Is a people carrier the only option for 3 small children?

[jenrendo]

We are moving back to the UK in a couple of months. DH will lease a car through his work benefits scheme and is currently looking at the Skoda Octavia estate. We are due DC2 in August but would like to have another DC quite quickly afterwards. He would have to take on a lease for a minimum of two years. Should we really just look at MPVs or are there any estates out there that can fit 3 car seats in the back for children under 4? What are your experiences?

Due to the amount of stuff you will have to carry I would look at the van based people carriers, Bongo, Nissan VWT4 etc

Thanks! It's more the car seat issue really. I know we will need lots of space....we also have a dog. DH is concerned that all these vans don't have side air bags for the two back seats and that 3 seats won't all fit in a row. We currently live in Canada and the vans here are so much bigger and more comfortable. it was a bit of a shock looking at what's available in the UK! I suppose we will just have to visit a few showrooms when we get back to see what's available :)

Would side air bags be safe for kids?????
Our range of vehicles is very poor and expensive compared Canada

Hmmm now I wonder. The Peugot 5008 has them. Not sure how old the child would need to be. Interesting point!

Hmmm now I wonder. The Peugot 5008 has them. Not sure how old the child would need to be. Interesting point!

We had to get rid of our Octavia estate as couldn't fit 3 car seats across the back. Ended up with a Renault MPV

I have a CitroënC4 Grand Picasso.

It is one of few cars which have there full seats in the back. DC are huge teens, and fit nicely. I haven't tried car seats in, but I reckon it would be an option.

It's spacious but drives like a smaller car.

VW Sharan has loads of room and the safety ratings are very good.

I think you'll just have to go to a car showroom with 3 car seats. We had the same problem but quite a few years ago & bought a VW Sharan. There is a Ford equivalent, they just have slightly different styling. Some estate cars look as if they are wide enough & the interior measurement is wide enough but due to airbags etc you can't actually fit 3 in. The Sharan used to have integral car seats as an option, we had those, they were brilliant (shows my age).

Thanks for your replies. You would think a car manufacturer would have thought of this problem! We are still investigating....my friend has a Volvo V70 with 2 kids in boosters and a large seat for a smaller child. Any experiences? Her children are 6, 4 and 2.

Our 308sw Peugeot at one point had a booster seat, baby seat and level 2 seat for a 4 y o in the back. The 2 litre version is very nippy.

Huge boot, too.