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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask why people have buggies with huge wheels?

43 replies

PetalMettle · 24/08/2017 06:23

Specifically why they do in London when they're unlikely to be going off road etc. Is it just a status thing or is there some other reason?

OP posts:

picknmiss · 24/08/2017 06:27

I didn't deliberately pick a buggy with big wheels but found it much easier to bump up and down the stairs to my flat and the tube with my giant wheeled vista versus the mini wheeled maclaren I started using when DS got older. Am in London, not aware of a status thing with big wheels, if anything my vista was very unfashionable compared to all the bugaboos!

Spikeyball · 24/08/2017 06:34

They push better and are are easier to get up and down kerbs and steps. We live rurally and do use it off road quite a lot but even in town, his big wheeler is nicer to push. In our case it is an sn buggy so the wheels are massive.

Original poster

PetalMettle · 24/08/2017 06:37

Ok. Thank you both. The stair point is particularly interesting as near me there's a lot of flats/houses which have stairs to the door, so that may explain it

OP posts:

CurlsLDN · 24/08/2017 06:38

I lived in London and had big wheels. The opposite of a status thing, i didn't have a car so chose it because I often see small wheels get stuck between the bus step and pavement. I also had to regularly bump it up and down stairs and that's is much easier with bigger wheels.

Perhaps the only one with status issues is you?

SpikeGilesSandwich · 24/08/2017 06:39

It's much easier to drag it up the steps to my house with a chunky baby and half a ton of shopping. I couldn't lift it so rolling it up each step with the big wheels is brilliant.

Nuttynoo · 24/08/2017 06:40

I haven't seen a big wheeled pushchair in central London during rush hour for some time. Most parents I've seen tend to use a lightweight and foldeable one.

imip · 24/08/2017 06:40

Cobble stones, durability (use the buggy lots more as less need for a car). I've had both types of buggies, have had 4dc and live in zone 2. My arms would vibrate much more when pushing the macclaren on pavements than in the bugaboo or Phil and teds.

Batteriesallgone · 24/08/2017 06:41

Big wheels tend to be associated with better suspension. Air filled wheels will be bigger than solid rubber. Both of these make a huge difference if you are pushing long distances. Big wheels are easier to bet up and down pavements and onto buses.

I wanted the easiest to push pram possible. Gosh does that make me a total bitch?

peaceloveandbiscuits · 24/08/2017 06:43

Better suspension so more comfortable for baby and for whoever is pushing it.

I've had so many comments from total strangers on my choice of pram. When you've got to push it, you can have an opinion.

shakeyourcaboose · 24/08/2017 06:44

"big wheels keep on turning" is now stuck in my sleep deprived head......

Original poster

PetalMettle · 24/08/2017 06:45

Ah cobbles I can def see. In my bit of London we don't have them but buggy was a nightmare in Lisbon!

OP posts:

Callmecordelia · 24/08/2017 06:47

Don't know why in London, but I got mine because we lived in a place with a gravel drive and I needed to be able to get it over about 20 metres of gravel without getting stuck.

Lots of other reasons why it's turned out to be brilliant - lasted six years and two children. Slime in the wheels means no punctures, ever. I can push it one handed, even when it's loaded like a pack horse. It swallow bags and stuff so shopping/picnics aren't a problem. Huge weight limit means my slight six year old was fine to use it recently. I've taken it on beaches, paths, up hills. It wasn't expensive either. I'll miss it a bit when DS grows out of it.

Definitely not a status thing. It is a bit ugly, but it's v v practical.

paperandpaint · 24/08/2017 06:55

I live in London and walk everywhere so wanted a super comfy boggy for my baby and me. We go to off road type places at the weekend and the buggy is great, it can manage sand, mud, gravel and yesterday we took it through the fiorest tracks at burnham beeches.

JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff · 24/08/2017 06:58

Big wheels are great. I never understand iCandy buggies with their tinny little cheap looking wheels.

mathanxiety · 24/08/2017 07:02

I always had buggies with big wheels because of bumpy pavements and also because they are excellent for pushing through snow (in the Great Lakes region of the US) and over twigs in the path (lots of trees, twigs, leaves, nuts). Plus easy to lug upstairs to my apartment (old buildings, no lifts), decent suspension, space for groceries in the models I had, an ease of steering. For short trips in indoor malls, through airports, for travel, etc., with older toddlers I had an umbrella style lightweight one.

I wish supermarket trollies came with big wheels. They are very unwieldy in the snow.

Antoniacaenis · 24/08/2017 07:08

I live outside London but bring my big wheeled double (Phil and teds) if I come into town. It's much easier to push - especially if I decide to put DC1 (3) into the s much easier to have her contained if it's get busy.

midnightmisssuki · 24/08/2017 07:12

They are brilliant. Can push one handed and better suspension that most. Very sturdy and comfortable too.

PickAChew · 24/08/2017 07:17

We bought a large wheel buggy just for use in our local city which is heavily cobbled. Nothing else could cope. It was also the only one that worked with a couple of inches of snow on the ground.

It was crap on kerbs, though. Bought during the trend for 3 wheelers and toppled if you didn't go down a kerb square on, which is a pain when you have a million side streets to cross on the school run.

ememem84 · 24/08/2017 07:20

We're not in London but have bought a buggy with big wheels. I was advised by the mamas and papas lady to do this as our town centre is cobbled and it's a smoother ride, and also we are on an island so loads of beaches. Big wheels make sand easier to deal with.

Original poster

PetalMettle · 24/08/2017 08:05

Ha, mine is hell on wheels on sand. Interesting stuff. I guess I just see what a pain they are on buses and think why do people bother, so it's interesting to see all the benefits

OP posts:

RubyGoat · 24/08/2017 08:10

We had one with large wheels. We're not in London though, our town has lots of cobbles, ancient uneven paving, & a canal. Plus we can easily get out to the countryside with a bit of effort. No way would I have had a large wheeled buggy in a city, they're very heavy!

mogulfield · 24/08/2017 08:12

They could be runners (even in the town), my first buggy was MEANT to be a running buggy and was marketed as such, but the wheels were tiny and it was shit.
I've now got a baby jogger with huge wheels and it's fantastic to run with. I actually enjoy running with it.

Neutrogena · 24/08/2017 08:16

They are not as nimble as smaller wheeled but are easier to push and tackle obstacles.

Crumbelina · 24/08/2017 08:18

No idea! You could ask why so many people need a 4x4, Range Rover etc. in London?

I purposely avoided buggies with huge wheels and went for a Bugaboo Bee which is nippy, zippy and turns on a sixpence. I've absolutely loved it for getting around London shops and transport.

Am due with DD2 in the next few weeks and so I've had to adapt and buy a Phil and Ted's with big wheels (as I really couldn't have coped with a side by side buggy). Not sure if I'm going to like it!

CbeebiesAddict · 24/08/2017 08:26

Don't live in London so can't comment on that but we have one because I walk everywhere so want something that is comfy to push and is comfy for DS to sit in. The pavements round here are not well maintained either so the suspension is so helpful. We have an umbrella fold one for travelling and it is horrible to push in comparison.

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