Mamas & Papas Sola

I love my Sola. It is really easy to fold, and the handle pushes under to make it even more compact. It fits very easily in the boot of my (small) car.

Until recently I used the car seat in the frame, and that was very easy with the adaptors. I now use the pushchair (lying flat as my LO is only 3.5 months). She's really comfortable and it is great that it can be parent facing, and outwards facing for when she is older. You can fold the frame with the seat still attached, which makes it a real bonus. Recommended if you want a lightweight travel system/pushchair.

Love my Sola. Having spent much on my first babies pram I decided to reassess what I needed and this fits the bill perfectly. Very easy to negotiate shops and public transport, even one handed when holding other DD hand. Really cant fault, fits in most car boots and looks great (often caught admiring glances lol)

I've had my sola since my son was born a year ago. So far the only issue i've had is the front wheels getting stiff from grit from the pavement, but all you need to do is grease them when they do (I've had to do it twice so far).

It's so easy to push, even with one hand, a great big basket below which doesn't get stuck on curbs, easy to switch between forward and back facing, lightweight & folds easily, fits into the back of my yaris, no problem. It's also very sturdy and the wheels are not too broad to get stuck in doorways etc.

Loads of mums have commented on it (all positive) and i would recommend it to anyone

Really sorry to have to say this after investing in what we though was a top quality product, but this is one to avoid. We have used the Sola now for a year and a half, and it has been very well looked after, and serviced at the year point. Unfortunately at a year and a half one of the wheels fell off the Sola (with my daughter in the chair). Fortunately I had hold of the pushchair with both hands, as I saw the wheel roll down the street. The company handling of this has been extremely poor - the shop assistant did not 'bat an eyelid' or show any sense of concern that one of their chairs had come apart in this way. I have complained directly to the company, and their response is not much better (at what point is someone going to recognise that my daughter was in the chair, and that this was a very dangerous situation?). Here is a quote from customer services: "In regards to the wheel falling off I cannot advise how or why this happened however from the service report our experienced technicians found that the rear wheel was loose inside the housing so they replaced both rear wheel releases and all the wheels and serviced the chassis and folding and it is all in working order."

Whilst at least central customer services gave a genuine apology, it missed the point completely:' ... please accept my most sincere apologies for the upset this matter has caused you."... I don't care about 'upset' I care about the well-being of my child. In case you think I'm being a little harsh with M&P, I gave them ample opportunity to put things right and I warned them that I would post to bulletin boards, blogs and the like. So let this be a warning... if you have a Sola - go get the wheels checked, if you don't have one... then don't buy one.

My lil one is 10 weeks old and so far this pushchair has been fantastic. So easy to push and looks funky too. I have the carry cot and car seat for it too and it is really easy to change from pram to carseat.
I wouldnt recommend bothering with the carry cot as the push chair is suitable from birth and once baby is looking around they find it boring as they cant see anything, my lil one is much happier in the pushchair bit.

The only drawbacks I have seen are:
Car seat hood is very flimsy and mine broke so had to take it off.
The price if you buy it all from Mamas and Papas
The car seat is available at Argos for half the price of M&P shop.
Also the cost of the cosytoe is ridiculous, get a universal one much cheaper.
I can't say if it is built to last yet as only used it for 10 weeks but no problems so far.

We bought our Sola in July 2011 and there has been no looking bag! It has travelled through the UK, to Africa and down to the local tesco with equal ease! The hood pretty much covers smaller babies. Handle/steering bar height is perfect if you are short. Not too heavy and does not take up the entire boot of a regular car. Carry cot was so comfy, we landed up using it as a moses basket The only con is that there is NO travel bag that fits a folded down Sola if you are taking it on board a flight or want to store it. We had to wrap ours in tarpauline before checking it in.

Fantastic light-weight stroller for shopping trips and well-made paths or some rough paths in good weather! The fact you can add a car seat and carry cot makes this very versatile and when used with the car seat the stroller is incredibly compact and perfect for busy shopping trips. The stroller folds down easily and quickly and although it won't fit flat in some smaller cars, the wheels easily remove to make it smaller for travelling. Attractive, light-weight and an all-round good piece of kit. I have also written a full-review at http://babyroutes.co.uk/reviews/mamas-papas-sola-review/

At first this pushchair is a dream. Handles well, looks good, compact when folded, flexible, good value for money and looks comfy for baby even for a newborn.

Fast forward 3-4 months and it falls way short of it's promise. On mine it became impossible to collapse, any slight cold or damp in the air and it would stick. The front wheels bang about and barely make contact with the floor making handling more difficult. The back no longer reclines without major jiggling about by which time baby has woken up again. It's actually quite heavy to lift when the seat unit is on. Finally, the footmuff doesn't seem to fit properly.

I've had mine for 16 months now and I can't wait to get rid of it. Don't buy one they're a waste of money.

A very short-lived performance. Good design but poor quality. Too broad for buses. Poor customer service from Mamas and Papas

We bought a Sola after much research and consideration. It felt practical and we liked the design: simple yet attractive and able to take our child from birth to two years of age. The price also seemed reasonable. Unfortunately, the theory has proven very different to the practice. The first few weeks went very well but significant issues began to emerge before the three month mark. The wheels were particularly problematic: they would lock in place quite suddenly and it would be difficult to get them turning again. This lead to a couple of very stressful incidents in which the pram jammed while crossing the road. It then became difficult to keep the pram straight as it began to turn itself rightwards. We had the pram 'repaired' three times at a Mamas and Papas store and the wheels were changed once. Unfortunately, every fix lasted around two weeks before the problem reoccurred. Other issues emerged: the back became very difficult to recline early on, catching on one side and making it impossible to lower the baby without waking her. The hold bar clip for the baby came off the frame (including screws) a few months in as well; inner screws were inexplicably rusty and the bar was rendered useless. An additional issue, which has nothing to do with manufacture but which urban parents may want to be aware of, is that the pram is too broad for the corridor of most buses and it can only board from the back (which many drivers are reluctant to allow). If you anticipate having to be on a bus on a regular basis, this chair is not a good option. Overall, this is an attractive chair with some good features which is very cheaply produced. The quality is very poor and it is not designed to last beyond a few months. It is lovely while it lasts but, despite much care in our case, that can be a very short period. Although we purchased it as an alternative to buying a pram and then a buggy, we were forced to buy a buggy well before our child turned one, making our mistake in buying the Sola quite expensive. The grandparents who bought it as a special present are furious that we chose so badly. A major disappointment.

Final note: I submitted this review, word per word, to the Mamas and Papas site, which rejected it outright.

Well this is simply the best buggy i have yet to find! Daughter is only 9 months old and i was rather particular when shopping for buggys/travel systems and only wish i had gone for this in the first place.

This has so many good points...it is extremely easy to push and manoeuvre (battling tesco aisles on a sunday was easier than expected!) and lightweight (previous systems have left me feeling like i was pushing a truck!) The wheels can be locked or have them on swivel. The adjustable height handle is superb, great for me at 5''3 and hubby who is getting on for 6 foot, so everyone is comfortable pushing it! The frame looks neat and smart. The seat unit itself feels stable and solid and is easily adjusted to lieing flat or upright. The extra length on hood is fantastic for sunny days to keep the light off her face and keeps the wind off her face to in winter. the 5 point harness is easily adjustable as they grow and is super easy to adjust. The same with the footrest. The shopping basket is a great size (if an odd shape) and certainly gets all her bags and bits in easily, plus a bit of mummys shopping! bumper bar is easily removed when not needed. The buggy folds fantastically small and you can take the wheels off easily if you still need an extra bit of space in the boot. The shape of the seat is absolutely fab and really looks like my baby is secure and comfy and fits well.

This buggy feels like mamas and papas have actually listened to parents what they need in a buggy and righted all the wrongs or missing bits from their previous designs. it really has all the functions that i think you will ever need and is definitely suitable from birth up, and will see my daughter through a good few years yet. As she is still a baby yet too big for travel system car seats, its great that i can still have her facing me instead of all the other buggys i have seen which they face out. Then whens she's a bit older i can turn the seat round and she can see the world.

All in all, a superb buggy, great useful and easy to use functionality. Definitely worth the investment as this really will last your child through the first few years of their travelling life.

I bought my Sola A year ago after making some pushchair mistakes and so far I have been fairly happy with it.

The chasis is fairly light to carry but once the seat is added on it does add weight to it. It folds up quite small and fits in the back of my Yaris but only if I remove the parcel shelf. It's lovely to use, easy and light to push around and very manouverable and it's very simple to alter the seat and to fold up and down which is what I love about it the most. It's a nice, comfortable ride for my baby and the shopping basket has lots of space. The seat is quite roomy but the straps are starting to become a bit tight and my baby is only 18 month old and is quite slim.

The only things I dislike about it are the fact that the accessories are so expensive making it fairly pricey by the time you're kitted out with everything. I only bought the footmuff because I couldn't afford anything else. We also had a problem with the handle. One side doesn't click into place properly so when you're pushing it it clicks a lot. It's really irritating, i took it back to Mamas and Papas and after 4 weeks had to ring them to see what was happening. Turned out it had spent 4 weeks in their stock room and had never been sent away at all! The problem still hasn't been resolved so I'm not too happy with the customer service.

I love my sola. I bought all of the accessories carrycot,bag,carseat and adaptors also the parasol. The only thing I don't like is the parasol it never stays where you put it!

I love many things about this buggy. It has great functionality (forward-facing, rear-facing, lie flat, folds square and with buggy seat on, can add car seat and carrycot), it fits in the boot of my car which is tiny, is relatively lightweight for a 'from birth' buggy, and overall it looks fab. On these points it scores highly. I spent alot of time researching buggies before purchasing and for the above reasons I thought this buggy would be perfect for me.

However, I would not recommed it to a friend because the quality of the product is poor. Like the reviewer below, one of the nuts that holds the axis on the front wheel fell off while my husband was out so the wheel fell off. I found the front wheels also need lubricating ALOT to keep them working well.
The after sales service team at Mamas and Papas are rude and unhelpful. If you have a fault with your buggy and have brought it from an independent retailer then don't bother calling M & P as they will not deal with you. It is fair enough that your contract is with the retailer but they are so rude about it and not at all apologetic that one of their products is faulty.
As a result, I can't rate durabilty as good or value for money as good because of the poor quality of the product. Also they have expensive 'add-ons' such as the footmuff and the adapters for the carrycot/carseat.

So, overall, on paper, buggy is great but I am dissappointed that such a well known brand can produce such a low quality product.

Only had this for a few months (hence no score for durability), but so far so good. The Sola is pretty light, which makes it ideal for me as I rely on public transport. I have given low marks for value for money as all the 'extras' (car seat, car seat adapters, parasol, carry cot etc) are sold separately and are over-priced - making a seemly cheaper pushchair more expensive.

I have spent the day trying different buggies in my mini cooper convertible so I thought I would share what I have found..M+Ps Sola and Urbo -- chasis fits in the boot with the seat inside the car.The maxi cosi car seat fits on the chasis with adapters.Mothercare staff also kindly let me try the quinny buzz and that fits in the boot minus wheels.......very happy now I have found some to choose from.

I must update my previous review - one of the front wheels FELL OFF my Sola as I crossed the road yesterday. Very frightening, it seems the metal cap on the wheel has completely come off. Will be dealing with the M&P horrendous customer services over this but I cannot recommend this pram now. It did feel a bit creaky anyway after four months town use . A false economy.

I LOVE MY PUSHCHAIR!!! Having made 3 costly mistakes when i had my first child i was determined to buy a good pushchair second time round. I looked at various other makes & models but decided to buy the Sola with maxi cosi car seat adapters and footmuff. I cannot find fault with this product and think it's brilliant value for money. I decided not to buy the carrycot as it is expensive for an item used for such a short time. My little girl went straight into this pushchair from birth in both the pram and car seat mode. She is now six months old and is sat in the upright position and the chair is still roomy and comfortable. This pushchair does everything the expensive models do at a fraction of the price! Finally, i bought the pushchair in orchid and think its really gorgeous. Ive lost count of the number of times ive been stopped at the school or in town and asked about it. Fab product - Well done M&P's!!!!

Very happy with this pushchair. We chose it as it is relatively lightweight (would group with Bugaboo Bee / Icandy Cherry). folds very easily, could take a car seat, relatively sturdy with decent shopping basket and to us seemed much better value than either of the aforementioned options. We got the carrycot too as DD is a winter baby and I felt was better protected in it - though the company say you can use the puschair seat fully reclined from birth. Wheels easily removed if you need the car boot space. Surprised there aren't any reviews of this one already! Not sure how to mark for comfort - baby sleeps fine in it but she can't give me marks out of ten yet.....! Also can't rate durability as only in use for a month so far.