Maxi Cosi Loola Review

Here we are, the final challenge as a Maxi-cosi reporter has been issued, so far you have seen :

* the unpacking of the Loola
* finding hidden treasures with the Loola
* taking a trip about town with the Loola

The final challenge was to provide you all with my expert review, what do I truly think of this pushchair and will I be recomending it to other parents?

Maxi-Cosi are part of the Dorel company. This brand makes car seats, pushchairs, baby carriers and all the accessories to go with these products.

I actually had a Loola way back in 2008, I have to admit, it wasn't one of my favourite pushchairs back then, so when I was chosen to be one of ten Maxi-Cosi reporters, I was very interested to see just how the Loola had been changed and adapted over the years.

What you get in the box


In the box you receive the chassis, the seat unit, the hood, a bumper bar, a raincover, a parasol clip and the instruction manual. I was also provided with the car seat adaptors and the baby nest. You can also purchase a foldable carrycot separately.

I was sent the Maxi-Cosi Loola in the modern black colourway but it is also available in origami rose and graphic crystal. I love the colour, keeps it neutral but the subtle pattern that covers half of the pushchair keeps it unique and adds that touch of style.

As you saw from the first challenge, putting the pushchair together was fairly straight forward, the wheels were already attached (one less job), so all that you have to do is unfold the chassis, clip on the seat and zip on the hood to the seat unit. This had me loving the Loola already, being a blonde at heart, the simpler things are kept the better!!!

The Chassis

The chassis is nice and sturdy, although with this sturdiness does come heaviness too. Myself and Daddy Hazelden have found the frame both heavy to lift, which you need to do to get it in and out of the boot and also quite heavy when moving up kerbs.

In the pictures I had seen, the four wheels looked quite small, so I was surprised when I got the Loola out of the box just how big the wheels were and they handle well on even the bumpiest of surfaces. 

One of my favourite features is how you can lock and unlock the swivel wheels. There is a button that can be slid up and down on either side of the chassis, this saves you from bending down and getting your hands dirty on the wheels.

The brake is simple to operate. There are two buttons, one white and one red at the bottom of the chassis. Press on the red to lock the brake and press on the white to unlock it.

The basket is a fairly decent size, I managed to get a lot of bags in there on the last day of term, you know all the projects they have accumaulated over the school year. The one thing that hasn't changed is the bars of the frame that run across the basket, this adds to the sturdiness of the frame and I think it allows for slightly heavier baggage.

The adjustable handle definitely comes in handy with myself standing at 5ft 1 and Daddy Hazelden at 6ft, it was nice to be able to move the handle easily when we swapped and changed who was pushing. I would like to see some padding added to the handle, the square shape of it actually began to hurt my hands, especially when I had to push down quite hard to bump the pushchair up the kerbs.

The Seat

The seat unit is extremely spacious, my 3 year old had a little try in there and she was more than comfy and still had a bit of room to grow too. It is well padded and I like the added padding on the harness too. I have to confess to letting Layla eat in there when we were up the park having a picnic, panic not, the seat was easily wiped clean after, phew, there is also the option to remove the seat covers so that you can pop them in the washing machine.

The seat is so easy to recline, you only need the one hand to pull the lever on the back of the seat unit and the seat really does lie flat, ideal for both babies and toddlers. My favourite part about the seat is just how upright it sits. Layla likes to be nosey and I find most pushchairs are reclined slightly even when in their most upright position, so to be sat up properly makes a nice change. 

You can have it parent facing or forward facing, I much prefer having Layla parent facing as I like being able to talk to her face to face. I noticed that the seat unit seems to be higher up than previously, this is nice as I don't feel like I am looking down to talk to Layla.

The bumper bar is really handy. Not only have we been able to hang toys off of it to keep Layla entertained, she has also found it a lovely place to rest her feet and hold on to.

The hood is amazing. Not only is it extendable, providing great coverage from the sun, it sits quite high up as well, leaving plenty of room for your little one to grow. There is even a see through part so you can keep an eye on your little monkeys.

The Raincover

I was pleased to see that the raincover came included, I hate having to buy everything separately. It is also nice to see that they have put a lot of thought into the accessories as well as the pushchair itself. 

Easy peasy to put on the pushchair.  Just placing it over the top, pull down and place the elastic band at the bottom behind the chair. No need to fiddle about with loads of velcro parts, no trying to stretch it over the frame. It fits perfectly, yet still leaving plenty of room for your child to move in the seat underneath it.

The Fold

I love that the folding and unfolding of the Loola is still the same as when I previously had this pushchair. It is uncomplicated, put the handle to it's lowest height, pull up on the buttons just below the handle and push up the pedal at the back of the chassis. The great thing about the Loola now is that you can fold the pushchair with the seat unit attached in either forward or parent facing mode. The only thing you need to rememember if doing it when in parent facing mode is that you need to recline the seat a little first. It really is as compact as they say, we managed to fit it into our zaffira no problem.

Conclusion

So would I recommend this pushchair to other parents, yes I would. It has so many features that make it very practical. The fact that it lies flat means that you can indeed use it from birth but it is also nice that there is the option to buy the extras, like the baby nest, the car seat adaptors and the carrycot. It is a great every day pushchair that will last your child from birth right up until they are around three years old. The only real negative is the heaviness of the frame but I don't think anything can be perfect and in this case, the positives certainly outweigh the negatives. 

Disclaimer :this pushchair was sent to me free of charge as part of being a Maxi-Cosi reporter however all thoughts and opinions are my own.