Reviews for Valco Tri Mode Twin double stroller

I bought this stroller when my second child was born in 2006. We live in Center City Philadelphia and I was looking for something that could hold a newborn and a 2 year old, and carry them for some 2+ years, do well in any type of terrain and weather, hold up for daily use and abuse for several years. Before this I used a Eddie Bauer travel system (Graco like) and wanted something more sturdy. Now it is also handling my third kid. To adjust from 2 to 3 kids, we got the car seat adapter, the toddler seat and hitch rider accesories. Used the car seat adapter the first 6 months (will be selling it soon since I am no longer using it), and now we have been using the toddler seat. Tried out the hitch rider but never got it installed in a satisfactory way, so haven't really used it. My 4 year old (Lucia) and baby (Ramon) sit in the stroller, while my 2 year old (Miguel) sits in the toddler seat. Sometimes my 9 month old baby also sits there, and both LOVE it! Anybody that we go by kind of stares at us.. I figure it is because it looks so fun and cool. We still use the stroller on a daily basis to move around the city for kids activities and it is still in very good condition. This is a well engineered product. My husband is not too fond of it.. he calls it "The monster", but I think deep down he LOVES it as much as I do. I am not a runner so cannot speak to its cross training use, but it is a great stroller for a brisk walk. What could be better?: a bit shorter (the big front area kind of gets in the way at times if you take it into a store; better underbelly compartment (my Eddie Bauer stroller system that I got for my 1st child has a more accessible space); the winter muffs are too short; the sun shades do not cover enough (if they could move forward all the way their size would not matter, I just put hats on my kids); some type of lock for when the stroller is folded to make it easier to pick up; run flat tires (just kidding!). This stroller has 'bike like' tires and I have gotten at least 6 flats so far since I first got it in 2006. I get it serviced in the neighborhood bike shop. I plan on using it for another 2-3 more years and I am pretty sure it will hold up. Yes it is not cheap, but I think you get what you pay for.

After exhausting research of specs and on-line comments (thanks to everyone), I felt it only fair that I contribute on why I chose the Valco. We have a 21-month old and a 3-month old. It is a dream to push but so are the BOB, Baby Jogger, and Bumbleride Indie Twin. I chose the Valco because it allows the child to sit more "straight-up" than both the BOB and BJ. Lies almost flat for sleeping, unlike the BOB. More storage than the other 3 for all day outings, in my opinion, but like others, middle bar on the under carriage bin is a pain (can't get a soccer ball into it.) Good knee-to-foot length, unlike the Bumbleride. My son would have been out of that in 6 months (nixed it right away because of that). Good head clearance for canopy. My son was already hitting the top of the BOB canopy when we tested them. Although there is a way to increase the height, you then lose the ability to extend the canopy all the way. The BOB canopy was then similar to the Valco. Better fabric and cushioning on the seats than the BJ and BOB. I bought this stroller against my husband's wishes - he was very adamant. He thought it was too expensive, bulky, etc. and told me that he would never use it. After 1 outing to the park and mall, he is a total fan and thanks me every day for buying it. Don't get me wrong, it is big and heavy as others have commented but he and I enjoy it so much, we haul it in and out of the minivan daily. As a stay-at-home dad, it is his every day stroller. My toddler gets in it himself for outings. He never did that with his Graco or Maclaren and had demanded to walk everywhere. No more fighting to get him in a stroller. With all the accessories that I purchased (a rain guard is included), there really wasn't a price difference between the Valco, BOB and Baby Jogger. Don't let the initial price put you off. BTW for those purchasing accessories, the snack tray is not compatible with the car seat adapter. Although, the car seat adapter does come with a single bumper bar.

After MUCH online research, we purchased this stroller after the birth of our second son. It fits both my newborn and 22 month old perfectly, with room to grow. Although I do not have much actual stroller experience to compare it to (except our Graco, which isn't a fair comparison), I believe this is one of the best, if not the best, twin stroller available. I did not purchase the car seat adapter because I didn't think it would be necessary since the seats extend almost flat. I was right. Our newborn rides and sleeps very soundly in the reclined seat. It steers like a dream and fits almost anywhere. The look of this stroller is unbelievable and definitely draws attention and comments. The only cons we have found are 1.) The instructions are horrible. Although it is very simple to assemble, the instructions are confusing. As another reviewer noted, skip the portion regarding the real break axle. It simply doesn't exist. For an item of this price, I would expect more detailed instructions outlining all of the bells and whistles. 2.) The bar dividing the storage basket is a nuisance. Again, this has already been mentioned, but worth writing about again because it is really annoying. The storage is ample, just hard to access. I purchased the Skip Hop Double Duo bag to attach to the handle and absolutely love it. Definitely a must have with this stroller. It is heavy, but I have not found the folding and lifting too daunting. The locking mechanism is a must have feature on a stroller of this size. It is pricey, but I would definitely recommend this stroller and would buy it again.

How else can a mother get out of the house with three babies/toddlers who are 19 months apart?? I bought this twin trimode with the 3rd seat and LOVE it! We took our kids to Disney World (ages 2.5, 2.5, and 4) and this was truly a lifesaver. It steers well, rides well (no complaining children), and has enough compartments to hold the necessities. I also recommend the third seat canopy, snack trays rather than the safety bar, and the rain cover to fit over all three. It is a heavy unit and doesn't fold down very compactly, but those are tradeoffs for a well-made, comfortable, and fairly easy to steer stroller. Wait until you see the looks you get when you drive this thing! I am sad that my oldest is now outgrowing this and will probably sell it to another lucky soul. I only gave it a 4 star rating due to its weight which could pose a problem for smaller and/or weaker individuals.

I LOVE the looks of my blue/orange Valco Tri Mode Twin and the fact that I can load my twin babies and toddler (in the jumpseat) all in one place, and the fact that it rolls over anything. What I don't like is how heavy the stroller is, how difficult it is to fold & unfold, how big it is when folded (takes up the entire back of a Sequoia) and the fact that one of the latching straps that hold the stroller closed broke immediately. Our parking brake also stopped working and one of the seats won't stay up--always in reclined position. The bottom storage compartment always folds inside out and needs to be pushed back in to close completely. For something this heavy, they also should have installed hand brakes for jogging downhill with three kids in it.

I just recieved our twin tri mode double stroller, and it is lovely! I picked up my son from school and it glided through the door with no bumbing or hassling... other parents are going to definately throw some business your way!! Nice.. nice nice stroller...I also want to mention that my four year old approves of the todler seat.. he thinks he's hot stuff. good job.

Overall nice stroller but with some flaws. Pros: 1)Fits through standard doors. 2)Good amount of storage 3)Sunshades are adequate and are very adjustable. 4)Looks good (we got Scarlet) 5)Lots of accessories for upgrade (We only got the diaper bag but the accessories look nice. I don't know if they will be practical and pan out but they are available.) 6)I like the aluminum footplate and think it will be durable 7)I like the belly bar for the kids because I don't always strap the older ones in. I won't buy a stroller that doesn't have one. I don't like the ajustable feature. When the kids climb over it the locking mechanism fails and it moves. 8)Overall this stroller appears to be well made. Cons: 1)Poor instructions. Doesn't explain the features well. Also, is based on a previous model so most of the instructions (especially for the rear axle assembly) don't apply. They instructions seem to be an afterthought. 2)Adjustable handle. Sounds good but is not. If the stroller is loaded and you need to lift the front wheels to get up a curb then the handle will fail. The locking mechanism is not strong enough to use the handle to push down and get the front wheels up with kids in it. 3)Stroller folding. It is fairly easy to fold but has 3 problems. First, it is sort of a hassle to unfold it. Second, you can't leave anything in the bottom storage when you fold it. Everything will fall out. Also, there could be a handle to pick the stroller up with while it is folded. 4)Price. Expensive stroller. 5)Rolls well but not as easy to push as our Instep Safari. 6)Not sure how well the locking mechanism for the sunshades will hold up (connecting the shades to the stroller). Adjusting the sunshades puts a lot of stress on these and when assembling the stroller I had a hard time getting the sunshades to stay locked in place. In conclusion: Well built but some of the adjustable features are not necessary and will probably break in the future. For the money you cannot beat the InStep Safari. The only problems my wife has with that stroller are that it is difficult to get through some doors and the sunshade doesn't fold down far enough to protect the kids when the sun is in front of the stroller. But you can buy 3 InStep Safari's for the price of one Valco Baby Twin Trimode.

I have wanted the Valco Tri Mode double stroller for about 1 1/2 years because of the toddler seat accessory . I have 1 yr old twin boys and a 4 year old daughter. I wanted to be able to take them all for daily walks. I finally got my husband on board and we received the stroller about a month ago. It seems very solid and sturdy, has pockets and storage galore, and my boys seem to ride comfortably in it. I wish the sun shades provided better coverage like on the BOB strollers we looked at. It is very heavy compared to our INSTEP jogging stroller . We had it for 2 days and the left rear tire tubing blew a huge hole in it. So we only used it twice and then had to wait a week for Valco to send us extra tubing. Valco sent us a replacement tubing and an extra free of charge due to the circumstances. We were glad they send us an extra because one of the replacements was leaking as soon as we put it on. We replaced the tubing a second time and have been successfully using the stroller for about two weeks with no other problems. The jury is still out because my toddler seat is on back order and I haven't used it yet with all three kids riding. This is why I wanted the Valco stroller over other strollers on the market that were less expensive. So in order for me to be really happy with this one, the toddler seat has to live up to my expectations.