Britax B-AGILE 3 Parent Review

Quick Summary: I do love the B-Agile 3 and the only niggles for me are the seat position. The pro's are the compact and easy fold, it's lightweight and easy to carry. The hood/canopy is amazing. For me it is a fab pushchair but it is not one that I would use for long-term due to the issues I have found with it.

First Impressions

If I am completely honest I was expecting to immediately dislike the pushchair as for some unknown reason I have a dislike for 3-wheelers, however the excitement of getting a shiny new pushchair and being able to assemble it was not entirely lost, the courier came and although she was an old school friend I had no time for chat, the door was closed... this was my time to play! 

I was surprised at how compact the box was and when I opened it and saw all the pieces I was beginning to doubt myself, however I found the instruction booklet informative and helpful and with a few simple clicks for the wheels and the hood, it was assembled! Malachi was asleep so I got myself acquainted with the folding & unfolding, checked out the raincover and had a push around our lounge- I immediately loved the handling... now I just had to wait for the boy to wake up so we could venture out.

First trip out, 19th October 2012

We took a trip to the local shopping centre to pick up a birthday present, I was so impressed with the compact fold and how little room it takes up in our car boot, leaves so much more room for shopping bags!

It was so easy to unfold and pop Malachi in, he looked comfortable in the seat and seemed to be enjoying his ride, after half an hour or so he did get a bit grumpy as he is used to having a bumper bar to help 'hold' himself up as he likes to have a nose, so I shall be investing in one of those soon.

It was easy to guide around a busy shopping centre, I did miss-judge the width of the back wheels and managed to knock over a display of wrapping paper- oops! 

On returning to the car I just loved the simplicity of the fold, its nothing like I have ever seen before and I am seriously impressed. 

28th October 2012

Here is Isabelle, my 7year old daughter pushing Malachi into our village on a wet day, she finds the pushchair very easy to push and is very pleased that this is one she can steer easily & see over the handles & hood, thumbs up from us all, so far!

31st October 2012

Trick or treat!!

Malachi and I had to escort his two elder sisters on their trick or treat trip, we all wrapped up warm as it was rather blustery outside. As you can see Malachi was a cosy pumpkin in the B-Agile, I had to quickly attach the raincover within minutes of leaving as there was a sudden downpour, it was simple and easy so Malachi did not get wet at all, he was asleep within minutes and even though I did not fully recline the seat he was very cosy and content. Another thumbs up!

2nd November 2012

We took a walk to see Malachi's godparents in the local village, my husband Dan took control of the pushchair, he is 6ft3" and struggled with the handle height, he would have preferred to be able to adjust it to a more suitable & comfortable height. He was however impressed with the handling over the bumpy pavements and maneuverability in the local shop.

3rd November 2012

We took a walk to our church which has a lovely river running behind it, the pushchair handled really well over bumpy gravel  and the wooden bridge, Malachi was very comfortable and enjoyed his trip, we had no grumbling even after two hours of being out and about enjoying the crisp November air.

5th November 2012

I took the B-Agile 3 into the village to pick up a chicken from the butchers and some chocolates for a friend, today I struggled over some of the cobbled pavements and lost control a couple of times which surprised me, this could be down to my lack of experience with a 3-wheeler though, only time will tell. I use a buggy organiser and mummy clips on the B-Agile but find that the chicken weighed down the handles so I moved it into the basket, there seems to be good basket space, there was a lot of room left even with a large chicken and 3 boxes of chocolates stored inside. Impressed!

14th December 2012

We took the B-agile 3 with us on our weekend away to good old Butlins in Bognor Regis, we surprised the children with a winter wonderland weekend, it was a rush to get them ready after Isabelle and Evangelines afternoon school Nativity performances on Friday 14th December, but once everything was loaded into the boot (amazing what we could fit in with the b-agile 3 in there too) we were off by 4:30pm.

We arrived to find that the hotel car park was full so my husband unloaded myself and the kids out, I quickly unfolded the B-agile and plonked Malachi in, he was more than happy with his seat! I managed to control the pushchair, fully loaded with his change bag, bottle bag and blankets tucked into the shopping basket, whilst carrying a travel cot and pulling a wheeled suitcase! It was easy thanks to the fabulous handling of the b-agile! 

15th December 2012

The b-agile was fab for nipping in & out of the lifts (our room was on the 3rd floor) and as the hotel was fully booked it was sometimes just as easy for one of us to carry Malachi and the other to carry the B-agile folded up/down the stairs if the lifts were too busy. 

Malachi very much enjoyed the view from his comfy seat around Butlins, when we watched various shows etc. I found it incredibly easy to maneuver in and out of the crowds and shops. 

The only issue we really experienced other than the handle height for my husband was the fact that the seat even on the highest level was still slightly reclined for Malachi and he kept attempting to grab the handle bar but sometimes looked a tad uncomfortable and I would have needed to loosen the straps for him which I didn't really want to do, until I found a rolled up a blanket and placing behind him helped him a great deal (see pics)

As you can also see our relaxed little chap has another use for the handle bar, he loves to use it as a footrest for nap times!!!

7th January 2013

So sorry for delay, Malachi had a horrible reaction to his 1year immunisations so we've been house bound for weeks now. He is still poorly but we have managed to get out of the house for short walks finally.

I have received the fabulous footmuff from Britax, its very high quality & a great size & fit. I love the fact that it has a zip fastening & also toggles too.

I have been focusing on the hood as we are off to Spain in three weeks & plan on taking the britax with us, so I took Malachi for a morning walk & he quickly fell asleep quickly & was so comfortable.

The hood & extension is fabulous. I think its the perfect choice to take on holiday as it has a light compact fold so is perfect for handing over at the boarding gate, and easy to unfold & fold.

26th April 2013

I took Malachi out for a quick walk, he hasn't been very well so we have not been out as much as I would have liked just lately.

Malachi fell asleep within seconds of us leaving, the seat was fully upright and again he seemed really comfortable. I am not usually a fan of this recline system with the straps either side but I have to say I think this one is very good, such a smooth recline and Malachi was not disturbed at all, I am also impressed with the seat size as on some pushchairs Malachi's head is beginning to reach the top & I've noticed when reclined his head will cause a 'bulge' in the hood but on this one he has a couple of inches so that gets a thumbs up from me!

28th April 2013

We took a walk to 'Grandma's house' for our Sunday Lunch, it's a nice walk which takes us around 30 minutes, we left at about 11:30am, Malachi was happy in the B-agile with his warm milk and we set off, within literally 2 minutes he was asleep! 

He looked pretty comfortable even though I had not yet reclined the pushchair, I believe this is because you can not actually have the seat in a full upright position, he seemed very content. 

I have mainly focused on the recline mechanism which is pretty easy and does not disturb Malachi at all. I find that it is pretty fiddly when you want to put it into a more upright position but its not a major hassle. 

We got a lift back from Grandmas and I was really pleased that the B-agile does not take up much room in an Audi A3 boot!

29th April 2013

I am impressed with the seat height and width on the B-Agile. Malachi has plenty of room both width and length ways and he is very tall for his age. 

I do not like it when there is a 'bulge' in the back part/hood when they are fully reclined but we do not  have this issue and he seems to have plenty of growing room left as you can see from the pictures.

30th April 2013

We took a trip to the post office today, I had a huge bag full of parcels. I used my mummy clips and am impressed that there is no 'tipping' issues with the B-Agile whether Malachi is in or out of the pushchair.

1st May 2013

We took a walk to collect the girls from School. I love the brakes on the B-Agile, just one push down mechanism on the right hand rear wheel, I also love the fact that there is a '2' way release, so you flick the lever underneath (not so great in sandals or for freshly painted toes!) and then you have to pull it back slightly before you set off again, its great to know that it won't just roll off if the brake was taken off by accident or by an older sibling.

2nd May 2013

Today we took another walk into the village and encountered some issues with some works being undertaken on the lamp-posts, large orange fence panels are overtaking pavement space and I found it incredibly hard to keep the pushchair on the pavement, I think if it had been a 4wheeler I would have controlled it much better but with it being a 3 wheeler I could only just about keep the rear right wheel on but the front wheel kept twisting so in the end I had to give up and wait patiently for a clear space in the road as there were no pavements on the other side on some points!!

4th May 2013

Today I was looking after a friends little boy whilst she had a Dr's appointment, he wanted to bring his toy motorbike and I  had no issue in fitting it in the car boot with the B-Agile.

The only issue we had when we went for a walk to the shops was when he was holding the pushchair, he kept kicking the rear wheel and almost tripping up.

6th May 2013

Bank holiday Monday and a long overdue family day out, we took the children to a local country park/woodland walk for a walk and picnic. 

It was extremely busy and very hot, I had good control of the B-Agile over the grassy areas but unfortunately when we got to the wood areas it was a very different story and at three points the pushchair very nearly toppled over to one side, which scared me quite a bit. If it wasn't for my husbands quick thinking it would have have definitely gone, he then took over and seemed to find it better to pull it on the two back wheels. 

And on the way back we let Malachi walk and we folded it down and took turns to carry it. 

You will see from the photos with Malachi sitting up that he is sitting up very straight, this is because I have only used the waist section of the harness as he likes to hold the bumper bar which enables him to sit up with a better view, otherwise he gets very frustrated if he cannot see properly due to the fact the seat is quite deep and not fully upright. I obviously reattach the shoulder harness section when we are off on long walks, but for trips to shops/school run I let him have a bit more freedom. 

Final Summary

I do love the B-Agile 3 and the only niggles for me are the seat position (not being able to position it fully upright)

The handle height and not being able to adjust it and the width of the rear wheels as I quite often get these caught in shops and the kids find these a pain when holding the side of the pushchair.

The pro's are the compact and easy fold, it's lightweight and easy to carry. The hood/canopy is amazing. 

I love the brake and the recline mechanism. It is sturdy and the weight distribution is fantastic and I love the basket size!

For me it is a fab pushchair but it is not one that I would use for long-term due to the issues I have found with it, plus my husband will rarely take control due to the handle height as can be seen in the photo...