Travel system choice = complete nightmare!!

[LittleMissSnowShine]

Is the Graco Mosaic travel system really as terrible as all the reviews seem to make it out to be??

Review Centre has only given it 1.7/5 and Mumsnet has given it 5.4/10 which doesn't seem very optimistic!! So I was about to reluctantly cross it off the list but then dooyoo has given it 4/5 so now I'm considering it again!!! confused

I'm due at the end of August, this is our first baby and we're hoping to have maybe another 2 kids so ideally whatever we buy now would last the course. We live in a pretty urban area so there wouldn't be too much walking over rough terrain. Our car is small (a fiesta lol) and we're unlikely to be upgrading to a bigger one any time before next year so we need a stroller that can be used from birth, folds up easily and is compact enough to fit in our boot. Price is a factor, otherwise I'd probably love the Bugaboo Bee...but the Graco mosaic is just so much more affordable...

Has anyone else used the Graco mosaic or any other Graco pram/stroller? Any thoughts?? Are they as crap as some reviews seem to suggest?? Thanks a million

My advice is ditch the trend of going for a travel system like this...mine was a britax excel and used for 3 months before I changed to an umbrella fold mamas and papas beat buggy.

When I have my time again I will be gettings a new style baby jogger city mini with option of adding a car seat and carrycot.

Oh yes and my friend had a mosiac as a second buggy. Hated it and ending up getting another chicco winter london.

Sorry just realised the mosiac is a umbrella fold so likely to be more compact. Think my friend thought it was flimsy...will ask her

Thanks for the feedback, onadietcokebreak!

I liked the sound of the mosaic because it is umbrella fold so it's more like a kind of lightweight buggy, which comes with a car seat that you can attach on for the first couple of months.

A lot of people seem to be complaining online that their wheels or breaks went wonky on their Mosaic and the customer service at Graco was terrible, and that was the reason they were disappointed. But considering it's £180 for the whole deal, including the car seat, even if it lasted 6 months before needing something replaced I still think it might be a good choice. But I could be very wrong!!

We have a Babystyle oyster travel system - and it has been great. Its really light and easy to steer in town - not so great on rough ground. I would thoroughly recommend it

The mosaic isn't great, not easy to push etc

What about the Zia

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-PETITE-STAR-ZIA-4-TRAVEL-SYSTEM-CAR-SEAT-COCOON-/380215674247?cmd=ViewItem &pt=UKBabyBabyTravelPushchairsGL&hash=item58869ec587

It's really not that good to have a baby in a car seat for more than 2 hours at a time because they don't have the upper body strenght to be at that angle, the zia gives you the carrycot option, folds tiny too?

make sure you use a cashback site like quidco and scour the internet for some discount codes before you buy!

Try and establish exactly what car seat it is before you buy. Then go into your local stockist and try that car seat to make sure it fits your car.

A graco couldnt fit my car as the seat belts were too short when using just the car seat and when using the base the installation was too unstable.

The best way to choose a travel system is to go into an good shop that can do fitting and get them to test out the various car seat...then choose a travel system.

You dont have to buy from the retailer-although if not much diffence in price I would- becasue it keeps them open and easier to complain to if things go wrong

Also keep an eye on nurseryvalue.com if you decide you like the zia4

I completely agree about going and trying out car seats first.

You are probably better off getting the safest car seat that fits in your car and either buying a seperate pushchair and not having a TS or finding a TS that goes with the car seat.

They are bringing out a new style quinny zapp with a seat suitable from birth.

I usually recommend people buy a 2nd hand pram to use for the first 6 months and then buy a new maclaren quest.

Zia and Babystyle oyster both look good as well!! So much choice - so difficult to actually just CHOOSE one lol

What really confuses me is that the Graco Mirage, which is about £30 cheaper than the Mosaic, gets so much better reviews! Mumsnet gave the mosaic 5.4/10 but the mirage gets 7.9/10 and other sites show the same. But they seem so similar that I really don't understand why one is supposed to be great and the other is supposed to be rubbish!

People told me buying a buggy was harder than buying a car and I didn't believe them

The mirage fold in half rather than umbrella, it is really light, fold small and has been around for years (mosaic much newer). The mirage is a great buy for the money IMO, it's much sturdier and easier to steer.

Car girl...are they? Wonder if it will be more sturdy than a normal zapp.

It's going to have the same frame but apparantly a seat unit that clips in so it can be rear facing so not sure it will be any sturdier!

Hmm maybe the Mirage might be a good choice for us then...thanks for all the input everyone, trying to decide on this has been making my head spin. And then we still have to look for a cot. Gulp!

Gracos tend to be a bit cheap and flimsy. Also the car seats tend to be smaller than the maxi cosi, britax seats etc so you have to move your child to forward facing at a younger age.

The Mothercare carseat is very good, made by Dorel (Maxi Cosi) not sure about the quality of the mothercare own brand pushchairs, I think I have heard good things about the My3, but that one tends to be more expensive.

Cot is much easier! Go for something that is one hand drop side (sturdier design) with a really high top level for when they are new born and a really low level for when they are older. In fact buy a 2nd hand cot and just get a new mattress - you need one with a zip off washable cover for when they puke

Graco's sell very cheaply 2nd hand so may be worth looking out for the pushchair locally on ebay and just get the car seat new? Do check that the car seats fits your car first though!

We haven't bothered with a travel system as such as we didn't like the idea of a baby being in the car seat any longer than necessary, and the number of times we'd use that function were minimal. So we've gone for a second hand Mamas & Papas MPX system with a lay flat carry cot and a forward/rear facing seat (parents spotted it being sold v cheap on board in Sainsburys and snapped it up barely used!) It is pretty huge so we'll prob only use it till 6 months and then get a lightweight Maclaren style stroller and consign the big 'un to the garage until the next one comes along.

We are either going to get a Maxi Cosi or a Britax car seat as they look like the best, they have a much less curved seating position. We've also bought the necessary bars to put in the car so that we can use Isofix as we're quite keen on that.

I've also got a wrap around sling (got my eye on a lighter weight material one for this supposedly hot summer) that I'm hoping to use a lot as I like the idea of her being close and me being hands free!

Yes, I agree that that they are kind of cheap, but I just want something that will do the job until the baby is ready for a pushchair and a bigger carseat and then I can pack the Graco away until baby no. 2 is ready to use it.

MrsC2010 - You seem very organised and on top of all this stuff!! I am very envious!! I'm finishing a PhD at the minute and I have brain overload, feel like I'm in information overload at the min. Let me know how you find the sling, a lot of people keep telling me that carrying the baby puts a lot of strain on your back and not to bother etc but I quite like the idea too...

CarGirl - Good idea, I'll keep an look out for stuff second hand!!

If you buy one pram and use it for 3 children i will eat my hat, don't stress about it lasting because you will buy at least another 2.

I think if you do want something to last 2 or more children then the Graco is not for you. They are not sturdy enough. I would go for a Maclaren Techno.

mamatomany - you speak wise words!!

LadyintheRadiator - I feel a bit funny about buying something second hand that's still likely to cost almost as much as something like the Graco does brand new because it's not under any warranty and if something goes wrong with it you have no come back whatsoever. Have you found this to be a good option, though?

You do have some come back in that if you go through paypal and ebay then it has to be as described and in good working order but if you can collect it locally and see it before handing over the money then that's even better.
With say a Bugaboo you'd expect 5 years out of that and John Lewis or any big department store would send it off for a service or repair, they might charge but some cheaper models only have a 6 month warranty anyway so your no worse off.
I'm hoping to find a Stokke in a few months that's maybe 6/12 months old and still under warranty, if the receipt is supplied with the pram then you're laughing as the store will honor it.

Had a graco system for ds and hated it. It was so heavy and he wasa big baby, I was really hurting my back carrying him. So for dd 2 I bought a double stroller by Mothercare and had them both in that, it was suitable from birth, and used a seperate car seat. By time I had dd 2 both ds and dd1 at school/nursery so was constantly lifting baby in and out of car for short periods to do school run, 3 times a day! Bought basic Mothercare travel system and it has been fab. I would say as you having having first dc, don't bother with a travel system, go with something light that will fit in your boot.
Good luck with finding something that works for you.

Using a carseat as a buggy for a newborn is a really bad idea as being curled up like that for long periods not only affects their spine and hip development but also increases their risk of cot death.

Ideally, babies should be in a car seat for no longer than 2 hours. I've found that most trips to the shops take longer than 2 hours when you take into account traveling there and back.

Please buy a lie flat pushchair and use the car seat only for car journeys for your baby's sake.