Micralite Super-lite Fastfold v’s Micralite Toro

I am the first to admit I knew very little about Micralites before these two were sent for us to try out. I am not professing to be any kind of expert on Micralites but the names used to confuse me – the Super-lite, Fastfold, Classic etc. They all just looked very similar!! It confused me even more when one of our Micralites is a “Super-lite Fastfold!” so having done some research, there currently, in 2012, appears to be the Super-lite Fastfold, the Toro, the Classic and these will soon be joined by the Twofold. The basic chassis / wheels / handles / basket are similar on all the Micralites, except the Twofold, which is a single to tandem option for one or two children due out in Autumn 2012.

The Super-lite Fastfold pretty much does what its name implies. Its a very light, very fast folding pushchair. Great for public transport because of this, but also it freestands (as do the other Micralites) in a very small space when folded. On one of our test runs, we took the Super-lite Fastfold on some narrow gauge trains and the Super-lite Fastfold fitted perfectly in the narrow space between the seats. The Super-lite Fastfold is a more basic pushchair with a mesh seat and just two recline positions. There are however comfy liners and really snuggly footmuffs to go on the Super-lite Fastfold, and given its summer at time of writing, we have appreciated the cooling mesh seat.

The Super-lite Fastfold Classic – appears to be the same as the Super-lite Fastfold apart from the fabrics / seat. The Classis has a durable fabric seat with a ventilated back panel, and a colour coordinated hood.

The Toro is different to all the others because it has a framed seat – more like say a Bugaboo Cameleon, except that the frame is attached to the chassis. The seat fabric can be removed to add on a car seat or carrycot. The seat moves as a whole up and down to give several recline positions including a lie flat one. The footrest is also adjustable. We would definitely advise that the Toro would be more suitable for a younger child than the Super-lite Fastfold. Although the Toro may look bigger, the seat actually pretty much fits within the folded chassis space meaning that it doesn’t take up much more room than the Super-lite Fastfold. In fact, as the photos show, the Super-lite Fastfold actually has a bit of a lean on it when stood upright, whereas the Toro stands very upright, so they probably essentially take up similar floor space. The Toro folds in the same way as the Super-lite Fastfold but it just needs a little more coaxing shut – but its still pretty quick!! The Toro is slightly heavier but at 8.5kgs is still very light for a quality pushchair.

To be honest, if your need is not for something ultralight and fast folding, I would recommend the Toro for the seat unit. I think its clear from the photos that each of our children were comfortable in the seat units. I am not very keen on the recline position of the Super-lite Fastfold, but I see the Super-lite Fastfold as a travelling or day out type of pushchair – probably more for an older child, rather than a main pushchair. For outings like these, to be honest you accept the negatives to have the positives of a buggy thats light, easy to push etc and any recline to be honest is a bonus on this type of pushchair.

Overall I was very impressed at the quality and thought that has gone into designing these pushchairs. They look a little odd when you first see them, but Micralites work really very well and we have enjoyed having them here at Best Buggy.

Many Thanks to Micralite for the loan of their pushchairs.