Back seat of Cayenne
 

Almost pulled the trigger for custom order. Then considering potential growth of the family in the future, I wonder if Cayenne is big enough to handle two kids. In case we add another car seat in the second row later, we will still need to squeeze one more passenger (not big size though) in the back seat sometime. Is it even possible with Cayenne? Or should I get a three row SUV instead? Have studied Cayenne for sometime and really into it. Will feel heart broken if I have to look somewhere else. Anyone with similar experience can tell?

Honestly, if you have kids a Honda or Toyota mini-van is the most versatile. If you need versatility AND power, a 507 horsepower Mercedes R63 AMG fits the bill nicely. When my kids were younger I put my testicles in the freezer for a few years and ferried the kids around in a Honda Odyssey. Surprisingly, I was impressed with its versatility: tons of storage space, highly configurable seat layout - it even had a built-in vacuum cleaner to suck up all the Cheerios! But that’s not what you asked. . .

Attached please find a photo of my back seat with a tape measure placed for your reference. Hope this helps!


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...227dea05e.jpeg

Nice tape measure. It seems the measurement it shows might be relevant.

But a kid, a car seat, and another (possibly adult) passenger is gonna be uncomfortable regardless.

I agree. If you need two kids in car seats plus an adult in between, Cayenne won't be the best option. People don't like mini vans but we have had a Honda Odyssey in our garage since 2011 to carry our two kids and mother around town and out to the lake. Lots of room in the second row for mother and the kids in car seats, strollers, pack and play and other stuff in the rear of the van. You just throw stuff in there without regard to careful packing to fit everything in. Another consideration is the amount of food, drink and other stuff that ends up all over the interior with young kids. We looked at other 3 row SUV, but honestly, the safest place for your kids is in the second row, inboard if possible (if single kid) and others in the 3rd row. Most suvs don't have much space behind the rear most row and in the event of a rear end accident it won't be pretty for anyone sitting that far back. Now if you are getting a GLS or the like, that would be a suitable row for adults (but, still tight). I see a mini van in your future. Don't be heart broken, you have the kids! Plenty of time for a Cayenne. :)

Minivan for family. Carseats permanently attached to the seats.

Cayenne GTS for my daily, because I realized I still needed to haul things around and mine as well enjoy the ride when driving solo.

Depends on the seats. If kids are in boosters, including full-back, rather than the "throne" type seats, two kids and an adult is no problem. Also, regular seats work better for this setup than sport seats. I would not do a longer (more than 2 hours) trip like that, but mostly because I cannot stand so many people in the car - it gets noisy fast.

I'll offer a different view here. We have two kids, 20mos and 4yrs, both in Clek carseats, one rear facing, one forward facing. There is plenty of room in front of the forward facing carseat which is behind the driver's seat. The rear facing seat almost touches the back of the front passenger seat, but allows enough room for my 5'7" wife to be comfortable on long road trips. The Cleks are narrow enough to allow room for a slim adult to fit in the middle seat, but I wouldn't rely on that for longer trips. In terms of gear, the cargo area is big enough for a stroller and suitcases for a week long trip. We also have a roof box when we need to carry more. My son's bike can fit in the back with a couple suitcases and we can put the stroller and some other bags in the roof box. I'm also looking into hitch bike racks to expand usability. In general, we've made it work, and I if you love everything else about the Cayenne, I wouldn't let this deter you. That said, we're coming from a full sized Range Rover, where we never had to think about tight interior spaces or cargo capacity. There is a trade off, but one I would make again to enjoy the other benefits of the Cayenne.

Thank you all for sharing your perspective and experience! This forum is awesome and I have really learned a lot from your guys.

For the past few weeks, I have found time to test drive the Porsche Cayenne a few times. I have been a long time BMW owner. In terms of driving dynamics, Porsche is just another league. Really impressed with Cayenne GTS in terms of handling and comfort. But then realized that the Cayenne might be small for future use. I am thinking of two options now:

1, Go to Macan GTS instead, and add a three-row family car for space. Never tried Macan GTS before. I suppose it will drive very well. But I know I will miss the V8 from Cayenne, and Macan is probably not as comfortable as Cayenne.
2, Stick with Cayenne as SF_ suggested and it should work if we think about space smarter.

If you need to haul around a lot of stuff, the Audi Q7 might fit the bill.

Yeah. For the price of a nice Cayenne you can get a really decently kitted out SQ7. Basically a 3 row, softer Cayenne GTS.

That's exactly what I've done and I have a Honda Odyssey - and I don't regret it for a second. All the benefits you mentioned above plus it's actually not a bad car packed with technology.

​​​​​​​That said, it takes a certain strength not to care about what others think and you better be immune to all the jokes and ribbing you'll get from your friends.

Good point Fuenfer. I initially took some razzing over my Odyssey from the guys at work. They were younger, no kids yet, and mainly drove pickups, Harleys, and sports cars. Not one of them could transport six of us together for lunch. Then I offered to drive and they loved it; no more waiting for the last vehicle to arrive at the restaurant. They saw that it was high tech, easy access via the two sliding doors, had comfortable seating, and a nice, smooth ride. When they started having kids, many bought minivans too.