Cybex Callisto G 360 Rotating

The rotating all-in-one Cybex Callisto G 360 car seat offers a convenient, one-handed release to revolve the seat, which can make loading and unloading your child easier, especially in rear-facing position. And because the seat rotates between rear-facing and forward-facing, you’ll only need to install it once, which definitely simplifies the process. The chest clip also includes SensorSafe, which connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth and notifies you and other emergency contacts of any safety alerts, like temperature extremes that could lead to heatstroke risk. The seat itself is extremely heavy and bulky, making it challenging to switch between vehicles if necessary, and its larger profile may mean it won’t fit well in smaller vehicles. CR’s testers also note that the Cybex Callisto G 360 lacks a traditional recline indicator, which makes it trickier to know that the seat is at an appropriate recline level for newborns. 

This seat may be a good choice for: 

• Families who want to purchase an all-in-one car seat (as opposed to using an infant seat for the first year and then switching to a convertible seat)
• Anyone who needs a simple and straightforward installation process, thanks to the push-on LATCH connectors and single installation
• Caregivers with limited mobility who may appreciate a rotating car seat
• Parents of preemies over 4 lbs
   

Ease of use: The Cybex Callisto G 360 all-in-one rotating car seat scored toward the middle of the pack in CR’s ease of use tests. The head rest, harness, and crotch straps are easy to adjust, and the seat includes many convenient features, but our testers found that it lacks a traditional recline indicator, which can make checking for a proper incline for infants more difficult and confusing. 

Fit-to-vehicle LATCH: The seat fits very well in forward-facing mode with LATCH installation, but in rear-facing mode, there’s no recline indicator to check the recline level.

Fit-to-vehicle belt: The seat installs well in rear-facing mode with belt installation, but the lack of a recline indicator lowered its score. In forward-facing mode, it was somewhat difficult to keep the shoulder belt routed correctly with limited access to the belt path. 

Booster fit: Overall, belt positioning with the Callisto is excellent, particularly in rear outboard seats. However, its wide base can be unstable on narrow center cushions, and short seat belts may be challenging to get around the wide seat for buckling.  

Crash protection: As part of Consumer Reports’ car seat evaluation program, CR conducts its own simulated frontal crash tests. In 3 of 3 forward-facing tests with the Hybrid III 6YO crash test dummy, installed with the lap-and-shoulder belt and top tether, the top tether system releases from the tether anchor prior to when the head achieves its most forward position, which means with the tether release, the head could move even further: 2 tests where the top tether hook breaks and 1 test where the tether anchor on the sled also broke. In 1 of 1 forward-facing tests with the weighted Hybrid III 6YO crash test dummy, installed with the lap-and-shoulder belt and top tether, the tether strap (after the double webbing section) shears off prior to max head excursion.

Additional Information

Good to know: All child car seats sold in the United States are required to meet government safety standards. 

About our testing: Consumer Reports’ child car seat tests are not designed to test compliance with federal standards. Rather, we evaluate car seat performance under conditions designed by our experts that go beyond the required federal safety standards. Consumer Reports’ independent car seat crash test program has been carefully designed to simulate the forces encountered during a crash, while replicating some of the real-world factors that might impact a car seat’s performance. Our testing aims to determine which car seats could provide an extra level of safety when compared to other models in the same category. 

Basic, Better, or Best: CR rates the child car seats we crash test on a scale of Basic, Better, and Best, based on the additional margin of safety they may provide. Read about how we test car seats to learn more about our crash test protocol.

The Cybex Callisto G 360 Rotating is part of the Car Seats test program at Consumer Reports. In our lab tests, Harnessed Car Seats models like the Callisto G 360 Rotating are rated on multiple criteria, such as those listed below.

Ease of use: Our judgment of how easy each seat is to use including the clarity of labels and instructions, adjustments of clips and buckles, the transition of the seat between modes and installation features such as LATCH connections, belt paths, top tethers and booster guides.

Forward facing fit-to-vehicle: A rating of how compatible, easy and secure a child car seat can be correctly installed in the forward-facing direction. This rating is a combination of the LATCH system and belt ratings that are available individually on the model page.

Rear facing fit-to-vehicle: A rating of how compatible, easy and secure a child car seat can be correctly installed in the rear-facing direction. This rating is a combination of LATCH system and belt ratings that are available individually on the model page.