Car needed: new born + 6ft parents + restricted driveway

[dboy129]

Hi all,

We’ve just had the realisation that our ford fiesta isn’t going to have enough space to accommodate our buggy of choice and a car seat, without severely impacting front passenger space considering husband is 6 ft 2 and wife 5 ft 9

Anyone have recommendations for a car, ideally narrower than 1.8m as access to our driveway is through a 2m gap, and with a big enough boot, say more than 350L.

Any cars with new technology welcome, as thinking some kind of self parking feature could help us get through the gap more easily.

We’re starting to get stressed so willing to throw money at the problem (within reason!). Have found an Audi Q2 so far

Thanks!

[Beanie]

Bedford rascal?

[bennno]

C3 aircross, t cross, aroma, kamiq all c.1.76m wide

[kiethton]

Beyond the dimensions what's the budget, or normal usage as that'd really impact the recommendations

Screamer from me, if looking newer, is a Dacia Jogger (not checked width but feels narrow) - room for baby gear/future expansion and reasonable to run (if v cheap feeling inside). Put my FIL onto one for motability (hybrid) and he loves it

[trickywoo]

kiethton said:

Beyond the dimensions what's the budget, or normal usage as that'd really impact the recommendations

Screamer from me, if looking newer, is a Dacia Jogger (not checked width but feels narrow) - room for baby gear/future expansion and reasonable to run (if v cheap feeling inside). Put my FIL onto one for motability (hybrid) and he loves it

Jogger is over 2m wide. Even with the mirrors in it’s not going to be much less than 1.8m.

[Stick Legs]

Beanie said:

Bedford rascal?

https://youtu.be/3DPILEO3EQI?si=tk0qxEbFfVwUz7nd

[Stick Legs]

Daihatsu HiJet

[eth2190]

Honda Shuttle, essentially a stretched Jazz.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202501057...

[Huntsman]

Since we had our boy we've had Honda CRVs.

Nasty piece of st from a drivers perspective, but its a very good tool, useful size and Honda reliability.

[Bobtherallyfan]

Renault Captur?

[Oberheim]

Mk 3 Skoda Fabia Estate meets your narrow width requirements but is sufficiently capacious to swallow all your baby gear. If you want new, a Skoda Scala also ticks both boxes.

Edited to add: Toyota Corolla Touring Sports also comes in at under 1.8 metres wide. I have a new Corolla Hatchback and can confirm it’s a great package with one of the most reliable drivetrains money can buy.

Edited by Oberheim on Saturday 18th January 21:56

Edited by Oberheim on Saturday 18th January 21:59

[dboy129]

Thanks for all suggestions, very helpful. I proposed the Rascal to my wife but did not get sign off unfortunately.

Now looking at either a VW Taigo or T-Cross

[Evanivitch]

Kia Niro hybrid or full EV.

[IJWS15]

Think about growth (the child’s) as well.

We have a Karoq and I an 6’ 2”. 11 months ago it would accept the grandchildren's car seats, the twp of us and their (iCandy) push chair. It is now getting tight with one 25m and one 12m. We have one seat in the front and one behind it so I can fit my legs in to drive.

DiLs T-Roc takes the two car seats in the back but she is just over 5’ tall

Look at smaller car seats as well.

[Rough101]

It was a while ago, but we bought the then brand new Mercedes A Class, this is an aside as it was rusty before it was 3 years old which is probably why you don’t see them!

[chrisch77]

Berlingo Multispace.

[Oberheim]

Toyota Corolla Estate (aka Touring Sports) has more space in the rear than the Polo-based Taigo and T-Cross, a bigger boot and excellent tech to assist parking in tight areas, especially at Excel spec. Better economy than the VW SUVs too - a lot of your sub 30mph driving around built up areas will be in pure EV mode.

Estates might not be a fashionable body style but I think the Corolla hybrid offers a lot and ticks the boxes for narrowness, big boot and parking assist tech.

[ZX10R NIN]

dboy129 said:

Hi all,

We’ve just had the realisation that our ford fiesta isn’t going to have enough space to accommodate our buggy of choice and a car seat, without severely impacting front passenger space considering husband is 6 ft 2 and wife 5 ft 9

Anyone have recommendations for a car, ideally narrower than 1.8m as access to our driveway is through a 2m gap, and with a big enough boot, say more than 350L.

Any cars with new technology welcome, as thinking some kind of self parking feature could help us get through the gap more easily.

We’re starting to get stressed so willing to throw money at the problem (within reason!). Have found an Audi Q2 so far

Thanks!

Fiat 500X:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202501027...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202409103...

C4 Spacetourer, I'd say this pretty much ticks every box but budget around £700 for a precautionary wet belt (negotiate off of the price) change:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411136...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202311113...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411015...

[Smurfsarepeopletoo]

The Skoda Octavia vRS is about 1,829 millimeters wide. It is also about 4,702 millimeters long and 1,476 millimeters high.
Explanation
The Octavia vRS is a five-seater car with four doors.
The Octavia vRS Estate has a turning circle of 10.4 meters and a wheelbase of 2.68 meters.
The Octavia vRS Estate has a boot capacity of 490–640 liters with the seats up, and 1,555–1,700 liters with the seats down

[edc]

For a family car and for those who are having kids now rather than a long time ago, car seats have changed and come a long way. Cars like the Citroen above are not in fashion at all but the 3 individual rear seats with sliding make a big difference.