Maclaren Europe Limited Techno XT

...it soon became clear that Maclaren was a very popular choice. I bought one and found out why as Maclaren for me are the name in buggies - it turns out that the idea of the buggy was invented by one Owen Finlay Maclaren, a British ex test pilot and an aircraft part designer. Maclaren actual invented the buggy though their buggies (or buggys as their website annoyingly spells it) are much copied. I have to say it is a shame that the buggies are no ...
...now made in China. Maclaren is a British company though and aftersales service for all their buggies is, in my experience, excellent - on their webpage there is a link to licensed repair agents and main parts can be replaced and they are helpful if you ever need to call them as I did for a broken buggy snuggle zipper which was replaced with no problems.



On to this actual buggy - now when I bought my buggy I did actually ... more

When I was looking for a light weight umbrella fold buggy five years ago it soon became clear that Maclaren was a very popular choice. I bought one and found out why as Maclaren for me are the name in buggies - it turns out that the idea of the buggy was invented by one Owen Finlay Maclaren, a British ex test pilot and an aircraft part designer. Maclaren actual invented the buggy though their buggies (or buggys as their website annoyingly spells it) are much copied. I have to say it is a shame that the buggies are no longer made in the UK - the factory went into receivership in 2000 apparently, they are now made in China. Maclaren is a British company though and aftersales service for all their buggies is, in my experience, excellent - on their webpage there is a link to licensed repair agents and main parts can be replaced and they are helpful if you ever need to call them as I did for a broken buggy snuggle zipper which was replaced with no problems.

On to this actual buggy - now when I bought my buggy I did actually buy the quest, at the time I was torn between the Quest and Techno and I am sure that this would be the case for many a buggy purchaser.

I inherited a Techno however a few months ago so am now able to talk about the Techno, which I shall do and then draw some conclusions about the difference between the Techno and Quest which may be of help; if you are looking to buy a Maclaren there is currently about a £50 difference betweeen the two. The best price I could find for the XT was £165 from www.kiddicare.com or £165 via the link here on Ciao, they are more widely available from other retailers for the £200 mark.

The Techno itself:

The Techno is an umbrella fold buggy which is easily collapsible. It can be used from birth, unlike the cheaper models, as it reclines fully. The handles are height adjustable, the shopping basket is a useful size. It is easy to push due to the swivel (and fully lockable) wheels with supspension. For baby and toddler comfort the upholstery is nicely padded and their is a footrest for toddlers, the seat extends for baby feet. The harness is a five point one, which unclips nicely. There is a viewing window in the hood of the buggy and also the capacity to extend the hood for sunshade, and some useful pockets. The buggy upholstery is fully washable - I put the seat cover through the washing machine and it cleaned nicely with no damage to the reflective strips.

In actual use I find the buggy is easy to push and manoeuvre, and collapses nicely. The brakes work well and are fairly easy to use. The suspension seems to make a real difference to the comfort of my child, particularly when being pushed down a bumpy track as she is every morning! As mentioned earlier the buggy is second hand to me, passed on by a kind friend - it has had about 3 years use prior to my ownership and in all honesty it is as good as new. I am really pleased with it and would say that an XT is a much better choice than a "travel system" - if that is is your thing you can buy the XLR model which does allow for car seat attachment. For the price it is an excellent buggy. Much has been made about having buggies to face you and that is the reason why some people are shelling out much much more for Bugaboos and the like - in my opinion a forward facing buggy is fine if you actually talk and point things out to your children as I do - I have two chatterboxes. Chatterbox number 2 seems very comfortable and happy in the XT, and I would thiink it would last til the end of buggydom, hopefully next year some time.

Techno or Quest?

Now to come to the issue of quest versus techno - I love my quest, the only reason for me trying the techno being that it has taken a lot of abuse in five years. I am more used to pushing the quest, but have now used the xt a fair bit so here are my conculsions of what you get for the extra £50 or so, which could help a buying choice

- the techno is that bit more comfortable; the brakes actually work, which they don't really on the quest. Touches like the suspension are nice, bigger wheels mean it does glide along

- the techno is higher to push - by about 4cm, 108 as opposed to 104 cm handles. If you have a small car this may be an issue (a quest fits in a ka boot, a techno may not), or if you are me this may make the buggy less easy to push. I am not very tall, about 5 foot 5 and a half, and I actually prefer the height of the quest, even on the lower setting the xt is a bit tall. You should try both in a shop before purchase. This IS an issue as even my husband (who is similarly height challenged) commented that the XT was "too high".

- the techno is easier to push, slightly - I think this is due to the wheels being larger, however the quest's wheels are easier to clean as they are smaller and not ridged.

- the techno weighs 6.5 kilos to the Quest's 5.5 kilos and does feel that bit heavier do depending on the intended use of the buggy you should consider this point; the quest is less bulky overall so may be a better choice for taking on a 'plane for example.

- the techno's extra features like extra pockets and a zip off hood are a nice touch

My conclusion is that I like the Techno but actually I am quite loyal to the Quest - I can see where they spent that extra £50 and am enjoying using the Techno, but as a second buggy I marginally prefer the Quest. I am not a buggy addict at all (you may laugh but I have friends who have been through about 6 buggies in the time I have had one (rubbish) Carrera and a Quest), and I won't be buying another buggy - I shall continue using the techno probably in combination with my Quest which is a bit long in the tooth now.

Overall:

Overall I would say that the XT is an excellent buy - there are more expensive buggies out there, but I don't think you necessarily need to spend more to have a durable and very useable buggy. On all the evidence I have and through using the techno is a good and durable buggy and worth considering as a main buggy.

(a slightly edited version of this review appears in my name on dooyoo) 

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