Can anyone review a Phil and Teds Dash for me?

[bethylou]

Still trying to make a final double pushchair decision and am down to the Vibe and Dash. Have read reviews of the Vibe (both good and bad) but can't find any of the Dash and would like some if you can spare me the time. Thanks.

[onceinabluemoon]

hehe and I've just noticed how old this thread was, guessing you'll have bought one by now... Ah well the review will last for anybody else doing a search...

[onceinabluemoon]

I had a sport on which the back rest clip broke within 5 weeks, the shop replaced it for a new one, the front wheel connector broke on that when I took it out of the box!!

Undeterred I bought a Vibe. I loved the look of it, so sleek, so padded so comfy etc! I loved pushing it with no children in. Then factor in children... The front harness did up right between the child's legs which I was not happy with; the straps were very short on both the front and rear seats; the lay back mechanism was awkward to do with a child leaning on it; it was harder to push, especially with the second seat on top; doesn't have such great manoeuvrability as the sport; the second seat is so short that my 8 month old (size of 5 month old) was too tall to use the recline option; the hood kept blowing forward in the wind as it doesn't clip to back, the waterproof had such a fiddly thin velcro strip that had to be lined up perfectly to fasten (sport's is much wider); the second seat really a pain in the neck to clip on and off; kept clicking the brakes on when pushing one handed...

I stuck it out for 4 months to justify paying all that money and then sold it on and bought another sport which I have had no problems with.

Recently I've been thinking about upgrading to the dash though... (which is what bought me to this page in the first place, lol!)

[nappyaddict]

Woulda nipper side by side fit through your front door they are quite narrow.

[oldspeckledtam]

I have a vibe.

I'm convinced it's the best of it's kind, but it's still driven me potty.

My daughter is a tall 3y9m and can sit comfortably in both seats.

It can be a struggle getting ds out of the bottom when the brake is on, but what is more annoying is the fact you can't FOLD it with the brake on.

I find it a struggle to unfold, but it takes up little space in my boot. Infact, I can fit a 2 adults, 2 children (in carseats) the dash and a full weekly shop in a fiat panda.

My sil has a vibe and her son (2y6) looks squashed in the seat. It is also much. much harder to switch the seats about. I rarely keep the dash in the same configuration when out and about as it's so easy to switch depending on what the children are doing!

All in all, it isn't perfect but I'm yet to find a pram that is. For transporting 2 children of different ages, I don't think you'll find better.

[Ponymum]

pammyj Thanks, interesting. Do you have any trouble getting your child in / out of the rear seat of the vibe when the brake is in the 'on' position, i.e. down? This is one of the things I am wondering about but the shop won't let me try it without another child in the front, as they say there is risk of instability (which incidentally is also a worry as this must mean you can only ever put the front child in first, and take them out last - really?).

[pammyj]

I wanted to write and defend the vibe. I have one and love it. folding with double seat started off tricky but now it seems a doddle and I cant remember why I found it so hard? it also fold down so small it sits very tidy in our boot.
As for the scratches, yes it does mark in 5 mins, all alu frames do but I still think it looks fab months later.

The dash is around 100 quid cheaper (jan sales) but have never seen one on the road and that to me speaks volumes. Although on the web it def looks nicer than the sport. I think the sport is a bit dated looking.

[bethylou]

Thanks for all of the above. Basically, we seem royally stuffed, as DS1 really doesn't fit under the hood of the Dash or the Sport and I can't bear the thought of spending all that money on a Vibe that clearly has so many glitches on it. A side by side double won't go through our front door (and in a village I may want to walk small baby to sleep and then bring them inside in it). I'm going to borrow a friend's sport and see how DS1 gets on under the hood for a couple of days. I can't expect it not to rain in England for the next 6 months so he's either going to have to put up with his head pushing against the hood till DS2 is big enough to be swapped or we might have to come up with a cunning umbrella and hood plan - not ideal.
I'm very glad to have asked your advice as I am now defintely not going to get a Vibe which was where I was heading. Thanks again.

[Nowtheres4]

re any of the p&ts pulling or veering to the side its down to the air tyres you need to make sure they are filled evenly and not deflated at all. this is a common problem with lots of air filled tyre buggies.

[Ponymum]

larsazlol The brake on position was one of the other things I wondred about too. mel and others with a Vibe, how easy is it to get a child in / out of the bottom seat when the brake is in the down position? It looked quite awkward to me.

[Nowtheres4]

i had the dash and i loved it, sold my vibe after using the dash as i knew the dash would look better in the long run.
the only downside of my review for you is that i onl;y used it as a single i didn;t need the doubles seat so can;t comment on that poart of it.
it is so easy to fold that its not a problem to remove the seat and fold it, as the vibe takes longer to fold and you need to have more of a 'knack' with it.
the main seat seemed more substanital plus you had a padded liner which is thicker than the one on the vibe.
the brake doesn;t engage itself as it does on the vibe as its in a different place.
it was easier to push and steer than the vibe and the handle is more rounded and felt more comfy to hold.
the vibe looks fab but the frame marks so easily that within a few weeks it looks awful, but i am a bit of clean freak and scratches bother me greatly.

[larsazlol]

I had every intention of selling my sport and buying the dash as on paper the improvements seemed to fix the things that annoyed me about the sport.
However when I took my kids to the shop to play with the dash I was very disappointed. When the brake is on and the handlebar is down removing the child from the bottom seat was next to impossible and imagine even more so if it was a small baby in the newborn position.
The fabrics felt of worse quality to the sport the padding was just a thin removable liner and the seat underneath had no padding at all, the sport does have some padding built in and removable liners can be added to this. The seat still has the same zips as the sport and a toggle system instead of the buckles.

All in all I was glad to keep my sport as the dash seemed to just change the annoyances not remove them so I saved my pennies.

[mel2005]

ponymum, you can fold the vibe when toddler seat at the back but it does take a bit of practice and time. it pushes forward pushing the bottom of the main seat forward. its hard to do with a footmuff on as it makes the seat thicker.i was told you had to take it off my john lewis as well and they insisted it didnt fold with it on but i had seen it on the phil and teds website. it does show you how its done in the instructions. still a faf and when you try to remove it like the others to fold it takes ages and also scratches the frame.

[Ponymum]

I viewed them both again today and asked loads of questions, and got every feature demonstrated. One of the most interesting things is that the Vibe second seat is so much more difficult to get on and off than the Dash or Sport. The shop demomstrater (quite experienced) was trying for ages to get it attached to the bottom position, and it was really awkward and just wouldn't go. She kept saying, maybe this one is bent, before finally managing to click it into place. Not very impressive.

Also, the big deal they make about folding up the Vibe with the double seat attached - it's not as great as it sounds. There are two positions for mounting it when it is on the front: either up closer to the hood, or lower down the frame (which is the position that gives you the better head height). But you can only fold it if the seat is in the high position. Otherwise you still have to take the seat off first, and this takes much longer than removing the seat on the Dash.

The Vibe is also 3 cm wider than the Dash, and although they are the same weight it somehow feels as if it's bigger and heavier. The Dash and the Vibe both have the same improved zip system and she said there have been no problems with it.

You can see where I am going with this: I have gone off the Vibe totally! Still not 100% certain about the Dash but so many people are happy with the Sport and this is certainly a step up.

[nappyaddict]

ready2pop Is the vibe heavy to push with both hands as well?

[ready2pop]

I have a vibe. The doubles seat did indeed get stuck and have to be sawn off and replaced.

I barely use mine now to be honest as I found it quite heavy especially pushing one handed. I've bought a nipper 360 instead as even being side by side it is hardly any wider than the vibe.

[BelfastBloke]

I know a bloke who has a Vibe, wishes he'd just gone for the Sport. Can't remember why though.

I like our Sport, although that's not what you're deciding between, is it? But I seem to remember that the Dash was a Sport poshed up, is that right?

[MrsCullenlovessteamyfanfic]

vibe harness is really easy to use
its a bit different see here

you can also unclip at there shoulders if you need to, i do as it makes strapping wriggly one yr old in the back seat in a coat and buggy snuggle!

hth x

[sweetkitty]

I have had a Sport in the past so know it's faults, currently debating another Sport or a Vibe.

A friend who works in a pram shop that sells the Vibe has told me that the first version has had loads of faults and they are trying to remedy them so hold off buying one, apparently she has had quite a few back as the doubles seat has become stuck on and needed sawn off.

Is the Vibe harness different to the Sport, I hate those little four clip things IYSWIM?

DD2 was 90cms and 2 1/2 when she was in the front toddler seat and her head just got under the hood, it's only a problem for about 4-5 months until the baby goes in the second seat and then only if it rains.

[snowedinwithJjandtheBean]

Retromum

there is still a zip system on the vibe, but the zips are mega chunky and dont have silly rubber tags on theyre just normal chunky zips, and they make alot less difference to the sitting up than on sport! My friends sports zips are smaller and dont have the normal zip pulls on, which is causing the problem if that makes any sense at all!

Hope that helps!

Bethylou, there is alot of head room on the vibe, ds is 2.5 in age 3-4 clothes and has loads of room! DD is 1 and so tall needs age 2+ Clothes and she can be reclined in the double seat!

i really love my vibe!

[bethylou]

Some great help here thanks. I would definitely go for the Sport if DS1 would fit in it. Never thought his height was going to be costly!! It's nice to hear a positive review of the vibe from Snowedin too. My hunch is to go with this one as at least I know it suits us at the mo, whereas the Dash and the Sport are going to be a hassle form the start, given that DS1 will kick off every time I try and put the hood over him in either of them!

[RetroMum1]

I was looking for this too as I am thinking of getting one.

DD2 due in 6 weeks, I have had a sport but the footbrake is very difficult with the 2nd seat. Also the zip tags always break on the main seat making it difficult to change the position.

Does anyone know if the dash or vibe still has this silly zip system?

I begrudge paying £400 for a pram that I know will break within a couple of weeks.

Also does anyone know anything about the hammerhead, is it the same as the dash other than having 4 wheels?

Thanks

[nappyaddict]

My friend had a sport followed by a vibe. She said the sport was heavier to push and veered all over the place.

[Ponymum]

Thanks snowedin and mel, that's really useful. It would be interesting to know which of the Vibe's advantages also apply to the Dash, but so few people seem to have one. I definitely agree that the brake on the Sport seems difficult, and would almost avoid it for that reason alone. But that deal mel has found seems very tempting! I saw it on another thread and told DH last night. He said no. (Fair enough, we are only 4 months pg so there's no rush, and had already almost decided against the Sport anyway!) You don't know of a similar deal on the Dash, do you?

[mel2005]

when i had the vibe, i did keep accidently putting the break on when pushing with one hand which was a pain. it also takes longer to fold with the toddler seat on than taking it off with the sport and the second seat is very small in the vibe. also its hard to fold with a footmuff on the back seat. it does look good but i think the frame will look terrible with scratches over the years. if i was buying one again i would buy the sport and you can get a sport, doubles kit and raincover delivered online at mothercare for £312 using AF9. i have had ALL phil and teds versions except the dash, i have even had the first one which was great. the quality has gone down over the years as they mass produced them in china. the four wheel version which is yet to be realeased (hammerhead) does look good as it would sort out the stability issues and make it shorter in length.

[snowedinwithJjandtheBean]

Hi ladies,

i cant review a dash but i had the same dilemma for months before dp said decide or i will!

We have a vibe, my reasons for this were;

much more room when toddlers on top
hand break (sport ones very difficult)
one piece fold which me, dp and the Gps find a doddle, despite many saying its hard.
more padding.
decent hood to protect from wind/sun etc
Much larger front seat (so in dps eyes it should be the last buggy we have)
wider easier to use straps

erm, i think thats about it, any questions, feel free!