Baby on the way, what to do??

[Jimble]

Sooo we had the 12 week scan on thursday and everything seems to be going fine which is great, i said from day one that the R probably wouldn't be ideal for anyone with kids but i didn't think i might need to put it to the test so soon! we know it's still early days in the pregnancy but couldn't help having a nose round Mothercare, mama's and papa's etc and my god it's a minefield!! One thing that struck me though is the sheer size of some of the prams and travel systems, most of which will go in the boot of the R but would need to lie flat rendering the rest of the space pretty useless.
I've had a look around at a couple of different cars but keep coming back to the GTI but is that extra 5 inches in depth enough to make the change worth it or am i better off trying something else completely different or just keep the R?

Any advice one way or another would be great!!

[andrewparker]

People will tell you it's manageable but the only real way to tell is to try them out. We have an iCandy Apple pushchair and the boot level in our GTD has to be set to the lowest position to even get it in, and as you say it has to lie flat and more or less renders the remainder of the boot useless.

We ended up having to buy some VW roof bars and a Thule soft box for weekends away.

[Ginge 35Edition]

Jimble, can't wait to see you put roof bars and box on the R, definitely have to have an inters reunion for that one!

Great news though mate, congrats.

VeeDub ate bring out a twin turbo 240 diesel unit next year in the new passat, might be an option to keep you in family?

[AndyG]

Firstly congratulations.
We are just coming to the end of needing a pram in the boot.It does render the boot useless for anything else so the slightly smaller boot in the R than the GTI they have the same issues really.
I think yours is 3 door, 5 doors are better with a baby but I wouldn't swap if I hadn't had the car that long.You could say 3 doors are safer really as tha structure of car will be stronger at rear.
We only filled our boot doing the "big shop" so get it delivered now.
Just watch that you don't catch the rear bumper when getting pram out .

[C2K]

Passat/A4 estate tbh.

[Jimble]

Cheers chaps! quite like the A4 tbh so is one of the considerations, i'm pretty sure we could "manage" sticking with the R and a roof box has crossed my mind, storage might be a bit of an issue atm but may change soon but thats another story!!

Had a look at a Tiguan R-line but the boot is dissappointingly small, the Passat would be ideal sometimes i like it sometimes i don't, plus the new one will be out soon but not sure when??

Hmmmm...

[Booth11]

Congratulations Jimble 

If you can live without 5 doors (which makes life much easier) I'd keep the R for a bit.  Never quite understood why people rush out and buy a people carrier the minute they have a child.  When you've got a few kids, then ok, but one baby doesn't really warrant it.

Most prams fill up the boot but you find a way to fit other stuff in the car.  I managed perfectly well with my mk5 GTI and a baby plus all the paraphernalia (another thing people go over the top on) and weekly shopping, no problems.  You just become a master at packing and/or travelling light!  If you do keep it put some protective film on rear bumper to minimise scratching dragging stuff in and out the boot.

Don't make a rash decision 

[Suklpm]

Had a hatchback for all of my daughters life - Alfa, BMW 1 series, Gti mk 5, Gti mk 7.... Never been an issue... Stick with this R!

[Jimble]

Cheers Booth! My R is a 5 door so thats not a problem, it's just crazy the size of some of these things! Even the Bugaboo Bee which is supposed to be the smallest on the market isn't exactly small! We go to the Lake disrtict quite often to visit my brother but i can't imagine being able to get everything in the boot?? I don't really like the idea of having things loose on the back seat with baby for safety but i suppose thats what a lot of people do?

I dunno...

[Booth11]

You've already got the right number of doors then Jimble. Just use a roof box for trips.  As you say, don't want heavy loose stuff in back with baby.

I had initially had a Bugaboo Chameleon then switched to a Bugaboo Bee and it was fine.  Btw, the Bee's a brilliant pram/stroller, lightweight and supremely manoeuvreable, avoid those 3 wheelers, ugly, heavy lumps