Junior Jones J-Carbon review

The J-Carbon is the brand’s premium model, with Junior Jones promising an “innovative, durable” pushchair that “performs exceptionally well and sets you apart from the crowd”.

Junior Jones is all about luxury and innovation and the J-Carbon, at £2,100, sits at the very top-end of the pushchair market.

It promises the ultimate in style and functionality, with superior handling, wheels, suspension, detailing and material. It makes much of the “first of its kind” carbon fibre components that combine strength and durability while keeping the pushchair lightweight.

Our review delves a bit deeper, to find out whether it is indeed the perfect combination of innovation and looks.

Tested by:

Sarah Dawson is a freelance journalist who lives in a small village in Leicestershire, with her husband, their 3-year-old son Wilfred and 6-month-old baby Edie.

She tested the Junior Jones J-Carbon pushchair with Edie, putting it through its paces with trips to the shops, walks with her pre-schooler along bumpy country paths and even a rather muddy, off-road day out to a farm.

What were your first impressions of the J-Carbon?

My first impression was that it looks so cool. It’s super-sleek and stylish – this is the kind of pushchair you want to be seen pushing around.

How does the J-Carbon compare to other pushchairs you have tried - and other pushchairs in its market?

There are other high-end pushchairs with a 4-figure price tag. The Bugaboo Fox 2, for example, has an RRP of around £1,049 depending on configuration (£1,029 on Amazon), and the iCandy Peach Designer Collection Cerium costs £1,300. The Mima, Stokke and Cybex e-Priam ranges also require a top-end budget. But not many break the £2,000 threshold. That is usually reserved for high-profile collaborations, such as the Silver Cross Surf Aston Martin special edition (£3,000).

In addition, many of those high-end buggies come as a whole package that includes the carrycot and other accessories. For the J-Carbon, you need to pay extra.

It's also worth noting that it is not the first to offer the strength of carbon fibre. Belgian brand Invictus, for example, has a carbon fibre edition that costs £1,599. But it has a very different look to the J-Carbon with a more modern and futuristic look.

With my first baby we used the Joie Chrome (£339.97 on Amazon) travel system, so there is a huge price difference between this and the J-Carbon’s £2,100 price tag.

I’ve always felt the Joie Chrome is an excellent budget option, but the J-Carbon is streets ahead when it comes to style, ease of pushing, steering and durability. Our Chrome has taken a battering and is on its last legs after one child - the J-Carbon feels made to last in comparison.

Why is the J-Carbon so expensive? What are the brand’s reasons for this, and do you think the price tag is justified?

The J-Carbon is the Junior Jones’ premium product at £2,100 (for the basic package) - and by far the most expensive. The Junior Jones J-Spirit, for example, costs £679, while the compact travel buggy J-Tourer is £299.

So, is the J-Carbon’s £2,100 price tag worth paying? Contrary to what the brand claims, it is not the “first ever” carbon fibre pushchair, as brands such as Invictus also offer this material.

However, the material will definitely appeal to design- and style-conscious parents. Not only does it make the chassis very strong and lightweight, it looks sleek and seductive. The use of carbon fibre also means that it should last for far longer than your average pushchairs.

In addition, a lot of research, development and design know-how has gone into fine tuning the ‘TRU-RIDE 2’ system that creates the brand’s “Effortless Push Experience”. This includes a great investment in getting the ball-bearings, suspension and tyre material right to reduce wear and tear and ensure the handling of the buggy doesn’t deteriorate over time.

It is obvious that a lot of craftsmanship has gone into every tiny detail of the J-Carbon - from the luxurious feel of the fabric to the ‘JJ’ tread design of the tyres. You can also customise the stroller, so it feels bespoke - although some options cost more.

There’s no denying the J-Carbon looks and feels like a luxe, premium pushchair, with little to fault.

What age is the J-Carbon suitable for?

The J-Carbon is suitable from birth to 22kg, so it should last well until school age for an average child. It’s great that you can adjust the height of the hood to accommodate a growing child - this is definitely a feature that only a few pushchairs offer.

Your baby should be in a lie-flat position in your pram for the first few months, and although the pushchair seat does recline, a newborn should be transported in a carrycot with a firm base. You will need to buy the carrycot for the J-Carbon for £235.

Does the J-Carbon come with a carrycot?

Unfortunately, the J-Carbon doesn’t have a carrycot included, but you can buy it separately for £235. It is suitable from birth to 9kg and comes in matching fabric colours and with adaptors that you can also use for a selection of car seats.

I didn’t try one out, but it looks very cosy and comfortable with its own Junior Jones mattress, and is suitable for occasional overnight sleeping - fantastic for weekend trips.

How comfortable is the seat unit?

Usually I have a bit of a battle getting my baby into a pushchair seat, but she absolutely loves the J-Carbon, and I’m sure it’s down to how comfortable it is.

It has a great headrest and it’s really easy to adjust the strap height – you take off the back panel which is held in place magnetically and slide the harness up and down. Honestly, this gave me so much joy in not having to contend with the typical fiddly strap adjustments.

My baby has plenty of space in the seat, with room to grow. She particularly liked the carbon fibre bumper bar to hold on to (and bash).

How many recline positions does the the J-Carbon seat have?

The J-Carbon has 3 seat recline positions, which you can change by pulling up the handle on the back of the seat and moving it forwards or backwards.

How is interacting with your child when using the buggy?

The seat can be either front- or rear-facing, so when your child is facing you it’s perfect for talking to them and pointing things out. My 6-month-old thought it was hilarious to stare at me as I pushed her around, so if your baby is as easily pleased, you’re sorted.

When facing out, you can also check on your baby through the ventilation panel in the hood.

What is the hood like?

I loved the J-Carbon’s hood. My pet hate when it comes to strollers is a hood that doesn’t pull forward enough to properly shield the sun (or to block out the surroundings when my baby needs to rest).

The J-Carbon hood can be extended to 3 different levels, and at its longest extension I provides plenty of shade. It makes no noise when you pull it back or extend it. You can also unzip one section of the hood to uncover a ventilation panel which also serves as a peekaboo window.

It’s great that the hood can be raised or lowered depending on your child’s size. This is a great feature, as hood height can become a problem as toddlers grow. Again, it is really easy to adjust the hood height by moving a lever behind the back rest panel

How does the Junior Jones J-Carbon fold? Is it really one-handed?

The pushchair can be folded with the seat attached, and the seat facing either way. This is really useful as it can be a pain carting around a pushchair base and chair separately, especially on public transport.

If you’re using the pushchair with a carrycot or car seat you will have to remove these before you fold the frame down.

As with most pushchairs, you need to get to know the individual quirks of folding. It’s not the most intuitive fold, but once you’ve done it a few times you get used to it.

It’s marketed as a one-hand fold, but I wouldn’t class it as such. A true one-handed fold should be executable while holding your baby or toddler in the other arm, and I am not sure this is easily doable with the J-Carbon.

The fold has quite a few steps:

• Pull the foot rest up to the seat.
• Lift the handle on the back of the seat and fold this down towards the chassis, until it clicks into place.
• Twist the centre of the handlebar towards you firmly then collapse the handlebar down towards the wheels.
• Unzip the basket and then press the button underneath to pull the wheels up so the pushchair is folded.
• Click the smaller front wheels into the brackets, so the pushchair is freestanding

I found that the front wheels frequently un-clicked from the brackets, usually when I was carrying the buggy, which was a bit of a pain.

How compact is the J-Carbon when folded and unfolded?

The J-Carbon’s folded dimensions are L58cm x W32cm x H67cm, which is not bad for a full size pram, and is comparable to competitors that fold in a similar way, give or take a few centimetres. The iCandy Lime for example folds to L70cm x W30cm x H62cm and the Babystyle Oyster is L71cm x W37cm x H57cm when folded.

The J-Carbon fold is not as compact as models where you detach the seat first, but it’s great that you can store it in one piece and that it is freestanding.

Does it fit in the boot of your car?

It would fit in even the most modest of boots, and we had plenty of room left in our VW Touareg.

How light is the Junior Jones J-Carbon?

The J-Carbon weighs 9.7kg, which obviously can’t compare to some of the lightest travel buggies out there. But for a full-size pushchair with a reversible seat that’s not bad, as many of its competitors weigh well above 10kg. I had no problem lifting it in and out of the boot and carrying into the house.

How easy is it to push and steer, and what is Junior Jones’ TRU-RIDE 2 Technology?

This is where the J-Carbon really shines. It feels effortless to push and steer. It boasts ‘TRU-RIDE 2 Technology’ which the brand describes as “a combination of PU polymer tyres, superior bearings and bespoke tuned suspension”.

Many brands offer PU tyres, superior bearings and suspension, but Junior Jones has invested a lot into getting those three elements to work perfectly together. For example, the brand spent particular attention to getting the exact grade, hardness and surface finish of the tyres right, so that they can work in perfect harmony with the other elements and don’t degrade over time.

This fine-tuning reduces the chance of wear and tear, so users of the J-Carbon should find it pushes as well as a new one throughout its life, even after years of use.

I certainly found that this is an absolute dream to push.

How does the J-Carbon handle on different surfaces?

Pushing the J-Carbon feels sturdy, lightweight and smooth. Going up and down kerbs was easy, and I even put the pushchair through its paces on a trip to a farm park.

My baby seemed very comfy and I didn’t have any problems managing the bumpy grass and mud, even when we had to speed off when chased by an angry turkey.

What do you think of its wheels?

I thought the J-Carbon wheels were excellent. They are made from PU which is more durable than EVA tyres.

They are puncture resistant and are perfectly calibrated to work with the suspension and ball bearings. It is all about engineered to last, the brand says.

Is the frame strong, durable on the J-Carbon?

As the frame is made from carbon fibre, it is very strong and durable as well making the J-Carbon light to push.

Can the J-Carbon’s handle bar be extended? What did you think of it?

Is it weird to be obsessed with a handlebar? I am.

The J-Carbon’s handle bar is also made from carbon fibre and is ergonomically shaped, which makes it look sleek and feels very nice to touch.

It’s also great that the handlebar extends from 99cm to 112cm, which is a fantastic range. The lowest setting was the perfect height for me, but it’s useful that this pushchair is also suitable for much taller parents. It’s also easy to adjust the handle bar, you twist the centre of it away from you to adjust the height.

How effective are the brakes on the J-Carbon?

Again, huge thumbs up for the brakes – they are the best I’ve encountered on a pushchair. They are in the perfect position, flip-flop friendly and you hardly have to use any force to click them on and off.

Also, once they are on they feel very secure – this pushchair wasn’t going anywhere, even with the force of my preschooler behind it.

How easily can you access the basket and is it big enough to store everything you need?

The basket is easily accessible from the front and the back. It’s a decent size, comfortably fitting my change bag, my son’s coat and 2 water bottles. You could fit 2 bags of shopping in easily.

Can the J-Carbon be used as a travel system?

The J-Carbon is car seat compatible with a range of Group 0 car seats from Cybex, Maxi-Cosi, Recaro and Besafe, so there is a great choice. You will have to buy adaptors to use it with a car seat (£30), but they are included with the carrycot, if you’re planning on buying that.

How did you like the look of the pushchair overall?

I am obsessed with the look of the J-Carbon. It’s the coolest looking pushchair I have ever seen. Everything about it is luxurious, but in a sleek, stylish, modern way. This is the kind of pushchair that would grace the coolest Instamum pages.

There are five different colour options, ranging from the classic Graphite Black to the fancy Bombay Rust.

What are the customisable options, and how useful/appealing is this feature?

As with many pushchairs, you can choose and coordinate the colour of the fabric - get matching hood, seat and carrycot. You can also choose the colour of the hard back panel of the seat, choose clear or spoked wheels and whether to have a PU or a carbon fibre bumper bar.

It’s a bit disappointing that you have to pay an extra £50 for both the carbon bumper bar and the back panel - at an overall price of £2,100, it might be nice to include these.

What’s in the box?

• Chassis
• Wheels
• Seat
• Back panel
• Harness pads
• Raincover
• bumper bar

What extras are included with the Junior Jones J-Carbon?

The J-Carbon comes with a rain-cover, but all the other accessories need to be bought. These include car seat adaptors (£30), extra seat liner (£40) and a variety of cool change bags, such as the Jessie for £110. You can also get the brand’s universal sun canopy (£20) and insect net (£20).

Again, it is a bit disappointing that the brand doesn’t include any of these accessories in the basic asking price. It would be nice to get some of these for the initial outlay of £2,100.

How easy is it to build the J-Carbon?

I’m notoriously rubbish at any form of DIY, so I was pleasantly surprised to find this very easy to assemble. You click the wheels in place, then click on the sides of the hood. It took me five minutes.

What would you have wanted to know before you purchased the pushchair?

I was quite surprised by how easily the carbon fibre scratches. I haven’t been careless with the pushchair. In fact, I’ve tried to protect it more than I ever would with a cheaper model. However, some of the frame is already scratched slightly.

What was your favourite feature?

My favourite feature is how the carbon fibre chassis looks and feels. It’s cool, unusual and built to last.

Is the J-Carbon worth its price tag? Would you recommend it?

This is a really difficult question. There’s not a lot to fault when it comes to the J-Carbon, but £2,100 is a significant amount considering you have to buy the carrycot separately. I find it hard to justify such a massive price tag.

But having said this, it really is an innovative product, looks stunning, gives my baby the comfiest, smoothest ride, ticks all the safety boxes, such as great harness and brake. It has a three-year warranty and is built to last. This is a pushchair that can be passed down from child to child.

Where can you buy the pushchair

The J-Carbon is available to buy from Junior Jones.

MadeForMums Verdict

A super-stylish pushchair that offers amazing comfort for your baby, as well as boasting all the safety features you need for true peace of mind.

It’s ideal for parents who have a large budget and want exceptional quality, with impressive design features that make its pushing experience best-in-kind. Yet, we are not sure whether these impressive features add up to the £2,100 price tag.

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