Brica Seat Guardian Car Seat Protector
We like
Sturdy design
Back panel excellent for the kicking feet
Easy to install
Durable material
Rubber grips that prevent sliding
Raised edges that keep the crumbs from falling down
Water-resistant material
We don’t like
The seat also leaves impressions on the vehicle seat
How it works
The protector pads for car seats are considered to be in a way mattresses for the car interior and the upholstery. They are very useful especially if you have a child on the everyday rides, who is eating, taking snacks or drinking in his/her car seat. In this case spills, leakage and dirty seats are something that you cannot escape. Or maybe you can? Well, maybe you cannot escape but you can definitely do something about it. You can try to protect the seats and in this way reduce the dirt and moisture on the vehicle seats by purchasing a seat protector.
What are we supposed to take into consideration when purchasing a seat protector, especially knowing that the back seat of the car has already been occupied with a child’s car seat. One of the things that are important is the surface to be a non-slip type of surface that will stick to the vehicle seat and be made of a material that is spill-proof and stain-resistant. One of the top protectors for car seats is the product produced by Brica called Guardian protector. Brica Protector will provide help in maintaining the good looks of the upholstery in your vehicle and will prevent accumulation of dirt, mess and prevent direct spills on the car seats and at the same time, it will offer the required protection against the imprints of the child’s car seat on the vehicle seats. So, if you are interested in purchasing a protector for your vehicle’s back seat, take time and go through our review of Brica protector- Guardian.
Product Specifics
The Brica Protector for the seat is intended to protect the seat against dirt and moisture. One of the main uses is to serve as a base cover for the vehicle seat where the child car seat is installed and in this way to protect the vehicle seat from spills and mess but also to protect it from the imprints that the kids’ car seats leave on the back seats. This product comes in a pack that is surprisingly small and compact because the seat protector comes folded inside this box. The dimensions of the protector are 45 inches in length and 20 inches in width. It weighs 1 pound. Although the product installation is very simple and we are sure you are going to manage even without instructions, still the package contains manual for the user, that is very short (only 2-3 pages) and you may refer to it if there is a need. This protector seat can be used for 8 years and you can start using it from the very start when you start using the car seat for your newborn until the end of use of a booster seat.
Design
The Brica protector looks like an extra seat for a chair. It is designed in one design – black color with blue details. The blue details on the bottom of the seat protector are not there only for decorative function but also serve to make the seat non-sliding. The blue bands are almost in a form of the letter X and on the part of the protector which is for the back one can see the name of the company Brica. The bottom of the seat contains these four blue bands that actually make use of the grip technology and the purpose of this technology is to minimize the slipping and unwanted movements. Unfortunately, the seat as said comes only in one design with these colors and there are many people who would like to choose different color or pattern that will suit better to the car interior.
Material
The seat protector is sturdy and it is made of heavy material. It feels like nylon and the material is called vinyl, which is a kind of plastic. It is thick and it is a waterproof material. It is intended to be durable and that is why it is rigid. The protector at its bottom also contains rubber bands that are adhesive in the context that these rubber bands make the protector stick to the vehicle seat and do not allow movement of the protector. If there is water spilled, it does not absorb the water but rather keeps the water so you can easily wipe it with a cloth. Because of the nature of the material as well as the purpose of the product, it is very easy material for cleaning. The blue stripes do not release color on the vehicle seats.
Who is it for?
This seat protector is recommended for any vehicle owner who at the same time has a child’s car seat because it prevents the car seats from leaving marks. The protector is especially purchased by people who have leather seats in their vehicles but also is used for cloth seats. Majority of the customers verify that the seat protector actually does what it is designed for, that it prevents the car seat to leave indentions but on the other hand a big number of customers also claim that the seat protector itself leaves some indentions and often when they lift this protector up there is a mark X on the seat of the vehicle.
Compatibility
The base of the seat protector is pretty wide and its design allows use with different seats. So you do not have to worry that this seat protector will not be able to fit on your seats as it is actually made to fit the most of the vehicles. However, as this protector for the seat is mainly used as a base for the child’s car seats one thing to mention here is that there are users who report that this product is not compatible with Diono Radian because it prevents the proper installation of the seat and this is only true when the seat is installed in rear-facing position. The seat protector is easy to install and what is important to mention is that there is a strap positioned on the back panel that is adjustable and it can be secured to the headrest. This raises a question whether this protector can be used in vehicles where there are no headrests but the answer is yes. In such a case the manual advises that you should fold the panel for the back in order to avoid its falling.
Durability
The seat protector is very durable and does not wear out. It does not lose the color or fade away even if it is exposed to sunlight. The material is a durable one, which cannot be ripped or shred. There are no reported or may be very few complaints about the durability and quality of material especially taking into consideration that most customers put car seats on the top of this protector seat and they can move side to side for some inch, which actually testifies about the durability of the material. Once you buy it, at the beginning some customers claim that it has some smell of rubber which later goes away. Due to the nature of the material the seat protector does not stain easily.
Safety
There are some issues regarding the use of seat protectors in a combination with car seats. Different manufacturers of car seats have different opinion about this issue and some claim that using seat protectors with their particular brand is not allowed or if allowed they name seat protectors from the corresponding brand like the case with Britax car seats and their protectors, that are tested for use in a crash, while others like Combi and Graco allow use of seat protectors from different brands. One thing that is very important to be aware of when talking about the safe use of protectors is that it should not influence on child restraint and the proper installation of the car seat in context of the tightness of the car seat installed. Generally, the seat protectors should be used if the manufacturer of the seat gives a green light for this and of course if you have made sure that the child’s car seat is tightly installed. Only reported issues by users regarding the compatibility of this seat protector and car seats are the Diono Radian car seats and some Britax ones.
Versatility
This seat protector can be used as a base upon which you can install your kid’s car seat. If the car seat is installed in a rear-facing position then this protector for the seat will be great for the kicking feet of the child as very often kids have a habit to push or lean with dirty shoes on the high back of the vehicle seat and then you have to clean this all the time. In this way even if they kick it you will be able to protect the seat. The elevated sides of the seat protector are also very convenient as they keep the liquids if there are any spills in the car seat and these ridges do not allow the spills to leak all around. Also for the kids who are used to eating snacks in the car seats, these elevated edges are great as they do not let all the dirt, left-overs and all different type of crumbs fall in the car or end at the bottom of the car, and in this way, it is much easier to clean. If the seat is installed in forward-facing position or booster mode then this seat protector helps the child’s seat to be more tightly fixed and does not allow unwanted movement. The end flap is also intended to protect the seat from kids feet when properly seat but whether this will be successful or not will depend actually on the height of your kid.
Value
Compared to similar protector seats Brica is more expensive but taking into account the rating and many satisfied customers we would say that it is worth the cost. For this price, you will buy a seat protector that protects your vehicle seats from scratches, dirt and spills so in this way you will be actually saving money. Especially if you have an expensive interior and leather seats this is a small price to pay. Even the ones that at the beginning had an opinion that this was an expensive product later admit that it is a great quality product that is worth the money because it provides functionality and protection and thus durability of the vehicle seats.
Bottom line
If you own a vehicle with leather seats and your child’s car seat leaves impressions on the seats maybe it is time to think how to protect the seats without compromising the safety and the comfort of the child seated in the car seat. This Brica protector for a seat is designed for this purpose. It can be installed very easily in almost any car and it does not affect adversely the installation of the car seats in any of the three positions-rear or forward facing or booster mode. It guards the seats not only from impressions by the car seat but makes the cleaning and the maintenance of the car much easier and convenient because this protector collects the dirt, mess and with the raised edges of the seat keeps the crumbs from falling at the bottom of the car. It is also waterproof so if your child spills some liquid the seat will be protected because of the seat protector that keeps the water so it can be easily wiped out. It grips and does not allow movement of the installed car seats. It is an extremely small price to pay for such a quality product especially if your car has a very expensive interior. On the negative side, this seat protector may leave impressions by itself although many of them not permanent but overall it has more positive sides than negative ones.
