harnessing for either of my children. I’m grateful to the Stellar Product Testing Panel for providing me with this convertible car seat to test.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I was given this convertible car seat to try as part of the Stellar Product Testing Panel, and I was not disappointed. My older two kids (5 and 3.5 year olds) were even arguing over who gets to use it (we eventually settled on installing in my husband’s car so they both get a chance to use it). Overall, I love the look of this car seat, it’s comfortable for my child and, most importantly, safe - so it definitely checks all the main boxes. I love that you don’t have to re-thread the straps as your child grows, but rather just pull them up. I also like that feature because it’s easier to have different kids sit in the seat without having to do too much work to change for height differences. However, I would have liked there to have been neck guards on the straps for comfort, as we all know that if you put your own on, it usually voids the car seat warranty - so I feel like this should always be included. I also liked the cup holders - instead of being a hard plastic cup holder all the way around, instead they have an elastic band on the outside - I appreciate this for when you’re trying to make multiple seats fit in one row, and also makes it easier to clean (I don’t know about you, but my kids always put animal crackers and crumbs and toys, and I always dread cleaning their cup holders as you never know what you’re going to find - at least with the elastic band that stuff will fall out on the floor to vacuum more easily). Overall this is a nice looking car seat that’s easy to use, looks great and is comfortable for the kids.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] With three little girls, my husband and I are always on the lookout for safe, affordable, car seats. The fabric on this car seat is dreamy and definitely helps keep my little ones cool. I also love how the car seat includes a bottom and lower back cushion. I know sitting in these constricting car seats must be tough, so the extra comfort is definitely a plus. The installation was not ideal. I’m pretty sure the manual that arrived with the car seat was for another model, as a lot of things didn’t add up. The harness straps are easily adjustable, once you get the hang of it. Unfortunately, this wasn’t spelled out in the manual, so it was confusing trying to figure out the first time. I would recommend this car seat, as long as you’re aware that the installation process isn’t the most streamlined. The fabric is great and I know it will transition with my kids for years to come. A great value buy! Thanks to the Stellar Product Testing Panel for providing me with this convertible car seat.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Thanks to the Stellar Product Testing Panel for providing me with this convertible car seat. This car seat comes with several features, it's well built, good quality, and seems to be a good value for the features included. My favorite feature was the easy to adjust harness and headrest. I have three children of various heights who all need to be in a five point harness and this carseat made it easy to switch the harness height and headrest height to ensure a proper fit for each child. Just a quick tug on the harness and it slides to the right position and the headrest has an easy to move handle. Other features we liked were the dual cup holders, the cooling fabric, and the ease of switching the recline position. The cooling fabric did seem to help compared to other car seats we have in our car. The biggest complaints about this car seat included the hassle it is to switch from the LATCH system to the seat belt installation for front facing. We switch car seats often to grandparents’ cars, etc and this car seat is a bit more complicated on the install. The other complaint is that it’s fairly wide. Since we have three in car seats, we need slim car seats to fit three across. Because our other two car seats are narrow, this one fits but three across of this car seat would not fit. However, if a cooler ride is top priority, this is a great option.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Living in Florida, this car seat is truly dream come true! Our car gets so hot, especially in the summers and I was amazed that the seat fabric always felt cool to the touch. All other car seats I’ve used I had to cool the car before being able to place my daughter in the seat. She is 15 months and still rear facing so doesn’t get as good of airflow. Again the breathable fabric has made a huge difference in keeping her cool while driving. I love that the car seat will last her through the booster stage so we can keep benefiting from cool, comfortable rides. She was already out of the infant stage when we got it but not sure I would have wanted to use it for a newborn. It feels like it wouldn’t be snug enough even with the infant insert but that’s just eyeballing it. One downside to the seat is the instruction manual isn’t terribly clear. In fact, some of the pictures looked like they maybe updated the car seat but kept the pictures of the previous model. He did figure it out but they ought to fix that. Overall a great car seat, especially if your little one gets hot while driving! Thanks to the Stellar Product Testing Panel for sending this convertible car seat for me to review!

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I received this car seat from the Stellar Product Testing Panel. My first impression taking this car seat out of the box was that it was a nice looking car seat. It was wider in the seat than our previous seat, and the fabric was mesh like and layered so I could see how it would keep my child cool. It also felt solid enough for me to feel like my child would be secure and safe. Once I got to trying to adjust the seat for my child though, I was less impressed. The seat only has 3 recline positions, so he was layed back a little further than I had him In Our seat with 5 settings. I also had to read and reread the instructions to figure out how to adjust the head rest and shoulder straps. They adjust separately from one another, while our previous seat had a 1 step adjustment. The latch system belt didn’t feel super attached to the inside of the seat, it just came out and went in a different set of holes for front vs rear facing and was held in by a plastic loop. The latches themselves were just the metal hooks instead of the plastic ones with the buttons, which I find inconvenient in my car because they were hard to unlatch as my hooks are set pretty deep into my seats.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] While we personally used this only as a forward facing seat, we LOVE it! Our little frequently falls asleep while riding and never wakes up sweaty. The seat is also very roomy and fabric is still plush! The only con is that it is pretty wide from side to side, so may not work with multiples in a compact car space. We were able to review this seat for the product free as part of the stellar product testing panel.