new V40 purchase - 3 in back??

[Beavis]

i'm planning a new V40 purchase soon.
it'll be a second car as i run a large estate for major holiday trips etc.
but for short trips and where no luggage is needed i want to replace our Civic for a V40.
ialmost ordered one a few years back before settling on the Golf GTD. This was because i had 2 kids in high back boosters, and the rear flattish bench in the golf was more suited. i now only have one in a high booster, and the other 2 don't need anything.
kids are 13, 11 and 7 and are average-ish size.

i've read that rear seats are too tight for 3 adults. one review said 3 adults only on very short journeys.

just wondering if anyone regulary takes 3 kids in the back?
majority of time it'll be used as a 1-4 person car, but on the occasions we all want to go somewhere and leave my V8 at home, i want to know it'll cope.

we've got an appointment to view and test drive tomorrow, but know it'll be difficult in a short window of time to determine comfort for 3 kids in the back.

cheers.

[Beavis]

all sorted. was a bit smaller inside than i was expecting - especially in the rear.
should be ok.

[fattymunchkin]

Hi there, was wondering how it’s worked out with the 3 children in the back for occasional trips? I have a very similar situation & was hoping I could squeeze the 3 in for the odd short journey. Many thanks!

[Tannaton]

I've just done a business trip of 400+ miles in mine with 3 colleague - so 4 adults. I was nervous about it as one of them has a 5-series, the other a S6 Audi (the third a mini Countryman).

All of them complimented on how comfortable it was - which surprised me as I think the ride is harsh - but probably not compared to a M-Sport or S6. One asked me when it was going back as his wife might be interested - I had to point out it was 7 years old! (advantage of a private plate).

Only issue was we just got everyone's case in the boot.


So 3 kids should be fine...

[Beavis]

Originally Posted by fattymunchkin

Hi there, was wondering how it’s worked out with the 3 children in the back for occasional trips? I have a very similar situation & was hoping I could squeeze the 3 in for the odd short journey. Many thanks!

my kids are now 13, 11 and 8. we manage okay with it. tend to use the V40 for local town trips and my V90 for longer ones.
my 3 kids are "average sized kids". until recently the elder son would go in the centre, 2nd son on the outside and the youngest in a car hi-back Recaro booster seat on the other side. could just fit them in, although the eldest in the middle was a bit squished. changed the recaro booster seat to a Halfords Cushioned Booster Seat £12.99 which was a bit narrower at the bottom, but a lot more comfortable for his shoulders higher up and that made it more comfortable.
in another couple of months the youngest will be tall enough to lose the booster and she'll then go in the middle.

we almost ended up taking it on a 2000 mile trip for our annual holiday as i was awaiting delivery of my V90 and thought my Audi A6 was going to have been sold sooner than expected. I was searching for roofbox options as the box i have was too long for the roof. if i had been able to obtain a largish roofbox and bars for a decent price i would have probably taken the V40. As it happened, the A6 stayed a bit longer than expected so i took that.

in summary - yes you can fit 3 kids in across the back - even if one is with a booster. it should be fine for local trips - might be a bit tight if larger kids or longer journeys. its not as wide as a mk 7/8 golf , but IMO looks a bit better. boot is a bit small so luggage for 5 would be unlikely - hence our need for either a roofbox or my V90.