Lightest and easiest to fold off-road buggy

[Beesmummy]

Hi, I am looking for a buggy to take on bumpy walks - but we always have to get in a car to go, so I am looking for something that is not too heavy and really easy to fold.
We have an ancient hand-me-down Phil&Teds that I used for my two year old, but it is so old that it is really hard to fold and it is soooo heavy and bulky that i can't get it in the back of the car with the dogs.
DD2 is due next month, so I am now (finally) going to buy a NEW buggy, hurrah.
Was thinking of the Babyjogger (City Classic, Elite or Summit 360) because they are so easy to fold and really light, or saw a Graco Expedition today which looked light and easy to fold too?
I think the Phil&Teds newer models are great, but they are quite heavy and I can't use it as a double because my DD1 is too tall (age just two!). Are the Nippers or Mountain Buggies any lighter?
Are the Micralite ones good on walks or are they too flimsy?
Sorry, I'm sure this has all been covered before, but it is the end of a long hard day and I am too knackered to spend hours searching the forums, sorry!
thanks for any advice.

-------------------------
Hello,

We've noticed this thread is quite old and some of the product recommendations are a little out of date. We've spent weeks speaking to parents and testing prams and pushchairs. Here's our round up of pushchair reviews for the best prams on the market right now.

Hope that helps!

MNHQ

[Tangle]

I've got a couple of friends with Nippers (one single one twin) and they both think they're fantastic - and we're in a very rural area.

Have you come across this site? I'm not sure they cover everything you're looking at, but they have a fair amount of info on the models they do cover.

[differentID]

if you only want to use it off road, the Expedition is okay. If you use it on smoother surfaces (in town) because the front wheel is fixed it's a bit unwieldy.

[trixymalixy]

I have a micralite toro and it has been fine on all terrains. You can buy an all terrain kit which replace the front wheels with bigger ones, but we have never felt the need for them.

[BlueberryPancake]

nippers are great. especially the new ones with swivel front wheel. I have the double (bought second hand) and I absolutely love it. It's fantastic off road, very sturdy, stable, and very light.

[Beesmummy]

We have come up with another box to tick - ideally we would like our 2 yr old daughter to be able to sit on the front of the pushchair when she gets really tired! Thanks Tangle, that babyfy website really helpful too.

Today we tried:

Mountain Buggy - incredibly expensive, dream to push, huge when folded but easy to fold, if it wasn't so big and expensive it would be fab.

Mamas&Papas Sport - heavy, large when folded but folds IN rather than out, so you can put a fleece or something in it without it getting dirty when you fold it, great strong footrest that dd1 can sit on if she gets tired, good price. Found it difficult to fold - has anyone else found that? Might be able to 'customise' it though.

Nipper 360 - good price, bit lighter, nice mover, but found it really really hard to fold - it was really unwieldy and I just thought it would be a nightmare in muddy carparks in the rain at the end of a long walk... If we could walk from our house and never fold it I would seriously consider this.

Also looked at the Phil & Teds again, but just can't justify them as a single buggy if dd1 is too tall for the doubles kit.

This week I want to find somewhere I can test: Graco Expedition (we have a Babyjogger Citymini for town thanks DifferentID), Babyjogger City Classic/Elite, Micralite Toro, Jane Slalom Pro.

Any other suggestions (or feedback on the above) gratefully received!

[Beesmummy]

PS other 3 wheelers I have heard of:
My Child Sportster
Maclaren Mx3
Chicco S3 Trio
Mothercare Urban Detours

anyone any feedback on those? thanks

[Beesmummy]

PPS (sorry!) I am just about to look for any other threads which discuss three-wheelers - if anyone can point me in the right direction, v grateful too!

[hazeyjane]

I loved my Mothercare Urban Detour, which I had to replace with a Phil and Teds when I had dd2. Fairly big, but light, and very easy to fold.

We picked ours up for £30 on ebay - another plus!

[hobnob57]

You could try a Quinny Speedi. I'd say it was mid-weight, can fold one-handed (but can't life one-handed!). NOt sure you could fit 2 on there tho.

[Tangle]

Have you come across the XTS Twister? I don't know whether it would do everything you want, but I know a lady that takes it on rough ground a lot and seems very happy.

[CarGirl]

Hang onto your kiwi/Aussie explorer - they are fab - I really miss mine!

[hazeyjane]

Does your dd1 sit in the front or back seat of the P&T's. I ask because, my friend has one and her ds is really, really tall, and still fits aged 3. I think he sits in the front (as does my dd1, but she is a shortarse!)

[Beesmummy]

She sat in a P&T Sport that we looked at in Mothercare (we haven't got the doubles kit for our E3). They had the seat on the front and she sat in that (with the baby supposed to be lying flat underneath). But her head was pushing through the rain canopy by quite a long way!
Does your friend have a new P&T or an old one? Maybe the old ones were better for taller children. Although I didn't think my dd was THAT tall - so there must be lots of people with the same problem!

[Beesmummy]

We have a Babyjogger Citymini for town which is great and so have been looking at the Babyjogger website for off-roaders. Quite tempted by their City Elite or Classic buggies - they seem to be as light as the Mountain Buggy, a hundred pounds cheaper, quite a bit smaller when folded and I really like the fantastic way it folds. They have a brilliant hood (you hardly need a raincover it is so big) and I have just found out that they do a toddler seat which sits on the front and apparently clips in really easily. You can also fit a carseat or a carrycot onto them. But nowhere near us sells them, so am going to have to go on a bit of a mission to test drive one.
Has anyone seen one / got one / got an opinion on them??

Thanks heaps!

(I am also going to email my mother on holiday in New Zealand to see how much Mountain Buggies are there!)