Micralite Toro Review
All stroller reviews- Introduction
- Seat design and function
- Child Safety Harness
- Hood or Canopy
- Handle design and function
- Storage
- Wheels and Brakes
- Fold mechanism
- Manoeuvrability
- Size
- Accessories
- Conclusion and Rating
Review by: Annabel
Introduction
The Micralite Toro is the second release from the UK based design company who brought us the Fastfold back in 2003. The Toro retains many of the characteristics which make the Fastfold such a great stroller -the large rear air wheels, the fantastic one handed steering, and of course the super 'fast fold'. What the Toro offers in addition is a bucket seat that reclines close to horizonatal and a larger hood that offers improved sun protection. The really good news is that the Micralite team have managed to accomplish this with few compromises to the original design.
Seat design and function
Seat fully upright.
Seat fully reclined.
Seat adjust mechanism.
The Toro has a well supported bucket style seat that suits children from about 4-6 months (a bassinet can be purchased for use from birth). The seat is a good size, although the knee to heel measurement is on the short side (once a child's legs are too long for the footrest incorporated into the seat, they can rest them on the black plastic support, although I found this still a touch short for my small 3 1/2 year old).
The seat reclines by squeezing together the two black levers on either side of the back of the seat and then pushing these down the frame. Both sides need to be squeezed simultaneously, so two hands are needed, but the mechanism works effortlessly.
The seat has three positions -upright, and two levels of recline. As you can see from the photos the full recline is very adequate for a child to sleep comfortably.
The front bumper can be released to make it easier to get a child in and out of the Toro. The bumper however uses the same attachment points as the hood, so each time you release the bumper, you also release the hood. I found this fiddly to do each time we used the pram, so I removed the bumper altogether.
Seat dimensions
Depth: 20 cm (7.9 in)
Height: 47 cm (18.5 in)
Width: 25 cm (9.8 in) at bottom of seat back, 35 cm (13.8 in) at top of seat.
Knee to heel: 18 cm (7.1 in) to bottom of seat, 32 cm (12.6 in) to plastic footrest
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Child safety harness
The Toro has a slightly different harness buckle to other strollers. Each side clips neatly into the centre buckle, and a button in the centre releases the harness. My mother who has arthritis in her hands finds this system much easier to undo than the average buckle you have to squeeze to release. The buckle sits on top of a padded piece of fabric so that it does not rub on a child's skin.
There are two slots for the shoulder straps to come through, and harness pads on each which velcro on and off so as to enable easy adjustment of the straps.
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Hood or Canopy
Hood with mesh sun visor flipped out.
The Toro has a nice large hood that provides good sun protection. It includes a mesh sun visor that folds out when needed for added protection when walking into the sun. The hood works silently and can be removed if required. There is no viewing window in the back of the hood.
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Handle design and function
Handle at highest position.
Handle at lowest position.
Handle adjust screws.
In order to adjust the Toro handlebar up and down two screws need to be loosened with an Allen Key. Once the handle is loose the left and right handle grips can be pointed up or down, but the middle of the of the bar does not move. The handlebar is covered in a soft foam which is comfortable to grip, and the ability to place one hand on the very centre of the handlebar makes one handed steering easy.
At times I found the handlebar to be too close to the back of the pram and leaning forward meant that my arms were a little strained. I overcame this by twisting the handlebar the entire way around so that the left and right grips pointed at me (rather than away from me). This gave me extra stride room and made the pram more comfortable to push.
At their tallest point the two side grips are 109 cm (42.9 in) tall, and 86 cm (33.9 in) at their lowest. The centre of the handlebar stays fixed at 95 cm (37.4 in).
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Storage
No rear access to basket.
Undo straps for side access.
Easy access with seat reclined.
The mesh underseat basket is small and although it is deep enough at the back, it becomes very shallow at the front. When fully loaded I was nervous that my items would drop out of the front.
Access is from the side, and a strap with press stud needs to be undone first. I found I could leave this undone so that I didn't need to keep doing it up every time I accessed the basket. There are no problems with access when the seat is reclined.
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Wheels and Brakes
Air filled rear wheel.
Front swivel wheel.
The large air filled rear tyres are 30cm in diameter, whilst the front swivel wheels are 14.5cm tall. The close placement of the rear wheels to each other makes going up and down steps easy, although I tended to kick the rear wheels if I walked with too wide a stride.
Brake disengaged.
Brake engaged.
I remember loving the brakes on the Micralite Fastfold, and fortunately those on the Toro are exactly the same. The brakes work in a fairly standard way, you just kick down a bar with your foot to engage, and kick the bar back up to disengage. It is something about way the bar flicks down so easily and engages so positively that makes the brake so easy to use. Once in place the brake works very well at holding the Toro stationary.
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Fold mechanism
Fold buttons.
Squeeze levers and push down to open.
The Toro has much the same fold as the Fastfold. By squeezing together the levers at the back (after first depressing a third button to release the primary lock) and then pulling these levers up the frame, the front wheels come in towards the rear wheels so that the pram folds in an upright position. The wheels sometimes need a little flick to ensure they are facing the right direction and a small push on the seat unit is needed to click it into the locked position.
The Toro stands when folded and can be wheeled around on its large rear wheels, which is a very useful feature. To unlock, squeeze the small black levers that adjust the seat and push them down the frame until the pram locks open. The seat will then be completely reclined, so the black levers then need to be raised again to put the seat back into an upright position.
The Toro is a very neat and compact unit when folded, especially when the rear wheels are removed.
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Manoeuvrability
The Toro manvoeuvres extremely well both inside on smooth surfaces and outside on uneven ground. The centre handlebar provides excellent one handed steering, and the large rear wheels absorb bumps well. The narrow rear wheel base is perfect for going up and down curbs or stairs, and being able to flick the Toro back onto the rear wheels makes this pram more robust than its size would suggest.Back to top
Size
The Toro is a medium sized pram. It provides a good compromise between a large full featured pram and a small lightweight stroller. The Toro is a little on the wide side, although having the widest point out in front makes manoeuvrability through tight spaces easier.Dimensions
Unfolded
62 cm (24.4 in) wide
72 cm (28.3 in) long
96.5 cm (38 in) high
Folded
41 cm (16.1 in) wide
42 cm (16.5 in) long
96.5 cm (38 in) high
Weight
9.3 kg (20.5 lbs)
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Accessories
Zip in raincover
Bootcover
The Toro comes with a boot cover, zip in rain cover and wheel pump included. It can also be purchased with a bassinet for use with a newborn. Optional accessories include a seat liner (in plain and prints), sun mesh, Winter Warmer (footmuff) and travel kit. An All Terrain Kit, which includes two large air filled tyres to fit to the front of the pram, is also available.
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Summary and Rating
Pros
- Stands when folded
- Can be wheeled around when folded
- Large rear wheels take uneven ground well
- Excellent one handed steering
- Easy seat recline mechanism
- Fast and easy fold mechanism
- Fantastic brakes
- Easy to use harness buckle
Cons
- Can kick wheels when walking
- Need Allen key to adjust height of handlebar
- Basket is shallow and access is limited
- Bumper attachment point shared with hood making bumper fiddly to take on and off
- Handle placement not as ergonomic as it could be
Conclusion
Many people will say that it is impossible to find one pram that will suit all situations. Prams that go well over rough terrain are too big to put in the car, and lightweight strollers are awful for any kind of serious walking. The Micralite Toro, however, does a mighty good job of being a little bit of everything. The closely spaced rear wheels handle bumps and even steps with ease, whilst the centre handlebar provides excellent one handed steering. It may not be the smallest stroller on the market, however the compact fold and moderate weight mean there is plenty room left in the car boot for groceries, and the way it stands when folded makes it easy to store out of the way in the home. The Toro is an excellent choice for anyone searching for that elusive single pram that can do everything.Rating
Overall Rating(out of 5)
Seat Rating
Harness Rating
Hood/Canopy Rating
Handle Design Rating
Storage Rating
Brakes Rating
Fold Rating
Wheels Rating
Manoeuvrability Rating
Accessories Rating
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