April 02, 2015 2 min read

Citroen C4 Picasso Review

We often have customers asking us how they can fit three car seats across the back seat of their car. This is something that is difficult to do with a lot of cars, with problems like the shape of the middle seat, the back seat not being big enough for three, some child restraints being too large, and the presence of an arm rest in the centre seat (most rear facing seats are not compatible with an arm rest, as the rest may not stay in position in the event of an accident).

Did you know that you should always check your car's manual before installing child restraints? Some cars do not allow a child restraint in every seat.

So I was excited to be given the opportunity byContinental Cars to borrow one of their new Citroen C4 Picasso's for the weekend. It is a nice family sized car, I would say it is somewhere between a hatchback and a SUV, the roof is a little higher than your average hatch, but the seats are a little lower than most SUV's. Inside the car was pretty spacious, with plenty of leg room for everyone and a large, not too high boot (plenty of room for your pram and groceries). The windscreen of the Picasso stretches right into the roof, almost like a windscreen and sun roof in one, giving full visibility which was quite enjoyable!

The thing that initially attracted me to the Picasso was the three proper back seats, all three are nice and flat, each with it's own isofix connector and easy to access tether points behind. Most cars only have isofix connectors on two of the back seats, so this is a real advantage. From our experiences fitting car seats in lots of different cars, shapely back seats can make things a little more difficult.

: Here you can see three proper seats, each with its own isofix, and head rest, and with a flat seat.

We were able to safely install three of our CasualPlay Multi Fix's across the back seat, all with isofix connectors and very easy to install, also each with its own tether point right behind the seat, meaning that the tethers didn't take up any precious boot space. We installed one of these car seats in booster mode (the one on the left of the picture), and we were able to access the buckle for the seatbelt, though it was a bit of a squeeze.

: Three CasualPlay Multi Fix's across the back seat, easy.

: Tether points

Because of the underfloor storage compartments in the back seat on the driver and passenger side, we were unable to install a capsule with a support leg on those seats. We would recommend installing a capsule in the middle seat, which doesn't have the storage compartment, if you have a baby.

Overall we were pretty impressed! Having three isofix connectors across the back seat is a definite advantage. As with all five-seaters you'll need to try a few car seat configurations to get the right set up for your family, but it is do-able with this car.

This is not a paid for post. Would you like to see more car reviews? Let me know!

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