Owners of Mazda 5 - please talk to me about your carseat configuration!!

[FanjolinaJolie]

We are looking at getting a Mazda 5 and wonder how many carseats you can fit across the middle row as that is how we'd use the car most of the time.

What is the most number of carseats and/or basic boosters and types which you have safely fitted in the middle row?

We have a Mazda five and from what we understand, the middle seat in the second row should not NOT be used for children. The middle seat is quite hard and uncomfortable anyway.

You wouldn't be able to fit a car seat in the two outer seats and then fit one in the middle as it's a fair bit narrower.

If we need to carry 3 kids we pop up one of the rear seats. We only use the middle seat if we're 7 up.

Mazda refer to the Mazda 5 as a 2+2

Ah. Yes. WONDERFUL car. Only became a slight flaw once we had a third child.

I don't really see why one 'shouldn't' use the middle seat for a child, but you can't with a car sear - too narrow.

But for my skinny arsed 10 yo, in between two screaming younger kids, it works OK.

When we went to France though, we decided we couldn't subject him to 24 hours in the middle. Put all our stuff in a mahoosive roofbox and set him up in one of the boot seats and plugged in his laptop etc. He was vv happy with that.
There is a legal loophole about not having to have a third carseat if it won't fit (and lots of cars have this problem, not just this car).

But, if I knew then what I know now, I would have bought a Ford Galaxy instead. or a Volvo XC90

A shame because the sliding doors are FECKING BRILLIANT...

Thanks for that info Vulpusina. I love the look of the thing and the slidey doors. But we are trying TTC #3 so I could see that we would have to employ one of the boot seats on a full time basis and therefore lose half the boot in the process. If we went away on holiday we would need the full boot space.

DH would refuse a car-box I fear. And he also doesn't want a Galaxy/S Max either. In fact he is being quite unrealistic and thinks that is a good reason for not having 3 children. OK.

'tis a dilema