are there any small cars that will take 3 child seats in the BACK?

[fillyjonk]

I do want safe seats, ie WHICH top ratings, and acc to nice mothercare man who laughed at our car, that means slightly wider seats (all the padding? not sure)

it would be 1x booster, 1 x toddler 1x newborn to start with.

any thoughts much appreciated. I really don't want a big car. There is no way we can keep ours as it has a lap belt in the middle and we just can't get 3 seats into it anyway.

oh and I don't want kids sat in the front.

Bump bump bump this one - would so appreciate finding a decent car that'll fit all 3 in and still have room for a 2 parents - are we so rare??? Currently only the Toureg (Chelsea Tractor) will fit them in safely and comfortably. BMW 3 series - no chance, get even get an adult in the back with 2 seats. Why oh why aren't they built in???

We get 3 in the back of our Skoda Octavia safely. It is a squeeze!!!! But ok. We've got 2 toddler seats and a booster high back, but we did have toddler, booster, newborn.

Bump bump bump!

Like I said, try the Skoda Octavia.

ok to ME an octavia is a Big Car

I have a fabia, and am sold on skodas generally but-an octavia is big.

wanted smaller

thanks for info though!

We have a citroen picasso - dont know if you think that is big and our 3 fit perfectly. The back seat is actually 3 separate seat units so is great. We have ds's 10 and 6 and dd 1 - all 3 seats fit comfortable in the back. Hope that helps.

i'm afraid i DO think its big

I can nearly get 3 seats in the back of the fabia, i just need an extra 3 inches really

i am suprised there are no suitable cars that actually pass basic safety tests (ie NOT the multipla much as i'd loveit otherwise

Think you will find it tough to fit 3 seats into something @ the size of the fabia - we tried and ended up with the picasso.

Why dont you want a big car - is it price or space for parking or what?

no its lack of confidence in driving, tbh. I really don't like driving big cars. Its also price of petrol, environment etc.

But the big one is that I just don't feel confident driving big cars. I have done it lot and lots of times (through work) but really don't feel happy with it. I am horribly aware that I am statistically more likely to kill someone

citroen c4, astra, focus, these all have quite wide seats.

slimmest fitting car seats (as well as safest) in my experience for those categories are:
maxi-cosi cabrio/ silver cross ventura/ britax cosytot

then:
Priori or tobi, def NOT the evlova as its huge, as is sc explorer, and bebe confort iseos.

boosters:
Britax horizon if no back needed, if high back needed: rodi, britax high back (can't remeber the name now as they keep changing it!) or if space is really tight the graco logico l has come out ok in tests and has a v small footprint. Also if you have s mothercare nearby you could check out the new sc navigator- exclusive to mothercare atm but that is also easy to squeeze into the space.

We often find that if there is a probelm with space in a car a 0+ car seat with a base (graco autobaby) might fit better than one without a base. Take thee down to a fitting specialist- halfords, mothercare or an independant nursery shop and ask them to try every imaginable combination!

Astra definetly does as Dh has a 3door work astra and we went away with one of each of the seats.

Katylui1 I'm sure there are other cars out there that fit three kids in the back other that the Behemoth you mention.

We have a Yaris and can get booster plus 2 baby seats in the back.

Believe it or not fillyjonk I am the same and I have never found an easier car to drive then the picasso out of all of the other cars we had - I can actually reverse park in it becuase I am higher up I have a much better view of everything. Just a thought.

I have a toyota yaris, which has 3 good sized seats and 3 seatbelts that go across the sholder. I will only have 2 seats in my car so dont know if it will fit 3 but worthna look.
l

thanks all

am tempted by focus, thats small

obv problem is that I have to buy the car first, then find out if I can fit seats

am very suprised there is no website giving this info, really .

Please you wont regret going to a reanult dealer and take a Grand scenic for a test drive. Its got a very short nose. We are from South Africa and I was so scared to drive in the UK because of the narrow streets, but you wont believe how what a differenc this car makes. It is higher so you can see better and it is so easy getting into narrow parking spaces. We have a 1.5 litre cdi diesel, very good fuel consumpsion and very powerfull. There is enough space for a double buggy and a single in the back if you dont use seats no 6 and 7.

if its worth knowing- our nanny has an '05 astra (new shape) and she has two sc explorers and a ventura- they all fit quite happily with no buckle crunch, dd will be going into another explorer soon and we've checked and it does fit- so at the very least the astra will be able to do it and its slightly smaller in length that the focus!

thanks nt,

thanks also for grand scenic reccomendations, will consider but money is also a big factor...

nt do you know how the mothercare seats do in safety tests? are they isofix?

Thoguht the Focus wassupposed to be a nightmare to get any seats to fit let alone 3 together!

Apart from their infant seat Mothercare ones generally do indiffernently at best

which mothercare seats? the 0+ did well if i can remember- but beware- it doesn't matter how well the seats came out in the which test etc. If they don't fit correctly and safely you won't see the benefits- its better to get three seats that did averagely but fit very well than the three best buys which rub together and have buckle crunch!

No take the car seats with you when you go to look. We did and the dealer was very helpful. Lisa

I get 3 car seats in the back of my renault clio

I get a britax renaissance (group 1)
britax highliner (group 2)
britax horizon booster cusion (group 3)... the booster cushion has to go in the middle

It is tight but its still a small car that fits 3 child seats in the back