Would the liftback work for me?

The dealer would let you test it. Just bring your equipment. Hatchback should be fine. My kids are grown up. Maybe someone with children can chime in. The V would be a Great family car

 

Take your carseat to a dealer and see. I think you'll probably be fine, but you won't know until you try it.

My daughter has a HUGE Britax carseat that made my old Impreza front seat unusable because of space. It fits fine in my wife's Sonata, but we haven't tried the Prius.

 

2012 Toyota Prius: Car Seat Check - KickingTires
2012 Toyota Prius v: Car Seat Check - KickingTires
2012 Toyota Prius c: Car Seat Check - KickingTires

 

Car seats no problem. The stroller should fit if the front wheel folds down. We've had two car seats, a large stroller and smaller stroller no problem. Depends how well the stroller folds.

 

I just went from a 2004 Civic to a 2010 Prius (I also have a 2008 Cr-V). We have a large Britax rear-facing seat that fits nicely behind the front passenger seat. There is a lot more legroom for the front passenger now than there was in the Civic. We also have a large stroller - an Uppababy Vista - doesn't get bigger than that. It fits in the hatch area with no problem, but doesn't leave a whole lot of room for much else, but it's adequate if you do't lug around a lot of stuff. The stroller is a breeze to put in/take out of the Prius compared to the Civic's trunk.

 

I have 3 kids with the youngest being 8 so we haven't used car seats or strollers for awhile, however it hasn't been that long.... What we found its not if you have room for the car seat and stroller its what you need to go along with those things like additional passengers, groceries, high chairs, toy boxes... you get the idea.
When our first child was born we had a Ford Escort station wagon. One time we bought a toy box and realized when we got to the parking lot that it wouldn't fit in the car since we couldn't put the backseat down with the car seat in the backseat. We soon moved up to a Taurus station wagon. After child #2 and #3 we ended up with three Windstar minivan at the same time (yes 3, lol, long story).
So my advice for you:
1. Does it make finacial sense for you to pay the price penalty of a V instead of a liftback?
2. Take your car seat and stroller to your local dealer and see how they fit in the V and liftback. Now picture what additional things, including people you may want to go with you. Also, don't expect to put the stroller in the front area all the time. If the baby is fussy someone will likely need to sit in the seat beside the car seat.

3. Where do you see yourself and your family in 2 to 4 years? Are you planning to have more children? If so, will a double stroller or two strollers fit and still have room for other things and people?

I honestly haven't driven a V but now that I know what I do about Prius cars and what I have learned about having multiple kids I personally would find someway to make a V work for me if I was going to start a family.

 

Don't forget with the liftback there is a nice size compartment under the floor in the back. This can come in handy when space gets tight.
Help me out, does the V have a compartment under the floor in the back like the liftback?

 

Just saying that when my children were infants the family car was a Camry. They did not have a Prius back than. Great family car, big, safe, reliable and dependable. Now available in a hybrid.

 

Yes it does.

 

Good luck and happy shopping!
I hope you have as nice of salesmen as our local Toyota dealer has. I really am not sure if it was the salesman or the Prius itself that cause the light bulb to come on for me, but after that first test drive I was hooked!

 

I just wish the passthru for the backseat wasn't reduced so much for the Camry Hybrid when compared to the standard Camry, but they are nice cars.

 

Gosh, don't show that picture around too much or plumbers will be trading in their plumber trucks for Vs! That is a lot of space!
But anyway, getting back on topic. I could see a spare diaper bag with extra diapers, a couple of changes of clothes fitting in there nicely.

 

We have a Britax Boulevard 70 G3 for our little one. Both my wife and I are tall, and the seat does not fit behind either the drivers or passenger seat. We have to mount it in the center position. This works ok but it can be a PITA at times, and if we do end up with two kids in rear facing seats at the same time the Prius is out. Most of the time if we travel longer distances we end up taking the Sienna instead.

 

We have a large Recaro child seat and a rear facing child carrier in the backseat... and another adult. 3 adults, a toddler, a baby, and a large double stroller in the hatch. I honestly don't understand other people's obsession with size. In fact, this setup fit just fine in our 2006 Civic and 2009 Sonata. Obviously, the rear adult will be cramped but that is a rare occurrence. Most of the time, it's just the four of us.

My sister has the v and the hatch is much larger and the rear seats can be adjusted for even more space in the rear. My wife urged me to buy it. But I see no reason to take the fuel economy hit for space that I may never use. 3 rear facing car seats will still fit in the back should we get another surprise. I'd rather have 50 mpg for the life of the car over 43 mpg. All I need to do is plan extra time to pack the trunk Tetris-like.

 

If it helps, here is the Uppababy Vista folded up in the cargo area. Still enough room for knick knacks that I typically carry.

 

^^^^^^

Room for the Diaper Bag