adviced on lightweight, compact and reasonable price buggy

NessaWH123 · 2014-02-12T16:41:04+00:00

Hi i need to get a pushchair now for my son who is 11 months and am looking for one that is lightweight, folds compact(will fit in the small boot of my yaris)is easy to fold possibly one handed, the seat reclines and is easy to steer? Also dont want to spend more that about 120 pounds. Not asking alot am i?!!!!! any suggestions would be great. THanksx

Jennyl131 · 24/02/2014 14:37

Me too.
So far considering

petite star zia x3
isafe visual

or maybe I should bite the bullet and spend a bit more for a MacLaren quest?

Any other suggestions welcomed, I'm planning a trip to the nearest pram warehouse, but suspect they'll suggest I part with around £300 for a quinny or bugaboo...

Although I drive a touran, the boot is an awkward shape in that it's probably no more than 1m wide or 1m deep. I struggle to get my chicco nunu in - it will just fit widthways.
To put it in lengthways it needs to be at an angle, or have one of the rear seats moved forward, which tall dc 1&2 (11 & 9) would complain about & can't move dc3s chair forward due to size of rear facing seat....
I think I'd face the same issue with any of the maclarens, in fact they seem to be longer.

Surely there must be something out there?

LightTripper · 24/02/2014 15:02

Graco Evo Mini is currently only 140 at Mothercare.

I'm afraid I can't speak from personal experience as only just got it and baby isn't here yet, but it is very lightweight/small (and has single-handed fold that I found very easy in the shop), so may fit the bill.

Jennyl131 · 24/02/2014 15:08

thanks light, I'll pop into my local branch tomorrow to see if they have one I can play with.

Ihateparties · 24/02/2014 16:36

I had a yaris, v awkward for pushchairs as max 50cm wide or deep and pushchairs tend to be wider than that. Umbrella folds fitted as long as they weren't too long. I had a zia, but this was 5yrs ago, there are a few more options now. The maxi cosi noa would fit, so would a babyzen yoyo (probably what I would choose if I was making the same decision now) I really really wanted a bar handle so I got a babyhome emotion xtreet which fitted lovely. There are lots more that will fit, that's just what's coming to mind right now.

simplynails · 24/02/2014 16:39

I'm looking for this too, for my 17 month old. I've just bought a maclaren techno xt but didn't realise how tall it was and I'm quite short. I need to sell this as I took it out so can't send it back :-(

Anyway I digress, I'm considering a baby jogger city lite but only problem is they aren't available yet, and they will be about £199. I considered the graco EVO mini but heard mixed reviews. I'd like it to have an adjustable leg rest that lifts up and down. I'm finding this very difficult to find. And I don't really want an umbrella fold either.

jumperooo · 24/02/2014 16:49

What have you used before?
I had a zia and hated it. Felt cheap and flimsy and a wheel fell off within a week. I was used to a high spec expensive travel system then though.
Had a maclaren quest for a while after that, didn't like it, very basic, hard work to push and I prefer one handle. We have a babyzen yoyo now which I love, but they are very expensive. The graco EVO looks good. How about a second hand quinny zapp xtra? Before I found our yoyo (we got a bargain on eBay so didn't pay full rrp) I was going to get an uppababy g luxe. Like a maclaren but lighter, nicer to push and more features. Uppababy products are very good. If that helps!

Ihateparties · 24/02/2014 17:24

I have a red kite zumi now for day to day use, on budget and really good for that price range. The evo mini had too small wheels for me. It is however slightly too wide for a yaris boot without popping a wheel or moving the parcelshelf.

LightTripper · 26/02/2014 08:31

I know, I read mixed reviews of the GEM too. Most seem very positive (because of the weight/width), although a lot of people obviously review pushchairs when they haven't had them very long. Some say the straps are too short for a toddler, which I think is just user error (you have to adjust them as your child grows and some people seem not to keep the instructions for doing it!) I did see a couple saying the fabric tore or a popper rusted, so will have to keep an eye on that. There wasn't anything l liked better, so for the price and the lightness I decided it was worth a punt!

MrJollyLivesNextDoor · 26/02/2014 08:54

I use a Chicco Snappy - I originally chose it because I wanted something super light as I travel abroad a lot to see family.

It is a dream to push and steer, comes with a raincover and carry bag and folds up small. It doesn't come with a cosytoe but I used one I already had from another stroller.

And it's inexpensive

www.mothercare.com/Chicco-Snappy-Stroller---Coal/637137,default,pd.html?cm_mmc=Google--Pushchairs--PLA+-+Pushchairs-_-PLA+-+Pushchairs+-+PLA&gclid=COnC69Kz6bwCFQkUwwod16oA6Q

Jennyl131 · 26/02/2014 10:54

Ihateparties what did you think of the zia?
jumperoo didn't like, was wondering how you found it

the reviews of the evo here on mumsnet are good, & it does feel like a well made sturdy but light stroller, but was really quite wide folded as the bar handle bar didn't collapse at all, whereas my god-daughters zia x4 does, from what I can see, the zia x3 is the same.

Although there is a good choice of compact lightweight options, many are in the £200+ region. Maybe I'm being cheap, but i'd prefer to keep the budget down.

mrjollylivesnextdoor the snappy is cheap, but I'm keen to avoid an umbrella food as at 112 cm folded I think I'd struggle to get it into my car boot.

Couldn't understand why this wasnt an issue with dc1&2 until dh pointed out that at that point we had a passat estate with an enormous boot, which easily swallowed the McLaren quest and a whole lot more.

Ihateparties · 26/02/2014 11:12

I thought the zia was okay, it's suitable birth and the fold is great.. those were the best things about it for me. It got very tricky to steer and handle past about 9kg of child. The newer ones and 4 wheel may be better. Compared to the red kite I have now,which cost the same, I would definitely choose the red kite, it's easier to steer, has a better basket, better hood,bigger seat, bigger wheels yet is also narrower (when open).

The evo mini looks good but it isn't really that cheap, unless there's a great discount somewhere atm. It's also 55cm wide which is narrower than a city mini or average pram type system but only 1cm narrower than a oyster or joie chrome. I did have an umbrella stroller in my yaris for a while, a mamasandpapas pipi, so I know that folds short enough to fit.

Jennyl131 · 26/02/2014 12:31

thanks parties had a look at the red kite zumi on line, looks like a bargain, under £100 on Amazon. Wonder if any RL shops stock them so I can have a play?

Asda direct have it on offer for £108 & a return should theoretically be fairly easy if necessary.

Looks like mothercare do it too, though not held in my local branch.

Ponders....

Ihateparties · 26/02/2014 14:01

Nowhere seems to have them in an actual shop, precious little one probably do but all the others be online only. I took an chance and figured I'd return it if necessary. As long as you unpack carefully then it's just the cost and hassle of returning that's prohibitive.

tethersend · 26/02/2014 14:05

If you can stretch the budget a bit, look at the micralite fastfold superlite. 6kg and a dream to steer one handed.

Jennyl131 · 26/02/2014 14:11

Ihateparties what did you think of the zia?
jumperoo didn't like, was wondering how you found it

the reviews of the evo here on mumsnet are good, & it does feel like a well made sturdy but light stroller, but was really quite wide folded as the bar handle bar didn't collapse at all, whereas my god-daughters zia x4 does, from what I can see, the zia x3 is the same.

Although there is a good choice of compact lightweight options, many are in the £200+ region. Maybe I'm being cheap, but i'd prefer to keep the budget down.

mrjollylivesnextdoor the snappy is cheap, but I'm keen to avoid an umbrella food as at 112 cm folded I think I'd struggle to get it into my car boot.

Couldn't understand why this wasnt an issue with dc1&2 until dh pointed out that at that point we had a passat estate with an enormous boot, which easily swallowed the McLaren quest and a whole lot more.

LightTripper · 26/02/2014 14:50

Evo mini is 48cm wide not 55. Maybe 55 is the Evo proper? 50cm seems to be a key dimension for quite a few car boots. For us it's mainly important for buses and just because our house is quite narrow generally!

Red kite does look good too though.

Ihateparties · 26/02/2014 14:52

48? Really? Yes that would definitely fit in a yaris boot better.

jellybelly18 · 26/02/2014 15:03

I really like my micralite superlite. it has everything you require plus it is so easy to steer you can push one handed easily

Jennyl131 · 27/02/2014 19:41

how did my phone re post an old comment?!

Just blew the budget on a zapp extra 2, most excitingly it will fit in the touran with a 7 seats up (what a sad life I must lead)

Managed to get my local pram shop to price match an online supplier (bon dodo) so whilst not cheap was still a bargain (well, I can pretend it was)