Brendan Hughes

Might need one soon. Had a look at what's in the shops, the Jané seems to be the best as the Matrix clip-in car seat reclines to make it a pram - important in the first six months. I've only seen one other that does that, but the only 3-wheeler it fits into doesn't fold small enough for the back of the car.

We'd like a 3-wheeler as we're trendy and vain, erm I mean as we are in a suburban environment and will never need to take it into little shops or on the metro. We want big wheels as the pavements here are crap, they are more or less cobbled, we'll mainly use it at the same time as walking the dog, and 90% of our shopping is done in big malls.

Anyone got any comments? There was some great info in Andy Tang's thread. I looked at the well-recommended Pliko 3 but didn't like it; wheels are too small.

Thanks

imlach

Got a Jane Matrix....great on loose tracks etc. SO SO easy to push.
Would highly recommend it. Yes, got the 3 wheeler.

They're made nearer you than us, so should be lots of info there.....

PS The disc brake is TOTAL overkill, and not really necessary, but it works.
PPS At least it's not hydraulic Cable operated. So not TOO trendy....
PPPS Had about 2 punctures on it....but easy to fix. Just use my mtb puncture repair kit.

ScoobywagonGl

never heard of it but then my little boy is growing up fast
I always found the bigger the wheels the smoother the ride

imlach

Comes with both parts here, so one on right is for when baba is tiny, and one on left is for
when baba is > 6 months old until prob around 2-3 years....

Takes about 2 minutes to convert from pram to pushchair.

mart360

Be parepared to cry, literally,

the money you pay for pushchairs & buggs is obscene, and half are a waste of time,

the all in one carry system buggy pram cot car seat,

feckin useless... the carrycot/chair wont go in the car without the accessory base or foot, once sproglet is out of that, that and the car set is in the loft usless without the pushchair, which wont last until his 4th birthday,

one handed operation, yes providing you have no accessories clipped to the buggy, its not raining, and you have two free (ha) hands.

if you payed that much money for a car part, you would be taking it back under trades descriptions.

manufacturers cash in on the fact that new mums only want new stuff, and it must be the latest colour or trend.

Mart

imlach

Well, we found it worked well. Matrix system means that since car seat can turn into a cot in seconds means that can be used as a mobile cot when visiting people etc.

Matrix has no "base/foot" for the car.

Guess you've never used a Jane Matrix

Brendan Hughes

imlach, cheers, I know you're a fan

Mart, thanks. I'm well aware that after 8-9 mths the carseat/pram bit gets binned, I have to bite that bullet. But strikes me that buying separate parts is almost as expensive, and I'll pay the extra fifty quid for some convenience over that period, I'll view it as a fiver a month - and I'll assume that a proper carseat for 9mth up will be better than a carseat from 0mth up. Similarly, as long as the pushchair lasts the 4 yrs, I'll break it down annually and it's not so painful. Painful to throw out a nice piece of machinery at the end though.

Gastro

Looks very similar to the Porsche baby chair - adapted to fit into the 911
Whats it handle like....... LOL

imlach

Brendan,

The car seat/cot in the Matrix lasts from 0 months up to 14-16 months if necessary as goes up to 30lb or something.....so even though it's not useful
as a cot after 6 months, it still works as a car seat for months after...

So, at 12 months, you can get a 9 month to 4 year car seat....

imlach

It handles beautifully, although as with all 3 wheelers, have to watch for tipping......

ScoobywagonGl

30 llbs I could still put my 3 year old in that he's only 27llb


Mart not all mums want the latest colours however i do agree that i always bought new for items like cots/carseats/pushchairs etc etc purely as a safety aspect!

imlach

Looked it up - 13kg is limit for Matrix car seat.

Seems like way over spec of 1 year old's weight anyway....

GCollier

We've bought 3 buggies in total and now have the Phil and Teds e3 4-in-1 buggy and my wife - who does most of the buggy pushing - loves it. I really wish this had been available when we had our first child, as it really is a superbly designed bit of kit.

By clicking in place various modules it tansforms from a single buggy for a baby to a single buggy for a toddler, to a double bugger for baby + toddler to a double bugger for 2 toddlers. And even when in 2 toddler formation it is barely bigger than a standard single buggy. It has 3 big wheels including a turning front wheel, so it's a doddle to manoeuvre and get through shop doorways and the like.

https://secure.intellihost.co.nz/phi...etstroller.htm

Not sure how many kids you have, but if you ever plan to have more than one, I'd highly recommend this model.

Gary.

Chrisgr31

We have the Jane Pushchair and it pushes really well. The discbreak on the front is remarkably useless and difficult to adjust.

I found that unless I took the rear wheels off, and lowered the front wheel it wouldn't go in the boot of my Impreza 4 door. Even then it wasn't easy, so now replaced the Impreza with a Hyundai Santa Fe!

We had the carry cot option with the Rebel car seat, never placed the car seat on the pushchair frame but did put the carrycot on it. Fantastic system, easy to place carrycot in car etc.

Punctures had a couple, mother-in-law managed to get 5 in one tube one day, so I just replaced the tube. With the new self-adhesive patches puncture repairing is a piece of cake.

Having said that my wife says that her preference now would be the Phil & Teds E3 as it has the ability to carry 2 babys or a baby and toddler.

By the way old wives tale says thatyou shouldn't take delivery of the pram before the birth, and indeed proper baby shops will keep them until after the birth and refund the cost in the unlikely event the worst happens.

Brendan Hughes

That's not an old wives' tale, that's extremely sensible advice. And unfortunately I have close experience of why.

I ruled out the Phil and Teds, partly as I can't get it here (shipping costs on a pushchair?! compared to 20% off anything I buy in Portugal) and partly as it isn't a travel system. I do like the idea of car>pushchair>car>bed etc. Annoying, as it does seem light and compact when folded.

I measure that the Jané should be OK (just!) for my car, but of course I'll try to test it if/when the date comes.

Tipping, eh? So that explains why the four-wheelers go down to 50cm wide but the 3-wheelers stay at about 65cm.

Andy Tang

iTrader: (3)

After all the comments and suggestions, we ended up getting a Jane Carrera C as well as a Matrix.

We wanted a 4 wheeler, rather than a 'trendy' 3 wheeler which was wider, longer and doesn't fold as small as the Carrera.

The Powertrack 360 is better than the 'normal' Powertrack. Something to do with it being more nimble.

We used the Matrix, which was great as a carry cot and lie flat car seat, but I wasn't happy with it as an upright rear facing car seat, and as soon as Amelia was heavy enough we moved her to a front facing car seat.

The Carrera was expensive, but certainly cheaper than some M&P options. The wheels are big enough for us, including city use (Saturday shopping in Kingston ) as well country walks over grass and mud.

The Carrera has the advantage of removable cushions, so we had it as a bare frame when using it as just a pram with the Matrix. The cushions were back on when we were using it as a pushchair, allowing us to leave the Matrix in the car.

The pushchiar fits easily in the Forester, but we tried it in a mk4 Golf, and it looks like it was designed to fit in there.

The Carrera as a parm frame and pushchair is highly recommended.
The Matrix as a baby carrier, travel cot, lie flat car seat and as a upright seat (out of the car) highly recommended.
The Matrix as a rear facing car seat, was difficult to fix in place, sometime wobbly, the seat back felt flimsy, so at best, it "must try harder".

What we have, but in a fetching blue colour:


Hope this helps
Andy

Trout

iTrader: (1)

We have a M&Ps travel system based on the MPX chassis. The Moses basket works great as a cot for the ickle baby and the car seat works well in the back of the Scoob.

The chassis folds up and fits easily in the boot of the Scoob without having to dismantle bits. Have not used the pram seat much yet - we will when he is bigger and not so easy to carry in the baby rucksack.

Rannoch

Dark

iTrader: (1)

Have used the Jane Matrix car seat & 3 wheel pram for both our children.

The pram fits in the boot of a MY02 WRX STI without removing any bits but doesn't leave much space for anything else.

The Matrix car seat is great as a carry cot, both in the car for long journeys and for use as a temporary bed when out visiting, etc.

Only drawback is the weight of the Matrix car seat, it's very heavy compared to others on the market. Add the weight of the seat to the weight of a 6-9mth old and it's very heavy and difficult to lug around.

Cheers, Mark

mattstant

Jane convert here to.
We were looking for months for a two seater that you could actually use without an HGV licence some of them are wider than a hummer and there is no way you could walk into a shop with one.
we have two kids with only 18 months between them in age so it had to be flexible ie as toddler and baby transport.
we were in spain at a big supermarket in marbella and thought why not have a quick butchers at whats available and came across a three wheeler two in line buggy by Jane http://www.groovystyle.co.uk/product...n-pictures.htm and athough it set us back nearly 300 it is perfect and would be ideal for twins as it will take two carry cots.
the single wheel up front does make it unstable when bumping up kerbs but that is the only criticism i can make.
With the wheels off in my wagon boot it takes up less space then the pathetic mother care travel system we fell for first time round.

yes the disc?? brake on the front is flimsy and can vibrate and squeal like a bastid but if you set it up carefully it works very well and with two up plus prarphenalia the weight can be hard to control on a steep slope.

By the way b.ugger trendy and vain that fact it looks good was totally irrelevant to us it just did everything we wanted and just try wheeling a traditional crappy small wheeled pram on to a beach and see how far you get

Andy Tang

iTrader: (3)

My comment was not to rule out completely the Carrera, as the wheels aren't that small. They are certainly much bigger most pushchairs and strollers. You also have the advantage that you won't get puntures.

If you use a beach everyday, then you have a fair comment.

We live in a big town, so it was more important that we have something small and nimble, especially as there is a lot of bumping up and down kerbs.

As I say, it's also good for the country walks, especially if you lock the front wheels and adjust the suspension to soft!

BTW, yes it's crap on the beach as we found out in Brighton. I just find it strange that a mother would give herself all the extra grief of a large 3 wheeler around town, for the sake of fashion. Each to their own!

imlach

Oh, and for those wanting a 3-wheeler, make sure the front wheel turns!! The Jane can either turn or be locked in the straight ahead position....

Some don't turn, which must make manouvering that much more difficult.

Andy Tang

iTrader: (3)

The Powertrack 360 is the one with the pivoting front wheel.

The Powertrack has a fixed front wheel, which means tipping all the weight to the back wheels to make a turn. Sounds easy until you have to take it around town.

Although looking on the http://www.jane.es website, it seems that the Powertrack with the fixed wheel is no longer available.

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

Brendan
YHPM

imlach

I must have the Powertrack 360 then....never appreciated there was one with a fixed wheel.

Deffo recommend the non-fixed wheel anyway....


PS The one in the picture above has plastic 'spokes' on the wheels, whereas mine has traditional metal spokes.
Whoever thought a pram could be so complicated

Brendan Hughes

BD, thanks. As said I get some discount from new, and I'm a bit wary for obvious reasons - plus, being outside the UK, I'd have to add considerable postage costs too! I did see one advertised here, but didn't enquire yet.

Repeated thanks, some interesting points above (tips going up kerbs, weight of carseat I also noted was v heavy, beach, erm, not sure...)