Absolute pushchair chaos. Please help.

[squigglywig]

Please, dear MN God, there must be a solution to this...

Currently we have a Bugaboo Cameleon but DD (2.8 and around 13kg) is tall like me and her head is poking through the hood. It's also just a bit of a Big pram these days. A friend is having a baby shortly and so it is heading to a new home.

Before the summer hols we got a Maclaren Quest thinking an umbrella thingy would be the solution. But it drives me mental. Completely, cursingly, tantrummingly, mental. The damn thing falls over ALL the time, you can't get to the shopping basket when the seat is reclined, you need two hands to recline the seat in the sodding first place.

So. We need:

• something lightweight
  
• decent shopping basket
  
• easy fold
  
• sensible wheels (needs to be able to cope with some snow and cobbles)
  
• preferably can be steered with one hand
  
• does not fall over!
  

Am I deluded?

[sickoftheholidays]

bee plus..........

[weddingseason]

Micralite

[nicolamumof3]

heard micralite shopping basket no good tho? and it will tip i expect as well? am also contemplating changing my mac for a micralite but not sure.

[squigglywig]

Is bee plus going to give the same issues height wise though?

Micralite does look like it will tip. The tipping drives me crazy.

[Tweetinat]

I have Micralite and Bee Plus:

Micralite doesn't tip AS LONG as you put nothing on the handlebars. Just one bag and it will more than likely tip over. If you get an older one, then the basket is ridiculously difficult to get anything into as well - although it can take a lot of stuff. I actually resort to unclipping it from the front anchor points to get things in! The later normal fastfold and the newer superlight seem to have fixed this though by attaching the basket in a different way which gives MUCH better access.

Bee Plus basket is fabulous - more than adequate although easier to get into when they're parent facing. I've never once had it tip over on me and I have a buggy bag permanently attached to the handlebars.

Micralite is better than Bee over cobbles and grass as it has big air-filled rear wheels...

HTH, Nat

[FlyMeToDunoon]

Micralite does tip easily but surely knowing what causes the tipping...eh weight on the back, you avoid this.
You can try buggy weights on the front wheels to help although I have never seen the point of pushing more weight than I need to.
I never had a problem with maclarens tipping, unless there was a weight on the handles and DD got out of the pushchair.
How about an XT as the bigger wheels would cope better with cobbles. Try fixing the front wheels to do that bit.

[mumface]

I have recently bought a bee plus for my 14 month old and sounds like it will fulfill your criteria but can be a bit rattly over bumpy roads like most strollers without big wheels.
BLBL- My 3.5 year old has often fallen asleep in the back of my phil and teds double and he looked uncomfortable so I wished I could lie him flat. A lot of 2 and 3 year olds need a nap during the day.

[squigglywig]

When she falls asleep in the upright seat she just looks really uncomfortable? Maybe I'm being an idiot though and actually she'd be fine?

I really need to be able to hang crap from the pram - hence the tipping problem. No real way round this.

Bee plus sounds promising. Wondering about the wheels in the snow though? (Am in Stockholm. We get quite a bit.)

Thanks for all the help!

[Flighttattendant]

I would get a Mountain Buggy.

They are steerable with one finger let alone one hand. Incredibly light. Big basket and don't tip too easily with stuff on the back.
Massive wheels

Doesn't fold tiny but you can't have it all!
Will deffo cope with snow and cobbles.

Also big air tyres are FAR more effective with the older, heavier child.

I think it is the one for you. Get a second hand one from a couple of years ago as they have been takern over by some Chinese factory and quality has declined since early this year.

plenty on ebay etc.
This is my all time best buggy, though I love my Emmaljunga for tiny babies!

[Flighttattendant]

btw I can't understand why you wouldn't recline it for a sleeping nearly-3yo - or are we both being weird?!

My 7yo used it till he was about 5..on and off!

[squigglywig]

Thanks FA! Loved the Emmaljunga too, but just a bit too tank like to be lugging around these days. Could fit the kitchen sink under it.

Will look at the Mountain Buggy. May even find one over here for a semi-sensible price.

[Flighttattendant]

There must be a lot of Emmaljungas over there

I adore them but as you say FAR too heavy with anything over 9mo in it!!

I've had four and about 50 other buggies (I know, am a bit mental) so have tested a lot in comparison. I hate to say it but most buggies are indeed crap

MBs are part of the elite

[squigglywig]

Emmaljungas are basically everywhere here. It's that, or Brio, or MB, or Bugaboo. All at about 12 times the price anywhere else.

50 buggies? What in the world did you do with them?!

Just looked at second hand MB over here. Around £300. Cheaper in UK I guess? Have a friend who could bring it on flight next month so no shipping cost.

[Flighttattendant]

Yes definitely cheaper over here. Have a squiz on the UK ebay. You can get a really old one (which will still work well usually!) for under a hundred, though a post 2005 will be better. They mainly go for £150-250 at an estimate.

I didn't have 50 all at once btw

Bit of a fascination you could call it...I still have eight and only two children, I need to have some more babies I think.

[squigglywig]

Thanks FA. Will sort it out on Ebay then. Post-2005 but pre-2008? That about right?

[Flighttattendant]

I would actually say, post 2005 so you get the adjustable handle - and I think it was only this year they started making them in China, so anything up to late 2009 should be fine.
There was a break in production and tbh it's not going to be that common to find the 2010 ones on ebay yet unless still very near new price.

So you should be Ok.

[squigglywig]

Grand. Thanks!