# is the A3 baby friendly and car seat friendly



## shottabwoy5 (Oct 18, 2006)

ok sinmple question ....Currently i am driving a 2006 Passat 2.0t but i really want a wagon for obvious reasons more space. I have a new born on the way i was originally looking at a 2005 b6 S4 but the more i thought about it i could not justify buying a V8 so i starting looking at the A3 they are beautiful cars anyway my question is how is the trunk space from pictures ive seen it doesn't look like much space in there would i be better off keeping my passat ? and is anybody running a car seat? With one car seat in the back is there much room for lets say two adults?


i do plan on modding tastefully as well but this will also be my daily driver and transporting my lil one around in as well

here is a pic of my passat just for the hell of it.


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## Maitre Absolut (Aug 5, 2009)

i have a 1.5 month old baby

stroller fits in trunk (clears by a few inches - Peg Perego)

With baby seat in middle you can still have 2 adults back there

only issue is bending over to fit seat in base all the time, especially when you are low


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## shottabwoy5 (Oct 18, 2006)

Maitre Absolut said:


> i have a 1.5 month old baby
> 
> stroller fits in trunk (clears by a few inches - Peg Perego)
> 
> ...


hey thanks for the response... you wouldn't happen to have a picture of your car seat in the back seat..


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## Euronymous Prime (Oct 23, 2000)

*It "fits"*

Stuff would "fit", but I'm pretty sure you'd have more room for everything - car seat, stroller, bags, etc. in the Passat. Unless you need to carry taller items (like if you prefer giant strollers) I'd keep what you have.

Don't like Passat Wagons? You'd be able to transfer your mods over so that's a plus :thumbup:


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## Chimera (Jul 6, 2002)

The a3 trunk is basically identical in width and depth to my mk4 gti. Don't buy the a3 thinking it's a wagon, it's a 4-door hatchback essentially. I have a Graco35 in the rear passenger location, the passenger seat has to be moved pretty far forward to be able to get at the release mechanism. I can barely load/unload the carrier with the handle in the upright position (but it goes just fine). It works for us for now. Jr digs the rear moonroof.


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## ruetzal (Dec 17, 2007)

just went thru this self discussion myself. Had a 03 GTI on coils. Didn't want to put air on a 2 door so I looked around for a wagon. I only like audi wagons the VW wagons although pulled off nice look great but decided on Audi myself. The avants were out of the question because of Gas guzzling. So I decided on the A3. Any car seat will bit rear facing although I put it in the middle and had to adjust the passenger seat up slightly to fit it. My wife is 5 ft tall so that wasn't a issue. As far as trunk room I fit what I need. For a compact stroller it works great but for a conversion stroller won't fit unless you fold down a seat. Ofcourse you only use these strollers for about 6-7 months max. Once they start sitting up by themselves they can go into a compact stroller and you will be able to fit by a few Inches. I also can fit my dog kennel in the back (medium size dog, springer) But I have to put him in the kennel then lift the kennel into the car. Not a big deal but its kind of a pain although unless you have a full wagon you would need to do the same with everthing else. For big trips I put the little man behind the passenger side then I can fit pretty much everything I need to by putting the rear seat section down behind the driver side. 

Side note I have to "airplane ride" my kid into the back seat to put him in the seat, not a big deal really since all cars except a bigger wagon you have to do that with anyway. Also keep in mind you would move to a bigger kid seat after a year from those conversion seats where you just drop it in although when that mark hits you can move to the front facing child seat which is the great time for us modders. Saves a ton of room in the back and then you can move it to one side or the other.

So essentially the A3 would fit your needs decently although room will be tight should still provide enough to get any job done. I mean I fit my whole family, kid, wife and dog in there almost every weekend. Also i love to drive the Audi was a huge upgrade from my 01 tahoe and my 03 GTI which I sold.

My suggestion would be to buy an old tahoe for big items that you would hall around and then use the A3 for everything you can get by with (daily)


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## ruetzal (Dec 17, 2007)

vs. your passat though you won't gain any extra room. you would probably be able to fit more in your passat trunk then the A3 since it will be wider. Essentially the A3's only can store stuff between from the inner wheel wells of the car and yor passat extends out to the body


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## drew138 (Dec 3, 2006)

Some thoughts here: http://forums.fourtitude.com/showth...e-A3-a-child-friendly-car&highlight=baby+seat

Short answer, yes.


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## Chimera (Jul 6, 2002)

Also, there's a thread somewhere detailing baby seats known to fit. I don't have it handy, however.


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## KB73 (Aug 26, 2010)

One issue I noticed when using a baby seat in the A3: There is very little room to put a baby seat behind either of the front seats (without moving them really far forward), and the recessed latches are meant for the left/right and not the center seat. If you straddle the center, the left and right passengers can't access the seat belt buckles anymore.


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## ruetzal (Dec 17, 2007)

in the 09's and up there is a strap on all 3 sections for a forward facing seat. Also once its forward facing more room becomes available to move the front seats back some more. 

As it is with my rear facing I can put my driver seat as far back as I need to and I am 6'2. More than enough room for me but I moved the passenger side seat up and somewhat justified the middle position more on the right hand side. Maybe Audi did this on purpose not really sure cause I can move my driver side seat way farther back than the passenger with my rear facing child seat in the middle


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## S WORD (Jul 21, 2011)

A3 is not super baby friendly. But not horrible. Definately like other poster said it is a 4dr hatch not a wagon. Though when parked next to my friends 2011 A4 wagon it doesn't look like the trunk space is much bigger than mine. A3 hatch with partital rear seat folded you will be able to carry everything needed.

As other posters stated if you put baby seat in passanger-side rear the passanger front seat has to be moved up quite bit. My wife doesn't seem to mind but leg room would not work for me.

But to point out also in our Honda Pilot we also have to move the passanger seat up a ton to get the seat in and out properly. I can fit in the remaining leg room but with knees in dash.

Why not go for CC?


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## Audilation (Jun 7, 2010)

We use the A4 Avant for long trips. With the baby, you have stroller, packnplay, diapers etc. The A3 can carry quite a bit but the Avant has a wider and deeper trunk. If you travel light, you wont notice it. We have a 1 year old and a 5 year old and we carry both in the A3 and A4 with no space issues. A3 has the same back seat leg room as a B7 A4. B8 A4 has maybe an inch more.

We used to put my son in the middle and adults can squeeze in the back in both the A3 and A4. Two seats, no chance for an adult in the middle. You cant easily put a seat in the middle and side because you cant use a LATCH for two seats.

For a 'booster' style seat, the Safety First Safeguard Go! is a great low profile seat. For babies though, you need something else.

I had a britax in the A3 and it was really really tall and my sons head was inches from the ceiling. The evenflo's we have dont have 8" of stuff under the seat like the britax so much more headroom.


Basically you have to think about how much stuff you want to put in your trunk. otherwise interior space is plenty good for 2 kids in the back.


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## seanarms (Oct 16, 2010)

Pain in the arse for newborn (rear facing) baby seat. I went through it and we ended up using the Accord as the "family vehicle". For a forward facing or booster seat not a problem.


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## godspeed01 (May 29, 2004)

*no problems.*

I have a2000 jetta, and the a3, and the a3 has more leg room, and the trunk space is perfect for daily routine. would need more trunk space for longer travels, but stroller, car seat and groceries work just fine.


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