“But Mom, I Want the Barbie Jeep!”
Written: May 17 '04 (Updated May 18 '04)
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Pros: Lightweight, easy to operate, just very very cool.
Cons: Expensive, huge, parental supervision absolutely required, plastic wheels.
The Bottom Line: This is definitely a luxury item. If you can afford it and have a good place for your child to ride in it, this toy is worth the money.
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| dagny21's Full Review: Hummer H2 by Little Tikes |
When we told our son we were finally going to buy him his first "real" vehicle, he knew exactly which one he wanted. He'd been eying it since last summer, when he was still too young to drive. He wanted that pretty pink and silver Barbie Jeep. Now, my husband and I feel a little bit of pride about that. We've done our very best not to steer our son toward "boy" toys and away from "girl" toys. In his toy collection he has baby dolls and a barbie doll, and they're all great friends with his trains, trucks, and robots. He loves my victorian dollhouse almost as much as he loves his own train table, and hubby and I are both tickled by that.
Last year, when our then 2 1/2 year old pointed to the oh-so-girlie Barbie Jeep and said "I want that someday," my husband and I both shrugged and said "Sure, some day." We didn't care one way or the other, though we did assume that by 3 1/2 he'd have lost interest.
Boy, was I ever wrong! Last weekend, I had to tell my son he could not have a Barbie Jeep. At 3 1/2, my son is so very social, and I thought, If I let him have this expensive girl toy, the first time he rides in it and one of the neighbor kids says "That's for girls!" he's never going to want to ride in it again. I wouldn't care if it were a cheaper toy. So, we compromised. I told him I would buy him a new Barbie doll and she would love to ride beside him in any other vehicle he chose.
Of course, his second choice was the Barbie Bug! Ugh.
Anyway, when it was finally settled that we were not getting a Barbie-mobile of any kind, my son laid eyes on the most manly of all vehicles, the brand new Hummer from little tikes.
The Hummer H2 Features
~2 forward speeds (2.5 miles/hr and 5 miles/hr)
~Reverse (2.5 miles/hr)
~2 seats (adjustable for short or tall children)
~2 pretend seatbelts
~130 lb weight limit
~Radio with volume control that plays 5 different songs (batteries required and not included)
~Storage area behind the seat
~Pretend cell phone
~12 volt battery and charger
~1 year limited warranty
Price
We only found one store that actually had this toy in stock, and that was Wal*Mart. The Little Tikes web site lists the release date as July, which could have something to do with it. Perhaps Wal*Mart got it earlier for some reason? Anyway, the Little Tikes site lists the suggested retail price as $279, we paid $273 for it.
Getting it Home
Once purchased, the first issue was how to get this vehicle home. The box is absolutely enormous, significantly larger than the toy itself. When we got it out to our mid-sized SUV, even with one of the back seats down (we could not put the other back seat down because my son was in it and we live 90 minutes from this store), it would not fit. In fact, the box laid flat was too tall to even get in the SUV. So, we took our Hummer and all of it's parts out of the box. Since the Hummer comes almost fully assembled, it was still quite difficult to fit in the car. We had to turn it on it's side to fit beside my son on the folded-down seat, and it just barely squeaked in under the roof. We then folded up the box (not an easy task even for 2 adults), and stuck it in the car as well.
Assembly
The box tells you that you can assemble this toy in 15 minutes. It took my husband about 5. The wheels are already on it. Basically, you attach the steering wheel, stick the radio in, screw in the seat, and apply a few stickers. There were no problems with the assembly.
The Good
Lightweight
Considering it's size, I was surprised by how light this toy really is. I have no trouble pushing it or lifting it, and my husband carries it around like it's nothing. Even my son can drag it around wherever he wishes. Should he ever manage to get this toy on top of him in an eventual accident, the toy itself would do no great injury.
Easy to Operate
One of my biggest concerns when considering any toy purchase is my son's frustration level. I had worried that he would have some trouble operating it. I need not have. It is extremely simple and easy to use. You press the gas to get it started, let up and you stop immediately. There is a reverse handle which is positioned so the child pretty much has to let up on the gas to throw the vehicle into reverse or put it back into forward. The steering is pretty easy as well, though my son hasn't exactly mastered it yet and I have to frequently reach down and turn the wheel to keep him on the right side of the road.
High Speed Lock-Out
I was a little concerned about the possibility of my 3 1/2 year old son screaming down the road at 5 miles an hour. I can barely run that fast, let alone help him steer. Fortunately, this vehicle comes with the high speed locked out. It is up to the parent to decide when - if ever - to allow their child to go that fast in the vehicle. Personally, I don't think I'm ever going to let him go that fast.
Cell Phone and Radio
The cell phone and radio don't seem like much, but they do add to the pretend play value, and my son takes an inordinate amount of pleasure from each of these features.
Our Son Absolutely Loves It
My son enjoys this vehicle a great deal. We take it out every evening after my husband gets home if the weather is good. We've decided it's a vehicle for the 3 of us. I make sure our son stays on the road, my husband looks out for the rare car.
The Not So Good
18 Hours Before We Can Go for a Ride?
We were really bummed when we took this vehicle home and found out it takes 18 hours to charge the battery. Since the battery will run for several hours on a charge, it's not a big issue after the first charge, but it's seriously disappointing to take a toy home and have to wait that long to use it. We mollified our son by assembling to toy indoors and leaving it inside to be played with as a stationary car for the evening.
Plastic Wheels
This toy would be better, by leaps and bounds, with rubber wheels. The plastic wheels are thick and durable, but they are loud and the traction is definitely lacking. I'd be willing to pay significantly more for this already expensive toy if it came with rubber wheels.
Our Child's First Status Symbol?
My parents actually paid for this toy. Even if they hadn't, we would have bought it. Walking out of Wal*Mart, I felt it for the first time. That uncomfortable feeling as other kids and other parents were looking at us and thinking one of two things: A)I wish I could afford to buy that for my child or B)They're spoiling that child rotten. The fact is, my son has more toys than he needs, and he certainly didn't need this one, but we all wanted it, so we got it. The first time - and indeed every time - my son rides down the road in this Hummer, everyone in the neighborhood takes obvious notice. The kids came to the fence of the local neighborhood park to watch. I do feel sort of weird about it. Not because we can't afford it or shouldn't afford it, but because I think my son is aware that he has a very cool toy that no other child in our neighborhood is likely to have, and I think he likes that feeling.
Should You Buy This Toy?
Before you decide to purchase this toy, you need to make certain you have an appropriate place for your child to ride it. It is not a particularly portable toy so you may not want to buy it thinking you'll throw it in the back of the car and take it to the park to use. You need a large area of level ground. It works best on concrete or pavement and does not work well on rocky ground, dirt roads, or grass. It's not safe for sidewalks because it's wide enough that your child would be hard-pressed to steer it precisely enough to keep it from falling off the curb. We happen to live in a very rural area. Additionally, this toy needs to be stored out of the weather. It cannot be ridden in the rain, and should be stored indoors, in a shed, or - at the very least - under some sort of shelter.
We help our child get it up our dirt driveway which has a slight incline(he presses the gas and I push gently) and over the rocky dirt road of our culdesac. Then we have a straight, flat, nicely paved road that gets very little traffic and runs for a very long way in either direction.
Finally, this is absolutely a toy that requires constant parental supervision. Do not buy this and then just send your kid out to the back yard by himself. You need to be right beside him every second, prepared to grab the steering wheel or pull his foot off the gas if he's about to drive into a ditch or about to mow down one of the neighbors' children.
Note: If you're thinking this review seems way too familiar, it is neither plagiarized nor a duplicate post. Days after I submitted my first review on this product, the Little Tikes Web Site changed their categorization of this toy, and then Epinions followed suit, and I then received an off-topic rating. I just moved it to it's proper place today.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 273
Type of Toy: Car, Truck or Raceway
Age Range of Child: 3 to 5 Years
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Epinions.com ID:
dagny21
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 in Kids & Family |
 - Top 500 |
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Member: Christine D
Location: Alaska
Reviews written: 388
Trusted by: 65 members
About Me:
Happily married mother of one boy.
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