Evenflo first came out with the Evenflo Symphony several years ago in 2008, and has continued to update it with improvements in each generation. It’s a high quality convertible car seat that offers a number of convenient features that make it worth considering for parents on the lookout for a new, safe convertible car seat that’s cheaper than the Britax, Diono, and Clek seats on the market. I picked up the Evenflo Symphony Convertible Car Seat (formerly known as the LX, DLX, and Elite) from Amazon this past weekend and spent a good amount of time figuring them out to bring you this review. The good news is that both are pretty awesome seats. Let’s dive into why together!

Evenflo Symphony – Quick Review

Before going any further, it’s a good idea to clarify that you can actually buy two different versions of the Evenflo Symphony: the Symphony LX, and the Symphony DLX, which is also confusingly named the Symphony Elite. What’s the difference between the two? The Symphony LX is the base model; the head wings are shaped a bit differently and you get standard LATCH connectors that you have to push in to connect to the LATCH anchors in your vehicle’s seat.  Its main advantage is that it’s a more budget-friendly seat. The Symphony Elite, or DLX, includes SureLATCH connectors, which are designed to ratchet and tighten themselves; it’s a convenient feature that we’ll look at in a minute.

Whichever version of the Symphony you pick up, you’re getting a quality all-in-one seat, which is a seat that’s designed to work rear-facing, forward-facing, and as a booster seat. In that respect, it’s like seats like the Diono Rainier or Pacifica. This review focuses on the Symphony Elite, or DLX, version, but the vast majority of it will also apply to the base Symphony LX, so it’ll be just as useful to you if you’re considering the cheaper version of the seat. Okay, let’s get into the technical details.

Buy the Evenflo Symphony on Sale with Free Shipping at Amazon here.

Evenflo Symphony Weight and Height Limits

Rear-facing: 5 to 40 pounds. Your child must be between 19″ and 37″ tall and his or her head must not extend past 1″ below the highest part of the head rest when the head rest is placed in its lowest positions.

Forward-facing: 22 to 65 pounds. Your child must be at least 1 year old and cannot be taller than 50.” At the same time, your child’s shoulders need to either be at or below the highest harness position while the tops of your child’s ears need to be below the head rest top.

While Evenflo states you can forward-face from 1, this is too early to safely forward-face in my books. I suggest holding off as long as possible, and ideally until 4 if you can. This is standard in Sweden, and as a result, they have the lowest rates of child deaths in car accidents on Earth. Let’s learn from them!

Booster seat: 40 to 110 pounds. Your child must be at least 4 years old and between 43.3 and 57″ in height. Again, the tops of your child’s ears must be below the top of the head rest. I recommend using the booster mode until your child passes the 5 step test for seat belt readiness.

Dimensions of the Evenflo Symphony

The Evenflo Symphony weighs just under 20 pounds and is 20″ wide, which means it’ll be tougher than the average seat to fit in small vehicles when it comes to 3 across installations. The harness height ranges from 7.5″ to 17.5″ while the seated height is 23.” The maximum booster height when the shoulder belt height is extended to the highest position of the head rest is 19.”

Using the Evenflo Symphony

Installation, rear-and forward-facing

First impressions of the Evenflo Symphony Elite are positive; it’s a big, beefy seat and has a plush, comfortable feel. I tried it out in a number of vehicles as part of my 3 across installation testing and I didn’t have any problems in any of the cars, SUVs, or minivans I tried, whether I worked on forward-facing or rear-facing installations.

The SureLATCH connectors worked well and helped me get to the safe level of tightness required for a good installation, of under 1″ of side-to-side and front-to-back movement when I pushed the seat at the base. However, if you have trouble achieving a secure installation, just switch to the seat belt system; it works just as well and doesn’t have pesky weight limits to deal with.

The LATCH limits when rear-facing or forward-facing are 40 pounds. To continue forward-facing after 40 pounds, you’ll need to switch to using the seat belt in addition to a forward-facing tether and leave LATCH behind. Evenflo suggests a forward-facing tether be used whenever you’re forward-facing, whether you’re using LATCH or the seat belt, and I completely agree that it’s important to use a forward-facing tether for safety. The tether should not be used when rear-facing.

When using a seat belt installation, things go pretty much as expected. However, make sure you have a locking seat belt in your car (which is the case in every vehicle made after 1996), as the Symphony does not include a built-in lockoff device.

Harness, Fit, Safety

A no-rethread harness (called an infinite slide harness) is included, which is great, as it allows you to easily set your harness height and adjust it without issues whenever your child begins to grow a bit. You can tighten and loosen the harness straps without work due to a front adjuster. Keep in mind that the straps will be tightened and loosened at the hips instead of at the shoulders, which is more common in other car seats.

There are 3 available recline positions in the base of the Symphony. The first recline position (#1) is a fully reclined one, and you need to use that position when you’re rear-facing. A leveling arrow on the side of the seat base underneath the rear-facing / forward-facing sticker helps you tell how level the seat is. Pool noodles or towels can be used to help you get the recline you need if you have trouble getting a good angle. You simply place the towel or noodle beneath the back of the base as close as possible to the LATCH anchors or seat belt path.

When forward-facing, as long as your child weighs between 22 and 40 pounds, you can use recline position #2, which is semi-reclined, or recline position #3, which will be fully upright. Once your child reaches 40 pounds, you’ll need to use recline position #3 and also switch to a seat belt installation if you haven’t already, and use a top tether if you aren’t already doing so.

When using the seat as a booster, you’ll need to use recline position #3. You can use the LATCH anchors to keep the seat attached to the vehicle when not in use, keeping in mind that you’ll always need to use the seat belt to secure your child to the seat.

When it comes to fitting children, the Evenflo Symphony does well with regular or large newborns, although you might want a rolled up wash cloth for the space between the crotch strap and your child’s baby, as you can only choose a single buckle slot position, and you ideally want the crotch strap snug against your child.

When it comes to fitting preschoolers, elementary-school-aged children, and middle-schoolers, the Evenflo Symphony shows its limitations. The rear-facing height limit of 37″ means you’re simply not going to get as much time rear-facing as you would in a number of other seats like the NextFit, Radian RXT, or Advocate ClickTight, for example. That said, you’re going to get past 2, and are likely to make it to 3 or even a little beyond if your child is on the shorter end. When it comes to booster fit, it also isn’t the tallest seat out there, although it does position the children it fits well.

Buy the Evenflo Symphony on Sale with Free Shipping at Amazon here.

Why Buy the Evenflo Symphony?

Car seats come in all kinds of sizes, flavors, weights, and colors, but the central task of each is to keep our children safe. For me, that means rear-facing as long as possible, then forward-facing as long as possible, and then boostering as long as possible. A seat that allows you to rear-face, forward-face, and booster in one package is a good one in my books, especially if it’s one that’s easy to install and use correctly, since most parents don’t correctly install or use their car seats. The biggest strikes against the Evenflo Symphony Elite are the facts that it simply won’t let you rear-face as long as some seats out there like the Fllo, Foonf, Rainier, or Pacifica, which let you rear-face until 50 pounds. That said, it’ll still allow you to rear-face until almost 3, and that’s a whole lot better than only rear-facing until 1.

Besides the usability of the seat for rear-facing, forward-facing, and booster fitting, I like that the Evenflo Symphony Elite is certified for airplane use by the FAA and that the seat comes with an 8 year lifespan before it needs to be replaced. Remember that car seats do expire. You’ll need to replace it if it is ever involved in a crash, and you cannot install it with an inflatable seat belt. I also like the fact that the seat is made locally in the United States.

In conclusion, I’m a fan of the Evenflo Symphony Elite as a safe and secure all-in-one car seat for parents interested in a modern seat with convenient features that’s easy to install. Other seats like the Diono Rainier, Diono Pacifica, and Diono Radian RXT are likely stronger contenders from the all-in-one perspective, but the Symphony Elite is still a solid seat in my books. You can buy it here in Ocala, Porter, and various other colors. Canadians can buy it here.

If you find my information on best practices in car and car seat safety helpful, you can do your shopping through this Amazon link. Canadians can shop here for Canadian purchases. Have a question or want to discuss best practices? Join us in the forums!