Lilly Gold Sit 'n Stroll 5-in-1 Combination Car Seat/Stroller
by Lilly Gold
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List Price: Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Lilly Gold Sit 'n Stroll 5-in-1 Combination Car Seat/Stroller
Customer Review: 4.5 stars- great for travellers, with caveat
Summary: 3 Stars
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I've upped my star-rating for this product but I can't change it above. So ignore the three stars- now I give it four.
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There are four parts to this review: the combination function, the stroller function, the air travel restraint function, and the carseat function.
1. THE COMBINATION FUNCTION
The competitive advantage of this product is in its function as a restraint that transforms from a stroller to a car-seat and vice-versa. This is indispensable for people who, like us, travel long distances in planes or on other public transport at least four times a year.
It is NOT an indispensable function for people who don't travel often- if you have a car and spend most of your time traveling in that, I would recommend that you get a different stroller-car-seat combination, like one with a base that attaches to the car, so you can move the (rocking) car-seat from the car to the stroller with ease. You don't need to reduce the amount of stuff you have with you so you can also use the extra space and functions that the travel systems have.
Back to travelers: I traveled across three continents with a two-month old infant and nobody else and this stroller was a godsend. It makes it so easy to always have everything with you- you never have to check it, because it's a stroller, so you have it right at the gate, unlike a car-seat. You don't have to lug a car-seat around with you to get to the car, and your baby has a safe place to sit in any plane or train.
As for ease of transforming the stroller to a car-seat and vice-versa: in my opinion, once you figure it out, it's very easy. Skill-wise, it is literally one click and push to get it into stroller mode, a simple click to get the handle up, and another click and pull to get it into car-seat mode. It doesn't require much strength at all (I can't even open a jar of peanut butter but I can use this stroller). However, you do have to bend over so if you have a bad back, like with anything, you might have trouble with the lifting necessary to give the wheels space to transform.
Also, if you haven't got it figured out, and don't have the instructions, you will not figure it out. So traveling alone with my daughter, I had to put her in the seat to transform it every time, because nobody else could help me. However, that wasn't a problem.
2. THE STROLLER FUNCTION
I wear my baby and have various carriers- a wrap, a mei tai, and two podaegis. I'd still recommend this stroller for travelers. As a stroller, it's good for urban and smooth surfaces but the ride is a little bumpy on very bad roads. That being said, our daughter enjoyed crossing the borders and rumbling through parking lots in Central Asia and the rural US, where the asphalt is turning into gravel as we speak. The stroller held up just fine and she slept through several bumpy rides. The stroller remains in good condition and did not slip or tip at all.
The stroller turns well and is easy to steer with one hand. The handle is a bit low for taller people, though. But if you are getting this stroller for the right reasons- you need a car-seat-and-stroller in one- that will not be a big problem because the benefits will outweigh having your arms extended to steer.
The breaks are easy to use- you just push them down with your feet.
3. THE AIR TRAVEL RESTRAINT FUNCTION
The stroller worked fine for air travel in the US. It was easy to install and it was so nice to get baby off my lap. However, I must warn you that apparently, the EU has passed a new law forbidding the use of car-seats in airlines! The airlines said they haven't tested it themselves, and so they can't guarantee safety to the baby or other passengers. Anyway, that's what they told me at KLM when I tried to use the cars-eat. If all your travel is in Europe that's something to keep in mind (or rather, call the airlines about). It did fit down the aisle of all the planes we were in but these planes were also bigger ones.
N.B. They give you a special belt with which to attach your baby to your own seatbelt on the European planes, and KLM gives you a bassinet, so don't panic. :)
4. THE CARSEAT FUNCTION
I wrote one review of this car-seat saying that I couldn't get it installed (despite all of the tricks suggested by the company). However, I then tried it in a newer car and it installed so easily I couldn't believe it. When I say "installed", I don't just mean strapped in with a belt. I mean, strapped in, did not wiggle back and forth or side to side more than one inch, and felt very, very secure. It did NOT install easily in a Toyota Corolla- we tried and tried and no matter what, it would not get in there secure (yes, we stood on the seat, leaned back, with a towel under it, with a yoga block under it, and pulled at the seatbelt with the strength of two adults- let the seatbelt lock, and then checked it- it easily flipped back). It DID install easily in my aunt's newer SUV. I didn't even have to stand on it. If you have a chance, do see if it will work in your own car before you buy it.
Later it was suggested that we use some kind of sticky mat (a small bath mat, or yoga mat) might give the traction needed to install it in any car. Apparently, this used to be done with many car-seats. We did it and it helped a lot. I am now able to use the car-seat in a Corolla.
Just want to add, since I love this car-seat, we're on our third year of use with my second child, and she, too, finds it very comfortable. The fabric has held up great and it still transforms! Probably one of the best deals of all the baby stuff I bought.
Customer Review: *** WARNING ***
Summary: 1 Stars
**READ THIS BEFORE YOU PLAN ON BUYING THE SIT N STROLL**
*Disfunctions*
"Sit N Stroll Car Seat": A car seat is meant to secure the baby seat to the car. This product doesnt go that far. Rather than figuring out their own product's cons the manual ask us to go and have tether anchors installed in the car by a dealer. People with older cars, time to open your wallets. Luckily my new car is fully equipped with teether anchors but they will only work properly if the carseat is forward facing as you will have a secure base with bottom latches hooking on to seat anchor points (pair of inverted "U" shaped metal bars attached directly to your vehicle's frame, located where the vehicle seat bottom and the seat meet)while the top teether hook attaches to the top anchor (located somewhere around the headrest of the car seat). To most new parents, this really doesnt help as the seats have to be rear facing. That means you have to "Thread" the vehicle seatbelt through the belt tabs in the sit n stroll which are bacically weak notches on either side holding the seat down. By doing this the car seat belt is basically going over your childs lap. Kids like their legs to be free so they can be at ease in the car, this seatbelt system resembles shackles around your baby`s feet. I dont think any adult would prefer that let alone a baby have to go through this. Inclination of the sit n stroll is another problem, baby`s cant hold their heads up. The sit n stroll's 45 degree full inclination still doesnt rest the baby`s head properly, so you`re basically trying to hold your baby`s head up bcause it feels like its gonna fall off their necks because of this inclination (angle). Giving it a lower angle, similar to that of a baby carrier would have been a plus.
Every time you want to get the sit n stroll seat out, you have to unbuckle the carseat belt, take it off the seat tabs then unhook the bottom tether anchors. Putting it back in will require the same steps. So if its raining outside, you have your rear end sticking outside getting wet while your heads inside the car trying to install the seat EVERYTIME.
Telescoping Handle of the Sit N Stroll: Either this handle is made of recycled aluminum with really bad quality control or i have arthritis. How about using a stronger material next time you plan on sticking a big fat seat to the end of two skinny shafts. So rather than calling it a telescoping handle, i`d prefer the term Wobbly Handle". The wheels on this seat are a mess as well. In the fully extended position, this stroller looks like a monster truck on bicycle wheels.
There are no returns on this product as the manufacturer is afraid of hairline cracks (quite understandable).
BUYING THIS PRODUCT?
if you`re planning on buying this sit n stroll i suggest, you do not throw away the original box and receipt. Secondly, make sure you DO NOT TAKE THE TAGS off the Sit N Stroll until you install it in the car and are satisfied (or not). Once you cut the tags off, there are NO RETURNS....!
In my case things just didnt look safe from the very begining, so i decided to throw it away. I bought a different brand carseat somewhere else.
Money is not worth compromising your child's safety.
Sincerely,
H.H.
"Aircraft Structures Engineer"
Customer Review: Seems nifty, but doesn't work like we hoped
Summary: 2 Stars
It seems like a good idea. It did come in handy in the airport to be able to use it as a stroller and then a carseat on the plane. Also make sure to have the manual handy because our flight attendants had never seen one like that before and were going to not let us use it. But luckily we had our manual so they could read that it was FAA approved.
These are the negatives. Transforming it back and forth from stroller to car seat is not as easy as they make it look. Both my husband and I hurt our backs using it for a week on our vacation. Especially tranforming it from carseat to stroller s a pain. Because the movement is not natural for your body and you are holding a carseat with a baby in it. You have to hold the entire weight with one hand and push down and squeeze on a lever pretty hard with your other hand. You end up scraping your arms and hurting your back. What helped was lifting one leg perpendicular to help support the weight of the seat and baby and balancing all this on just one leg while you push down with your other hand. But you can imagine this is pretty awkward.
It was also really hard to install the carseat to be as tight as we wanted it to be in the rear facing direction. And it seemed like no matter how hard we struggled to get it installed tight enough, the carseat could still be pushed over an inch, which is what the manual said was the measure of how tight it should be. And on top of this, you kind of have to install it with your baby already in the seat in the car and that complicates it more with you struggling and pushing in 90 degree weather while your baby is sitting there and getting impatient and also restricting your movement while you are already in a cramped uncomfortable position in the backseat.
It was also really hard to tighten the restraint tight enough on our baby's body. There was a certain point where you couldn't tighten it any further and it just didn't seem tight enough for our 14 month old. Also pulling on the strap to tighten the restraint does not work well because there are so many contraptions underneath the seat because of the wheels, that the strap gets stuck on things down there and it requires you sticking your other hand down there and feeding the strap through so it can be tightened. And this is not easy. It's cramped down there so your hand does not fit well.
Though it was convenient in the airport, for the rest of the trip it's only worth it if you are going to be using it mostly as a carseat or mostly as a stroller so you don't have to be constantly installing it and unistalling it in the car or if you won't be travelling or moving around that much on your trip. We kept doing it because we had spent the money on it already and really wanted to get our money's worth and wanted to like it, but it ended with us both hurting our backs.
I tried really hard to like it, but I have to say it wasn't really worth it for us. It probably would have been better to just get a separate cheaper car seat and a really cheap lightweight portable stroller.
Customer Review: Great idea, bad execution.
Summary: 2 Stars
I purchased this seat in hopes of using for my daughter's every day car seat and also for taking it on airplane trips. We ran across a number of complications:
1) When she was born, the nurse at the hospital wouldn't allow us to leave with this seat because my daughter was too tiny for it so we had to go out and purchase an infant car seat. Don't expect to put your newborn in this seat.
2) Once she was big enough to use the seat, we took it to the car seat installation clinic at the hospital. These are professional people who are trained to install car seats properly. They couldn't get this seat to install safely in either of our vehicles because of the method it uses to attach to the car and the hard plastic (slippery) base that covers the wheels when they're retracted. There was just too much wiggle room no matter how tight we pulled the straps to attach the seat. I decided to put this seat in my husband's car (he drives her 1-2x week only a short distance) and purchase a traditional convertible seat for my car.
3) It's really difficult to get the kid in and out of the seat because there is a strap across their lap that you have to slide the kid under to get her in and out.
4) The seat was very convenient for taking my daughter on airplane trips. I took it three times with just me and her, no helpers, and it made it nice and easy for getting through security and I could check it at the gate and not worry about having so many pieces of luggage (car seat, stroller, plus giant suitcase) This is the only reason I'm giving it two stars instead of one. The problem in traveling came on the third and last airplane trip this seat took with us. I had gate-checked the seat with the wheels and handle retracted and the plastic shield protecting the wheels broke in transit, rendering the seat unsafe to be used in the car. The airlines replaced the seat with a much cheaper traditional convertible seat which was good enough to get us home but didn't have the functionality of the Sit & Stroll. I called the manufacturer to ask if I could purchase a replacement part and they said that not only was the seat not under warranty after less than a year of use, the part that broke was not a replaceable part so I was left with an expensive heap of garbage.
Bottom line is, if you get this DO NOT check it into the cargo hold! Wait to use it until your child is old enough that they need their own seat and use it on the airplane. It's too rickety to survive the luggage compartment.
Customer Review: A lifesaver
Summary: 4 Stars
My wife and I bought one of these almost two years ago. We first used it on a very long trip by air and by train. We've used it on subways, in restaurants, in cars and vans, and just to take the kids for an afternoon stroll. We've used it with my son and daughter from ages one to three; at four years old (and 36 pounds) our son is too large to find it comfortable, but it's still just right for our two-year old daughter (25 lbs). It's been one of the most useful things we've bought for getting our kids from here to there.
The Sit N Stroll works as a car seat and a stroller. With the shove of one handle the wheels pop out and lock in place or collapse back into the stroller. I manage to do this fairly easily with our daughter (25 pounds) strapped in. It's too heavy for my wife to do with our daughter in the seat, but she finds it very easy to set up or collapse when it's empty.
This seat fits into a standard coach airline seat. It straps securely into every car we've put it in, though not always without some effort. It restrains the child with a five-point harness that isn't easily opened by anyone under two (our daughter suddenly got very good at opening it a few months ago). A seat belt (with or without shoulder harness) fits easily over the front to hold the seat in place, and there's a strap at the top of it that clips to a small bracket that seems to be standard just for that purpose in most cars and trucks built in the last five years.
This seat doesn't have as much storage as I'd like; we always have to carry an extra bag with us. It also has smaller and harder wheels than do most dedicated strollers, giving it perhaps a less comfortable ride on rough surfaces and definitely making it harder to wheel it over some obstacles. It's much more comfortable for my wife to push than for me, because I have to bend over slightly to reach the handle; at 6'3" it gives me a back ache to push this with both hands for very long. I can stand straight when I push it one-handed, though, and it's pretty easy to do that.
None of those problems is serious. I love pulling up to a restaurant, popping the seat with our daughter out of the car, popping out the wheels, pushing it into the restaurant, and collapsing it back down and putting it on a chair. It's all so easy and it keeps our daughter under control the whole time. This thing was a lifesaver on our last long trip. The kids like it and seem to find it comfortable. With some more storage and a longer handle, I'd give it five stars.