getting closer but can I hear more from kid seats?

Hi there. Please know that I have read thread after thread about members and non-members using their 996s with children but i'm confirming the 'comfort' of this utility. I have another baby on the way so I'll have a newborn and a 2 year old. Going from an M3 to a 996 is this a 'sane' move. I'm not unhappy with the M3 but I want another Porsche as a daily driver. One last thing. I hardly ever ever use my car for the kids except for the occassional trip to the museum. Are your children all good in the back of your 996? Thanks!

Until you can have your kids in forward facing seats, I would not recommend using the 996. My boys are 5 and 6 and fit very nicely on booster seats in the back. The official Porsche child seat (same as MB) has a connector to disable the passenger airbag, so you could use that in front, but then you'll have to leave the Mrs. at home.

Bavarian is right. Forward facing is OK, it just eliminates some of the front passenger leg room. Rear facing, even if it's in the back seat, will pretty much eliminate using the front seat at all.

I have used the Porsche seat for the last 3 years in my '02, it has worked great. My kids are 4 &6 now, we go in the car alot together. The 6 yr old is getting too big for the Zoom seat now, so he is getting relegated to the back seats, but the 4 yr old fits fine in the Porsche seat. When the Mrs. goes with she sits in the front and the kids get the back; the 4 yr old gets a booster. It works fine and I would anticipate a few more years before the kids start griping about legroom. The griping will be offset, however, by the desire to ride in "The Silver Race Car" , as they call it!!

Wanting to go from my M Coupe to a 996, I tried a pair (I have twin boys) of Britax Roundabout seats in the rear of a 99 996 and the seats fit fine. I have heard that this model from Britax is the same used by Porsche, but I am not sure about this as I have never seen an actual Porsche child seat. My kids are 3 years old and they fit fine in the back with their car seats, leaving enough legroom for me upfront. This may only work for your 2 year old, but the new baby will have to be rear facing on the front seat with the airbag disconnect feature.

I use two Porsche Zoom seats in the rear for my Son & Daughtes (8 and 5 respectively). No problems at all. Just using the squab now (the backrest unclips easiy) as they complained they couldn't feel the leather !

At that age I wouldn't really feel comfortable. My kids are 10 - 13 and they love the back seats of the Targa. But prior to that with my 993, I didn't put them inside.

ok, i am new to this. how old and how hvy does the child need to be before i do forward facing?

I think after 1 yo, you can use front facing seats. Not sure on the weight. After 4 and 40lbs, booster is allowed. Booster will allow more leg room for the front passenger when you put kids in the back. Until then, it'll be a tight fit for the front passenger w a car seat.

I regularly transport my grand kids, singly or all at once .... ages 9, 7, & 4. They fight over the front seat, and if one of the larger two get it, they of course will not fit in the Porsche child seat. So, I long ago cut the air bag disarming buckle off the seat itself, and keep it in the door pocket. That way, whoever is in the front seat can have the air bag turned off, regardless of whether they are using the Porsche seat. The 4 year old is a daily driver with me .... school and back. Because of this, I plan to eliminate the hassle of plugging in the disarming buckle .... as I am researching the wiring diagrams so as to install a guarded toggle switch under the seat to accomplish the same thing. That way, I won't even need the Deactivation Bar installed across the front of the seat rails.

Our plan for a rear facing child seat is to remove both one rear seat bottom pad and top pad (the thing that folds down). That way you buy back 2-3 inches in both directions

I have a 2000 996 and two boys, 2 and 6. I have taken my boys everywhere with no problems. I take my oldest to school each day and he just loves driving in the car. When my youngest was in a rear-facing seat, it was tight, but still manageable. Now, the oldest is out of a car seat all together, so my youngest simply sits in his car seat behind the passenger. Every so often, my wifes comes too :-). The only time we can't take the car, is when we need to have a stroller or are going shopping...not too much room in the trunk!

I use mine all the time with my 6, 10, and 12 year olds. Either the 10 or 12 year old in the front. Never a problem. I don't use a booster seat in the rear for my 6 year old, imo the seat is perfect and the booster offers no additional better position.

I have an Eddie Bauer, black leather kids seat in the back of my C4 Cab. The black goes well with the grey leather. I also took out the bottom seat pad to make a bit more room (and not damage it) It fits just fine, but as everyone says, there is little front passenger room.

I'm driving my 5 year old twins in the backseats without anything extra, and its perfectly fine.

My pediatrician wife says the kid needs to be 1 year old to be forward-facing. As I understand, it's not about weight, it's about overall body development -- things like having enough neck strength to keep the head from flying about like a rag doll. We didn't think it was worth it to put the kid rear-facing in the front seat, so we've been waiting. Six more weeks to go, and my wife is already talking about going for a drive on our kid's first birthday! After 1 year, you match the kid's weight to the proper seat -- either a carseat or a booster. I think these are required until the kid is 6 years old and 60 lbs, but that may vary by state? FWIW, I've heard some pediatricians recommend 8 and 80 to be safe.

Exactly what I am doing in my 997S - same seat and took the bottom seat pad out. The main reason I got that seat is because the base is smaller and fits much better in the seat well than many other seats (including the Porsche seat I was previously using).

I purchased a Britax Parkway booster for my 3 year-old and it works great. It goes well with the Savannah Beige Leather and has some blue cloth that matches the Metallic Blue. It definitely shortens the leg room for the front seat passenger though. I called Porsche and only one of their Zoom models was left available and it was at the dealer in Rancho Mirage, CA. Porsche is getting out of the car seat business it would appear. I'm a softie, but I had to put down my foot. No food or drink allowed in the Porsche!!! My wife's MDX looks like tornado swept through the library/playroom/ and cafeteria and dumped all the contents in her car.

Ok, I stand corrected. My wife informed me that it's 1 year old AND at least 20 lbs before the kid can be forward-facing. That's why she's my better half, and why she's the pediatrician, not me.

i also have several britax and the latest one we bought (parkaway) is by far the best booster seat i have ever seen. Really well engineered product and fits well in the back seat of 996. my 3 yr daughter enjoy it. Actually, the porsche baded seats are older models from Britax as porsche is getting out of babyseat biz. a couple of tips. 1. remove the leather seat bottom. It is velcro attached. very easy to remove. Removing back panel gave me some extra room but for the safety and stability reason, i put it back. 2. tell your kids to take off their shoes and then rest their feet on the back of the front seat.