I'm wondering if some people must have really large children,

this is based on the number of on line reviews I have read on the 500 which include the line

'the rear seats are only really suitable for children' or 'effectively it's only really a 2 seater'

Which TBH I find a nonsense. I specifically rode in the back on our test drive and was amazed at how much room there is (I'm 5' 10'' and 17 stone) in the back with plenty of room for someone else.

I would seriously urge anybody potentially put off a 500 because of this type of comment to make time to ride in the back of one and judge for yourself.

I consider mine effectively a 2 seater. The back seat is really only suitable for very tiny children.

MJG said:

I'm wondering if some people must have really large children,

this is based on the number of on line reviews I have read on the 500 which include the line

'the rear seats are only really suitable for children' or 'effectively it's only really a 2 seater'

Which TBH I find a nonsense. I specifically rode in the back on our test drive and was amazed at how much room there is (I'm 5' 10'' and 17 stone) in the back with plenty of room for someone else.

I would seriously urge anybody potentially put off a 500 because of this type of comment to make time to ride in the back of one and judge for yourself.

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I'm 5'10" and can't really fit in the back comfortably, my head touches the roof which is a no no in terms of safety.

No issues with room in the back with my car. When my Grandad is in the car, my mum goes in the back. My mum is around 5ft 5 and my Grandad is 5ft 3 and they haven't complained. I position the passenger seat to the point where they have an equal amount of legroom.

I was squashed when the salesman drove my car to a petrol station before I test drove it. I was sat behind him but he was 6ft+ and I'm just a bit over 5ft 8.

I'm 6'1.5" and I can fit in the back of our 500c when the front seat is in the position for me driving. It's one of the things I checked before we bought it. There's more space than there is in a MINI or an Audi A1.

SiliconS said:

There's more space than there is in a MINI or an Audi A1.

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Yes, it does. But it still got less space than is considered comfortable for a normal sized human. It doesn't make it better. It makes it slightly less bad.

I'm 5'10 too and could comfortably sit in the back for a long journey - the only issue I have is the headrests need to be raised. It is by no means IMO a 2+2 as adults can sit in the rear - the honda crz is a true 2+2 concept where any 4 foot plus will be decaputated!

Ha ha! I'm 6'2" and 15 1/2 stone and the one time I had to sit in the back of ours, I found I could probably make the Olympics as a gymnast! I think both legs were somewhere behind the back of my ears!

No, seriously, it wasn't that bad, not disimilar really to the Ford KA we had years ago.
I'm more impressed with the leg and head room in the front. Outstanding in such a small car imo.

It's a four seater pub car. You know, two adults will happily fit in the back to get a lift to the pub. And more happily home again.

Less so on a trip from Land's End to John O'Groats.

frupi said:

No, seriously, it wasn't that bad, not disimilar really to the Ford KA we had years ago.

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Sums it up well, really. I don't think it's meaningfully any more, or less comfortable, for the rear seat passengers than most other current generation 2-door superminis.

IMO if your mission involves regularly carrying more than two people of any age, or for that matter anything else between the front seats & the bootspace, life will be easier with a 4 door car.

As far as getting in & out goes, 2 doors are a mixed blessing - if you've unrestricted access, long doors make it easier, but in a confined space, the shorter front doors of a 4-door mean you can open them to a greater angle & then the smaller door has the advantage - the Panda is noticeably easier to get into when parked in the garage.

MJG said:

I'm wondering if some people must have really large children,

this is based on the number of on line reviews I have read on the 500 which include the line

'the rear seats are only really suitable for children' or 'effectively it's only really a 2 seater'

Which TBH I find a nonsense. I specifically rode in the back on our test drive and was amazed at how much room there is (I'm 5' 10'' and 17 stone) in the back with plenty of room for someone else.

I would seriously urge anybody potentially put off a 500 because of this type of comment to make time to ride in the back of one and judge for yourself.

Click to expand...

The fun part of fitting 4 adults in the 500 is that it looks like they wouldn't fit in 'there'. If I'm out as a 'foursome' and on driver's duty the 2 men go in the front and the 2 woman in the back with the front seats slightly forward. I haven't done this in a lower powered 500 - I was in the 1.4 but it's grand for short journeys.
Kids love the back because they can see out and it seems to really suit them.
Only concern I would have for those (thinking of adults) in the back is safety given the lack of 'boot' buffer space.

Its fine for 4 adults for short journeys.

Heidi said:

Its fine for 4 adults for short journeys.

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For the occasional journey it's fine. I can sit in the back for a short journey, but I don't like it.

I'm 6ft and sitting in the back is not the norm. for me but will do so for the odd short journey.

Can't see why I'd ever sit in the back of my own car whilst being driven!

I don't find it unduly uncomfortable in the back when cleaning the windows etc, though, and I'm 6'0". I've been in bigger cars with less head, and leg room.

bgunn said:

Can't see why I'd ever sit in the back of my own car whilst being driven!

I don't find it unduly uncomfortable in the back when cleaning the windows etc, though, and I'm 6'0". I've been in bigger cars with less head, and leg room.

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I did it on the test drive because I was curious as to how much room there was in the back given we occasionally carry rear seat passengers (adults) if it had been unbearably uncomfortable in there (as implied by some of the reviews you read) I wouldn't have bought a 500.

I'm really glad I did because I found it was OK and we ended up with a car we really wanted rather than something more 'anonymous' like a 5 door Fiesta/Micra.

Despite us swapping for a new shape Panda soon, I also agree there is decent enough space in the back of the 500, and it certainly isn't just a two seater.

Re your original post about large kids (haha!) - to be honest the problem mainly arises for us getting our little lad's car seat in and out; we have found there is not a great deal of room to spare even when the seat is pushed as far forward as possible.

Coupled with my wife's joint condition, the heavier our boy has got the harder it has become!

It's tight, but doable -- I'm 1m90, which is what? 6'4"? The headroom is problematic, but not terrible. My last two trips in the back of an XJS Jag and a Saab 92 were much worse. The 500 also has plenty of light and "air" in the back, making for a much less-claustrophobic experience.