Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Compact Double, July 2, 2008
I have been using this stroller daily for about a month and for the most part really like it. Since it is difficult to find info on this stroller, here are some details:
SIZE: I use this stroller for a tall 18-month-old (about 34 inches) and a newborn. My older daughter is very comfortable in the stroller right now, but I'm hoping she doesn't have any growth spurts for a few months - her feet already rest on the foot rest with her knees slightly bent and she has little room as far as width in the seat. Her head is maybe 3 inches from the top of the sun canopy. All this is pretty reasonable given the size of the stroller (less than 29" wide - it fits through my front door with ease, and very compact front-to-back). The telescoping handle is good - I am 5'9" and I use it on the highest setting and it is comfortable. If I am walking very quickly or taking a long stride, I occasionally hit the parking brake (the foot step to engage it is right in the middle) with my toes, but never hard enough to actually put the brake on.
FOLD: This stroller does fold very compactly, IF you bend down and rotate the front wheels sideways after it is halfway folded (you can't align the wheels sideways before folding because they roll to forward facing as the stroller folds). It fits easily into the trunk of my Toyota Camry. The straps that lock the stroller closed are a decent idea - a short strap on either side with a plastic clip that slips over a rivet on the frame. Obviously an automatic lock would be better, but this is pretty quick and does the trick. Initially, the sun canopies popped off every time I folded the stroller. After some discussion with the retailer and Valco, Valco told me to recline the seats slightly before folding to avoid this problem. It sounds odd, but does indeed work; it's a little annoying to have to recline both seats before folding, but it's better than having the sun shades pop off.
SUN CANOPIES: The canopies are pretty generous for the size stroller, although if attached properly they do not rotate forward for when the sun is very low. I choose not to secure them to the frame with the velcro when the stroller is open, and this allows the shade to rotate pretty far forward depending on how far the seats are reclined. They do have a pretty high curve to them making for a little more head room.
PUSH: When I first got this stroller I put my 18-month-old in it by herself just to test it out, and it pushed fine even with the weight all on one side (and she's 27 pounds). I use it mostly outdoors on paved surfaces, and it is very easy to maneuver and handles the road/sidewalk bumps pretty well, especially considering it does not have air tires or suspension.
RECLINE: The one-hand recline by straps works smoothly and the seats lie pretty much all the way flat - simple to use if my toddler falls asleep sitting up.
STORAGE: There is no parent tray/storage or option for a child tray. I purchased a generic drink/cell phone/etc holder for myself but haven't received it yet. The under storage basket is very large (basically the whole width of the stroller), but the main support bar for the stroller runs down the middle of it so you can't fit anything huge in it. As with almost all strollers, the basket is difficult to access with the seats fully reclined.
ACCESSORIES: I haven't used the winter boot yet, but it is large and snaps on easily with two snaps. The rain shield fits well and covers well. I did not order the car seat adapter so I don't know how that works.
LITTLE EXTRA NOTES: I read on some web sites that the front bumper bar is adjustable, but it is not (I checked with Valco - it's not just mine). Also the "adjustable" foot rest has two positions: down or up (up being flat for younger babies) - they do not adjust in length for older toddlers with longer legs.
THE BOTTOM LINE: This is a compact double that makes the most of the space it takes up. However if you have older/larger toddlers, they may not be comfortable in this stroller for very long. Also if you're looking for something for daily long walks/rides or to use on anything other than paved surfaces, you probably need something more in the line of an "all-terrain" stroller. I give it four stars instead of five because it is still a bit heavy for a "lightweight" stroller, and the price is rather significant for a non-jogger, non-all-terrain double with few extras or outstanding features.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Nice stroller for under 2 years old of average size, August 7, 2008
This stroller WOULD have been perfect had it not been for the short seat backs and short height of the canopy. (one star deducted for each) My son who is 27 months old and in the 50th percentile for height had NO room to grow - his head was 1/2 an inch from the canopy. You might notice that this stroller has one of the shortest seat back heights around (17.5 inches). It never occurred to me to consider this since we've tried SO many strollers and never even come close to the canopy. My son's elbows were also basically pinned to his sides with NO room to move (10.5 inch wide seats). This stroller is light (not the lightest, but defeinetely do-able), easy to fold, fantastic quality (Valco is known for ), looks great, nice and narrow, short from front to back, great stride length from what I could tell in the short time I had it, great storage, great canopies just like the twin tri mode, nice smooth ride on the wheels. So many nice things about the stroller. It was obvious the second I put my son in it though that there's no way I could keep it. This might work for newborn twins, but even then the life of this stroller will be shortened by the seat/canopy height. From what I've seen kids use strollers until they're 3 or 4 even sometimes. I would seriously consider other strollers before this one. You might end up outgrowing it alot sooner than expected, which means having to buy another double stroller later. Good luck!
A mom who's tried ALOT of strollers!
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