First time mum - Seat Ibiza/Arona or Skoda Fabia Estate?

[threemonthstogo]

Hello wise Mumsnetters, I'm six months pregnant with my first baby and would appreciate opinions as I am a bit lost with my car search!

I was looking at a Seat Ibiza but I've seen on here that with a rear facing car seat you have to push the passenger seat right forward? It will mostly just be me using the car with the baby but there may sometimes be a passenger so I am a bit worried about that. Also I will probably be going to my parents fairly often as I'm a single mum so I'd like something which has space for bags and baby paraphernalia and concerned about whether it is big enough in general?

The other options I've been looking at are the slightly bigger Seat Arona and also a Skoda Fabia Estate which seems a bit daunting as I've never had an estate but perhaps a sensible option?

Any thoughts much appreciated!

Skoda Fabia Estate. Bets small family car ever with a massive boot and really reliable

I love my ibiza but one of my buggys doesn't fit without a tetris type configure I can't remember, I tried it outside the shop happened to get it right and after that never again without it causing a headache. It's not a big buggy

DD2 - a first time mum - has an Arona & is very happy with it. It’s not actually quite as big as it looks! (iyswim)

Fabia estate is probably lovely, but personally I always prefer a car with a bit of height - so much easier to get in & out of, also easier for fiddling with baby seats etc, & a much better view out.

I recently bought a Fabia Estate, I'm in Ireland, it's called the Fabia Combi here and has a slightly different spec but the dimensions are the same. I bought mine brand new.

I have an 11 month old and the big boot was the main selling point. It's great to be able to fit the buggy in and still have plenty of space for other things. It was really put to the test when we went on holiday a few months ago and the boot held everything we need. It has a few little nifty storage spaces which are handy as well. Easily held buggy, travel cot, a few suitcases and other things.

The back seat seems plenty spacious to me. My daughter has a hip condition and needs a specialised seat which has fitted in with no problems and the passenger seat still has plenty of room. The one and only time I had three passengers with her the back seat was a little tight but it doesn't happen often enough for to be a huge consideration.

I had never driven an estate car before but I don't notice the length at all. In fact it's only 20cm longer than my previous car, a hatchback. I suppose as estates go it's pretty tidy.

I guess it probably is a boring car, it's nice to drive but nothing special. I feel it was a sensible choice for this stage of my life!

I had a Fabia estate when my dc were 3 and newborn for a few years. Rear facing wasn’t such a thing then (my dc are now nearly 8 and nearly 11). I loved it. It is small car, but with a big boot. It’s not a big estate like an Octavia or Passat. It feels like a small car to drive, and I had no trouble parking it. I only changed it because it was a company car, and the lease came to an end. I would have replaced it with another one if I had had the option. During the time I had it, I had a Seat Ibiza estate as a courtesy car for a couple of weeks (it was in an accident, not my fault) which was very similar. No real notable differences; the boot may have been a little smaller, but this was 2011, so current models may be different.

Thank you everyone - that's very useful! Think I can at least narrow it down to Arona or Fabia Estate from this - it seems like the Ibiza will be too small, I see they don't do an estate version anymore.

@GiantKitten does your DD find the Arona big enough for all the bits she needs?

Very helpful to know the Fabia Estate doesn't feel too big either, it does seem like a good option.

We have a Seat Ibiza. We have one child, soon to be two. Our DS hasn't been rear-facing in the time we've had it but it's true that car seats are bulky. Having said that, there is plenty of room in the back for an adult, in my opinion, alongside the car seat - possibly not a six foot tall adult but an adult nonetheless.

As to boot size, part of the reason we chose it was because it has a substantially larger boot than most cars of similar size such as Toyota Yaris, etc. But I would think carefully about what kind of pushchair you get. An umbrella fold Maclaren just fits in the boot but there isn't a huge amount of room for anything else - you would have an easier time with the kind that folds from top to bottom, if that makes sense, like a Bugaboo Bee. Definitely try your proposed pushchair in the boot before buying - either the pushchair or the car .

It is an umbrella folding one that doesn't fit in my ibiza, my Aldi special fold in the middle one fits fine

I bought a new seat leon last week. Was looking at the Arona and salesguy told me they were just an Ibiza with a high roof and have no more room inside than Ibiza. Not sure how true this is but he put me off it anyway 🤔

Also meant to say my Ibiza was fine with first baby and my pram but when I had my second baby 21 months later and needed double pram I changed to Ibiza estate and loved that big boot. That might be an option for you?

@threemonthstogo

GiantKitten does your DD find the Arona big enough for all the bits she needs?

She certainly does at the moment

The baby is 7 weeks old & they have a Bugaboo Cameleon with a Maxicosi isofix seat - everything fits in fine. They came to stay with us for a couple of days last month & the carrycot part, & moses basket, both fitted in the boot; everything else was in the back of the car - no problems.

Today she had the baby in the car seat & 2 other adults in the car, buggy chassis in the boot, misc paraphernalia in there somewhere too & plenty of room for all.

You'd be best test driving all your options. As derryrose says the Arona is an Ibiza with a taller body, so driving & parking it will be the same, but it feels a lot more spacious inside with the extra headroom. (Standard size cars have a lot less space above shoulder height.)

I had an Ibiza when my son was born. Did us fine, a lot of long distance visits. Fab car that was, I loved it.

Thanks everyone, that's super useful to know. I will go and test drive soon and take my buggy along (an Uppababy Vista, which I've very fortunately been given by my best friend who no longer needs it so don't really want to splash out on anything else!)

Really appreciate all your advice, a big help.