Am I right in thinking the bed does work with the second row seats in you obviously lose the floor space?
Yes you are right. In fact there are a couple of ways you can make the california beach 3 seater bed.
The multiflex board consists of 2 parts, and one part of it can be "bent down", it's about 20cm. If you do this, the flat rear bench can obviously be moved backward a little more.
The standard way to make the bed with all 7 seats in (or 6) is to bent that part down, and fold the middle seats flat. Then you put a little mattress topper (Ikea or something more expensive) on it. There's just a space in between the seats where you can store stuff (and you better, because nothing supports the mattress there). This is what is called the "long bed"
Then there is the possibility of leaving the multiflex part up. You turn the middle seats around and leave the backrest straight up. That way it's possible to make the normal bed (which you'd have in a 5 seater beach). But I haven't tried it. There are some topics on this forum.
To move the 3 seater bench, you first have to collapse the backrest completely flat. That can get a little annoying when you're trying to find the right spot. There's a simple "hack" possible, to connect a little wire that you can pull to a spring under the bench, to allow it to move without folding down the bench.
@zeratul baby is due in April, so for now we're probably the same as you with your three children - therefore, how do you find it? Is it good fun still or is just over cramped? Do you regret it? Do you have a drive away awning or any other type of additional shelter?
No we don't regret it at all, one of the best decisions in life.
Our first night was a little disaster however
The three children were so over excited that they couldn't sleep. They were full of adrenaline, and in the end we ended up driving home from the campsite. They normally sleep from 8pm and it was 11pm when we gave up
They have to get used to. Depends on the child/baby of course, everyone is different. The second try went a lot better and now they all sleep so well in it! They keep asking for more trips, more nights, being together as a family. It's a great vehicle for families.. not as clunky as motorhome, very versatile.
At one point when our children get older we may have to get a popup tent I guess. But not having to deal with wet canvas has advantages.
We don't have a drive away awning. Afraid it would take way too much space. I guess you could, if you use a quality inflatable mattress for the downstairs bed instead of a real mattress (because it takes so much space). We've never tried that though. We have the regular California awning, and find this very practical. We use it to eat outside when it rains.
This type of table is very convenient:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Outdoor...mping-Picnic-Table-With-4-Seats-/321311471285
You can pair it with the standard Cal table and chairs and you'll have 6 places to sit and eat.
Just don't buy too many items all at once .. they all take space and you want to travel light.
There's also the children seats that have to be stored somewhere when sleeping (Unless you have the seats with integrated seats). We store them below the steering wheel or between dashboard and the front passenger seats. If you're 6 you can still sit around the california table in the cali. turned front seats, 1 90 degree turned middle seat near the door, and 3 on the rear bench. Then fold down the seventh seat, and click in the table. It works
And best tip perhaps.. read a lot on this forum.
