“The new Thule Maple i-size was the easiest car seat I’ve ever installed!”

A car seat is one of those big purchases for a new baby, along with pushchair and cot, that all parents want to get right. After all, we’ve got to make sure the precious little bundle we’ve created is as safe as possible! Thule have been making products to help families for over 80 years and the Thule Maple i-size is the first infant car seat from the brand. Although new to the car seat market, Thule have already achieved standout results in the prestigious ADAC car seat safety test (with a score of 1.6, higher than all competitors), and have also been awarded a Which? Best Buy for the Thule Maple and Alfi base.

And now the wait is over for parents in the UK, who can now purchase the award-winning Maple infant car seat! We got our hands on a sample to test out for ourselves, here’s how Mother&Baby Hub Editor Stephanie Spencer got on.

Testing the Thule Maple i-size car seat

Now I’ve been a big fan of Thule mainly for their adventurous and outdoorsy ethos for a few years now, and was lucky enough to get a sneak peek at these car seats last year at an event in Sweden. They’re the first car seats Thule have put to market, and I saw first-hand the stringent testing process they were put through. So, when I found out about my own pregnancy I knew I’d like to get a Thule car seat, and was thrilled to be offered a sample to test out. I’ve tried a few car seats with the help of my nieces and nephews so have installed my fair share and I know that the wrestle with a car seat is one of the first hurdles parents-to-be face.

The key feature that really impressed me with this product, back when I saw it last November, was the way Thule have tried to simplify this fitting process, making it impossible to fit the car seat incorrectly.

My first impressions was the weight, particularly the base, was lighter than I’d expected, so that was a nice surprise. I’ve carried both the base and car seat up and down stairs, put into and out of the car boot, and installed and uninstalled in the car itself (and I’m around 6 months pregnant). The car seat handle is slimmer than others I’ve used previously and I found it easier to carry. The car seat material is lovely and soft, with additional padding for newborns so they are snuggly cocooned in there, plus it's all machine washable. I love the sleek black colourway, and the Maple (and Elm, Thule’s toddler car seat) also comes in a fresh blue and a grey colourway. The Maple is recommended for 0-15 months and the Elm can be used from 67cm – 105cm.

When it came to fitting the car seat, I wanted to try with minimal instructions to see just how easy it was. Now I did have a little difficulty with the release buttons for the ISOFIX connectors, I think because they were fresh out of the box you had to push the yellow buttons very firmly for the ISOFIX clips to pop out properly, but once I’d figured that out we were fine!

Upon first use you remove the plastic tab from the battery, and it will start beeping at you telling you the car seat isn’t installed correctly. You then have to unfold the base leg, and rest it on your back seat, pressing the yellow buttons (FIRMLY) until the ISOFIX arms pop out giving that bit of extra length to fit them in. I’ve had trouble before with a couple of well-known car seat brands not fitting in my car, I have a Toyota RAV4 and my ISOFIX points are set quite far back compared to some other cars. But, with a little bit of jiggling the Thule Maple slotted in nicely with a click. I also saw the light indicators on the base go from red to green, so was reassured that they had fitted correctly.

You can then 'pump' the grey handle on the base to adjust the fit of the base and make sure it is flush with the back of your seat, and then all that’s left to do is pull the leg out until it hits the floor and the light indicator goes green. At this point the base will stop beeping at you, provided the lights are all green. And just like that you have a perfectly fitted car seat base!

Now comes the rather satisfying part of putting the car seat in the car, and the Thule Maple is an absolute dream to do this. There’s no having to fit it into a specific slot or anything like that, the connecting point is completely round so you can put your car seat onto the base, facing any direction, and it will click in. I LOVE this feature! Once your car seat is in, you spin it to rear face and will hear a reassuring click and see the large light in the centre of the indication panel on the base go green. I can’t state enough how refreshing it was to not have to align the car seat perfectly, especially when juggling the weight of the car seat and if baby was wriggling inside it as well.

From a safety perspective, the results speak for themselves and having seen part of the testing process first hand I know what a thorough job Thule do when testing their products and getting them ready for market. The Thule website is very open about their testing process and the lengths they go to, so if you'd like to give that a read for your reassurance then it's all there. Something definitely worth mentioning is that the impact protection system on the sides of the car seat is built in - I have tried other car seat models where this is an additional thing to install and to remember to clip in on whichever side is facing the car door - so it's great that on the Thule car seats this is a permanent feature, so there's no forgetting to install it.

When it came to taking the car seat base out, this was also very easy to do and there’s a really simple set of pictural instructions on the base itself so even if you hadn’t done it in a while you could see what you needed to do in what order. There are also simple instructions on the side of the car seat itself, which is very helpful for family members who may not use the car seat often but need to know how it all works, they have a guide right there on the car seat.

While you can’t lie the car seat flat while in the base, you can use this feature for making baby more comfortable when in the car seat as part of a travel system. The hood goes down really low which is ideal for naptime. All of the releases and buttons on the car seat are pretty intuitive, I didn’t really have to read the instructions to know what would do what (eg the buttons for removing the car seat from the base, and for tilting the car seat into lie flat position. You can adjust the height of the headrest and the newborn insert is removable so I feel like I will get good use out of this car seat. The harness is easy to adjust, again quite intuitive to use. The clips on the harness aren’t magnetic, which could be a good additional feature I have seen in other car seats. It just makes it easier to clip baby in.

Final thoughts

There really aren’t many improvements I can think of for this car seat, the reassurance it brought to me as a parent-to-be has been massive. I’ve used this with my friend’s babies and they all seemed very comfortable passengers. The fact that the fit guide is audible and visual is excellent, you know the base and car seat are fitted correctly without a doubt. I would have no hesitation at recommending this brand to parents, and am thrilled that the Thule car seats are available in the UK now!

More about the Thule Maple car seat

Thule steps into the car seat category, and by doing so bringing state-of-the-art safety but also innovation to this segment. By entering the car seat category Thule now offers a full product portfolio from life’s very first adventure, ensuring a seamless journey as your family grows.

For car seats, the most important aspect lies in safety, and safety has been part of the Thule DNA for over 80 years. The engineers, joined by the award-winning design team, rigorously test the car seats at the state- of-the-art Thule Test Center, surpassing standards and exceeding expectations.

Safety starts at installation

But safety isn't just about crash test performance; it begins with the initial installation. Something consumers struggles with, given that nearly half of all seats are improperly installed. The car seat system by Thule offers clarity, simplicity, and reassurance to parents through its intuitive design and innovative Thule SenseAffirm System. Both the infant and toddler seat are equipped with Thule Impact Protection System that shields from side, rear and front impacts, offering all-around head protection for your little one’s.

Easy as dock, lock, and go!

The EasyDock technology makes it easy to mount the car seat to the base which is especially important for infant car seats to not disrupt your baby’s sleep. Its intuitive cone-shaped interface makes seat installation virtually effortless. Dock the seat at any angle from the car door, rotate to lock it in, and you’re ready to go.

Designed for comfort and peace of mind

In addition to prioritizing safety and a distinctive design, our emphasis extends to ergonomics for both parents and children. The infant seat offers an ergonomic lie-flat position on stroller, premium materials and a large water repellant and a sun protecting canopy. It’s also compatible with our award winning strollers, so you can go from home, to your stroller, to your car – all the way to your destination. The toddler seat offers three recline options, premium soft goods, a large headrest, a soft removable comfort liner, and pads for a cozy ride your toddler will enjoy.