Customer Reviews

Croozer 525 Double Child Bicycle Trailer (Red/Silver/Grey)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

After doing significant research on bike trailers for children, I opted for Croozer Designs brand because it got great reviews from a few bike enthusiasts. The 525 model has separate seats for each child, as in separate "hammocks" on each side for each seat - many other brands of double trailers have a single "hammock" with two seat harnesses, resulting in both children eventually leaning in towards the middle and each other. The 525 seats remain separate and flat and a very comfortable ride even for taller children.
Assembly of the trailer was relatively easy, although I put the front bumper on upside-down the first time - beware.
There is a lot of storage space behind the seats.
The screen and rain cover included are sturdy, fit well, and store easily.
Installation of the trailer hitch on the bicycle is very easy, although I had to insert the screw in the opposite direction (as mentioned in the instruction manual might be required) which meant a little more work.
Attaching and detaching the trailer is a piece of cake too.
The only downside is finding vendors who sell the Croozer 525, but Amazon came through and had the best price.
Overall, I have been thrilled with my purchase!

This is truly an amazing stroller/trailer.

I just got back from a trip to the store... I was pulling my daughter & purchased 40 cans of food & 20 boxes of rice/mac'ncheese etc. It ALL fit in the trunk (except my daughter! She was in the front!). I was amazed at how easily it still pulled behind the bike... and i'm 5 months pregnant! I am sooo glad we have this trailer. If anything goes drastically wrong with it, i'm buying another, it's definitely worth the price.

The things i like about it:

1. No awkward "arm" with a wheel on the front for when it is converted to a stroller.
2. HUGE "trunk"
3. Roomy enough for two + toys & blankets for a long ride
4. Easy to push
5. Turns on a dime
6. Pulls easily behind my bike
7. Easily converts from stroller to trailer & back again

NOTE: We used our stroller (as a stroller) probably 10 miles a week... in less than a year the rubber on the tires had worn through & one of the tires was flat. It was a $30 fix... bought new BMX tires (just the rubber part) & now we'll be able to go much longer i'm sure. This is my ONLY complaint.

I bought this trailer because of the glowing reviews here. I was pretty let down by the actual product. I used to bring my daughter to daycare in a Burley Solo and with the addition of a second child, we needed a larger 2 child trailer.

First the positives:
It looks great! It looks like a much more expensive trailer.

The seats are very comfy for the kids.

There is a lot of storage space in the "trunk".

It is very stable and smooth riding.

It comes with a snap in front wheel to turn it into a stroller (with most other brands, this not included and is an additional cost). Also, the design of the stroller is pretty good in that the front wheel snaps in under the front bumper instead of at the end of the hitch. This makes it a lot more maneuverable and practical as an actual dual stroller.

Next are things I don't like:
When I first opened my Croozer, it came with the wrong threaded nuts making it impossible to assemble. When I tried to thread them on, the bolt sheared off indicating very low quality steel. Amazon replaced it free of charge and the replacement had the correct nuts. Also, as has been mentioned above, the assembly instructions are pretty bad.

Speaking of steel, this trailer is VERY heavy. There bulk of the weight comes from huge steel bumpers front and rear. I am not sure why bumpers of any kind are necessary -and I don't think any other manufacturer sees the need. The bumpers are where the reflectors are mounted and the front bumper is where the stoller wheel is attached. I am tempted to remove the bumpers since they really don't do anything but add weight (unless you want to use it as a stroller), but I do ride in low light on occasion necessitating the reflectors. I am a strong rider so the weight doesn't bother *me* but I do worry about increased stopping distances, increased wear on tires, brakes etc.

The trailer is W-I-D-E. It is more than twice as wide as my Burley Solo (why can't someone make a tandem two child trailer?). This makes it a little impractical in the city. This wouldn't be an issue if it were only ever used on MUPs or country roads, but where I am, it comes down to riding on a very busy city street, or a short stretch of sidewalk. Also, thanks to the width, it does not fit through normal doorways without removing the wheels.

The seat-belt straps are very cheap quality and pretty flimsy. I am sure they are strong enough for their intended purpose and have no safety concerns here, but they don't hold their flat shape which can then dig in to the kids' shoulders, chest etc.

The way the cover fastens to close the trailer is not a good design. It uses hook-and-loop closures -which is not the problem. The problem is that there is nothing solid to push against to make sure it is firmly attached and ensure a tight fit.

I should have got another Burley or a Chariot!

We read a lot of reviews for this stroller/trailer before we purchased it. I love that it has separate seats for 2 children, so they are not leaning on eachother. Plenty of footroom and storage room. Steers easily.

The only complaints I can think of are that the assembly instructions seem to be written for a different (but similar) model, so they were confusing, and the front wheel rattles on rough road when used as a stroller.

We looked high and low for the perfect bike trailer. We planned on spending $150 originally, but couldn't find anything safe and comfortable for that price. We ended up looking at the croozer 525, schwinn joyrider, and a barely used Chariot Cougar. Well, in my opinion the croozer beats all hands down. First the joyrider seems completely unsafe withut any side or top roll bars for protection, the cougar was nice but my children found the seat uncomfortable, not enough leg room, and overall a small tight cabin. In the ended we ended up with the Croozer 525 and couldn't be happier. I am 100 pounds and find it easy to pull, the bucket style seat are great, it has lots of storage, is easy to convert to a stroller, and seems very safe. Most importantly my kids, husband, and I all love it. It is so fun and perfect. I would highly recommned to anyone. We looked 535 and if I had extra money I would have bought it because it does have slighly more head room, but we didn't need jogging wheel so couldn't justify extra price.

By the way are kids are 5, 2, and 5 months. The 5 year old is 42 inches and has about 2-3 inches of growth before hitting top. I figure she can get one more summer of use out of it. Because of bucket seats 5 month old can also ride. I just wish there were 3 seats.

I bought my Croozer used, and am the 3rd owner. It came with all the accessories: jogger wheel, swivel wheel, stroller handle, bike trailer arm, and 2 hitch attachments so you can switch between 2 bikes easily.

There is NOTHING I dont like about it. I also have a Baby Jogger Switchback and I think this stroller/trailer is better overall, because of the swivel wheel option, and the rear storage trunk (Switchback lacks both of these things). It tracks straight when jogging with the fixed wheel and is light as a feather. One finger push AND can turn with one hand (yes popping a wheely). It hauls behind the bike really nicely too, the large wheels give it a very smooth and effortless ride. Switching between all the attachments is very quick and easy.

The best thing about it tho: being on its 3rd home now, it has held up absolutely AMAZINGLY. It barely looks used. The harness straps are not padded but are in perfect shape - no fraying or breaking, the seat is comfortable and 2 separate seats so the kids dont roll into the center into each other, and the floor, while not solid like I love in my Switchback, is reinforced and plenty firm (not just flimsy material). The seats also adjust so you can make the back firmer and straighter for stroller mode or loosen the mesh part to allow space for a helmet.

These are very high quality trailer/strollers at half the price of other high end trailers (some that dont convert at all to a stroller or have the stroller conversion as an expensive extra), and while it doesnt have some of the features the Switchback has, it does have other things the Switchback doesnt and includes all the accessories. Overall if I could only have one of the two, I'd probably take the Croozer.

I am very pleased with this purchase. We did a lot of research, and this stroller seemed to give us the biggest bang for our buck. We have not been disappointed. We go on a lot of bike rides with our 4 year old and our 1 year old. Our 4 year old is starting to ride his own bike when we hit the trails. When he gets tired he hops in the trailer and we can strap his bike onto the handle of this trailer with a bungee cord. The trailer pulls smoothly and will fit both our kids, our toy-sized dog, and many bags of groceries in the back compartment as well. Sometimes we go on picnics, and we can pack our entire lunch, a diaper bag, toys for our infant to play with, a huge blanket, and still have room for more items. I cannot say enough about how impressed we were with this bike trailer.

I've had the Croozer for 2 seasons now and am very happy with it. Not much to add from the other reviewers other than to agree that it's durable, well-made, spacious, comfortable for the riders, rides smoothly and is stable, folds down to a practical size, has a huge trunk, is a great value for the money (esp with the included stroller & hitch parts). The downsides are that it is heavy and it is big - agree with reviewers that its size might not be practical for city use (I use for paved trails and in-town). The weight isn't a big deal and isn't hugely noticeable to me, even on hills (tho steep ones are tough). I'd buy it again.

The pic here on Amazon is very "pink" looking - it isn't that color. The pic on the Croozer site is much closer to the real world color.

We bought this for walking and biking. It's extremely lightweight, folds down flat, no tools needed to go from trailer to stroller, GREAT storage space, pulls like it's not there, pushes easily and I love the two bucket seats! Compared to the Schwinn Joyrider, it has a side support bars acting as a roll cage and a sturdy bumper to protect the wheels and cart. The bumper protecting the wheels from getting hooked on anything also steered me away from the Burley - not the mention the price!

Only problems:
- the handle bar is kind of difficult to get on and off
- holes in the frame didn't really line up during assembly - horrible instructions and illustrations as well
- it does not fit through even handicap entrances (Easy to take a wheel off and on to fit through, but difficult to maneuver through doorway without a wheel)
- bike tips over when children try to get in and out of the trailer (not sure it's any different with other trailers though)
- wish the cover had a zipper closure and a chest clip on the harness straps

All in all, I'm happy with my purchase and we use it daily!

pros -
very smooth ride esp. in trailer mode
seems safe for kids
separate seats for kids
storage compartment is large
5 point harness with padded shoulder straps
overall quality of product
wheels come off easily
product collapses into a surprisingly compact position given the overall size

cons -
stroller mode:
handlebar is low and not adjustable
no parent console or cup holders on handlebar
front wheel rattles because it is made of HARD PLASTIC not rubber, this was probably the kicker for us and croozer doesn't offer an alternative for those who want to use it for jogging, it makes the ride a little bit rougher when in the stroller mode and gives the feel that the trailer is 'cheap' or maybe even set up wrong, even though it looks very nice and feels like its high quality, the wheel is tiny and the swivel function is nice and smooth - I was disappointed that it also didn't lock into a fixed position, but it wasn't necessary while jogging, it seemed to stay in a straight line just fine with minimal maneuvering
seats don't recline independently

I'm not sure about the trailer mode since we didn't use it for that, but when the front wheel was picked up the the croozer tilted up the ride was extremely smooth bc the side wheels are so nice. I can just imagine how smooth the ride is when in trailer mode. However, for $350 we wanted it to be perfect for both which was mostly my fault for not thinking through the 'closed in' feeling of the trailer and that not being practical for my almost 2 year old in the future. (he loved it when we took it out but I'm sure it was bc it was a new thing.. side note our almost 2 month old traveled beside him and fit in the seat perfectly and snuggly with the kiddopotamus snuzzler, he looked very secure and comfortable and didn't bounce around at all) Ultimately we returned this croozer bc of that which is my own fault.. that's why I gave it 5 stars. I' m assuming most people wont use the stroller mode as much as the trailer mode and when they do use it they shouldn't be disappointed, the hard plastic wheel wasn't a huge deal at all especially since the ride was still smooth.