Customer Reviews

Peg-Perego 2011 Primo Viaggio Infant Car Seat, Paloma

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

It's fascinating to read how opinions on the Primo Viaggio vary in these reviews. In fact, it took the review about the expletives flying to remind me that the first few times we used it I also felt a lot less positive about the car seat than I do now (9 months worth of frequent use). The way I see it:

* It is fairly heavy, but then that also contributes to it feeling sturdy.
* It fits perfectly in all the cars we have tried it in.
* Our daughter loves it (she is a pleasure to transport in this, whereas the two other seats we have tried she has cried almost constantly)
* I do remember battling with clipping the belt around the back of the seat (when rear facing)... now it seems to just happen automatically and the expletives are a distant memory!
* The build quality is solid. We have not encountered any problems with the clips or anything else.
* The other two seats that we have tried (in rentals) have been uncomfortable and, to me anyway, felt anything but safe and secure. In the one case I actually asked to see the installation instructions because I was convinced the rental agency had it installed wrong ... they did not (all future travel will be made with our Primo Viaggio).

We are happy with the Primo Viaggio and would definitely recommend it. I think the diverse views expressed here show the value in going and trying out as many car seats for yourself as you can before you buy. If you do that this one would certainly be on my "try it" list.

My son loves his car seat and so do I. Yes, it is a little bit heavier than the Graco I had with my daughter (now 6) but this seat is so much safer. My son does not have any trouble sitting in the seat, is not uncomfortable in it, and if the seat is installed properly there should not be a problem with tipping forward. It is easy to get in and out of the car and on and off the base. We have a base in each car and that makes everything easier. I also have the Aria stroller (both in the green bubbles) and I get tons of compliments. It can be tricky getting the car seat to click on the stroller but we're getting used to it. The "horse blinders" do not bother my son who is now 3 months old and I can see how they would keep his head safer in an accident. I am glad the seat goes up to 30 pounds as it should last us the year. I was nervous getting the car seat after reading all of the negative reviews on here but I have been very happy with it.

We bought this seat for our first child in 2008 because of the side-impact protection. The seat is great! It is sturdy, easy to install in the car, easy to put on and remove from the base and I am confident my son is safe in it. We have had no problems with it.

There are a few cons, though:
1) It is really, really heavy. We stopped taking it out of the car regularly last month because it is so heavy with the baby in it. Even with a 6lb newborn I found the seat heavy for me to carry when the baby was in it and I jostled it a lot heaving it to and from the car.

2) If you have the Peg stroller, it takes a bit to get used to clicking it properly onto the stroller.
Unlike an earlier reviewer, we have not had any problems with it falling off the stroller. However, we always give it a tug after hearing the "click" to make sure it is properly attached as it is possible to only attach one "latch" to the stroller and not have the other hooked which makes listening for the "click" as proof it is properly attached deceptive.

3) It seems to be uncomfortable for wider babies. My son is 6 months old and only 17 1/2 lbs but he is wide. He loved this seat when he was younger, but the sides seem to be getting tight on him now and he fusses when we put him in it. We are already searching for a convertible seat that might be more comfortable for him. I don't know if I can blame the seat for this, though. I think we would have this same problem with any other infant seat.

4) The seat is hot. It wasn't a problem during the winter months, but now that summer is here my son is sweaty every time I take him out of the seat. The seat needs some kind of ventilation.

We did not experience any problems with the seat cutting our son's legs, however, we received the replacement piece about a week after our baby was born.

My son is now 6 months old and I have just purchased a new convertible carseat to replace this one. There are a few things wrong with this car seat:
-> while very safe, it is not high on the comfort level. When I look at other car seats they look as if they considered comfort. Not here. My DS hates getting into this seat.
-> The color of the side impact - very dark and very hot in the summer months

While I love the stroller that i Purchased (Aria) since it is so light - this seat is so heavy that I never carry it out of the car anymore. This is my first baby - I am not certain that I will use this car seat for a second one. I would suggest not to buy this sight unseen and without really shopping. We bought it because Peg Perego "travel system" only works with their car seats.

So far we love the seat. I'll do a list of pros and cons.

Pro:
Love the very high quality fabrics and materials on the car seat.
Love the consumer reports high crash test rating. The side impact pads are a big bonus.
The car seat base attaches quickly and easily to the car using the latch system.
The seat straps are very quickly and easily adjustable.

Con:
It's heavy, but I suppose a 30lb car seat will be heavier.
The baby shade awning lines up directly with the carry handle. It makes it tough get your hand under it to pick it up.

I decided on this car seat based on my own research and the input of another parent who uses it and likes it. We do too! While it is heavy, it is very safe. Although it is bulky, it is very user friendly. The latch for the base and the SIP adjustment lever are very easy to use. The adjustable strap in front of the seat allows you to make certain that the child is very snug and safe. One note though, when we took this to the hospital to be tested with our child, the nurses did not know how to operate it and told us we had to buy a new one. After showing them how to operate it they said it was cool and the doctor seat it was a great seat. Therefore, don't expect this seat to be as simple as cheaper ones but it won't require a degree in rocket science. Just read the directions. The SIP cannot be removed from the seat. Moreover, the fact that this fits with ANY of the Peg Perego strollers sealed the deal for us. Moreover, our child was born premature and under five pounds and, with the insert provided by the hospital, she fits in it with no problem. When our daughter was released from the hospital her doctor and nurse said that they wish more parents would have this brand and model of seat upon discharge. Also, the nurse stated that the base appears to fit tighter than any other car seat base she has seen in her many years at the hospital. Setting the seat up is very easy and the base stays tight and snug with many removals of the seat. The tightness of the base is achieved by using the Latch system and the seat belt with the seat belt clamp. The latches for the system are more than just mere clamps found on cheaper seats. The latch system clamps on this model are similar to seat belt latches allowing for very easy installation and removal of the base. Our baby rests comfortably and safely in this seat and I am pleased with the purchase. I gives this seat my highest and strongest recommendation.

I do not recommend purchasing this car seat. I purchased it to snap into my Peg Perego pliko (which I love) but all it has caused me is daily frustration. It is so heavy, I cannot use it as a travel system. The seat belt is difficult to maneuver and adjust. Save your money and purchase a car seat that is easier to use. I've had enough and am switching over to a convertible carseat (Britax) before baby even turns one.

Cons:
* Straps constantly get twisted and are difficult to fix
* Straps get stuck and cannot make tighter with adjustment
* Seatbelt is a 3-piece puzzle!!, which is difficult to put together (cloth piece often gets in the way of closing seat belt)
* Cannot get rid of oversized cloth piece to make seatbelt easier to snap in, or baby may get skin pinched.
* It is very heavy!

Pros:
* Snaps into peg perego stroller.
* Nice looking

First, I love a lot about this seat. It is made of wonderful material that is breathable and every single piece of it comes apart so that you can wash it, which is a huge plus when you have a little one with reflux. However, overall the seat is only okay and possibly dangerous.

The latch that secures the shoulder strap in front of the child's chest is flimsy. It is a regular latch like you might find on a dog collar or closing a backpack, which would be fine if it was made of really hard plastic and gave a nice, loud "click" when it was properly engaged, but it isn't and it doesn't. It latches together with only a faint "click" sound and after months of use that sound went away. I took it off to clean it thinking it must be clogged with milk and when I was holding it in my hands I realized that if I pulled really hard the latch came undone! I called Peg Perego to get a new one and that one did the same thing so I have stopped using the seat. I am not a super strong woman, and I would think that me pulling in either direction on the latch should not be enough force to separate it. If it can be that easily separated by hand, how would it perform in an accident?

I went on reviews when purchasing this as we have no local stores that sell Peg products. After i received it, I returned it a day later. I have a couple peg strollers that I am pretty happy with so I thought I'd get the car seat for compatibility. As far as pros go, the fabric on this is gorgeous and the overall appearance is very contemporary. The strap height is very easy to adjust and the strap length appears to have plenty of room for growth. It is a bit heavy but that is to be expected for a seat with the 30 lb weight limit. As for the cons, it's supposedly highly rated for safety due to the extended side protectors around the head. These side impact protectors, that have a long flap that extends all the way down the back of the seat is not removable so my 3 month old son, who is in the 90th percentile for wt/ht, looked bunched up and uncomfortable. They would be great for when he is very young, but when he gets bigger and older, I don't see him tolerating these big "wings" on either side of his head that look like horse blinders. Also, I can just see how hot and stuffy they would become this summer. They seem to take up so much room in the seat and would probably make things a bit cramped as he grew. The pictures of this seat make it appear there is a lot of room in between those "wings" but when I put my son it the seat, the sides of his head nearly touched them both. The back of the seat didn't have much padding as it was only covered by that black flap (refer to the picture of this seat above) which isn't that thick. I lifted it up to see if it was removable and realized that it was all there was between hard plastic and my son's back. The buckle was a bit tricky to do but I think with practice, it would be manageable (as with our britax roundabout buckle). And these car seats do not even come with the winter boots anymore. I really wanted to like this car seat but couldn't find anything about this seat that makes it at least $100 more than other car seats rated to 30 lbs. There are other safe car seats on the market that are much less expensive. I think after seeing this in person, I feel it's just overpriced for what it offers and you may just be paying for the Peg name.

First of all, I am definitely not a carseat rookie! (This is my 9th, heavily researched, successful carseat purchase.) My two kids (3 and 5) have had the nicest, safest carseats money can buy, from Britax to the amazing Safeguards (no longer available to my knowledge.) This isn't meant to say that the most expensive is necessarily the safest. We also have the hybrid "GO" for traveling overseas. I will wait as long as possible to let my 5 year old out of a five-point harness, (especially after watching booster vs. 5 point crash tests on Youtube!) so my newborn is in for even more stringent standards since my knowledge has grown with the first two. That said, I have also watched the rear-facing vs. forward-facing crash tests and will be leaving this baby rear facing AS LONG AS POSSIBLE, which should be a little easier with siblings to look at! I turned my first child forward right at one year because I didn't know better! His Britax could have stayed rear facing if I had know the safety differences! So here we are about to have our third and I now insist on good side impact protection (statistically based) along with the option to face rear at a higher weight, even though we may well have her in a convertible carseat by then. After much research, this is the one I chose, based on those factors, as well as the fact that it attaches to the Bugaboo stroller I have had since my first child and will not be replacing! The great, leather look of this seat also helped make the decision easy! (Paloma) I can't speak from using it yet, but after getting it and looking it over, I am very pleased! It is really a nice looking seat, and it seems to function well. The release latch (from the base) isn't difficult, buckle is as expected, and the strap/belly padding is generous! The strap pads are even held up at the shoulder level with some elastic cording at the top! The inner portion seems quite comfortable/breathable enough and the leatherette should be easy to wipe off if need be, as well as looking beautiful! At first I was really disappointed with the function of the hood, as it didn't seem to stay up, but then I pulled with a little more force and it clicks to a tight finish at the top, so no worries! Also, the handle can be put in multiple positions from the front to the back. (Nice for stopping it from rocking, or for holding a blanket up over the front.) The base of the seat has great storage for the Latch connectors and the instruction book! My only, very small complaint, is that it doesn't look like the shoulder pads are removable for washing. Not that big a deal, as they could be spot cleaned and if one wanted, could be removed and replaced with different pads. If you are looking for the lightest weight seat, or know you will be putting your child into a convertible before the weight limit matters, then this might not be the seat for you. For us, the weight doesn't seem bad, for as long as we will be getting it out to clip on to the Bugaboo or a shopping cart, and we would rather the higher weight limit for traveling through airports if need be. (For travel, a Britax is horribly cumbersome, and a "Go Hybrid" isn't rear-facing!) Lastly, I have to say this is a GREAT price on Amazon! I don't know why it was about $50 cheaper here and with free shipping! I have never bought my carseats on Amazon, and usually go to my trusted site that has free return shipping and great guarantees, but they couldn't beat this price! I even called Peg Perego to check model #'s, assuming this was an earlier model or something. (The one I received is a 2010 and that was what the model # on Amazon indicated, not that it matters.) Hope all this helps! Deciding on a carseat can be frustrating!