Bugaboo Cameleon 2nd hand price

[Belgrano]

I've been offered a 2nd hand Cameleon for £220-£250. It's 6 years old and when I tried it out it feels a bit rickety - the handle has about 6 inches of 'give' ie. it moves up and down without the wheels coming off the ground with it if that makes sense? I think this might be a normal Cameleon thing to do from what I have read on the web though.

But the seat is also a bit bouncy - it bounces up and down slightly when I am walking even though it is clicked in fine. DS doesn't mind, and it looks quite soothing but is this normal? DD tried to climb up onto it and the whole seat sort of tilted down to the ground a few degrees when she put her weight on it (obviously I stopped her!).

As far as I know the Bugaboos are supposed to be A class engineering but the whole thing feels a bit 'not-solid'. I know it had pretty hard (daily) use but there's tread left on the tyres, the brake works fine and she's offering it for that price with all the extras - covers, raincover, footmuff, buggy board etc etc so does that seem reasonable and does that sound normal in terms of 'user experience' for this sort of buggy?

I am Maclaren Techno XT girl so this is all foreign territory to me!

[saoirse86]

I don't know about cams but my sister has a frog which doesn't do any of those things, it seems very sturdy and not at all bouncy. She only bought it a couple of weeks ago second hand and it was £129 with all the extras. I also didn't think they had done cameleons that long ago but I must be wrong.

£220-250 is cheap but I guess that could be because she knows it's not at its best. I personally would spend the extra to have a better one or a different pushchair altogether.

[suzie38]

The handles do move up and down but only by 1 or 2 inches maximum from what i remember...Can't remember the seats moving much, i've had a 2nd hand Frog and Cameleon...I can wobble the Donkey seat around but the handle is solid but then it doesn't flip over.

[Guildfordnanny]

My handles moved too but by a few cms. The seat didn't move as such.

[aswellasyou]

Saoirse, it's a Gecko not a Frog! But it definitely doesn't wobble as much as you describe. The price of second hand Cameleons varies massively but mostly go for more than the one you're looking at.

[luchap]

I sold my cameleon for just under £500 with all accessories available, I found the bugaboo to be very sturdy and never had any issues with it. I'd recommend one for sure, but sounds like the one your viewing might have been very well used over time. Keep looking as there worth the money.

[MonkeysPunk]

I sold my cameleon -it was the least durable buggy I ever encountered. I walk a minimum of 4 miles a day.

My toddler weighs 11kg - the seat limit is 17kg yet after 4 months use the seat was coming unstiched (discovered when I took the top cover off to launder)...I was asked to photograph for Bugaboo warranty purposes - and took the seat unit off to read the chassis number for them too - and that was when I discovered the 4 inch rip in the basket too - which mostly had a few nappies and a blanket in - occasionally a bit of shopping - so I was v shocked such a "high quality" pram had been so "worn" by normal use.
Bugaboo were fab and replaced the parts within 10 days - however - I had lost confidence in continuing using it - what would they say to me if the same happened again in another four months use? Would they really replace the parts again?

I gave up and sold it on.

It was a lovely pram to use -and I did like having DS face me.

When buying second hand you don't get the bugaboo guarantee. So also consider that the guarantee is non-transferable from the original purchaser.

[MonkeysPunk]

I didn't buy when my baby was newborn though - I bought when he was a toddler - so maybe this is why it wore so poorly. Perhaps if used with a much lighter newborn less problems occur - or not until much later on after you've bought it IYSWIM.

[Belgrano]

hmmm thanks everyone. so basically the handle is 'allowed' to wobble a bit bt none of you have had your seat seem anything but 100% solid.

Shame, this was so easy, it's right here in my house already (she's let me try it out which is why I know about what it's like.

[Belgrano]

sorry, should read '...but none of you have had your seat anything but 100% solid'. Rubbish typist, me.

[MonkeysPunk]

Is your seat fully clicked into place? I remember there being "play" in the chassis. Can't really remember in the seat. I know you had to click the seat on to set the chassis out, otherwise the chassis would try to fold when you moved the handle.
Sorry to not be more helpful.

[luchap]

My seat was solid with no movement as long as everything was correctly clicked into place. I've never had any rips occur either, all round I think the bugaboo is a great product, and like anything that is sold in volume some people will incur some issue but from what I've heard bugaboo have a pretty good customer service team, sometimes it can take a while to resolve but they usually come good. However if your buying second hand and the pram is out of warranty I would make sure you were a 100% happy with the pram first before parting with any money!

[pramsgalore4]

hi, i have to say i would never buy anything bugaboo second hand, i have owned the cameleon and a bee both had problems but as i bought from new was not a problem, it also sounds like it is well used and would not want to trust that seat, i have read on other threads people with problems with second hand bugaboos and bugaboo dont want to know unless you have receipt and still under warranty. i would try and save up for a new one if poss bugaboo bee plus is cheaper than the cameleon or look for something else, there are loads of really nice prams out there and lots of people on here to give you advise if you want to know what its like before you buy.

[Belgrano]

Thanks. I need the big wheels (dog walker here) so that's why I'm looking at the Cameleon to replace the maclaren. Bee has small wheels I think doesn't it? I really have no chance in hell of getting a new one through the tight family finances as they stand (plus DS is already 1.5, DD is 4, and DC3 not yet conceived so I could not justify it.
I can just about justify a cheap second hand one as the maclaren really is useless in the woods and I no longer need a double (used to have a double out n about 360 but just sold so now need something with big wheels to replace it.
Out n about was a fab double but DS hated the semi-reclined 'upright' position he was in in that, so dont want to get the single version). Plus of course I can use whatever I get now when DC3 comes along.
So this seemed a good option but it is weird that none of you have a wobbly seat fixture. Thanks for your input though.

[MonkeysPunk]

The cameleon only really works off road in either two wheel mode (not that practical if you're holding a dog lead in the other hand... or you would need to put the snow / terrain wheels on the front. The small wheels on the cameleon make it as bad as the bee off road.
When you add the snow or terrain wheels, they do not swivel, so again they could make it tricky to push one handed.
Have you looked at a baby jogger classic or mountain buggy perhaps second hand?

[MonkeysPunk]

Just a thought, mothercare or john Lewis often have a cameleon on display in store. Perhaps go along and give the seat a waffle and see how it compares to the one you are looking at.

[MonkeysPunk]

Arrgghh! Silly spell check. Waggle not waffle!

[luchap]

I wouldn't get a cameleon to drag through the woods etc not only because the front wheels are small but because I wouldn't want to take such an expensive pram through the woods etc. I was very protective of mine and where exactly I took it because it cost so much, and I didn't want it to get dirty my DH would have gone mad! If your into wood walking etc I agree you need a different pram, maybe open a thread asking best pram for dog walking as I have seen a few people who have mentioned hat is what they mainly use their prams for!

[pramsgalore4]

if you want a pram for the woods i would recommend the mountain buggy and you can get them second hand on ebay all the time so the chances of getting a bargain are high, i too would not use a bugaboo off road they are really a town pushchair with the biggest off roading to be done would be on grass like the local park!!!!!. i know they say in their advert they show it in the woods be in real life no the little wheels would get stuck and i hated using mine with the big wheels up front ( and when i did try it i was on a path!!!!) and you really would not want to use it in 2 wheel mode either. i own a mountain buggy and they will go anywhere and are built for that purpose.