Maxi & Mini Scooter conundrum- please weigh in!

[ourbabygirl]

We got DD (just turned 4, but 44" tall) a Maxi Scooter for her bday. We think they're awesome and I suggested to my mom that they might be good Christmas presents for the (rest of the) grandkids.

She wants to get 3 Maxis for the older grandkids (ages 4 & 6) and 3 Minis for the younger grandkids (age 2), but now I'm having second thoughts about the Minis after reading the other scooter thread.

My DD is really tall, so the Maxi's been great for her because I think she would've grown out of the Mini too soon, but I'm not sure what would be best for the 2 year olds. They're all turning 2 now (fall bdays), and they're about average height, though I'm not sure what weight they are. My DS is only about 25 pounds; I'm assuming the other kids are in the 25-30 lb. range. My DS is the smallest of the 2 year olds, so I'm not worried he'll grow out of the Mini, but is it a waste to get a Mini for the other kids?

We're in the frigid midwest :rotflmao:, so the kids will mostly be riding them in the garage over the winter (or maybe the driveway if there's no snow yet).

Their older siblings can hand down their Maxis later, but I don't know how long kids tend to use them.

What do you think?

Thanks for your advice!

[maybeebaby08]

I went back & forth between the two and called and talked to CS, the guy recommended the Maxi, at the lowest position it's the same height as the Mini, and a higher weight limit then the Mini. I babysit an older child and was worried he would want to try it and the weight limit on Mini was too low, so I went with the Maxi, and the 9yo I babysit is constantly "borrowing" it because he likes it better then his razor. I think it may also depend on each child, DD1 had no problem at 2.5 riding the Maxi but her 4 year old friend struggles riding the Mini. I'd make the choice on each child.

[katydid1971]

I have a Maxi for DS, he got it a couple years ago and DD has a mini. The mini is slimmer and easier for DD to maneuver. I think the Mini's for the 2 yos is the way to go.

[ahisma]

Yes, they will be able to ride both the mini and the maxi, no question. We have both - my kids started on the mini at 2 and 3 yo.

The difference that you see is what they can do on them. They will have a much different experience on the mini than on the maxi. I would not buy a mini for a child under 4 yo.

To me, the whole point of the mini / maxi kick scooters is their maneuverability. They go beyond what you can do on a standard scooter. If all you want the kids to be able to do is scoot down the sidewalk it doesn't really matter, just pick one.

If you're looking for a scooter that they can do more on, I'd get the mini. My DS moved from the mini to the maxi at 5 1/2 year old. He had mastered the mini for years at that point and still had a learning curve to be able to use the skills he had honed on the mini. DS2 is a mini kick rock star and won't touch the maxi because he just doesn't have the weight to be able to throw into the bigger scooter.

[baileygirl]

We got the mini for ds1 when he was 2 and then the maxi for him when he turned 4 (he passed the mini on to his brother who was just under 2). I agree with the pp that the mini is easier for smaller kids to use. Do the 2 year-olds have younger siblings?

[ourbabygirl]

Thanks, Everyone!
I ended up ordering the Minis for the 2 year olds... the one family doesn't have anyone else to hand it down to (other than possibly a cousin that was just born on my SIL's side), but the other family does (due with a baby in the spring). I'm sure my mom doesn't care about the value-over-time thing as much as I would, and since we won't need to pass ours down to any more kids, that shouldn't matter, either. :)

[curiousgeorge]

I was just coming to ask for advice on the mini vs. maxi conundrum. DS1 will be 4 in February and is big--he's 43.5" tall and 40 lbs.

After reading everyone's comments here I'm leaning towards getting the maxi for him for Christmas. Any reason I shouldn't do that?

DS2 is two years younger so I do have someone I could hand a mini down to if that's the way to go.

Thanks for your help!

[Momit]

I was just coming to ask for advice on the mini vs. maxi conundrum. DS1 will be 4 in February and is big--he's 43.5" tall and 40 lbs.

After reading everyone's comments here I'm leaning towards getting the maxi for him for Christmas. Any reason I shouldn't do that?

DS2 is two years younger so I do have someone I could hand a mini down to if that's the way to go.

Thanks for your help!

My DS is a little older but a little smaller than yours - he recently turned 4 and is 42" and 38#. He is very comfortable on the mini and I think he will be for quite a while longer. As one or 2 PPs said, the mini is very light and maneuverable. But we have no experience with the maxi.

[curiousgeorge]

Thanks Momit. I think after reading the other feedback again and hearing that we'll go with the mini. Surely it can't be too small for him now, and hopefully he can master it and then we'll give it to his brother next year and get him a maxi!