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Multimac Child Car Seat Review
Our review
Mums’ reviews
Specs
By Becky Gower
Last updated on 20 April 2017
In a nutshell
The ideal car seat for parents of triplets, quadruplets or with 3 or more children under 12 years old
Pros
Saves space, secure, always correctly fitted, 5 point harness until 12.
Cons
Only rear facing for a short while, hard to store if removed
Our review
The Multimac is a multistage child car seat that allows you to fit three or four children across the back seat of almost any car.
The one-piece seat is attached to the car and eliminates the need for seperate car seats as everything is included.
This British made product is the only multi child car seat in the world and has been many years in the making. With the option to have four rear-facing children across the back row, or to swap one of the harnesses for an adult seatbelt, it is completely adaptable for individual families
With four children aged 5 and under, we are always short of space. We tested the Multimac in our Ford S-Max with all four children across the middle seat.
Watch how to fit the Multimac child car seat and what our reviewer thought of it
What age and group is the Multimac car seat suitable for?
The Multimac is suitable from birth with one of the rear facing baby cradles and lasts until a child reaches 36kg (roughly 11-12 years).
The outside seats can also be adapted to be used with an adult seatbelt now for older children too or even for an adult so this is a seat that grows with your family.
How does the Multimac install in the car?
When you buy a Multimac seat you can get it fitted my professional Multimac agents for £99.  However, if you prefer to fit the car seat yourself it’s worth noting that the seat will not attach to ISOFIX points.
How to install a car seat properly
What is ISOFIX?
What you have to do to fit the car seat is attach two tether straps into your car, using the existing adult seat belt mounting points under the back seat.
Once these have been fitted you can put the Multimac in. Our seat was installed for us and took a little longer as our car was more complicated. The seat is quite literally screwed into the car though, the tether straps are bolted into the base of the car using the existing points for the seatbelts.
Did you know the Multimac won a MadeForMums award in our best multistage and combination seat?  You can buy the Multimac car seat on the Multimac website.
Can the Multimac car seat come out of the car once installed?
Yes! I was surprised to hear that it can be removed easily and it took us only a couple of minutes to take it out when we needed to, and the same to get it back in. It was a simple process, although storing a seat that is the same width as your car isn’t easy.
How comfortable is the Multimac car seat?
All four of our children seem really comfy in the seats. We recently drove across Europe which included nearly 9 hours in the car on one day (of course we took regular breaks) but they were all really happy.
Our youngest is 9 months old so we haven’t tried the baby cradle with a tiny baby, but it does come with a head hugger to make a small baby feel even more secure.
Does the Multimac feel sturdy?
Yes, the Multimac feels completley sturdy – when it is strapped in there is no way I can budge it even a centimetre.
I have often worried about how much movement there is with other car seats even on the isofix base so it is reassuring to feel how secure and sturdy the Multimac is.
How is strapping children in the car seat?
Strapping the boys into the five point harness is really easy. We can either do it from the side, or we lean back from the front as te child next to the infant carrier is harder to reach. The five point harness can’t be tightened once it is done up which I find a bit awkward but we have got used to tightening it first if we need to now.
Is the Multimac car seat suitable from birth?
Yes, it is.  You do have to use the Minimac infant seat, which is available on the Multimac website. The aptly named Minimac (Multimac’s infant car seat) costs an additional £269 and is suitable from birth to 13kg, around 12-15 months.  It is still removable however and has carry straps to take it out the car if you want to.
Can it offer rear-facing for longer? How long can kids sit rear-facing for?
No, it doesn’t offer rear-facing for long.  The Minimac seat can face rearward to 13kg which is approximately 12-15 months. The infant seat isn’t huge though and I will be surprised if my 9 month old still fits in there at that age. My only real negative for the Multimac is the lack of an extended rear facing option.
What did you think of the harness, and what age do they go up to?
The harness goes up to 36kg, which is really unusual as most seats nowadays need an adult seatbelt once children hit 18kg.
I like the extra security and my five year old looks much more protected than he did in his previous car seat.
How many seat positions are there and how easy is it to adjust the seat?
Multimac have four 3-seat chairs and three 3-seat chairs in its range, allowing them to cater for most small, medium and large cars on the market.
All seats can be used from birth with the Minimac, meaning if you have triplets or quadruplets, you can use it straight away.
However, when they get older than 15 months and they move into the second stage of the seat, it’s worth noting that the seats don’t recline so the only option is upright.
My children all seem happy with this and have napped many times in the seats without a problem, but smaller children might like more of a recline.
Will your children fit in it until they are 12 years old, do you think?
I think this seat will fit an average child until 12, however my eldest is incredibly tall for his age so I imagine he will go over the weight limit for the harness before he gets to that age.
He is currently sitting on the same level as his brothers, but when he gets a little taller and the harness fits below his shoulders, we can change the base of his seat to make him lower which will extend the life and of course we can use the adult seatbelt too.
Is it easy to clean?
We had to test this quite early on thanks to a nasty sickness bug and the answer is yes. The black imitation leather pretty much wipes clean and the bases of the seats can be easily removed to clean thoroughly.
What’s in the box?
It depends completely on which package you buy, but it will be set up for 3 or 4 children (the Minimac must be purchased seperately).
What would you have wanted to know before you purchased the seat?
The fact that children over 18 months need to be forward facing – it is pretty much the only negative I have.
Who would the seat be most useful for?
Anyone with a larger family – we have a seven seater but this seat allows us the entire boot so we can easily take a double buggy, suitcases and everything else in there.
Childminders as they don’t have to worry about different car seats and can fit 4 in a row.
Is there space for adult passengers?
Multimac have recently made improvements that mean the end seats can be used with an adult seatbelt, so adults can sit in the seat too. You can buy the correct parts for this on the website but it means even more flexibilty.
Is the Multimac good value for money?
Prices vary depending on the exact model you choose but ours was £1499. At first it sounds expensive, but when you think about it, the least you can spend on one all-stage car seat would be £200, if you had to get three of them, that would cost you £600.  However, it’s sort of a moot point, as you wouldn’t be able to fit 3 in the back of any car anyway.
So for what it is, a tailor-made, safe, easy-to-use car seat that will fit 3 or 4 babies, toddlers or children in the car at the same time, it’s priceless and I actually think it is exceptional value.  And the Minmac is £269 which is inline with other infant carriers. The only expensive extra are the headrests, which are an additional £59 each.
Overall I think it is great value, as we would have spent a similar amount on 4 group 1 seats and then 4 group 2 and 3 seats for the four children.
MadeForMums verdict:
The Multimac is the answer to many parent’s problems. It is a space saving, super safe alternative to multiple car seats and allows so much flexibility. It is easy to use and we are definitely converted.
Unit 11 Octagon Business Park, Miller Street,
Birmingham, West Midlands B6 4NF
