OK stroller for travel and errands
Written: Mar 29 '04
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Pros: Very lightweight; very easy to open and fold down; great car seat.
Cons: Only 2 seat positions in the stroller; basket small and difficult to access at times.
The Bottom Line: Lightweight and easy to use, very convenient for small infants and light errands/travel.
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| chrissycoole's Full Review: Graco Cirrus Lightweight 7456 Travel System Stroll... |
We got this travel system as a gift before our baby was born, and I was thrilled with it. Two things I was especially excited about were the facts that the SnugRide car seat is the highest rated infant seat on the market, and also the aluminum framed stroller was up to half as light as some comparable travel systems. So as soon as I received this, I tore into the box to assemble everything and figure out how it all worked. Assembly was quick and easy (and I was 8 months pregnant at the time), with very clear instructions.
My husband and I installed the car seat base in our car using the LATCH system. Again, installation was very quick and easy, and the seat was very secure. Once our little girl was born, we had no concerns about her safety in the seat, despite the fact that she looked so small and helpless in there when we were bringing her home from the hospital. We have used the seat both with and without the base (using LATCH at times, belts at others), and installation is always easy and the seat is always secure. This car seat has a level indicator on it as well, which ensures that the seat is installed at the correct angle (especially helpful if you are not using the base).
Our daughter loved being in the car seat, and spent a lot of time sleeping in there. It was so easy to just pop her in and out of the car as needed without having to disturb her sleep: we would just let her wake up on her own and leave her in the car seat until then. It was winter, so we also used one of those car seat sleeping/bunting bag things and in no way did it make it more difficult to use the seat or make adjustments. The 5-point harness system always kept our baby very snug and secure, and was very easy to use and adjust.
I spent a lot of time in the months before Christmas using the car seat in the stroller to shop for hours on end. If the baby was asleep, I would close the car seat and stroller covers and she was left undisturbed. The stroller sun shield also has a little window so you can look in on the baby, but using it with the car seat, you really had to stoop down and look in, and even then it was difficult to see. This visibility window really only is useful for when the baby is laying the reclined stroller. Also, while the stroller was great for cruising malls or smooth pavement, it’s really not so great in snow or other rough surfaces, such as gravel, even with the front wheels locked straight.
The stroller has a one-hand fold mechanism and opens very easily, too, which made it great for getting in and out of the car quickly when we were shopping. However, when using the stroller with the car seat, the stroller back has to be reclined, which makes it pretty difficult to access the storage basket underneath, which isn’t even all that big anyway. The stroller also has a little covered storage parent tray at the handle with a little clock, notepad and pen-holder. I like the clock, but I found the pen and notepad constantly fell off while folding/unfolding the stroller, or in transport, so don’t even have them on the stroller anymore. Also, on mine, the covered compartment can be a little tricky to open sometimes, but I guess I would rather have that then have it opening too easily and items falling out while it’s in the trunk.
Our little girl grew very quickly, and reached the height restriction (26") on the car seat by the time she was 3.5 months old, so I was pretty sad to lose the convenience of using the whole travel system. This is when I started to not like the stroller as much. My little girl couldn’t sit up on her own, yet was to long to lay in the reclined position with the boot popped up. So I wish there was a third recline position in the middle so she wouldn’t have to have been slumped over when sitting upright. Mind you, she was off the charts in terms of percentiles, so most babies won’t grow nearly as quickly and this shouldn’t be a concern for parents of most babies.
The stroller travels very well, we’ve used on 4 flights with no trouble. I have found that the brakes are wearing on mine, as some of the spindles have bent, but I think that is probably our own fault for not making sure the wheels were completely locked before travelling with it.
Overall, I do like this travel system, and it would be absolutely perfect with the two changes (bigger, easier to get at basket and third recline position). Great stroller for light errands.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): (gift)
Age Range of Child: 0 to 12 Months
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Epinions.com ID:
chrissycoole
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Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 0 members
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