Child car seats minefield

[kirky]

I'm desperate.
Yesterday I had the misfortune to go shopping for car seats for our soon to be one year old twins. What a nightmare! I truly believe that choice is bad in this case. I know I'm going to have to become some kind of child safety expert in order to make a decision. It's already taken hours which would be better spent modelling, and we still haven't got anything.
I suppose we were lucky when they were newborns, we bought baby seats that fitted the pram base, euphemistically called a 'travel system'. We didn't have a choice, and since we were also limited in the choice of twin prams, it was much simpler. But now the choice is simply overwhelming.
So, does anyone who has wandered through this minefield have any advice? Which seats, and how much?
I'm really not bothered about the features, they all seem to be from 9 months plus. And generally speaking, I know that you get what you pay for. I'm looking to spend about 150 ukp per seat.
Any advice greatly appreciated if it saves me having to traipse to mothercare again!
Cheers
Kirky

[Irish Padre]

Yes, it is confusing! We got two Jane (can't find the French accent for the final e on my iPad!) which are really good. They have inbuilt back sections which support the kids when they are small, that can be taken off to leave a booster seat as they grow older. They have isofix brackets so fit securely in the car.

[Luke Piewalker]

I'd be tempted to sign up for the Which reviews

http://www.which.co.uk/baby-and-child/baby-transport/reviews/child-car-seats/

You have to pay to sign up, but they do physically test the seats and everything. And they tell you which ones are bad as well as which ones are good...

[Chetcombe]

We got two Jane (can't find the French accent for the final e on my iPad!)

Hold down the "e" on the iPad keyboard to get the é or even an è or an ê

[simonprelude]

After much research I found the Recaro range to be about the best.

Plus they fit bucket seats and come in Orange to match the car.

[kirky]

Thanks for the replies people.
Any further advice greatly appreciated, especially if it saves time.
Cheers
Kirky

[AndyGif]

Thanks for the replies people.
Any further advice greatly appreciated, especially if it saves time.
Cheers
Kirky

speaking from experience, make sure its easy to strip/take apart.
Washing the small humans vom and wee out of them can be a real hassle....
And have a can of fabreeze in the car to deal with the over spill......

[Oldman]

Another thought instead of Mothercare have you asked your car manufacturers dealers.  They might suggest something easy to fit in your car and you can take out if you need the seats for bigger people.
Agree with what people say about washable covers etc.
We actually put a plastic seat cover on the seats first  because one grandchild is prone to being car sick.

[kirky]

Just to wind this thread up, I am relieved to report that we have bought our car seats. Basically I bit the bullet and started to read reviews [sigh]. After much head scratching and whatiffing, we decided upon Casual Play Multiprotector seats. We ordered them from kiddicare.com, last Wednesday evening. They were offfering them for 160ukp as oppposed to tescos 190 ukp. They were delivered here in Teesside at my motherinlaw's house the very next morning, about 14 hours later. That was very impressive. They also kept me informed with several status updates, right through night.
The seats themselves were delivered in massive boxes. They were easy to put together and to fix in the car. They have removable covers and allegedly will last till the little monsters are 36kg. All in all I'm happy with the purchase, but oh how I wish I hadn't wasted hours of life deciding on which seat. The only downside is we will probably end up buying another pair for the other car.
Cheers
Kirky