HELP NEEDED Any Corrado dads out there?

[vwchimp 10]

Not sure if this is the right section but i need some advice guys.

I have recently found out that my girlfriend is pregnant and hoping that the Corrado will not have to go to make space for a bigger car. She already has a 2year old and he will be 3 when the new one is born. Does anyone on here have kids and use their Corrado as the daily family car? What sort of space is the boot like and how much ICE can you still fit in there? I love music so want to keep as much as possible in there for all round quality. Any advice or comments are appriciated.

Ive only owned my 2.0 16v about 6 months now and I can only really come up with a Bora as another option of the Corrado is to small :(

[Harrier 1]

Hi, would probably forget the ICE in the boot but you should be able to manage otherwise if your careful.Dont use mine as a daily but when i do take it out its often with with the wife & 2 young boys.Its much easier when you dont need the push chair though

 

A.T.B with the new baby !

Edited November 4, 2012 by Harrier

[easypops 8]

Once the baby comes along, you'll have zero time for ICE etc, and have to be honest, the boot is just about big enough for a pram but you need so much other 'stuff' that you'll soon be moaning about the lack of space/ no rear doors.

Good luck with the new arrival, and my advice is start saving for a bigger car( keeping the Corrado though) :)

[vwchimp 10]

Thanks guys. With her lad being 3 at the time of the new baby coming along we maybe able to get one of those little trollies that you stand kids on to put on the pram to get him about as his own pushchair hopefully wont be needed as much. The rear doors havent been a problem at the minute as its only been him in the back but im sure they could eventually be a problem with them both. I know there is plenty of space in the back for both car seats without having to compimise my comfy driving position. I know that sounds weird but Im sure we all like to drive comfortably :)

I would love to keep the corrado if I had to buy a bigger car but my caddy has been a long term rolling project from when I found it in a shed nearly 5 years ago. Ive always said that if it had to go it would be to buy a bus or something else aircooled thats a bit more unique. I really want to stay VW or atleast VAG if I got something else. I couldnt just go out and buy a ford mondeo (sorry for swearing there) just because its big enough for all we need.

[Portent 0]

For a coupe the Corrado is surprisingly roomy in the back. My 6 year old and 8 year old fit comfortably. But as mentioned above it will be the boot space that is the issue. You can certainly get by with a Corrado but there would be better cars for a family.

[corrado wannabe 12]

HI mate, good luck with the little one,

I dont use my Corrado at the moment (although that may change soon) but hopefully I can give you a little info. We had a baby girl (our first) 4 weeks ago and I can only reitterate what was said earlier about not having time for ICE or other stuff like that! Its great though.

 

We currently have an A5 coupe and an A4 Avant, we made the mistake of buying a car seat we liked the look of (Recaro) but unfortunately the base system that is permanent in the car slides back and forward to put the car seat in place. This means that in the A5 the base has to go on the front passenger seat as there is simply not enough room to get the car seat in between the B pillar and the back of the front seat.

In the Avant it means that I have to put the front seat as upright as possible. The maxi cosi systems are simply plug straight on, so I think are far more practical and less hasstle for your partner to use.

 

If like us you go for one of those "travel systems" (prams and cot and pushchair in one) (iCandy) they really are quite bulky and to be honest both the avant and the A5 are pretty well loaded up with the stuff, so I am not sure how the C would cope.

 

There is also the issue of loading a car seat into a two door car, it is definately much easier to load into the Avant than try to get it in behind the seats of the A5.

 

Sorry for the long winded post, but I hope it helps.

 

Dougie

[wazza 0]

We had the Maxi Cosi Pebble seat and that fitted fine in the back of the Corrado, buckles in fairly easily too which is a help with the restricted access into the back of the car. We've upgraded to the Priori seat now for the family car and i haven't tried fitting that, but we've also got a cheapo seat which goes in the corrado fine.

Plenty of room in the boot (although I don't have any ICE) for a chunky Mothercare MY3 pushchair, but not if you want to fit the weekly shopping in too.

 

Not quite sure what'd happen if we had another anytime soon, but that would be the same for the family car, there aren't many cars out there that i'd want to own that'll fit two pushchairs in!

 

Keep the Corrado - buy a small pushchair, travel light and the kids will love you - mine loves going out in the corrado and he's only 18 months old.

 

Waz

[tony_ack 0]

You'll struggle to get two pushchairs in the boot - one pram should fit in as long as it's a four-wheeler, not a three-wheeler, stroller is no problem, but both isn't going to happen unless perhaps you remove the parcel shelf.

 

Weekends away will cause problems as you just won't have the room to carry all of you and everything you need.

 

ICE is going to be a struggle. You should still be able to squeeze an amp in, but the sub will have to go unless you get one of those Blaupunkt ones that goes in the spare wheel well.

 

Realistically, you probably won't all be in the same car very often, so you'll probably find that the baby seat can go in the front when you haven't got a passenger.

 

The Corrado may be roomier in the back than most coupes but you'll still find that the front seats are still within easy kicking distance of a 2/3 year old.

 

Also the rear seatbelts are a bit weird in the Corrado as they come out of the rear door card rather than being anchored behind the seat - not all car seats can accommodate this.

[CazzaVR 0]

You could make it work, but I think it would really get on your nerves eventually. The worst thing is practically having to climb into the back to strap them in every time. Grrrr! I've only still got the Rado because we've got an Octavia estate. If we had one car, the Rado would definitely go I'm afraid :(

[VR6Pete 0]

Make the 3 year old walk! :) had. 3 door punto for 5 years, got a 3 yr old and 6 year old and regularly jiggle child seats in and out with no problems, don't bother with those combi systems. Total waste of money that you could be spending on the corrado ;-)

[Riley 0]

Although I have two terrors (Ayrton and Izzy) I only ever had one pram in the back (Long story) but always manage perfectly fine regards everything else. The only thing that bugged a bit was that it was hard work to find good seats/booster seats that fit the rear properly and safely.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Riley

[sprinterVR6 0]

as said by Wazz - I had the maxi cozy Pebble too - it was completely fine. Fitted in better then the missus Mk5 golf. And he was in that for over a year, so you've that time frame to play with. And the boots plenty big for pushchair and few baby bags. I had two 6x9's in the parcel shelf (spare one, kept the original uncut!) and apart from the wires catching once or twice it worked a treat and still sounded awesome. It really is a practical enough car as long as you allow for nothing massive or major. Tbh, all the gear I can through into the S4 for a day out would still fit fine into the 'raddo. Plus I take it the corrado will only have to 'go into family man mode' a few times a month, so not like it'll start annoying you into a, (urgh, threw up a bit there)...into a Bora!

[Billzeebub 1]

Corrado practical enough for kids. Invest in some roofbars and a roofbox for those times when you need the extra storage. (Though you would probs have to remove the aerial and listen to CDs. Music is definitely the compromise I would make rather than the car!)..Easy to get them off when you want to go for a solo blast. I have roofbars on mine for MTB and summer camping trip for 2 weeks was easily doable...the most practical all year Coupe I have ever been in. Significantly better than all the 3 series I have owned....

 

..or even a Towbar for a small trailer is preferable to driving a bloody people carrier/MVP type blob!..