Uppababy Cruz or iCandy Cherry

[osaenlondres]

Having been armed with the advice received previously www.mumsnet.com/Talk/pushchair_chat/a1506582-Pushchair-advice-needed, we went to try out a few models and got the choice narrowed down to Uppababy Cruz or iCandy Cherry.

We like both models, the price difference is c.5% therefore negligible; some of the features one has, the other model does not (extendable handle in Cruz; greater colour choice for a carrycot in Cherry, etc.). The store saleperson (who was very knowledgeable and helpful) thought Cruz would be a better option.

Question to more experienced parents here:

1. Seat height - how important it is; what toddlers might prefer? Cruz has higher seat than Cherry.
2. Cruz does not have a bumper bar. What are the views on this? Needed/preferred?
3. Any other considerations?

thank you!

marking my place as we have been looking at both of these!

1. Both the Cruz and the Cherry have a good seat height. I certainly wouldn't say the Cherry was low. So I dont think it matters with these two TBH at all. Your toddler certainly wont notice the extra inches that they never saw or tried out ;)

1. I find bumper bars a PITA personally. Most of mine get removed - not all, but most. I even bought a bumper bar for one pushchair thinking it would be nice to put toys on, but I have to remove it to put my 2 year old in (he's too heavy now to lift over the top as you would a younger child) and its annoying. Gate opening bumper bars are so much easier but my children wouldn't care less if they had a bumper bar or not. On the flip side, I know one MN who likes a bumper bar with all her pushchairs for her child to be able to pull herself up - but mine never did - nor any of the children I have looked after. Again, your child won't miss what they never had.

1. I guess the two obvious considerations are fold - the Cherry is a 2 piece, the Cruz is a one piece. Both chassis freestand but the Cruz has the seat attached. Personally I dont mind 2 piece folds, but again I know they drive one fellow MN mad. You have to remove the seat to parent face / turn it back to fold anyway, so you may as well leave the Cruz as a 2 piece fold.

My other concern is over the wheels of the Cruz. I have to say, I am not sure the Cruz will go anywhere. It may be that you have a very urban lifestyle - we do generally, but last weekend we were invited to a family birthday party which we didn't realise at the time was in the middle of some woods, in a muddy field with huge chunks of stone to push through. Thankfully I had had an inkling there may be grass and had left the Bee at home and opted for something with more substantial wheels. But this was a one off outing, and what I am trying to say is that if you are only buying one pushchair, I personally want something that can cope with most things. Most people will go to the park or even the beach at some point in the first 3 years. Where we went wasn't particularly extreme TBH. There were 2 Cherry's there coping well, and 2 Vista's but I have to say I wouldn't have taken the Cruz.
What I am trying to badly say is that you have no idea where your LO will take you in the next 3 years and I would rather have a pushchair which I could take anywhere.

Thanks a lot Tiggywunkle. My ideal choice would have been Vista, if we weren't living in Central London. DH is impressed with it (incl. wheels) and steeres me to Vista every time we are in a pram store :) But given the need to use buses from time to time, I think we'll stick to Cruz or Cherry. I must say I have not tried the recommended Mutsy Evo or Easywalker June - haven't found the stockists nearby and do not want to rent a car to go out of town to look for one.

I'm also in centralish London (SW) and looking at the Cruz and the iCandy Strawberry, so similar to you.

There IS a bumper bar available for the Cruz, see last page herehere

You already know about the non adjustable handle on the cherry - that's what put me off it as Dh and I are very different heights. The Strawberry does have an adjustable handle but it's a fair bit heavier than the Cherry and Cruz.

Neither take a buggy board (for when child no 2 appears) but I reckon they will probably make one for the Cruz if it's a success whereas iCandy just seem not to do them ever (and the warranty is invalid if you use one).

Tiggy is right that small hard wheels are bumpier, however air tyres (like the Vista has) need pumping up every so often which is a pain.

I have the same issue as you with the Mutsy Evo and Easywalker June - can't find anywhere close enough to see the damn things. The Easywalker website lists London stockists, but it's out of date - I tried calling Peppermint and they don't stock Easywalker any more. Please let me know if you find anywhere in London that stocks these buggies!

BTW Mutsy Evo is wider than the Cruz/Cherry.

The others on my list are the Babystyle Oyster (but seems to have quality issues, i.e. lots of reports of bits breaking after a bit of use) and the Bugaboo Bee (but there's the wheel issue and it's a v low child position). In case this helps you!

Thanks everyone!

Hi Guys

Just wondering what the outcome was here? What did you buy? We're having the same debate now and I actually joined mumsnet to ask opinions on just this topic!

Hi. I have an Uppababy Cruz and love it! My DS is 5 months old. We bought the carrycot to go with it but he never really liked being in it and I didnt like him being in the car seat so much, so at about 4 months we bought the newborn snug seat insert (about £30) which fits to the main pram seat. So now he's facing me in the main pram and virtually fully reclined and he much prefers it. The slight tilt helps with his reflux too.

The Cruz is a firm ride, but as we've used the pushchair more, the suspension definitely seems to be improving especially after a quick spray of bike fork lubricant! It's an easy fold and stows away with no problem in our ford focus. The huge basket is the biggest I've seen on my journeys around town. I don't think it would be a good off road ride, but for urban babies I would highly recommend!

That's really helpful thank you! The additional cost of a carrycot was putting me off somewhat, but it's good to know the snugseat is a possibility!

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