New member with a question - B7 RS4 suitable as family car?

[Madmonkee]

Buy mine and decide after In honesty, with buckets and two car seats things get cosy, if the person in the middle has a size 6 waist you might get away with it lol The boot is huge, fits a buggy and the weekly Shop plus all the other tooling you need for x2 under 3yr olds
X3 teenager's are all going to be sat with their arms in front txting/tweeting/snapchatting/facebooking so you might get away with it!! You can scare the crap out of them with acceleration and de-acceleration if they misbehave...

[Covkiller]

3 in the back is a no go as per many newer cars. Sitting in the centre is very uncomfortable as the back is like a board.
My Cortina was better.

[mondie]

Thank you for all the responses. Very honest but not really telling me what I wanted to hear  I would only consider a car with the wingback seats, not sure if that’s what some of you have referred to as buckets or whether buckets are the optional sensible seat. Do the wingbacks aid rear space, while wider I am hoping they are not as deep? My wife and I are only average height (<5’9”) so we don’t have to factor in 6ft+ adults killing rear legroom. Have noticed a few B7 A4s in our street so may have to knock on the neighbours doors and ask the question, I know at least one of them has 3 sprogs of similar age to ours too.

The RS6 doesn’t hold the appeal of the Rs4, its auto only, larger, less nimble and the maintenance scares me. If I had to go to the RS6 for size then there are few other choices I would have to consider. I am trying to look at options that are depreciation proof and on that factor the RS4 is surely as good as it gets. The dated feel over the M5 doesn’t bother me as the car brings appeal in other areas (AWD, looks, handling, manual, tunability/sound etc.)

Covkiller, I have noticed that many new cars seem to have the equivalent of a plank as the middle seat, guess it’s a recognition that saloons that regularly carry 5 people are uncommon so the main rear seats are made a little more plush and inviting. I have noticed this even on larger cars.

NJMAudiRS4, don’t worry nobody else I have ever spoken to has looked at an Avant as a sausage dog either. It must go back to some weird childhood trauma my wife suffered!

You have given me plenty to think about, I haven’t given up on the idea yet!

Cheers
Mondie.

[HYFR]

WTF are 'wingbacks' !!!!

[docurley]

WTF are 'wingbacks' !!!!

think about it, top part of sport seats are some what winged.

[HYFR]

I know what he is referring to, but really ... They are bucket seats....

[kent_andy]

wing back

noun
Soccer ; plural noun: wingbacks

a player who plays in a wide position on the field, taking part both in attack and defence.

[mondie]

Ok, bucket seats it is

Just back from hols in Austria where the family got carted around in a new Ford Mondeo (plenty big enough) and a E90 325 which was a bit squeezy. Does anybody have any comments on how the RS4 rear space compares to the 3 series?

Cheers

[marc1]

Very similar.

[Covkiller]

My test for rear leg room
I'm 6ft 1"
I adjust the drivers seat to suit me, then I get in the back and see if I have enough room. In my RS4 I sit comfortably in the back, so my 16 year old son and 11 year old daughter have plenty of room, including all of their junk.

[Surrey Sam]

Very similar.

x2

I think my old E92 had less headroom but marginally more legroom in the back than my RS4's with Buckets.