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7-seater car with a big boot: how much space is left with seven on board

How much boot space is left behind the third row? Caddy and Caddy Maxi volumes, why maximum figures mislead and what sliding seats and roof boxes add.

October 27, 2026

7-seater car with a big boot: how much space is left with seven on board

Key takeaways

With the third row in use, the Volkswagen Caddy Maxi V has 446 litres of boot space and the standard Volkswagen Caddy V just 191 litres (both measured to the top of the seat backs). With seven people on board, the long-wheelbase body carries more than twice as much.
If you regularly travel as seven with luggage for several days, look for long-wheelbase passenger versions of small vans: the Volkswagen Caddy Maxi, Citroën Berlingo XL or Peugeot Rifter Long. In seven-seat SUVs and most MPVs, the third row is mainly for shorter journeys.
The boot volume with the third row folded or removed applies to five people, not seven. For the Dacia Jogger, it is 565 or 696 litres. Figures measured to the roof can't be compared with figures measured to the load cover.
A roof box adds volume, not carrying capacity. The Škoda Kodiaq I can carry 75 kg on its roof, including the roof bars and the box. Seven passengers also use up a large part of the payload.

A 7-seater car with a big boot has to do two things at once: seat the whole family and take all its luggage. Adverts and brochures, however, usually quote the boot volume with the third row folded, or the maximum with all the rear seats folded. For a holiday with every seat taken, those figures are useless. Besides the litres behind the last row, you also need to know the shape of the space and how many kilograms the car can still carry with a full crew.

7-seater car with a big boot: how much is left behind the third row?

Long-wheelbase passenger versions of small vans leave the most space behind the rearmost seats. They have a square body and a longer rear end, so the third row doesn't sit right up against the tailgate. The difference shows in two lengths of the same generation of the Volkswagen Caddy:

Model and version	Boot space with all seven seats occupied	Measurement method	Source
Volkswagen Caddy V (from 2020), standard length	191 litres	to the top of the seat backs	Volkswagen
Volkswagen Caddy Maxi V (from 2020), long wheelbase	446 litres	to the top of the seat backs	Volkswagen

For seven people and holiday luggage, the Volkswagen Caddy Maxi V is the clear choice of the two. The standard Caddy V, with 191 litres behind the third row, suits a family that only fills every seat on shorter trips and otherwise travels as five.

In seven-seat SUVs and compact MPVs such as the Škoda Kodiaq, Peugeot 5008 or Volkswagen Touran, the third row sits close to the tailgate. With every seat taken, there is room behind it for shopping and school bags rather than a week's holiday. The third row in SUVs is covered in more detail in the article on 7-seater SUVs.

Even 446 litres is just a volume, not a guarantee that any combination of suitcases, pushchair and sports gear will fit. A tall, narrow space takes different things from a low, deep boot of the same volume. Behind the third row, soft holdalls therefore pack better than large hard-shell suitcases.

When to look for Maxi, XL or Long

Long-wheelbase bodies carry the Maxi, XL or Long badge – that is, the Volkswagen Caddy Maxi, the third-generation Citroën Berlingo in XL form or the Peugeot Rifter Long. For a family that regularly carries seven people and their belongings, body length matters more than a higher trim level or bigger wheels.

But the extra length doesn't necessarily all go into the boot. Some of it may go to the passengers or to a different interior layout. So look for both at once: a long body and seven seats on the papers. If you need even more space, you move up to passenger vans such as the Toyota Proace Verso, whose Family version has eight seats and comes in several body lengths. That, however, is a topic for the article on 8-seater cars.

Why the maximum brochure volume is misleading

The term “boot volume” can refer to four different situations:

Figure quoted for the car	What it tells you
volume behind the upright third row	how much space is left when travelling as seven
volume with the third row folded	how much luggage you can take as five
volume with the third row removed	how much space removing the rear seats frees up
maximum volume with the rear rows folded	how much cargo the car can take with two on board

The difference between folding and removing is well illustrated by the seven-seat Dacia Jogger (from 2022):

Seven-seat Dacia Jogger layout	Boot volume with the second row in its normal position
third row folded	565 litres (VDA)
third row removed	696 litres (VDA)

Neither figure applies to travelling as seven. They do show, though, that a removable third row pays off for a family that travels as five most of the week and only needs seven seats occasionally. The price is handling heavy seats and finding somewhere to store them at home.

Litres to the roof are not the same as litres to the load cover

Boot space measured to the roof includes the space high above the seat backs. It is useful for lighter bulky items, but they must be secured, or they will fly forward under braking. A figure measured to the load cover or the top of the seat backs better reflects how much luggage you can stow safely.

When comparing cars, always put the same seating layout and the same measurement height side by side. Setting one car's five-seat volume against another's seven-seat volume, or a figure to the roof against one to the load cover, gives a distorted result.

How much space do sliding seats and a double boot floor add?

Sliding seats divide the length of the cabin between passengers and luggage. The Volkswagen Touran II, launched in 2015, has individual fore-and-aft adjustment of 20 cm for the second-row seats. Sliding the second row forward gives third-row passengers more legroom.

Sliding the second row doesn't help the boot, though, if the third row is fixed in place and forms the boot's front edge. You can only enlarge the boot in cars where the last row slides too. Even then, it comes at the expense of the passengers' knees.

What does a double boot floor do?

The upper floor position makes loading easier and creates a flat surface when the seats are folded. The lower position adds height for luggage. In seven-seaters, however, the space under the floor is often taken up by the folded third-row seats or their mechanisms, so the gain tends to be smaller than in the five-seat version of the same model.

On a used car, check that the floor panels, the load cover and the removable seats are all present. You won't spot a missing part in the photos, and tracking one down afterwards can take time.

Roof box: when it helps and where its limits lie

A roof box suits a family that needs a big boot mainly for holidays. It takes light, bulky items such as clothes or sleeping bags, while the heavy luggage stays low inside the car. For everyday driving as seven, however, a longer body is more practical than loading up the roof.

A roof box increases fuel consumption, noise and the car's overall height. You may not fit into underground car parks or under low entrances with it.

The roof limit applies to the whole set-up. The Škoda Kodiaq I (2016–2024) has a maximum roof load of 75 kg. That includes the roof bars, the empty box and the luggage, so noticeably less is left for the load itself. If the roof bars or the box have a lower permitted load, the lower limit applies.

Payload: seven people can reach the limit before the boot is full

Boot space is measured in litres, payload in kilograms. Seven adults can easily exceed half a tonne before the first bag goes in. The car may then have a half-empty boot and still be at its maximum permitted weight.

You can work out the margin from the registration certificate as the difference between the maximum permissible laden mass and the mass in running order. It can differ between two used cars of the same model depending on the engine, drivetrain and equipment. Parents with small children have plenty in reserve, but with seven adults and a full boot, some versions are at the limit.

Besides the overall weight, the axle load limits also apply. Heavy luggage belongs as low as possible and as close to the seat backs as possible, not high up by the tailgate. A roof box won't solve a lack of payload; it just moves part of the load elsewhere.

What to look out for when choosing a used car

A five-seat version instead of a seven-seater. Many models were sold in both versions. What counts is the number of seats on the registration certificate, not the name in the advert.
Missing third-row seats. Removable seats are sometimes left behind in the previous owner's garage.
Faulty folding mechanisms and locks. Third-row mechanisms are often worn on used cars, and the seat must lock securely in the travelling position.
A short body instead of a long one. Between the Caddy V and the Caddy Maxi V, there is a 255-litre difference behind the third row, yet from the outside the cars look similar in photos.
Unsecured luggage above the seat backs. Under heavy braking, it puts third-row passengers at risk.

For occasionally carrying extra passengers, a seven-seat MPV or SUV is enough. But if you regularly fill every seat and carry luggage too, look for a long-wheelbase body. No amount of equipment can make up for missing length behind the third row.

A used seven-seater through Carvago: wider choice and verified condition

Finding a 7-seater car with a big boot means looking for a specific combination of model, body length and number of seats. There are few such cars on the local market. Carvago has the widest selection of used cars: around a million cars from dealers in several European countries. Even long-wheelbase seven-seat versions can therefore be found in a much wider choice.

Before sale, every car is inspected by a technician as part of CarAudit™ with up to 270 checkpoints. The check covers an inspection of the exterior, interior and mechanical components, a review of the available information on history and legal status, diagnostics and a test drive. You know the result before deciding to buy, and Carvago guarantees the condition stated in the CarAudit™ certificate.

Before the sale, Carvago buys the car from the original seller, becomes its owner and takes on its risks. You therefore buy directly from Carvago, even if the car is coming from abroad. Once the purchase is approved, Carvago uses a power of attorney to arrange registration of the car in your country and delivers it to your door as standard. You can drive off as soon as it is handed over.

FAQ

Will a folded pushchair fit behind the third row?

What matters is the length of the folded chassis and the depth of the boot, not the litres. A tall space can have plenty of volume but the wrong footprint for a pushchair. This is where a practical test makes sense: put your own folded pushchair behind the upright third row and close the tailgate.

Does it help the boot if only six people are travelling?

Yes, if the car has a split third row. You can fold or remove the unused seat, creating a long space for skis, say, or a bike with one wheel removed. The load must be secured and must not intrude on the passenger in the neighbouring seat.

Can a box on the towbar solve the lack of space?

Yes, a rear carrier with a box can supplement the boot and, unlike a roof box, doesn't make the car taller. But the permitted nose weight of the towbar and the carrier's limits apply. The carrier's weight counts towards the car's load. Depending on its design, the carrier may stop the tailgate from opening.