Car seats

The Sunshine Kids Monterey is part of the car seat test program at Consumer Reports. In our lab tests, booster seat models like the Monterey are rated on multiple criteria, such as those listed below.

Crash protection/beltfit highback:

A rating that combines the potential for highback boosters to limit injury and movement in a crash based on simulated frontal crash tests and the potential for the seat to provide a good belt fit in various vehicles using child sized dummies.

Crash protection/beltfit backless:

A rating that combines the potential for backless boosters to limit injury and movement in a crash based on simulated frontal crash tests and the potential for the seat to provide a good belt fit in various vehicles using child sized dummies.

Ease of use:

Our judgment of how easy each seat is to use including items such as the clarity of labels and instructions, the ease of achieving an appropriate belt fit and the transition between highback and backless modes where applicable.