2 adults and car seat in back?

[markamericana]

Hi there - I'm weighing up at the moment whether to buy an Octavia or a Superb - I really don't need the extra space of the Superb, as lovely as it is, but I will need to from time to time make a fairly long journey with 2 adults in the back plus a 2 year old in a child seat.  Can the current Octavia comfortably do this?  They're not big adults (both about 5'8") but I realise it might be a bit of a stretch.  Any advice gratefully received.

[waaar]

Yes it's possible but not in comfort. I have a rear facing car seat (in my Octavia) for my 2 year old daughter, there's plenty of room for one adult alongside her, two would be a squeeze.

Edited 7 January, 2016 by waaar

[pipsyp]

As above.

A Superb would be better but note its not that much wider...it'll be better but "comfortable"....not sure to be honest. Will depend on the child seat too.

[glosrich]

If its a forward facing seat, put it on the front passenger seat with the airbag turned off, by the glovebox key switch.

[waaar]

If its a forward facing seat, put it on the front passenger seat with the airbag turned off, by the glovebox key switch.

Not recommended for a young child, plus you won't be able to use isofix.

[glosrich]

Also the rear seat cushion does not go right up to the door. There is a hard plastic panel.

I'd advise taking your child seat to the dealer and have a test.

[skyjawa]

I can get 2 adults and a massive Britax car seat in the back of my 3 series touring but it's a very tight squeeze. The wife's Octy has much more interior space than mine so should easily be doable but not tried, doubt it would be very comfy for much more than a short journey though.....

[Paulius55]

We can get 2 moderate adults and 1 isofix seat in the back with no problem, and we have had 2 child seats with one adult in the middle for one journey, but we had to switch from isofix to seat belt for one of the seats to move it sideways a few inches.

[octavianestate]

I would say it's a tight squeeze unless the adults are small. The octavia is a narrow car. Our brittax car seat tool up a lot of space in the rear which did not allow two adults to have much space. Ok for a short journey but not much fun for them on longer trips.

[markamericana]

Thanks very much for the responses, really nice to be in a friendly car forum.  Cheers.

[hobbie2k]

I've done this exact thing. Two adults and a toddler on a road trip to, and around, Kangaroo Island. It was okay, but did get uncomfortable after a couple hours. Car seat in the middle so the adults can lean away and you should be fine. Have a few breaks to stretch, swap seats occasionally, don't expect limo-like space and it will work. On the plus side, the Octavia has good leg and foot room which helps.

Pick the car that works best for you the majority of the time, not the one that works best a few days a year.

[markamericana]

Thanks for that, good advice.  I really won't need the space 95% of the time so if it's doable I'll probably cope.

[pipsyp]

Its a toughy.

Both my wife and I have taken turns in our Octy sitting between our two....its hard work....firstly shoehorning in (which really requires two sets of hands)....pretty quickly the discomfort sets in.

If you are v slight then it may not be too bad but a regular size adult will struggle on journeys that are any real length/duration.

Im not an advocate of sitting young children in the front but given the airbag can be disabled and its not illegal then its an option. Only issue can be seat bolstering.

Our Octavia Elegance has glorified deck chairs so a child seat fits very well....my GTD seats are so heavily bolstered I cant fit either of our seats properly so would never use it that way.

So it really is a case of accepting considerable discomfort, placing a child in the front with the airbag off or accepting that with two child seats the Octavia really does become a 2+2.

To do this properly you need a mid size SUV/MPV with 3 dedicated rear seats or a car some considerable size (in width) bigger than the Octavia. Im not even sure a Superb 3/Passat would really cut it either TBH.

[Gabbo]

As others have suggested, I would recommend taking your seat & putting it into the Octy & Superb and sitting yourself for comparison.

Whilst the leg room in the Superb is quite a bit more, I'm not sure width wise there is that much difference

I've spent a few trips to the dealers doing a similar thing weighing up a change to the Superb.

 

I thought that Front Passenger ISOFix is an optional extra on the Octy though right?

Its perhaps a solution for minimising the risk of using the front seat for 1 or 2 trips a year.

[octavia5]

Remember the 2 year old will get older and bigger and move up to a booster seat which should give you a little more room in the back so the problem should diminish over the life of the car.

[biglunn]

Just bought an Octy - our 2 year old is in a very large forward facing Cybex Pallas Fix 2 seat, and 2 adults next to him would be a squeeze. In theory there appears to be more than enough width across the back, but the the isofix points seem more inboard (to centeline of car) than they need to be, giving some space between the child seat and door but robbing space away from the centre seat.

 

Lal

[markamericana]

I can't actually find anywhere that says the current Octavia model has front passenger seat isofix as an option? (with the airbag turned off)

 

Thanks again for all your advice everyone, really helpful. 

[Rodge]

The middle seat is very narrow with a lot of wasted space next to the doors. With a large child in one of the side seats there isn't much space left in the middle. Considering how much wider the Octavia is than my old Focus I'm disappointed by the available width in the back.

[gullyg]

The middle seat is very narrow with a lot of wasted space next to the doors. With a large child in one of the side seats there isn't much space left in the middle. Considering how much wider the Octavia is than my old Focus I'm disappointed by the available width in the back.

 

No proof but I suspect it's a safety measure in case you slide into a pole or get t-boned.  I've noticed the same myself, considering the car is a good bit wider than my last there's still not a huge amount of space for three at the back.

 

Still the 3rd seat is supposed to be occasional I suppose.  This is the reason everyone with kids seems to buy mpv or suvs :(

[markamericana]

Interestingly although on paper the Superb is about 10% wider, according to http://www.automobiledimension.com/car-comparison.php once you take the wing mirrors out of the equation the difference is much less signficant, 186cm to 181cm.

[io1901]

According to the Elbow width on Skoda's website the Superb is 1 mm wider than the Octavia in the back (1450 mm and 1449 mm respectively.)  Something like a Sharan would give you the extra width as elbow room is 1578 mm . Some of the larger 4x4 have a bit of extra width as well. e.g. X5 - 1525 mm.  Q7 1561 mm.  That extra little bit can make things a lot easier (ie. doing up the seat belts can be fun!)

Edited 11 January, 2016 by io1901

[airscool]

Sounds like you need a family trip to the stealers.

:-)

[io1901]

Sounds like you need a family trip to the stealers.

:-)

 

We found that actually trying the vehicles was the best way - as some that seemed bigger on paper seemed smaller in reality (if that makes sense!)