The right pram - buying advice and tips ›

If you want to use a stroller longer, you usually choose a combination stroller. Nowadays you can hardly find any models that cannot be converted into a buggy. In our pram guide you will get good tips on what to consider when buying a pram and how to find the right pram for yourself and your baby. (Update: Stiftung Warentest has tested 12 strollers. The results and test winner in the current Stroller test 2017 you can read here.)

Nowadays, many parents choose a combination stroller © thinkstock

What is a combination stroller

Combination strollers can be flexibly converted and grow with the child. There are models that include additional adapters for the baby seat, often the cars already have an additional sports car attachment for later when the car is to be used as a buggy. Others have integrated the sports attachment. With them, the baby carrycot is not snapped into place, but placed on the buggy attachment.

Combined strollers can be used well beyond infancy and can sometimes e.g. can also be converted into sibling carriages. Combi prams are often available in sets. That is, you gets a diaper bag, an umbrella and / or a rain cover.

Big and heavy or small and light

As a rule, combi pushchairs are larger and heavier due to their divisible attachments (carrycot / buggy). This applies especially to the strollers converted into buggies. One-piece buggies, which can also be stowed behind the driver’s seat, save space and weight. With combi prams you can make sure that the wheels are as small as possible and that the frame is as narrow as possible.

Anyone who travels a lot in a small car will soon get annoyed when they have large air wheels on the car. Removing and removing them again and again can be annoying and lead to wear on the wheels. However, a narrow frame also means: less space for the child. The carrycot could be too short or the seat of the sports cart is too narrow. Alternatively, you can also opt for a spacious stroller without a combination option and later buy a good buggy as an addition.

The combi stroller – advantages and disadvantages

Once bought, you no longer have to worry about buying a buggy. And to be honest: the range is so large, new innovations are presented every year. You are really happy when you have a thorough look at the topic and then have peace of mind. But the needs of the child and the parents are changing.

If you have a heavier model, but the child only has to sit in the stroller when needed, the stroller converted into a sports cart may be too bulky. Buying a buggy may make sense, as these are usually lighter, fold up quickly and easily, and some can even be stowed in a bag.

Buggies are usually not as well sprung as the converted strollers. Your seat can quickly become too narrow for older children (3+). In addition: a combination stroller costs about the same as a stroller without combination options. You should first think about what you want to do with your car, where you want to go with it and on which surface you drive a lot.

For parents who are often on narrow sidewalks and in shops or who drive a lot of elevators with their strollers, a combination stroller with freely movable front wheels and a narrower frame is ideal. Should the car be taken on the plane later in hand luggage? Then an additional buggy must be purchased. A forest and meadow pram that is later to roll as a sports cart over hill and dale: the combi stroller is an ideal purchase. With a less sprung buggy you only get annoyed and the child. If the front wheels are still free to move, you will no longer have fun off-road. With freely moving plastic or rubber wheels, sticks and mud can get caught quickly, which leads to a blockage of the wheels. It is optimal if you prefer pneumatic tires when off-road.

tip For everyone who does not want to buy a pram, their child if they can sit but do not want to be moved to a buggy right away: There is a kind of "harness" with which you can strap your child in a classic stroller.

Big and small people

An important decision when buying a stroller is the selection of the slide. There are sliders that can be bent. The height of the so-called kink slide is varied by adjusting the angle.

Classic combi stroller with articulated slide and removable carrycot © Thinkstock

Then there is the telescopic slide. Here the slide is pushed into the frame or pulled out. Telescopic slides can often be moved with just one hand. This can be practical, e.g. when you carry your baby in your arms. Such situations have occurred to me countless times and I was always happy to have a telescopic slider (especially because we had a stiff articulated slider before).

The slider must be sufficiently adjustable depending on the size of the person. Too short a slide means numb arms, muscle pain and back tension. Choosing the right slide is not to be sneezed at for driving pleasure. As a rule of thumb, you can remember that your arms should be slightly bent at the level of your hips. When trying it out, you quickly notice which slide fits you and which one is too small.

Change of viewing direction possible?

When buying a stroller, it is important to see whether the carrycot or buggy attachment can be changed in the direction of travel. If this is the case, you save yourself a lot of effort because you simply flip the slide and change the direction of travel for the child.

If you can only change the direction of travel by moving the carrycot or the buggy attachment, you have quite a few models heavy to wear. In principle, the baby should be able to make eye contact with mom or dad. Therefore, it is advisable in the first year to put the baby against the direction of travel.

Stiftung Warentest 2015 – test winner

Stiftung Warentest tested 14 combination prams in 2015.
The best pram was the pram Britax Go in the test with the overall grade “Good” (2.4) from.

Test winner 2015: Britax Go

The tested stroller models in the stroller test of the Stiftung Warentest 2015:

Britax Go (good)
Knorr Baby Voletto Sport (satisfactory)
ABC design Turbo 6S (satisfactory)
Hauck Malibu XL All in One (satisfactory)
Bugaboo Cameleon3 Base (sufficient)
Gesslein F6 Air + (sufficient)
Hartan Topline S (sufficient)
Maxi-Cosi Mura 4 Plus (sufficient)
Mutsy Evo (sufficient)
Naturkind Terra Plus (sufficient)
Peg Perego Book Pop-Up Modular (sufficient)
Teutonia BeYou V2 (sufficient)
Joolz Day Earth (poor)
Stokke Trailz (poor)

2013 there were already two test winners with few pollutants at the Ökotest Foundation. The Natural child Terra Koala and the Stokke Xplory were also both tested with "good".

The Stokke Xplory has an innovative design and is included price with 800-1000 € in the upper range. The Xplory contains little pollutants, is very agile and easy to maneuver, according to the inspectors. A special feature of the Xplory is the height-adjustable seat, with which it is easier to push your child into line of sight. The pram can be used for € 500 to € 700.

Naturkind’s pram with carrying nest costs around € 975. There are (almost) no limits to the top. You can also order a sheepskin footmuff, fur insert, rain cover and diaper bag in addition to the car. Used you pay around 500 € for this car.

It is worth keeping an eye out for the used models, as there are rarely used cars from Naturkind. In the practical test and the ingredients, the Ökotest examiners awarded the "Terra Koala" a "good".

Naturkind Terra Koala pram

Test winner of ÖKO-Test 5/2013: the Naturkind Terra Koala and Stokke Xplory strollers

Tip: Not everyone can afford a low-pollution stroller for € 1000. As an alternative, many parents recommend washing the covers of a car before using it for the first time. You can also buy a used stroller. Here, too, there are no longer as many pollutants as in a newly purchased model.

Experience of the savings baby editor Marie

We bought the first pram used. The car had large air wheels and a swivel slide. We wanted pneumatic tires because we thought the car would be more comfortable to drive. We chose a swing gate because we are rather tall. However, we noticed in the practical test that the car simply didn’t want to fit us.

There was often no space in the tram for our bulky (we called it "cozy") car because the frame was simply too wide. The wide wheels also made it difficult to steer over narrow sidewalks and through narrow doors and curves. There was often no getting through in drugstores because the bikes weren’t flexible. When goods got in the way, we had to make big detours to get to our destination.

The swivel slide was also a disadvantage on the train: if you only have one hand free, it is not possible to retract the swivel slide to make room for the other passengers. So after two months a new car had to be found.

We chose the ABC Design Turbo 4S. The car is narrow, has small, movable wheels at the front and a telescopic slide that can be adjusted in height with one hand. It was a blessing for us. It turned out that the tub was tightly calculated, but the car was otherwise perfect for our life in the city. On the first trip into the forest we realized that we really have a city cart. The small front wheels blocked (as expected) in the mud. But if you find it, the car can even be pushed to some extent.

After we used the car as a buggy for six months, it is now at home with friends who have nothing to complain about even after 3.5 years and are satisfied. The car is now used there again as a buggy and stops, and stops …

Another advantage: The car fits easily into a Seat Ibiza &# 128521;

What are your experiences Is there a model that you can recommend to other parents? How long do you use your strollers or do you get an additional buggy? What must such a car be able to do in order to survive in everyday life? We would be happy to receive your comments:-)

2 thoughts on “combi strollers”

Hello budding fellow mums,

the subject of strollers is not that easy and I spent a lot of time exploring it because I didn’t want a plastic stroller for my child. When we came across the Naturkind Varius stroller last year, the decision was not difficult for us. We did the "smell test" on many cars and it was the only one that didn’t smell of chemistry. We have been driving the Varius happily for a year now and can recommend it with a clear conscience. It is definitely worth the money!
I hope I could help!

Phew, that’s really not that easy … I really like reading about Naturkind. But can you also go shopping comfortably with it? You get through the drugstore? &# 128521;