Duo Stroller Brand

Posted on Thursday, January 13th, 2011 at 4:37 am

What name brand is the best for baby car seats/strollers?

i would like to know what you think is the best name brand car seat/stroller, list a few from best to cheap. where does Graco and Safety1st fit into this category (i live in Canada if that makes a difference) im 30 weeks pregnant and im goin to buy a duo stroller and i want to know what a good name brand is. Thanks for the help

Safety wise, Chicco is the best in infant car seats, it's constantly tested higher than any other brand. Britax for convertible-booster car seats.

But the problem with pointing out name brands is that they are constantly in competition with one another. For instance, the Graco-65 is rear-facing for 40lbs, then forward facing for 65lbs in an H harness with EPS foam and side-impact safety. The Safety First brand has released one with head-airbags for side impacts. Britax recently released airbags on the outside of the car seat, so that passengers next to the car seat are less likely to hit their head on the seat as well as it helps stop some side-impact forces so that the seat is safer. I mean, these things are constantly being developed and it's no one name brand that does the best job overall (though Britax and Chicco consistently test highest in safety.)

For the most part, the rule of thumb with car seats is to look for trends. Infant carrier handles have had so many recalls that even if the car seat you get doesn't have a recall you need to strap the baby in 'just in case'. Infant bases have failed in side-impact, and while that may be fixed now, it's something to keep in mind in use. There's also issues in leaving a baby in a car seat anyway to sleep, so putting the baby in a sling seems safer than ever leaving a baby to sleep in the car seat. Once above a certain age/weight, the longer they can face backwards the better, so the Graco-65 with the back facing to 40lbs is safer than a Britax with a back facing to 35 in that aspect (I expect Britax to increase their rear-facing weight soon though.) EPS is almost a must-have these days in a good car seat, but some have more than others and the only way you can find out which ones have the best is to do research on it.

As for strollers... I tried the Graco combination with daughter and honestly... the stroller stinks for the area I live in. We live in a very mountainy area, and going to a park requires going up and down hills as well as crossing areas with no side-walks, so we're talking off-road and the Graco was a big fail, especially once she was out of the car seat and in the normal lap-belt. In a store, the stroller also was a pain in the neck to turn and maneuver. My doctor actually said she got a good off-road jogging stroller and never looked back. I took her advice and tried one out and it worked so much better. I love the H harness on it, we've never had any of the scary incidents like we did with the Graco, and it does work for newborns (it says so on there) but I plan on using a carrier most of the time with the newborn. So again, it depends on where you live and your needs. Where I live, the large wheels (bicycle wheels on mine so that they're replaceable and fixable) work so much better, and I'd look for a combo that has that rather than ever try the small wheels again. However, I have friends in bigger cities who prefer the smaller wheels.

Add: Not entirely. Some of the Britax only go to 32lbs. In America where so far there isn't a weight limit mandated by the government like in Canada, you can keep your child facing backwards to 40lbs (and yes... there are plenty of children who fit the car seats until 40lbs and don't outgrow them height wise. I'll include a video.) But since the poster is in Canada, I suppose it doesn't matter as much except when it comes to the H harness in the forward position. Chicco still tests higher when it comes to infant car seats than Britax, though Britax has an actual crash bar which is interesting. And infant car seats are safer until at least 6 months I'm finding. Once they are about toddler age and facing forward, I like Britax when you have the money for it.

Now... personally since money is a consideration and we're having another one ourselves, we've decided to go with the Baby Trend Rigid lock. They've recently had a recall having to do with the bases and side-impact, but otherwise they've always tested high in safety ratings, and are quite low on cost. They ARE heavy though, but since we don't plan on taking it in and out of the car (safety issues with leaving an infant in a car seat for long and we don't plan on using the base) it's not much of an issue. If it IS, we have a great jogger stroller from them that it will fit on (and unlike the Gracco stroller, this one fits in my trunk, is lightweight, and a DREAM to push. I also like that if you close the car seat's hood and the stroller's hood it completely covers the baby, protecting from rain, snow, sun, wind and dust storms which do happen where I live. I can see using that at the zoo, but most of the time baby will be in an Ergo-baby-carrier. I'll include a link to what I'm talking about as far as the travel system. I like the bigger wheels, we live in a mountainy area and going to a park requires going off road so having them be bike wheels (instead of plastic) has made it so much easier. I'll never go back to a 'normal' stroller again.