Graco vs. Chicco?

[Jonah Baby]

Our original plan was to get a SR32 for baby. We own a Sit n Stand stroller, which I thought was the best idea with a 3 year old and newborn. The SR32 SHOULD attach to the stroller no problem.
We also have 2 Graco strollers that accept infant seats, furthering my plan for the SR32.
We now think that the SS1 is just as good of an option, and hope we could find one online. This would work with the same strollers of course.

We made the mistake of a BRU trip...and we played with a Chicco carseat...and then a Chicco stroller...now I'm fantasizing CHICCO.
Our Graco strollers are like pushing bricks uphill. The Chicco was like a feather, even with chunky Jo in it.

Chicco is much more expensive and we don't have much money, but I'm almost thinking it would be worth it. The easy install of the carseat and the easy use of the stroller pales Graco in comparison.

If we were to go Chicco, I would sell off both Graco strollers. Should I keep the strollers and just get the Chicco seat? But then I would have to remove both kids from the car, without the convenience of the "snap" carseat to stroller fun.
Will the Chicco fit on the Sit and Stand? I debate if I would ever have the kids out separately and if I have them both then I'd take the double stroller ALWAYS. But the Chicco is so nice...if I wanted JUST a stroller...I just can't look at my Graco's the same anymore.
Oh yea, we HAVE to have two bases, just no way around it, so this brings up the cost on any infant seat.

Anyone looking to sell their seat or stroller or both? Is it silly to buy a new stroller, too? ARG. Someone tell me something.

 

[bp2002]

I think ultimately its up to you (you and ur family) ..but some things to consider..

If money is tight, are you going to regret spending more money on a new and more expensive seat/stoller? Do you really need that money to be put to something else?

I do understand. The chicco can be like butter to install. However, it is grown out of length wise before the ss1/sr2 I believe. Are you and (kevin i believe?) Long or short torso'd people? Are you hoping to use the infant seat for more than one winter? ( I think I remember you being 3 months pregnant? So a March arrival? Could still be cold here in MA (Im in central MA btw, HI neighbor!) The ss1 might have a better chance of getting through 2 MA winters, if you're interested in that.

I like the chicco stroller too. However, the practical side says, if you will rarely have only one of the kids with you.. how much use are you going to get out of the stroller? Is it work buying, knowing you are hardly going to use it? (Unless you end up babywearing the bean and putting Jonah in the chicco stroller)

How much money will you get for the graco strollers? Maybe $50 each?

On a superquick google search, I found a new sr32 for $139, cheaper than the ss1's I found on the quickie search.

The chicco I found for $160 for the carseat. I know the chicco carseat base is more expensive than the graco also.

Im not sure if the chicco fits on the sit and stand. Doesnt the infant seat go in the front seat on that? Will jonah sit on the little seat well? (im trying to read up on sit and stands, but there are alot of them and I dont know what one you have. A few mentioned the keyfit fit!)

To sum it up...

You like the chicco better, but wont use the single stroller that often
You are on a tight budget and the chicco is more expensive..
You do currently have stollers that will work, you just need to buy a carseat.

I havent ever found the ss1/sr32 to be a pain to install, but I agree generally the chicco is even easier..

If you find a good deal on the chicco, and you can use it with the strollers you have, why not?

Maybe craigslist will have a good deal in a chicco stroller? I see them listed frequently!

Either way you will have a great infant seat, and usable strollers. Its just up to you as to how much they are worth to you.

 

[ks1978]

Once DD2 moved into a convertible, I ditched the Chicco stroller. I didn't find much of a difference pushing it, and the main factor for getting rid of it was that she couldn't sit fully upright. When walking uphills, she would get really frustrated at this because she would struggle to hold herself up, then have gravity pushing against her also. The sunshade and the basket are also TINY compared to a Graco stroller.

 

[Jonah Baby]

I don't know if it is a concern using it for more than one winter - Jo is so huge that around his 3rd birthday, maybe a bit after, he will outgrow the MR RFing (his birthday is a month after baby is expected.) He will use this seat FFing until baby outgrows the infant seat, then baby gets the MR and Jo gets something else (I'm thinking Nautilus.) Unless we decide to take the risk of using a foreign seat, which we can get a hold of really easily...we just won't have the money to continuously buy Jo a seat that will hold him an extra 5 pounds RFing every 3 months. If they should decide to send over some 55 RFers, then we would invest...

We've got a Sit and Stand LX I believe. It has the front bar attachment to accommodate "most infant carseats."

I have to have a stroller that will take seats - there is no way I can handle the kids on my own in a parking lot (Jo is capable of disappearing in the second it takes to reach in the car and lock the door.) He can also climb - yes he has climbed a car in the parking lot, right to the roof, in literally 1.5 seconds. Baby must be able to come out, come out fast, and not be capable of going anywhere!

I did notice the Chicco stroller did not sit all the way up. If you were to consider buying it again, would you do to this issue? I just don't like our Gracos that have 2 settings...

I guess I don't NEED the Chicco stroller - if I was out with one child, our crappy strollers would do with or without an accepting carseat. Otherwise, I have the Sit and Stand (man, I hope it takes Chicco) that will handle both kids efficiently with any carseat.

Perhaps I should just see which one installs in our vehicles better? Our MR in this car is the ONLY seat I have ever gotten in good with LATCH in any vehicle.
I think I will watch CL for a stroller. Every so often there are NIB travel systems (Graco, but with the 22.) Any other good sites like this to find kids stuff used?

 

[ks1978]

Chicco doesn't fit the same as most seats, it got me frustrated when buying the Keyfit, because a lot of the negative reviews were because the seat didn't "lock" into shopping carts. (DUH NONE of them are supposed to)
Can you take your sit n stand to BRU and try the Keyfit in there?

It looks WAY too reclined here, with the sit n stand

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=25760

And as far as using it for more than one winter, my first two kiddos were HUGE, more than 20 pounds at 4 months, then DD2 is a peanut who didn't hit 20 until 15 months. At 19 months, I am thinking she would just now be outgrowing the KF.

Because I loved the carseat so much, I would probably have made the purchase again. GREAT seat, and the stroller wasnt terrible, it just wasn't fabulous. I ended up selling the system for $100 and 4 Disneyland tickets, so it was a good deal in the end.

 

[Jennifer mom to my 7]

If your son has a tendency to run, you may want to look at a true double stroller, instead of the sit and stand. Then he gets buckled in with more than just a lap belt, kwim? Do you want a bar handle? Because you could also look at a peg perego P3 as it has a toddler step your ds could ride on in the parking lot and a universal strap for the car seat.

 

[DisneyWorldNanny]

I am a big fan of the SS1/SR32 as they are easy to get a great install in all of the vehicles I've used them in. I had some friends who are expecting ther first child ask me to help them with their registry which of course was full of a lot of things they won't use and non of the things they will really need! They did have the Chicco Cortina travel system on there and I really didn't know much about it so when I was at BRU a few days later I took a look at it.

I thought the stroller handles very well and the handle feels great! A few things I wasn't crazy about was that it's not really a one hand fold, the back of the seat is kind of open ( I had a child wiggle out of the harness one time and almost fall out the back) the basket leaves much to be desired and the canopy is terrible. Living in Orlando the sun canopy is very important and although I am not a huge fan of Graco strollers the Quattro's canopy is awesome. The Chicco does not seem as if it will last very long as the seat is not very tall and I can see little feet easily dragging on the floor before long.

As for the car seat- it seems like it would fit a tiny newborn great which is the only thing I don't love about the safeseat- the harness is not very snug on smaller babies. I do feel like a baby would outgrow the Chicco sooner than the Graco by torso height and I didn't like that there was no real lock off on the base when using a seat belt. For people who don't know how to (or never remember to) lock the car seat belt off this would lead to the base being pretty loose. I have no experience using the Chicco seat and I've only seen it installed on the BRU bench. I thought their latch system was awesome though.

It's a nice set but if it were me in your position I wouldn't bother with the stroller really...the car seat is nice and has great ratings- if you're using it with latch and if your babies are small I'd say go for it but if you are primarily going to use a seat belt to install and/or have bigger babies I feel like the SafeSeat/SnugRide 32 might be better for the money and your baby. The cost of a Graco and 2 bases is significantly less than the Chicco and two bases but at the end of the day I guess it comes down to the baby and the vehicle you will be using most often.

I have seen several Chicco systems on Orlando Craigslist this week for $100-$200 and even a Cortina stroller for $20!! If your are trying to save a little money and you have time before the baby arrives I'd be checking to see what's out there! Especially if you're not 100% sure what you want. I just found a Bumbleride Flyer for $90! the lady just never used it so "used" does not always mean worn!

Good luck!

 

[outnumberedby6]

Our original plan was to get a SR32 for baby. We own a Sit n Stand stroller, which I thought was the best idea with a 3 year old and newborn. The SR32 SHOULD attach to the stroller no problem.
We also have 2 Graco strollers that accept infant seats, furthering my plan for the SR32.
We now think that the SS1 is just as good of an option, and hope we could find one online. This would work with the same strollers of course.

We made the mistake of a BRU trip...and we played with a Chicco carseat...and then a Chicco stroller...now I'm fantasizing CHICCO.
Our Graco strollers are like pushing bricks uphill. The Chicco was like a feather, even with chunky Jo in it.

Chicco is much more expensive and we don't have much money, but I'm almost thinking it would be worth it. The easy install of the carseat and the easy use of the stroller pales Graco in comparison.

If we were to go Chicco, I would sell off both Graco strollers. Should I keep the strollers and just get the Chicco seat? But then I would have to remove both kids from the car, without the convenience of the "snap" carseat to stroller fun.
Will the Chicco fit on the Sit and Stand? I debate if I would ever have the kids out separately and if I have them both then I'd take the double stroller ALWAYS. But the Chicco is so nice...if I wanted JUST a stroller...I just can't look at my Graco's the same anymore.
Oh yea, we HAVE to have two bases, just no way around it, so this brings up the cost on any infant seat.

Anyone looking to sell their seat or stroller or both? Is it silly to buy a new stroller, too? ARG. Someone tell me something.

i "just" sold my chicco stroller. i have had graco snug ride before. i HATED it.
but thats just me. i LOVED my chicco. the stroller however i will tell you doesnt turn that great. i just got rid of it for that reason. i had the chicco cortina stroller in adventure. so the more expensive stroller and it didnt turn worth a poo. so maybe that will help! maybe not.