Anyone had a Mountain Buggy?

[AngelaBobby]

Hi All

Please help!

Husband has returned from shopping expedition and decided that we need (!) to get a Mountain Buggy.

Any advice on whether this is a good idea?

Until today we were planning on a Bugaboo or possibly Jane.

It's just such a tricky decision!

Thanks Angela

[sewardy]

Just wanted to add that I have a 2010 MB swift and it's fab - far better quality than the Phil and Ted's ones that friends have. We've used it all over the place - on the beach, in the mountains, on Dartmoor and had no probs at all. The swift is much smaller than the urban - fits easily in the car and is very compact going round shops etc. and the only issue was that our son grew out of the carry cot by about 4 months, but he loves it the pushchair and always sleeps amazingly well. Well worth the money!

[cara2244]

Got my mountain buggy second hand, eighty quid, and it has been fantastic. Yes you do need a big hallway and big boot. It is great on long walks and rough terrains. Snow, ice,mud, hills, no problem. It's done glastonbury twice. It's very sturdy and strong and you can put heavy shopping on the base.

Only problem is I am now expecting baby number two and none of the doubles seem as good. Those Phil and Ted things seem to flimsy for the walks I do. THe side by side buggys are too wide! My LO may just have to start walking everywhere :)

[BrassicaBabe]

Also watching with interest

Expecting twins, do I'm looking at the Duo

[mummysleepy]

bump!

any update on quality of 2010 version?

[AngelaBobby]

Well folks - the Swift arrived yesterday and I am delighted with it. Went for a chocolate one (brown) in the end with carrycot, sun cover and a green footmuff. All I need now is the country house!!!

Thanks for all your advice, it really has been useful.

Just a note on the quality concerns that some people had. I think I'll report back and keep posting on the Mountain Buggy as it would unfair for them to have an undeserved reputation. Likewise if it breaks!


Angela

[mel2005]

i would recommend getting the sunshade, it has a zipped front, i use mine all the time, in the summer it lives on the buggy and the front comes down when needed but the side shade is always great.
i have a bumper with two kiddycaddies on. i also put a flexi chopping board in the basket as they tend to sag after about a year, you would have to make one smaller for the single one. also the tinylove chime bells are great to hang on the hood.
i have two doubles in moss green, they are lovely and you dont see many around that colour but for resale black is better.
the carrycots are lovely and you can pop them on a moses basket stand in the house. i have felhof lambskin footmuffs on mine. there are mountain buggy footmuffs on sale in the wymstanleys pramworld website. nomad and alvi ones are great as well.

[beccagrace2]

fab we got our in nz, just a buggy, its at leaset 8 yrs old but fab!! very comfy for baby in a bucket type seat, she loves it!

[FingonTheValiant]

The urban is the one I went for, it seems ok enough for the city, but the tube or busy buses, and a bit more substantial for the countryside. The staff were spot on about the extra features, you do get a lot more included with it now. Can I suggest having a look for them online, they can be quite a bit cheaper.

Accessories-wise, I have the carrycot, raincovers for carrycot and seat, and a nomad sleeping bag. I'm trying to get hold of a bumper bar (which is now standard I think) and probably one of their super sun covers. I haven't looked for ages to see what else is available.

Mine is in moss green, which wouldn't have been my choice, but was the only one going. It's growing on me in a sea of black and red pushchairs.

Good luck picking it all :)

[AngelaBobby]

Wow that fabulous advice folks - thanks v much.

Went to a shop today and had a good look at the Urban & Swift. Have decided to go for the Urban. Shop staff said it was just as good quality as NZ models and with some extra features. They seemed pretty trustworthy as I was comparing it to a more expensive Bugaboo in the shop.

Now just down to colour & accessories - this will all end one day won't it?

I feel like entering Mastermind with the specialist subject of prams after the last few weeks!!

[EldonAve]

mountain buggy are still selling the pre 2010 models on their site under "outlet"

[prettybird]

Ours was brilliant :)

Had the whole shebang: car seat "convertor" thingy and carry cot, sleeping bag thingummy.

It is big but it is so effortless to push. Had the rigid front wheel (this was 10 years ago, so the swivel front wheel was not an option) but the buggy is so beautifully balanced that you don't even notcie manouevering it.

Bought a Mclaren as a "smaller" option (useful for going shoiing) to takewith us to Greece when he was 11 months old. This was a trial run holiday for a longer holiday to SOuth Africa......

We took the Mountain Buggy to SOuth Africa

[mel2005]

i have had many mountain buggies, but phil and teds bought the company in winter 2008/2009 and in 2010 moved production from NZ to china i have not had a phil and teds china made one 2010 versions because many of the shops who sold mainly MBs stopped selling them when the had the first lot as the quality was alot worse. i do think that they are addressing this though. it will be the same quality as the phil and teds buggies i would guess which isnt that bad, its just compared to the excellent quality of the old mountain buggies they are just not the same.
the pre 2010 ones were fantastic, i have two double urbans at the moment and use them daily for my twins. they go anywhere and i regularly go on the beach in deep sand and pebbles and also in deep mud in the woods/farms. they last forever. i have had a few bugaboos as well and i did love them but they are not as good on the beach, i used it two wheel mode.
if you hunt around online you might find a new 2009 mountain buggy pramworld did have some but there are not any online anymore it might be worth calling them. also there are some great bargains on e-bay. all the covers come off to wash, but you do need to know which are the newer ones
if you go for one like this cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mountain-Buggy-Urban-Plum-/250693751553?pt=UK_Baby_BabyTravel_Pushchairs_GL&hash=item3a5e831301
cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mountain-Buggy-Urban-Single-Black-Standard-Stroller-/320582264840?pt=UK_Baby_BabyTravel_Pushchairs_GL&hash=item4aa4312808
cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mountain-Buggy-Urban-Designer-rare-Coco-7-mths-old-/290472208785?pt=UK_Baby_BabyTravel_Pushchairs_GL&hash=item43a17e2991
they are newer, you see the black bits on the sides of the footplate? they are not on the older ones like this
cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mountain-Buggy-Urban-/220663091887?pt=UK_Baby_BabyTravel_Pushchairs_GL&hash=item33608b92af
also the pre 2005 ones dont have an adjustable handle like this
cgi.ebay.co.uk/Old-style-Urban-Mountain-Buggy-carrycot-/300461865467?pt=UK_Baby_BabyTravel_Pushchairs_GL&hash=item45f4ec39fb

[onelittlelion]

I had one for ds and bought a new one for baby due in few wks. The newest ones with brown logo and sun visor hood are made by phil and ted's in china. Green logo and ones with mountain pic logo were made in new zealand and are meant to better quality. Tbh even the newest ones feel better made than most!

[AngelaBobby]

Wow thanks for the quick answers folks. From what I can gather the Mountain Buggy is a pretty good all rounder but I didn't realise that they had changed recently. Anyone know what has changed? Not sure if B has seen a new or old one.

Love the idea of both off roader and city pram but I have 2 hopes!

Boot space isn't an issue - just want a really good quality thing that will last & don't like the traditional style.

Hmmmm - clear as mud!!!

All opinions welcome!

A

[EldonAve]

I love mine - although DC3 will soon be too big for the carrycot

I have a new one and the build quality isn't as good as the older models but it's still pretty robust

[FingonTheValiant]

Oh yes, forgot to say. I bought one of the older models (although I got it new) from ebay, as apparently the build quality on the new ones is not as good as it used to be.

Bugaboo is lovely though, in my fantasy world I'd have both :)

[cazzybabs]

i have an older mb - it's on its 3rh child - love it. I do like the look of the bugaboo but you can get a bigger child in a Mb + plus we have taken ours on all kinds of walks and it fits in a smallish car

[FingonTheValiant]

Well I haven't used mine yet, but this is what we've got for DS due in 4 weeks. The reviews for it are absolutely amazing, so I'm hoping it'll be great. We looked at the Bugaboo and Jane as well, but the Bugaboo would never have handled the terrain, and the Jane seemed much heavier.

HTH