Looking for a family car. Suggestions if you don't mind!

[gailjon]

As someone who has been through that issue of children and dogs, I can't stress enough how important it is that you get a car with really flexible seating and a higher seating position.

Putting the children into a car, rather than an mpv/suv is a pain and the ability to move individual seats around makes a huge difference to the flexibility of luggage, etc.

We had a new E class estate which was large on the outside but a pain on the inside with its low seating position, and fixed rear seats. Our present Q7 is much better with 7 seats and all seats are foldable and movable individually.

Now, the Q7 is expensive, but any car that has a higher seating position and 7 individually folding and sliding seats makes a massive difference to your ability to transport the family around.

We also have had an Alhambra (Xcellence model with the auto 167 bhp diesel) and it was a fabulous family vehicle.

As I have already suggested, something like an S Max might be great as it is slightly neater in size than the Alhambra/Sharan but offers the same flexible interior bar no sliding doors. I really feel that for a young family with a dog you should look at a vehicle designed for that role.

 

[ahar]

S-max or similar for three car seats. I loved my Octavia, the Superb is ... superb and I currently have a Skoda Kodiaq which has 7 seats and is also great, but a sliding door and 3 full size seats to fit 3 kids in is probably best.

 

[Terminal_Boy]

5,2 and newborn is a tricky one, as thats the full size seats. I have the last gen XC60, and i can get 2 seats and a booster, or 2 boosters and a seat in, but ive chosen narrower seats and they are all belted rather than Isofixed in. The xc60 is a smidge wider than the Superb when i tried them both.

Have a look at the CRV aswell, they have 3 individual seats.

Another vote for the CRV as a “does what it says on the tin” family car. Crazy amount of cargo space with the rear seats folded flat. Mine doubled as a removal van for both my daughters when they moved into and later out of uni digs.

2WD 1.6TDI manual model which averaged 45 mpg.

 

[Mike9000]

Could likely get three smaller sized seats in my CRV (mk4, 2013). Not enough room with the large isofix seats I have in there at the moment though, but expect it’d be fine with narrower seat bottoms.

 

[Tinders]

Very very few cars will accomodate 3 iso fix seats, maybe a van!

 

[gort]

We've been looking around for a while for similar, at present only the one little nipper to faff around with but planning for the future and keeping our next car for many a year. Had settled on an Octavia but having recently seen the Karoq I think I'm being swayed. Love the Varioflex seating idea.

 

[gailjon]

We've been looking around for a while for similar, at present only the one little nipper to faff around with but planning for the future and keeping our next car for many a year. Had settled on an Octavia but having recently seen the Karoq I think I'm being swayed. Love the Varioflex seating idea.

My wife has a Karoq and it ius fantastic. The sliding seats, and event he ability to remove the centre rear seat entirely and have two 'captain's chairs' is awesome. The car is quiet, smooth and a pleasure to drive.

She has the 1.0 118 bhp DSG and I am always impressed by its refinement and smooth driving.

The SEL model has all the kit you could want, and the beige leather sets with the emerald green paint is a lovely combination. She is already talking about getting anew Karoq when she comes to change in the next few months.

 

[SkodaMart]

3 kids and a dog?
Citroen berlingo job done

 

[gort]

My wife has a Karoq and it ius fantastic. The sliding seats, and event he ability to remove the centre rear seat entirely and have two 'captain's chairs' is awesome. The car is quiet, smooth and a pleasure to drive.

She has the 1.0 118 bhp DSG and I am always impressed by its refinement and smooth driving.

The SEL model has all the kit you could want, and the beige leather sets with the emerald green paint is a lovely combination. She is already talking about getting anew Karoq when she comes to change in the next few months.

Good to hear. Only thing is finding a used one with heated windscreen (love it on my Ford)! Not many around.

 

[turbot1984]

Last gen 5 series Touring, bags of space, good to drive and economical, even 3 litre diesels.

 

[xs2man]

Last gen 5 series Touring, bags of space, good to drive and economical, even 3 litre diesels.

I had one of these. And it was a struggle even fitting my petite wife in the back alongside 2 kids seats using ISOFIX, never mind trying to fit 3 kids in seats in there. Otherwise I would have agreed.

 

[turbot1984]

I had one of these. And it was a struggle even fitting my petite wife in the back alongside 2 kids seats using ISOFIX, never mind trying to fit 3 kids in seats in there. Otherwise I would have agreed.

Yeah we had a Honda CRV when the nippers were small, now there's a practical car! Handy having an SUV for that reason.

 

[xs2man]

Yeah we had a Honda CRV when the nippers were small, now there's a practical car! Handy having an SUV for that reason.

Yeah, Had a CRV also. Was a mk2 I think though? Anyway, was okay. But the rear seatbelts were a proper nightmare. The kids were always pulling them out as far as they went when plugging themselves in. Which meant the ratchet on the belt started, and the only way to get it off was to retract the belts fully. Which meant winding them off the seat. Which wasn't so easy after they had retracted themselves as far as they could automatically. So you had to try and "squeeze" the car seat out of the belt. Apparently its a "feature" of the seatbelts. But seems like a feature specifically designed to infuriate people. Another "feature" of the belts were that the rear belt buckles were "floppy", so just on a bit of belt, rather than anything more solid to push against. Which meant the kids couldn't do up their own belts (and they are 6 & 8 now). So we had to climb / lean over them to do their belts for them, despite being old enough to do them on their own in every other car we've had (and I like changing cars reasonably frequently). Handy as you like, space wise. In day to day use with the kids, we found it terrible. So sold that on sharpish (within about 6 months).

Our Seat Alhambra, on the other hand, was brilliant as a family daily. Wee tables in the back for the kids. 3 ISOFIX seats on the middle row. 2 ISOFIX seats right at the back if required. Loads of space. All seats completely removable turning it into basically a van. And no horrendously annoying "features" to try to contend with every day. Honestly, if VW or SEAT had actually bothered to update it in the last 10+ years, I might have bought another rather than the VW Caravelle I now have for the family daily.

 

[~Divine~Wind~]

Skoda Superb

Estate! oh my

Or if you fancy a 7 seater the Kodiaqs are deffo worth a shout

Very very few cars will accomodate 3 iso fix seats, maybe a van!

Front passenger seat isofix is speccable on the Skodas for £45

 

[gailjon]

Front passenger seat isofix is speccable on the Skodas for £45

But then the other half has to sit in the back.

Hey, there is an upside!

 

[Tinders]

I have to say, my good lady, after 3 kids, was not as petite as she once way, so getting 2 full size seats and her in the back would have been as tough as getting 3 seats in the back!

 

[~Divine~Wind~]

Dont forget the Kodiaq has a 7 seat option