All terrain pushchairs - any recommendations?

[Elderberry]

We're thinking of getting an all terrain pushchair but I'm finding the choice confusing to say the least!

We want something reasonably rugged that will put up with country walks (fields etc, nothing too extreme) but that will also fold down small enough for the boot of our Peugeot 306.

Any recommendations?

Does anyone know of an outlet in the Oxford area where you can look at a range of vehicles?

Thanks

Thanks, Enid.

I have got a bebecar raider AT and it is brill. I have ponies so it does get alot of off road work, especially through mud in the winter. It is comfy enough for ds to stay asleep while walking the bumpy lane and over bumpy fields to see them. I have recently just got a buggy too as I found I couldnt get into shops etc and being pregnant it is quite heavy. It also has the added benefit of being able to take the wheels off to fit into your car and just pop them on again when you get there. I have only had one puncture with a great bit black thistle. It is still going well after two years of real off road and all ready for the winter for no2.

Another happy 3 wheeler user. After reading lots of reviews and things, we found it much more useful to actually push a few around and see how the balance feels to you. We chose the Pegasus Landrover on this basis, it's very light.

Personally, I have found having a relatively long buggy with a fixed front wheel not a problem. The front wheel is useful as a battering ram when going through doors and the air tyres eat up bumps and steps. I too have a Maclaren for the car but I often prefer to throw the 3 wheeler in the car as I prefer it for walking around anyway. Also been the buggy on of choice when flying away (flew an awful lot in the first year).

I have been running a lot with mine and it seems to be holding up well. Although punctures can be a pain, they would not be enough of a down side to make me want a different, less light and smoothe, solution.

I am glad that I had the Landrover right from the beginning, I might not have wanted to spend as much by the time I had a 4 month old. I did wonder what I was up to in the first time I went to a shopping centre in the car with all the palaver of unfolding, connecting pram seat etc in a force 7 gale. But then the palaver of strapping and upstrapping the car seat seemed complex.

Am now the proud owner of the Mother double 3 wheeler and hope to try it out within the next week or 3. The swivel front wheel seems great for a double as it helps compensate for the width.

Happy hunting.

I would second Malmomum's suggestion of actually trying the pram/buggy for yourself. I'd decided on a Mamas & Papas model but then found I couldn't steer the thing! I can recommend a really good shop in East Anglia if anyone's interested.

All our punctures have been caused by brambles.

We've got the Mountain Buggy, which we've found great. We've never found the lack of swivel front wheel a problem - it's so well balanced, it's easy to steer by lifting and turning with no effort. In fact, I find the swivel wheels on the Maclaren much more of a hassle on rough terrain. We got the Daytripper for town use, just because the the long wheel base of the ATP was more of a hassle in amongst racks in department stores and crowds - plus the fact that it folds up smaller is useful if you're getting a fair bit of shopping.

We took the Daytripper with us to Greece and cursed it on rough roads - so took the Mountain Buggy with us to South Africa and even though it was more bulky, really appreciated it. We did get a "stretchy" to clip around it when it was folded to stop it opening up again, and that made it much easier to handle when collapsed.

We've not hap any problems with punctures - although we've not taken it through many brambles!

Just to confuse you further jenz I have a Venturer buggy from the Adventure Buggy Company (also marketed in the UK as an Easylife Ventura buggy). I think its great - has an easily adjustable lying position (from birth), front wheel that swivels (IMO vital around town - I haven't used the "umbrella" buggy yet as DD is too small - also I wouldn't be able to get it into the tiny lift in my building if it didn't swivel out of the way), removable wheels to fit into the car and a huge zip-up non-seethrough bag underneath which I feel safe about putting my purse in. It also has an adjustable handle-bar and the latest model has a rail across the front that littlies can hold onto when they get older and are sitting up. I have not had a puncture yet but have re-inflated a little with a bike pump after about 3 months of daily use. Only feature I would have liked is the brake on the handle-bar (only has a foot brake).

Easylife have stopped distributing in the UK (although I think there are a few still on websites) but I bought mine direct from NZ - they can airfreight within a week. About 300 pounds all up including raincover and sunshade. Let me know if you need more info!

We've got a 'Nipper' 3-wheeler from Out'n'About - website for reference is Outnabout
It's very lightweight, and we've never had any punctures with it. It's also easy to fold, and the wheels have a quick-release mechanism, so it's great for getting into small car boots. With a newborn support/head-hugger - it can be used from birth. It has got a brake on the handlebar - but to be honest I don't think it's much use, as it just locks up the front wheel.
The front wheel doesn't swivel, but it's easy enough to steer. Although I must admit that I do also have a cheap umbrella folding stroller for use around town - just because its easier to get in & out of doors, lifts etc.

We've got an Alurax Saturn and haven't had any problems with it - even taking it thorugh six inches of snow on one occasion. It has quick release wheels which enables it to fold up reasonably small - although I don't usually bother releasing them as I've got an estate and it fits in fine with the wheels still on. It also came with a carry-cot for the early days, but we didn't use it for long as DS clearly prefered seeing where he was going to staring at the sky from about 6 weeks old.

Steering is easy, even off road with just one hand in most cases, once you get used to it, though it certainly wasn't intuitve for my MIL - simply push down/forward on the right hand side of the handlebar to go left and vice/versa.

We've actually also bought a lightweight stroller for about town use but the Alu-rax one does now have the option of a swivel front wheel which is interchangable with the normal one.

Ours came from http:\www.nurserygoods.com who were offerig it for quite a lot less than the list price.

Just wondered if you can attach a kiddy board to a three wheeler?

No personal experience but I have a friend who has attached a board to her Mothercare 3-wheeler (think it is an urban detour). HTH.

To LKM and anybody else who has imported a buggy from New Zealand. Do you know how much duty one has to pay here?

I, too, found Winkalotts on the Net and have been quoted NZ$550 for the MB Urban, NZ$35 for the storm cover and NZ$210 for carriage - a good saving on the UK price, unless the duty is more than 17.5%

I think the duty is 2.5% and there is VAT on top of that (charged on total plus duty plus shipping!) - having said that, there is a good chance you might not have to pay it (although I do know somebody who did) - hope a customs inspector is not reading this!!!

We got a boogie which is a lot cheaper than the falhier landrover and mountain buggy models. I think it cost about £150 but that was about 3 yrs ago and I think they are cheaper now. I saw an identical model in the tesco catalogue a while ago even cheaper so I don't know if they did a deal.

It has been really excellent, goes everywhere, you can balance a toddler on the hood part (probably not recommended as it makes it unstable but handy if you are stuck on a walk). The wheel on the back simply unscrew (as in spin round, no swrews involved) and the front wheel has a quick release mechanism. It goes in the boot of my neighbours micra but we sit it behind the drivers seat in our car (which is a daewoo matiz so really tiny). It also includes all the accessories.

Our only problem has been when one of the peices where the front wheel fastens to the frame broke. these were made from plastic which I think made them a bit weak. However we did have the toddler on top for ages and we had really hammered the poor thing. They collected it and repaired it with no fuss and we had no trouble since. I do think it would be worthwhile looking at a model with this part in metal though, just to be a bit more robust.

But as I said we've done loads with ours with very little trouble. Its very flexible and the cost doesn't hurt so much as the posher versions. Have a look at some cheaper ones as I feel they are every bit as good but without the branding.

I am looking to buy the Bebecar Raider AT.
I live in London. Does anybody have one to sell ?

Virginie1baby - try the raider out if you can before you buy, as although it is a fantastic pushchair it is v. big and v. heavy. I had a c-section so just could not cope with it untill about 6 months later! I now have a Kiwi explorer 3 wheeler and a graco city sport stroller and really regret the raider.

If it is any help the Kiwi Explorer is being discussed in detail on the double or tanden thread (as it can be converted to a double if needed)

I second what willum said. I too had a c-section and I'm sure I put myself back by having to hump it in and out of the boot so soon after having dd. The plus side is that it is very supportive to walk with, and dd finds it much comfier than the buggy now she's older.

thinking of buying a mountain buggy , are they worth the money? pros n cons pls !

just read my messages from last july (pre baby!) it seems so long ago! and im still asking about prams!(thanx for your replies} the first pram ive used has been a graco air voyager ts which i bought new for £110.its been great but its not very sturdy(it groans under a tonne of shopping!) im struggling to find a cheap or second hand mountain buggy so i guess this means they are good.

I got a new Alu-rax Nantucket half price on ebay from the manufacturers and it's fab

just seen the easywalker in reviews,these look very cool and thirteen colours too, it'll prob take me till next july to decide!!!

We're shopping for an ATP at the moment. The Mountain Buggy Urban we looked at had a metal bar running under where the toddler's knees would be - it felt like this would be really uncomfortable for them. Has anyone experienced problems with this in their Mountain Buggy, or are we worrying unnecessarily? Thx!

Can't answer your query regarding the Mountain Buggy but wanted to recommend our ATP. It's the Nipper, available from Out 'n' About for £200. We've used it since DS was 10 weeks old, now 9 months and have been very pleased. I like the depth of it (when DS is in his Maclaren Quest I feel he's really exposed) and the hood covers a lot too.

Sorry no time to sort out links but address is
www.outnabout-atp.co.uk/stockists.htm

Has anyone had any problems with their Mothercare Urban Detour double buggy? Ours was a July 2002 model, and gradually collapsed in front. Am presently in a dispute with them as by the time I noticed how bad it was I was 2 months out of warranty, but we feel it was a problem with the frame and NOT as they suggest a result of banging in to too many curbs!! We know of one other person who purchased theirs in Ireland and returned it for a full replacement as the same problem happened to them. I notice the rear wheels of the current model are smaller, which distributes weight more evenly and does not concentrate it so much on the front, but I would love to hear if anyone had the same problem.

There's been some good feedback below on the Mountain Buggy. But does anyone have any complaints with it? Can you attach a buggy board onto it for an older child?

Any other suggestions: the Land Rover, for example?

Mothercares, Maclarens & other UK brands won't for me b/c I'm loooking to buy a buggy cheaply (well, comparatively speaking) in the US, and the UK brands are really expensive there. Any additional suggestions would be much appreciated.