How can the unique characteristics of a car seat be objectively assessed? To choose your child’s car seat you often rely on the opinions and experiences of the people you know or on reviews you find online. There are, however, organizations that can help you make this delicate decision. Their accurate assessment tests, which include crash tests, stress car seats in various ways until a final decision is reached, which comes as real consumer advice.

The most important among these impartial bodies is the ICRT (International Consumer Report & Testing), which combines 37 organizations in 33 countries worldwide.  Among them, the ADAC (German automobile club), TCS (Swiss Touring Club) and ÖAMTC (the Austrian equivalent) every year select a group of car seats that they test. The results are then published by the main consumer associations (e.g. Stitungwarentest in Germany, Altroconsumo in Italy, Que Choisir in France, Which? in the UK).

Primo Viaggio i-Size is the best car seat in its category

According to the ADAC 2019 tests, the Peg Perego Primo Viaggio i-Size (Base included), is the best car seat in its category, i.e. from birth to 18 months. Our Primo Viaggio i-Size car seat scored excellent results in the 2019 tests carried out by Stiftung Warentest, ADAC, ÖAMTC and TCS.

How testing assigns the final grade

Tests are carried out according to 4 categories: Safety, Handling, Ergonomics and Pollutants. The 5 assessment grades are:

• Excellent (0,5 - 1,5)
• Highly recommended (1,6 - 2,5)
• Recommended (2,6 - 3,5)
• Recommended with reserve (3,6 - 4,5)
• Not recommended (4,6 - 5,5)

Quality standards are very high; the final grade is the average of the results in the 4 categories, considering that the Safety category has the greatest influence on the result.

ADAC assigns Highly Recommended to Primo Viaggio i-Size

The Primo Viaggio i-Size (Base included) car seat was assigned an overall grade of ‘1.6’, the best in the 0-18 month category, so its overall ranking, according to ADAC 2019, is ‘highly recommended’. Here are the details of each of the assessed criteria:

• Safety: VERY GOOD (1.4)
• Handling: GOOD (1.8)
• Ergonomics: GOOD (1.9)
• Pollutants: GOOD (2.2)

What you need to know about Primo Viaggio i-Size

Primo Viaggio i-Size is a product whose excellence is widely acknowledged, the best candidate for being your child’s first car seat. Here is what makes this car seat so special:

• Suitable for babies from 40 to 83 cm in length, 13 kg (15 months), according to the new ECE R 129 i-Size standard.
• 1 EPS - 2 EPP improved protection from the absorption of impact energy
• Adjustable Side Impact Protection (ASIP).
• Tri-Stage Cushion: adapts as the baby grows, guaranteeing comfort and safety.
• Pagoda hood: large extensible UPF 50+ hood with mesh for ventilation.
• i-Size base included.
• 3-point harness, adjustable headrest with 5 positions.
• Automatic attachment system on Peg Perego chassis.
• i-Size base can be re-used with the Viaggio FF 105 car seat.

Primo Viaggio i-Size is comfortable and welcoming for your child, and it is easy for you to install it in the car. It enables the child to travel rear-facing for longer (from birth until 83 cm in length and up to 13 Kg - 15 months), which according to statistics is the safest position.

With Viaggio FF105, it is the winning combination

And after Primo Viaggio i-Size, which car seat should you choose? You already have the i-Size base and you can use it with the Viaggio FF105 car seat, which complies with the new ECE R 129 i-Size standard, from 71 to 105 cm - up to 20 Kg (from 1 to 4 years approximately).

Viaggio FF105 obtained good results in ADAC’s 2019 tests, with a final score of 2 (’Highly recommended’). What does Viaggio FF105 have to offer? Here are its main features:

• Only for use with the i-Size Base.
• Adjustable Side Impact Protection (ASIP).
• EPS for absorbing shock from impact.
• Infinite Recline: reclining back-rest that can be locked into a number of positions.
• Headrest: easy to lock into 6 positions.
• Chest clip: keeps the straps in the right position.
• 5-point harness with soft shoulder pads.
• Kinetic pods: maximum side impact protection.
• Ergonomic movement reducing cushion
• Harness retainer: makes seating the child easier.

Peg Perego is proud to design and manufacture excellent products dedicated to the well-being and safety of children.

Learn about all the products - Car Seats and Car Accessories

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The idea is the result of PegPerego's wish to help out moms... in all seasons! In winter children must be kept warm but continuous temperature changes - in and out of the car, out of the house and into the car - can be treacherous.  Igloo Cover rids moms of the put on-take off problem by “dressing” the car seat with the layers worn by children. Just think, when going in and out of shops, it is not necessary to remove coats and jackets - simply unzip the cover!

Igloo Cover lies like a blanket on your child when he or she is lying in the car seat. It hooks on with elastic eyelets, ensuring your child stays under the cover. The child's heat inside can be adjusted through a practical zip, with no need to involve little hands or feet. When it is really cold, the upper part of the lining ensures protection from drafts.

The internal lining of Igloo Cover is made of Thermore® Ecodown® to protect softly and lightly against the cold, without weighing your child down or limiting freedom of movement. The hydrorepellent solution on the outer layer will keep rain and snow at bay.

Warm, soft and light, Igloo Cover is compatible with the Primo Viaggio SL car seat and has been tested in the crash tests for child restraint systems. Using our padded cover – always choose the original – does not interfere with safety.

Our Viaggio 1 Duo-Fix K that guarantees quality and is the end result of all our research in the child's car safety, has a new look for 2014. The classic colors are always available and are now joined by modern prints and bright colors to exalt our all-Italian design.

Camouflage

Fleur

Corsa

Denim

Discover all the fabrics available in the product sheet and remember that Viaggio 1 Duo-Fix K is available in PearlGrey Alcantara, one of the most exquisite and sought-after materials.

Enjoy the video!

Our brand-new Primo Viaggio SL car seat has already obtained prestigious awards even though it was launched a very short while ago. It obtained the highest rating (5 stars) as best product in its category in the June 2013 safety crash tests performed by ADAC, TCS , Stiftung Warentest, OAMTC. Rightly enough, we are very proud.

Our Primo Viaggio SL has an additional new feature that we are very keen to introduce - the sun hood made with fabric that ensures the highest protection against sun rays.

Every mother knows how important it is to protect children (and especially very young children) from direct sun rays, which is why hoods, canopies and sunshades are used so much. Now, with our new Primo Viaggio SL, the car seat-sun problem is solved thanks to the hood that has UV protection.

What does UV stand for?
It stands for “ultraviolet rays”, which are rays in the solar spectrum invisible to the naked eye and damaging for the skin. Children must be protected against exposure to UV rays.

What does UPF stand for?
It stands for Ultraviolet Protection Factor, the protection factor used in fabric and clothes. It is not the same as that used in sun care products (which
have a SPF value) but the concept is the same.

What does 50+ represent?
In the UPF scale for clothes (and fabrics) the lowest value is 15 (good) and the highest is 50+ (excellent).
In our case, we made our car seat hoods with fabric that guarantees excellent UPF protection.

A UPF 50+ sun hood does not, however, mean you can stop behaving sensibly when it comes to exposing your child to sunlight - it is just added protection and safety. It’s obviously worth it, isn’t it?

Many of us are familiar with the Isofix attachments, those anchor points, often yellow in color, that enable you to install the car seat to two metal rings placed in the gap between the seat and backrest of newer vehicles.

What not all of us know is that, in order to secure the Isofix car seat, one must also use a third anchor point. Many car seats use the so-called support leg.

Others use a belt located behind the car seat backrest that attaches to a special anchor found in newer vehicles. This is the so-called Top Tether.

What advantages does the Top Tether offer?

The use of the Top Tether greatly increases your child's safety, as it makes the seat even more stable and more securely fixed to the vehicle. In case of an accident, a seat so securely fastened will undergo deformation and absorb the energy released by the vehicle, instead of risking dangerous whiplash injury to the child, as in traditional installations with seat belts.
In addition, if the child is placed in a traditional seat or a seat without a base, by buying a car seat with Top Tether you will be guaranteed the safety of an Isofix product, without the need to buy a separate base.

But where do I find the Top Tether? On what vehicles and what car seats?

All recent cars must have the Top Tether attachment. This may be placed behind the vehicle's backrest, on the shelf in sedans, or in the trunk in the case of minivans. In any case, the position is marked by the presence of the logo pictured to the right.

As regards Peg Perego products, you can avail of the Top Tether when you buy Viaggio 1 Duofix TT. We have produced a video on the subject, to explain the Top Tether’s characteristics and installation options in full.

This is why we are excited to present the brand new Viaggio 2-3 Surefix, the perfect complement to a range of car travel solutions enabling you to choose PegPerego from birth to your child's 12th birthday.

Viaggio 2-3 Surefix is a car seat for children weighing 15 to 36 kg, and is therefore suitable for children aged 3 to 12. Its main features are protection and versatility, as Viaggio 2-3 Surefix can be adapted as your child grows.

Viaggio 2-3 Surefix comes with a wide protective backrest and an enveloping headrest, essential when the child naps, that can be adjustable in height. The seat protects the child against side impacts and provides maximum stability around corners thanks to Surefix fastenings. The reclining backrest and adjustable seat ensure maximum comfort even on long trips. The seat also comes with two retractable cup holders.

Light and easy to install and dismantle, Viaggio 2-3 Surefix has a double approval because there are two possible installations: with the vehicle's 3-point seatbelt (universal category) or with the vehicle's 3-point seatbelt and Surefix fastenings (semi-universal category).

Viaggio 2-3 Surefix is worth more because it gives you more: watch our presentation video to discover all its features and functions.

We met with Engineer Agrati last year during a round table dedicated to children’s car safety. Today we are meeting with him again to ask him new questions on a key topic.

Engineer Agrati, manufacturing car seats means being constantly attentive and ready to implement new regulations or new solutions for our small passengers’ safety. How do you work in this sense? Are there continuous tests and adjustments?

At PegPerego we have a fundamental value which is to only market products we have designed and studied and manufactured in-house. I’m lucky to work with a small, well-organized team, made up of young mothers and fathers who study products with their children’s safety in mind.

What’s more, we’re not only attentive to what our competitors are doing but to what’s going on in cross sectors such as the auto, fashion and new technology industries.

As for regulations, car products are directly certified for use by the various European transportation ministries and even those who develop innovative solutions must always receive their approval before marketing a car seat.

As for continuous testing, monitoring production with scheduled tests is mandatory in our sector. This is not only an excellent guarantee for our young customers, but also for us since we can thus monitor the entire production process, especially critical component purchases.

When a new product is conceived, what are the references that must be considered to create an innovative product? In your experience, which product or material do you think “marked a new era”?

The first reference is always to safety regulations. However, this is mandatory for everybody. Other “drivers” must be considered in order to create a winning product: it must be convenient and easy to use by mothers and fathers and grandparents; it must be comfortable for the child and it must convey the safety of a durable and well-made product to the purchaser.

You shouldn't let yourself be misguided by ultra hi-tech products. They are often hard to use and thus unsafe. I think that the product that truly marked a new era in this sector was the isofix: higher safety and easier use all wrapped up in one.

One question that we often find in these pages: why do car seats have an expiration date?

Because they are mainly made of plastic, a material that can be altered more than others by wear and sun exposure. Over time, plastic tends to become fragile, or hard with poor resistance to the shocks like those in car accidents.

Furthermore, the expiration date encourages the consumer to purchase more recent and safer products. A new car, with perhaps 6/8 standard airbags, is much safer than the same car manufactured 15 years ago. The same applies to car seats.

Parents sometimes feel as if children are not really comfortable with the restriction system. They often ask whether adding a cushion or pillow to let their children sleep better is a good idea. Is this worry unfounded? Are their measures that could influence the restriction's safety?

Unfortunately, there are some rules that depend on natural physics. You should always remember that car seats must perform two important functions: the first is to protect the occupant from vehicle parts that could hit him/her in an accident.

The second is to protect the child when braking, ensuring that the child’s body is protected against forces that could damage him/her even without injuries. Of the two, perhaps the second function is more important.

Perhaps less intuitively, but more understandable in this job, braking has less effects on the child the harder the surface, the smaller the product and the more restricted the child is.

Unfortunately, comfort and safety are not on the same page: we attempt to find the best compromise. Cushions and pillow increase the force on the child during an accident and prevent the safety belt from being correctly fastened. If pillows and boosters are used, they must be those supplied with the product or directly designed by the manufacturer who certifies them with suitable dynamic tests.

Is there data, wording or an example that you use to convince friends never to put kids in the car without adequate restrictions?

I believe that we are all conscience of this fact; there are countless examples and articles in the news.

Our job is to manufacture safe car seats but we cannot make anyone buy them and use them unless out of respect for their children and for the law. Our job is to relentlessly improve products.

Correct car transportation depends on two factors: a car seat suited to the child’s age and correct installation. What would you recommend to a parent who thinks s/he did not correctly install the seat?

Carefully read the instructions. We are highly focusing on this aspect by both improving the instructions and by providing video support on product installation, exploiting the new technologies available on the web.

Out of curiosity, how many car seats have you installed for relatives and friends?

Truthfully, I try not to, to see whether our products are easy or hard to install. Sometimes I have fun playing teacher…even if the result is always ensuring our little angels are always protected!