Everest...The zenith of pushchairs (Everest Pushchair)

Member Name: Tina Faloon

Product:	Everest Pushchair
Date:	28/03/03 (1996 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well built, Looks great, Ideal for rough roads/countryside

Disadvantages: Fairly heavy, Expensive

This travel system is many things - very well built, looks good, keeps your little one safe and comfortable, and if you subscribe to the view that you get what you pay for, you won't begrudge the fact that it's expensive.

What I wouldn't describe it as is either lightweight or compact - if you're looking for a pushchair that you can hop on and off buses with, or keep in a small corner of the porch, then I doubt it's for you.

When we were choosing our pushchair combo. the main things we wanted were:

- a 3 wheeler (because they look good - shallow I know..)
- a well-rated, safe, car seat which would also fit onto the chassis.
- a "pram" attachment so that baby could be completely horizontal for the first few months.
- the ability to have the baby facing me when in the pram (you want to keep your eyes on the little fella at first) The Mamas & Papas system was knocked off the shortlist because it can only face away from you.
- nothing too plasticky

If you're going to get the Everest pushchair, then you should really get the whole system - Pushchair, Car seat, and Carry Cot, to get the full benefit. We've been using it for 8 months now, and the pro's and con's we think you should know are:

Pro's

- The build quality is good, and I'm confident it will still be in one piece until it's outgrown.
- It is likely to be the best looking pushchair on your streets, and it'll draw lots of admiring, and downright covertous, looks.
- The new version of the chassis has adjustable suspension, which makes for a comfortable ride for baby on bumpy roads and allows you to reach places which no other pushchair can if you fancy a bit of off-roading.
- The pushchair seat is capacious, and will still be big enough to hold a 4 year old - I see loads of toddlers hunched up in pushchairs which are far too small for them - no wonder they don't like go
ing shopping!
- The carrycot clips easily on the chassis to form the pram, and can also be used as a car seat if you buy the fixing kit (£15) which clips on the rear seatbelts. This means your newborn doesn't have to propped up in a standard car seat. It also proved very useful for those midnight drives to get baby to sleep, as once the little one is in the land of nod, you can take the carry cot back into the house and leave him sleeping in it. You could even use the carry cot every night in place of a moses basket.
- The car seat also clips onto the chassis which is very useful for popping to the shops, as you don't have to unload baby into a separate pushchair or lug the car seat round on your arm.
- The chassis can be flipped open with one hand (whilst you hold baby in the other)
- The "footmuffs" for car seat and pushchair are well worth buying and save wrapping baby up in snow suits and blankets.

Con's

- This was the most expensive travel system we found, but we think it's worth it. Any of the cheaper alternatives required some sort of compromise on our criteria.
- It is fairly heavy, and you should take into consideration how many steps you will have to negotiate and check you can lift it into your car boot. It is a bit of struggle if you've had a section. I wouldn't even like to try to get it on/off a bus.
- It is also very bulky, especially if you don't want to have to take off the muff/folding hood etc. when you fold it up. Check it will fit into your car boot. It fits in my Golf easily, but anything with a narrower boot will mean you have to take 1 or more wheels off to get it in, and whilst this isn't difficult it is one more thing you can do without.
- It isn't particularly easy to manoevre around town - it is wide, and because it has a fixed front wheel you have to lift the front wheel up to turn a sharp corner.
- The shopping basket is not easy to use beca
use it sits high up underneath the seat.

So, it's not perfect, but we're very happy with it, and there's nothing else on the market we'd rather have, even now.

Summary: