Evora vs 997 with kids

[TrevS]

Hi all

I am very close to pulling the trigger on either a 2011 Lotus Evora S or a 2010 997.2 Carrera. Both cars have enough performance and I’m split which one I prefer in terms of appearance etc. I love the baby supercar look of the Evora but also the classic shape of the 911. Both cars definitely have their pros and cons. 

However, the thing I’m really tying to establish is which (if any) will be best for someone with 2 small children? I’ve got a 3 and 7 year old and fitting the kids in for the odd Sunday drive or school run is a must for for me and for the wife to sign off on me buying either car. Has anyone got any experience in how these cars directly compare?  

Also are there any tricks like remove seat base/back that give more space for kids seats in an Evora?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Trev

Edited May 21, 2023 by TrevS

[r3nault]

Evora bench seat is velcro'ed on, so can be easily removed. This does help to give an extra couple of cm headroom (though many child seats are too tall to fit regardless), and reveal the isofix mounting points. Not sure how you would go fitting two side by side, but I think the child seats in Australia are bulkier than some of the options you have there. Also, I don't recall whether the driver's seat also has the required top tether mounting point in the rail.

No experience with the 997, so can't help you with that!

[jerzybondov]

Having owned both, the 911 has more room in the back generally than the Evora. Haven’t had experience with child seats in either though!

But as r3nault says, the rear bench in the Evora pops out with Velcro and the seat backs come out easily too (just two bolts). 

Not sure whether the 7 year old will need a child seat in the Evora (practically at least, not sure about legally) - I think they’d fit perfectly without one. Cushion perhaps if necessary.

The 3 year old in the child seat might need to go passenger side with the front seat forwards a bit - it’s the sticky out feet with child seats that’s the problem!

I think there are some threads on here with people who’ve tried various child seats in Evoras. And the 911uk forum is good too - you might find some helpful pics on there. 

Otherwise you probably need to go see both in the flesh (with kids in tow) and try them out!

EDIT: one further point - do you need to get two adults in the front at the same time as two kids in the back? If both kids are 6-10 years old, this might be doable in the Evora. But ages <6 and needing child seat, or >10 with long legs might preclude comfortable travel in the front passenger seat ahead of them. In which case the 911 would work better - I think it would tolerate a greater range of age of child, if you’ve got adults in the front too (if that makes sense).

 

Edited May 22, 2023 by jerzybondov

[jep]

The real truth is that the 911 has more rear space than Evora. I was told recently by one of the Evora design team that they missed their target for rear space due to packaging constraints. Evora as +2 is still an amazing achievement but mid-engine configuration can't quite give the space of rear engine. 

Evora will work for your needs but just not quite so easily.

Evora will be the better drive though, especially for A and B road blats. Less depreciation too, that should help persuade the other half.

Justin

 

[Cdm2018]

I got my daughter in back from around 4 years plus , I got a very compact and flat booster seat from Halfords and I am sure was legally ok 

I think the way the back seats dip at angle it lends that the feet point a little upwards 

as previously mentioned it’s the adults in front that if you can push the front seats forwards as much as you can then you get a little extra space 

if both adults are almost 6 foot then a little tricky , remember once they grow they don’t need child seats etc until they get to teenager size then it’s a different aspect, however I got my daughter in law and daughter in back for a couple of hours both around 5’2-4 and it was ok I was able to have my seat forward 

[hamza]

I have an Evora and have my 7 and 5 year olds sat in the back of it all the time.

The 7 yr old doesn't need a car seat. The seats and belt positioning are completely fine as is with the seat belt sitting correctly across her shoulder. The 5yr old uses a Sparco booster to achieve the same effect.

I have tried both kids in the back of a friend's 997 and there is definitely a lot more space in the back. However the positioning of the seats and the belts is such that they are too small to use them without car seats. Finding cat seats that fit the 911 won't be a 2 minute job either... so not something I tried out.

For me, the Evora is perfect right now and I suspect I will have to swap to a 911 of some variant in about 3 to 5 years time as the kids get older.

Incidentally, they both love the Evora and given the option will always pick it as the car to go out in.

Happy to chat in more detail if you need more input.

Edited May 22, 2023 by hamza

[pixelmix]

7 and 9 year old boys here: they both go in the back without car seats and have done for the past year. One advantage of the bench vs the 997 "bucket seats" is that they can sit slightly more centrally and see out of the windscreen better.

We used a basic booster once or twice but I now just put them in without it as they seem to be secure enough with the normal belts. The 9 year old is only a few cm short of the 135cm threshold at which point car seats are no longer required and the 7 year old isn't too far behind. DVLA guidance appears to allow children over 3 to not use a car seat if there is no room for a car seat and they use the adult belt, so I believe that this is both legally and practically fine.

As above, I'd be looking for a basic booster or slim seat for the 3 year old and seeing if your 7 year old looks secure enough with just the belts. 

Enjoy!

[TrevS]

Thanks all for the info. I'm not expecting many occasions when we will have all 4 of us in the car but it would be really nice to able to take the whole family out on the odd trip etc. I think as others have said it's time to get out and take a look at both cars to size the seats up. Having measured and weighed the kids tonight my eldest would just need a booster cushion but my youngest is small for her age and so still needs a group 1 forward facing baby seat until she hits 15kg and then she can have a booster. Any recommendations on baby seats that work for an Evora then please post.

It's also great to see so many dads one here that have made an Evora work, fills me with more confidence that I can make it work.

Thanks

Trev

[TrevS]

Here are a few comparison images from the dad cars youtube channel. After watching reviews on both cars it appears that the Evora looks more cramped initially but once the kids seats are in then the Evora looks to be more spacious for the little one. I think the shape of the 911 seats didn't help for the review so there may be seat options that will give some more space in the 911 and as with the Evora the 911uk folks have said that the base and back rest can come out of the 997 to give a bit of additional space.

[hamza]

11 hours ago, TrevS said:

Thanks all for the info. I'm not expecting many occasions when we will have all 4 of us in the car but it would be really nice to able to take the whole family out on the odd trip etc. I think as others have said it's time to get out and take a look at both cars to size the seats up. Having measured and weighed the kids tonight my eldest would just need a booster cushion but my youngest is small for her age and so still needs a group 1 forward facing baby seat until she hits 15kg and then she can have a booster. Any recommendations on baby seats that work for an Evora then please post.

It's also great to see so many dads one here that have made an Evora work, fills me with more confidence that I can make it work.

Thanks

Trev

I'd take those 15kg limit and requirements for a car seat with a pinch of salt. They are written for standard adult sized seats in most cars. How tall is your 3yr old? 

I would recommend you try with a booster first and see if they fit with the seat belt correctly positioned with one.

The problem with any car seat/ high back booster in the Evora for me is that it pushed the child too far forward putting them closer to the seat in front with no way to change that and less time for the seat belt to do its job in the event of an accident. 

Where are you based? Any local Evora dad's that can let your kids have a test fit, maybe even with boosters/ car seats?

[TrevS]

Thanks Hamza. 3 year old is 97cm and 12.7kg. I'm based near Rugby in Warwickshire.

[hamza]

You might get away with a booster.

Looking at our kids height chart my 5yr old, last summer was 1m tall and from memory probably only about 12kg or so too and I had her in the back of the Evora with a booster.

You're probably a bit far to pop over (I'm in London) but maybe someone else closer will be willing to test fit the kids in the back

Edited May 23, 2023 by hamza

[Cdm2018]

Check out the basic Halfords booster seat it was compact and flat so fitted the back reasonable well

ypu might need the child belt adjuster again pop in your local Halfords 

I look for the booster seat to take a picture but I am away for work until Thursday evening 

[jimichanga]

Rear seats on 911 might be slightly better but you have to consider all the rude hand signals that your children will learn sitting in the back of one. Useful to be let out of junctions occasionally when you’re late for school!

[Cdm2018]

Having done the NC500 with my 10yr old daughter a couple of summers ago we got some great responses and we had passed a shed load of 911’s & other porkies ! So if you want to live with a little less room but a better and rarer drive there’s only one choice ! 

[hamza]

I see it not so much as an either/or choice but more an ordering of ownership.

When the kids are older they won't fit into the back of the Evora but I will be able to get them into a 911.... hence the Evora now while they do fit and the 911 once they outgrow it.

[MrBlueSky]

Got my Evora when kids were 11 and 14 and they have generally avoided going in the back. Now 14 and 16 and too big.

Moral of the story is I should have got an Evora sooner. Now just keep an old Renault espace for kid ferrying duties. They generally have their mates it tow so 5/6 seats is better anyway. I might have got an extra couple of years of +2 use from a 911 but a porker wasn't a compromise I wanted to make.

[TrevS]

8 hours ago, hamza said:

I see it not so much as an either/or choice but more an ordering of ownership.

When the kids are older they won't fit into the back of the Evora but I will be able to get them into a 911.... hence the Evora now while they do fit and the 911 once they outgrow it.

This is what I had originally thought, Maybe an Evora for a few years and then as I start to struggle for space move up to something bigger but I still need to test both out and see which is right for me.

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

Teenager is the cut off point for rear seat Evora passengers. Either that or knee caps and head.

[pixelmix]

On 25/05/2023 at 18:01, TrevS said:

This is what I had originally thought, Maybe an Evora for a few years and then as I start to struggle for space move up to something bigger but I still need to test both out and see which is right for me.

Or… Evora until the children are too big, at which point they probably won’t want to come out with you anyway, then switch to an Elise / Exige / Emira if you fancy a change!

[Cdm2018]

As I mentioned in earlier post you can squeeze in a couple of 5 foot people if you push front seats up allowing for driver comfort 

the rear seat can later double up as handy storage as it’s flat rather than contoured seats in 911 so Evora overall I believe much more adaptable. 

[Phaeton91]

On 25/05/2023 at 09:41, MrBlueSky said:

Got my Evora when kids were 11 and 14 and they have generally avoided going in the back. Now 14 and 16 and too big.

Moral of the story is I should have got an Evora sooner. Now just keep an old Renault espace for kid ferrying duties. They generally have their mates it tow so 5/6 seats is better anyway. I might have got an extra couple of years of +2 use from a 911 but a porker wasn't a compromise I wanted to make.

I can echo this.  The idea was that I would be able to use the rear seat for occasional with the kids (10 and 13) when I bought, but the 13 yo has never sat in the back (he now has size 10 feet) and the 10 yo has only been in a few times. He’s never looked comfortable because:

Roof line is low.

It’s quite dark in the back - more so than the 911.

The engine is closer (I think) and so it’s a bit more noisy and hot.

That said, the flat bench means that it’s great for increasing general luggage capability.

I think though it comes down to the thing I often think which is that one of the things I love about my Lotus, is that it’s not a Porsche. 

.

[Niffty951]

Space and practically 997 wins hands down, front and back seats (though 991.1 is the first 911 to get Isofix rear seats). Plus it's just an easier car to use more frequently, visibility out, getting in etc.

However, the running costs & risk of nasty surprise bills with a 997 (yes even the .2) is significantly worse. Any job that needs doing seems to start at £1000 plus the cost of doing that job on a regular car. Then there's smiles per mile. The 997 needs to be driven a lot faster to get even close to the same enjoyment you get out of driving an Evora. I used to say if I can hear the engine singing in my 911 I'm doing three figures. In the Evora I can put a proper grin on my face without breaking the speed limit.

P.s. I'm also 15 mins from Rugby if you want a poke around a car without feeling guilty about misleading a seller. I won't be selling mine

[jep]

But it's even better when you do break the speed limit 😁

[hamza]

allegedly.