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Cars that fit 3 seats in the back

37 replies

insanelycheerful · 13/04/2013 22:16

Sorry if this has been done before/to death (!!), but which cars fit 3 car seats across the back seat please? Currently thinking about TTC DC3. DC1 is almost 4 so in high back booster and DC2 is 2 and in a Maxi Cosi Priorifix.

We are looking to change our family car in the next few months, and although not actually TTC yet, I wanted to know which cars might be practical for 3 car seats given that we tend to keep a car for a few years and wouldn't want to do so now and then again in a year or so.....

TIA

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DoNotDisturb · 13/04/2013 23:40

Honda frv. They stopped making them in 2009 but there's a good second hand market. Three true seats in the back. I have 4.5 year old 2 year old and baby seat in the back.

Think the multipla is the other option in the six seater range.

Careful With seven seaters as lots don't fit three along the back so you need to put one in the boot seats.

Good luck ttc xx

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lougle · 14/04/2013 00:31

Ford Mondeo will fit 3 car seats if you choose a slim model such as Britax Prince

Ford Galaxy, of course.

The Britax Prince is handy because it's the slimmest seat on the market (at least it was 3 years ago) and, crucially, it can be fitted with either a 3 point harness or lapbelt, which means that you can put 3 abreast in a 7 seater.

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Clary · 14/04/2013 00:33

Citroen Picasso. Three proper seats which will take baby seat.

Ours has done 130,000 miles and is still going strong

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insanelycheerful · 14/04/2013 08:15

Great, thanks all for these suggestions! Smile

It would be handy not to have to buy new car seats as have already spent a small fortune on the current ones (maxi cosi ferofix and priorifix in 2 cars, and have the cabriofix with easybase for potential DC3) but may have to accept changing car seats as well as car in order to be practical....

Thanks for tip re 7 seaters too. Definitely don't want to have to use seat in boot for every day use if possible.

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ExhaustTed · 14/04/2013 22:45

Vw touran. It's ace, it takes three seats across the back, and two occasional seats in the boot. It's not too big. It's too cozy for 7 over any significant distance, but great for taking the grandparents too on days out.

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SirChenjin · 14/04/2013 22:51

Citroen C4 - we have 2 teens (one 6 foot, the other 5'5") and a 6 year old in a car seat. It was the only MPV we could see that had three full seats (all the others seemed have 2 plus a small thing in the middle) and wasn't the same length as the 7 seater we were getting rid of. You would have no trouble at all fitting 3 car seats in it.

I luffs it - and it has a fab huge windscreen so loads of light.

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jj594 · 15/04/2013 13:21

I have a Seat Alhambra (our second one). Fits 3 in the back comfortably and even with the 2 boot seats up there is still space for buggy etc. Same design as VW Sharan but cheaper!

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Scholes34 · 15/04/2013 13:24

Apparently you should be okay with a Swedish or French car, as they tend to have larger families. Our Peugeot 406 took three proper size car seats when we needed them.

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insanelycheerful · 15/04/2013 15:18

Thanks, all-you're brilliant!
Time for a bit of window shopping!!

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Happygirl77 · 16/04/2013 20:43

Ford S-Max - also has Isofix for the two 'outside' (window adjacent) seats. Our dc are 6, 3 and 1 so still in big seats and this fits all 3 across the back (plus 2 bonus pop-up seats on the boot).

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twooter · 16/04/2013 20:48

I would second an s-max.

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Suzieismyname · 16/04/2013 21:04

Don't get a Mondeo with those seats, there will be very little room left. Definitely not enough for an infant carrier as well as booster and toddler seats.
Toyota Verso is very practical and safest in its class when we bought it 2 years ago. We have the Ferofix and Britax Eclipse (toddler seat) and there is plenty of room for another booster so I would think it would take an infant carrier too. Only has 2 seats with isofix, but I think that's pretty standard.
We love the Verso because it doesn't feel like a massive car but will easily take 7. It is a compact MPV though, so the 2 seats in the boot wouldn't be comfortable for very long journeys for adults. I've managed an hour or so in them but wouldn't fancy a trip down to Cornwall for example.

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LimeLeaffLizard · 17/04/2013 10:26

My tip: remember to check there is enough room not just to put the car seats in, but to do up and un do the seat belt for the booster!

I also recommend the S-Max.

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mybelovedmonster · 17/04/2013 10:37

Careful with the Touran - it hasn't got isofix in the middle seat. You'll be fine with the ferofix as they're narrower than the seats, but the priorifix is wide and you wouldn't get it in there with other wide seats.

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insanelycheerful · 17/04/2013 10:40

I do like the look of the s-max and the grand c-max.
Also like the verso and just realised a friend has that so will have a look at his.

Re booster seats....DS1 is currently in the ferofix as mentioned above. But can he use just a normal booster seat, ie without the high back? Obviously I don't want to compromise his safety, but if he was in the middle seat would he be safe on just a booster seat? In guessing this would save on room? He will be 4 in a couple of months so would be well over 4, possibly even 5+ by the time potential DC3 arrives! Just to re-iterate, I don't want to compromise his safety, just considering options.....

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mybelovedmonster · 17/04/2013 10:53

Isn't the law changing on the booster seats soon (or have I imagined that)?
A 4 year old can be on a booster, but my 5yo is still in his ferofix because otherwise he'd be leaning over the back seat. Depends on the child I suppose.

I'd stick with the ferofix- you can retract the isofix bars and just use it as a high backed booster, can't you?

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NAR4 · 17/04/2013 14:06

I second the Picasso. This is what we had when we had three. Not very expensive, big boot and reliable.

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Beatrixpotty · 18/04/2013 16:06

I looked at Touran,Alhambra Sharan Galaxy etc & went for S-max,v happy

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littlepeas · 21/04/2013 22:37

We have a VW Sharan (the newer model, with sliding doors). I really like it a lot - very very practical and a good drive too. We have a priorifix, a rodi and an absolutely enormous erf seat across the middle row - easy peasy, plenty of space for the dc. Bear in mind that you will need to buy the polystyrene blocks to fit into the underfloor storage compartments, that most mpvs have, in order to use isofix seats safely.

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littlepeas · 21/04/2013 22:38

Oh, and check ncap - lots of the most popular mpvs aren't as safe as you would imagine for child passengers.

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insanelycheerful · 22/04/2013 14:30

Thanks again, didn't know that about polystyrene blocks and I will also be sure to check NCAP. So useful being able to check your experiences of different makes/models and also these extra details!!

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DoNotDisturb · 23/04/2013 19:05

Polystyrene blocks!?! What have I missed??

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alienbanana · 23/04/2013 19:21

I think in some cars you can just extend the isofix leg to reach to the bottom of the storage compartment.

DND - cars with storage compartments in the floor need a support for an isofix leg. You can't just rest them on the lid.

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JollyPurpleGiant · 23/04/2013 19:24

We have a Citroen Berlingo Multispace which has three proper seats in the back.

It does have underfloor storage though so would need the isofix extensions.

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Catbiscuit · 23/04/2013 19:36

We have a Mazda premacy. It's a normal size car but can fit 3 across back fine. We've had a stage 0, stage 1 plus high back booster, stage 0 plus 2 high back boosters and now have a stage 1 plus 2 high back boosters :-)

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