Hello,
I currently own a 99 Vectra Estate, and I'm very happy with it. However my wife and I recently had a new baby son - this completes our family (foot down this time ;)) and I'm now wondering about the plausibility of fitting 3 children in the back of the Vectra.
We have a 3 month old - very small car seat at the moment and not a big problem, but will soon need the next stage. We also have a 4 year old - larger seat, more room. Finally we have a 7 year old - booster seat only.
As things stand it's difficult getting them comfortably in the back seat - particularly for my 7 year old as he ends up squished in the middle.
Are the new Vectra's and Mondeo's wider internally these days? Or should I chuck in the towel and start looking at the likes of the Sedona or Zafira?
All comments welcome.
Kind regards,
Cyrill666
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www.inglebybarwick.com
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Fiat multipla and a disguise for the family? You should be able to get three across without much bother :-) Mondeos have got bigger. They're now 5'11' wide. The rover 75 is pretty wide, I think it weighs in over the 6' mark across the mirrors. Citroen c5 estate is also enormous. I can't remember how wide the hatchback felt but it seemed pretty large when I sat in the back of one. The overall width may not be so crucial but the shape might be. If you have a car which goes in towards the roof rather than being slab sided it is going to feel smaller and make the kids feel squashed even if the exterior dimensions are reasonble. Volvo 850 is probably worth a look as it is still a good brick shape rather than a newer curvier model.
Alternatively take turns to leave someone behind ;-)
teabelly
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It might not be overall width, but shape of seats. I have a Scenic, great family car etc, with 3 separate seats. However, the shape of them do not lend themselves to having booster seats or car seats on them so would be worth physically checking the 2 seats and child across any car before buying it!
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OK, I'll remember your comments. Thanks very much for your help.
Kind regards,
Cyrill666
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www.inglebybarwick.com
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We have a vectra and 3 kids aged 13, 11 and 9 who just about manage to rub along ok. (Even when we drove to through France and Italy all the way to Rome.)
We have been looking for something a bit bigger but as we're well short of spending major money on big Audis and Mercs we may well look at a Peugeot 607 later this year.
If you're considering a people carrier there are quite a few Japanese import Toyota Estimas (Previas) which offer enormous ammounts of space and drive quite nicely. People I know with them swear by them.
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Stackman - Pug 607? No! No! No! Not especially spacious, though big, but there are so few around at the moment that main dealers want comedy prices for them (£10k+ at three years, the same as a nine month old Omega), but in three years' time they'll have no prestige whatsoever, the main dealers won't be interested and you'll be looking at £1500 tops.
A new or nearly new Mondeo or Vectra will lose far less money, and even a second hand prestige motor will cost you less than a same age 607.
As for the original question - getting three young kids in the back of a new car, I have no idea but something like a new Mondeo or Skoda Superb is definitely a lot bigger inside than an old shape Vectra.
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We have a V70, this has effectively three rear seats as there are the two normal (large) seats, plus a clever integrated child seat between them which pops out of the central arm rest. Excellent all rounder too.
Stu.
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How about a nearly new Omega? Wide & cheap. but then I would say that wouldn't I?
Spam ( 2 omegas) Can....;-))
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My partner has a Citroen Picasso. This has 3 full size rear seats allowing you to fit 3 full size baby seats in the back - we have managed when looking after friends kids.
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The middle seat in the zafira is not really a proper seat, as in the citreon picasso or renault scenic.
I chose a a scenic because it has isofix brackets in the two outside seats as standard. isofix britax seats are around £150 each and worth there weight in gold, solid as a rock and can also be used as a standlone seat, no fiddling around trying to buckle the car seats in tightly. The middle seat is a proper seat that can be moved forward a good few inches if needed or removed completly.
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