Infant Car Seats - Peg, Graco, Travel Systems - HELP

[berob]

I'm an expectant father and I'm confused about the whole infant car seat thing. The Baby Bargains book seems to shy away from recommending travel systems. My question is if you choose an infant carrier first but don't get a travel system, does that mean that the infant carrier will not mate with a stroller? I thought thats what a travel system is - an infant carrier that mates with a stroller. It seems terribly inefficient to have an infant carrier that you can't lock into a stroller. Please clarify. Thank you.

[millerpjm]

Some strollers will take an infant seat even if you have not bought the whole package. There's a good thread going on on the stroller forum about the compatibility of different strollers with different car seats. But, in my case, we did not think we wanted a travel system. We had a stroller that a friend gave us that we started using, but ended up leaving it at the sitter's all the time and decided to buy another stroller. When we were looking at strollers, we just happened to find one that fit our carseat. We love it - we wish we had gotten the stroller sooner, but we also think the stroller we bought is nicer than the strollers that come with the travel system. So, I would look at travel systems, but also look at just the strollers themselves. You might find a better stroller than what comes with a travel system. Also check out the stroller forum - there are some other discussions going on right now about carseats fitting into different brands of strollers.

Hope this helps!

Jen

Proud mama to Thomas (5 months old)

[Marisa6826]

You can use a Snap n'Go stroller frame for your carseat. All the SnG really is, is an aluminum frame on wheels. They are quite popular and around $50-60, although you can usually find them on sale for around $40.


Here's a link so you can see what I'm talking about:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00007M4JT/qid%3D1057238495/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/002-8745434-4184000


Another similar one is made by Kolcraft.

Really, the two "Gold Standards" of infant carriers are the Graco Snugride and the Peg Perego Primo Viaggio. It depends on how much you want to spend and how badly you want your infant carrier to "match" your stroller.

As far as whether the Baby Bargains book recommends it, the choice is still yours. I have the PP infant seat and the PP Venezia stroller. Technically it's a travel system. I am VERY happy with both items. I think the bottom line is that you need to choose a stroller appropriate for your family's needs. If you are going with a PP stroller, then you will likely find a coordinating PP carseat. Graco strollers are usually not very good quality, unlike their infant seat. Get the idea? :)

Best of luck and congrats on the upcoming arrival of your little one!

-m

[berob]

I kind of get the idea but I'm still confused. For example, if I elected to buy a Graco Snugride but didn't want one of their strollers, what stroller can I use the Graco infant carrier with? I guess this is the crux of my confusion. Thanks again.

[Rachels]

Let me see if I can help. Generally, the term "travel system" applies to carseats and strollers that were specifically designed to go together-- Graco carseats with Graco strollers, Evenflo carseats with Evenflo strollers, etc. The problem with this is that manufacturers tend to make really good carseats OR really good strollers, but not both. The Graco and Evenflo seats are terrific, but the strollers are heavy and tend to break. The Peg Perego strollers are great, but the carseat weighs a ton and is the only one that can't be used with a base. So generally, steering clear of travel systems is your best bet.

As someone else said, one good option is to get a Graco Snugride and then either a Snap 'n Go or Kolcraft Universal Carseat Carrier. The SNG and the Kolcraft are both stroller frames, just frames with baskets that the carseat snaps into. They cost between $35 and $50 depending on where you get them. I had the Kolcraft and LOVED it.

The disadvantage to this is that you then need a regular stroller for after your baby outgrows the infant seat, or for the times when you want to take a walk without the carseat along. Truthfully, though, very few people wind up with only one stroller, and the stroller frame idea was SO useful that it was well worth the money. The other advantage is that it gives you time to see how you really use a stroller and what features matter most to you, which can be different from what you anticipate. That way when you do buy your regular stroller, you have a better chance of picking out one that you'll actually like and use.

There are also several regular strollers that take carseats, too. These are not travel systems, because the manufacturers of the stroller and carseat are two different companies. Some of the older Peg Peregos will take carseats. I think that Zoopers will too, and so will the Mountain Buggy. I'm out of the loop, though. You should double check this on the stroller board. There's a thread there already, or you can just post what kind of carseat you want and people will tell you what strollers work with it.

Does that help?

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02

[millerpjm]

I disagree about the quality of Graco strollers... I have a Graco stroller that I am very happy with - it's the Quattro Tour. It can be used with the Snugride, but it's also a very good stroller on its own.

Jen

Proud mama to Thomas (5 months old)

[Tondi G]

I would say if you are going to get a Graco Stroller go for the graco Metrolite or the Graco Quattro Tour (I think it's called, people seem to be pretty happy with this one so far).... OR go for a stroller that is infant seat compatible with most brands of infant seats!

Peg Perego P3 Pliko or older model Plikomatic
Inglesina Zippy
Zooper Z-street or Sport or Buddy
Maclaren Global
Combi Ultra Savvy (if you are tall you will want to try this one out first) or a Combi Convenience stroller with the perfect match system

OR
Go for a stroller frame that is used only to carry an infant seat either the Kolcraft Universal Car seat Carrier or the Baby Trend Snap and Go... then get the stroller of your choice that accomodates you and baby best when baby outgrows the infant seat.... you will be stuck with the stroller a lot longer than you will use the infant car seat..... best to buy something you like for the long haul.. rather than get a stroller in a travel system that works greta with the infant seta and then you don't really love the stroller part of it when the car seat is done with!

Hope this helps explain a little further and good luck! We have a 2001 model of teh Pliko and our son is about to be 2 years old next week.... it was great for him as a baby and still working wonderfully at a toddler.... we'll probably use it still when we have #2!!!!

~Tondi and Mason 7/8/01! Pliko Lovers

[Torey]

We bought the Graco SnugRide and the Combi Ultra to go with it. It comes with an attachment bar so you can hook your Graco or Evenflo carseat to it. The stroller is great and only weighs 11.5 lbs, which is a plus since I am a petite woman and couldn't imgaine carrying the Graco strollers that came with the travel systems (which can weigh more than 20 lbs.). The Combi Ultra was a little more expensive, but they also have another stroller that can be used with infant carseats that costs less (and just weighs a few pounds more). I think Strollers4less.com sells Combi strollers, or you can run a search to find the Combi site and buy directly from the company. Anyway, just look for a Combi stroller that has "Perfect Match"- this means you can put a carseat into it. And once your child has outgrown the carseat you still have a wonderful, light, comfortable stroller that you can use everyday.