Graco Quattro Tour Travel System: Most Useful Baby Product!
Written: May 13 '08
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Durability: |
 |
|
| Ease of Use: |
|
|
|
Pros: Excellent quality, easy-to-use product, many nice features
Cons: Some babies grow out of car seat quickly
The Bottom Line: The Graco Quattro Tour Travel System has exceeded my expectations. This product has hands-down been the most useful baby product I have owned, and I highly recommend it!
|
|
|
| chilliwi's Full Review: Graco Quattro Tour 7411LV Travel System Stroller |
As I was pushing my two-year-old in my trusty Graco Tour Stroller, part of the travel system, I was thinking about how extremely useful it has been for me and my two kids, now two and four years old. Even though mine is now four years old, I thought I would review this wonderful product in order to share with others how great this it is!
I received my Graco Quattro Tour Travel System four years ago. I used the infant car seat with both of my kids until they outgrew it (at six to eight months old), and have used the stroller continuously ever since. I will probably get another 6 to 12 months use out of the stroller or until my little one just won't be contained any longer. I know the stroller won't break down!
Availability
I received my travel system as a shower gift, but the Graco Quattro Tour and Quattro Tour Deluxe can be purchased for around $200 in various colors and patterns at Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, Babis R Us, and other major retailers. Graco.com has a store locator feature that can tell you what colors and styles are available at what particular stores. I don't think this exact model can be found any longer, but very similar models with just slight variations in fabric and detailing are widely available. In addition, Graco now has a Quattro Deluxe model that includes the SafeSeat car seat which I believe can accommodate babies to a slightly larger size.
Includes
The travel system includes a full-size touring stroller, a Snugride infant car seat and a carseat base. What is nice about a travel system is that all three pieces are designed to work together. The carseat base is to be strapped in to your vehicle. Then, with just one click, the infant carseat can be secured. The infant seat can then with the same ease, be clicked into the stroller. This is especially nice with newborns and young babies who sleep a lot (and most babies fall asleep in the car) because you do not need to wake them to take them from the car to the stroller to the house, etc.
The Base
The carseat base is the most basic part of the travel system. This piece is made of molded plastic and can be secured in your vehicle using the LATCH system or with a seatbelt. LATCH is an anchor system that is standard on all vehicles build since 2003. Additional bases can be purchased separately if you wish to have one for another vehicle. The base is really a convenient and easy way to get your baby in and out of the car with ease.
The Car Seat
The Snugride Infant seat is consistently rated as one of the safest by Consumer Reports and other consumer and baby product testing agencies. This seat is intended for babies weighing between 5 and 26 pounds and up to 27". It is only to be used in a rear-facing position. My sons graduated from this seat well before they reached 26 pounds because they were both very tall. This would be my only complaint. Many babies reach a length exceeding the recommendations for this seat at quite a young age. It would be nice to get a little more use out of the car seat (like 29 or 30 inches). The seat is easily attached to the pre-installed base with just one simple click. It also can also be strapped in securely with just a seat belt without the base. It has a 5-point harness system, which means that the straps that secure the baby to the seat first come over the baby's shoulders, connect at the baby's chest and then fastens between the baby's legs securely into the seat. A 5-point harness is preferred over a 3-point harness not only because it is more secure and safe, but it is also more comfortable for baby with the straps laying flat and staying in place. The carrying handle can be placed in five different positions, although straight up and all the way down are really the most useful. The padded cloth cover is removable so that it can be machine washed. A head-rest is included for use with newborns to keep them from tilting sideways too. All in all, this is an excellent infant seat.
The Stroller
This is a very easy-to-use, durable stroller! After four years of use my stroller is still in great condition. The wheels are large enough to ride smoothly, but not so large that they become cumbersome. There are four wheels in the front that rotate 360 degrees and two stationary wheels in the rear. The rear wheels have foot-controlled levers that snap down to lock the wheels preventing the stroller from rolling away. I find this to be the perfect stroller for maneuvering through most typical places like sidewalks, shopping malls, mowed grass, and gravel trails. This is a full-size stroller so it isn't super light weight making it not too practical for big city living. For most suburbanites however, this is the perfect stroller!
In the early stages, the car seat can easily be snapped into place (facing you) with two clips that hold the car seat securely in place. Using both the car seat's and the stroller's canopies allow you to shield your baby completely from rain, snow or sun as well. Without using the car seat with the stroller, the child faces forward. The seat can be adjusted into four positions from sitting straight up to lying completely flat. There is a 3-point lap belt for the stroller and a tray with a cup holder and compartments for snacks that tips up for easy entry. There is a nice sized storage basket under the child's seat for storing all of your stuff, too. The basket folds down for easy access. Near the handle, there are two cup holders for parents as well as another compartment for putting things like keys or a snack. It seems that Graco has thought of everything!
The stroller can be folded flat for storage with one hand! To do this you simply push a button on the push bar and twist the handle at the same time. It will then fall into place on its own. It is literally that easy. (and it is not possible to accidentally fold the stroller down with your child in the stroller!)
Overall
The Graco Quattro Tour Travel System has exceeded my expectations. This product has hands-down been the most useful baby product I have owned, and I highly recommend it! Mine has withstood the test of time. There are many different travel systems on the market today in many price ranges. This one falls right in the middle in terms of price, but in terms of quality, I think it is at the top!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199
Age Range of Child: 12 to 36 Months
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
chilliwi
|
|
Location: Lake Michigan Shore
Reviews written: 137
Trusted by: 90 members
About Me:
Pretty busy with work right now …I guess I shouldn't complain!
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.