Expecting my first kid in just a few weeks here. Exciting times, but it occurs to me that on long road trips, with the wife, kid, dog, stroller, etc we might be pushing the defender’s cargo capacity.

does anyone recommend a hitch-mounted cargo carrier, preferably one that swings out?

bonus points for a rear seat area cover to protect the leather from the inevitable spills and accidents haha

 

Better yet, a hitch mounted NHTSA-approved baby carrier. Solve both problems with one piece of gear.

 

Congrats on the upcoming parenthood, it's an awesome adventure that flies by so fast. Start that 529 plan now.

We did one trip with our twin babies, dog and gear stuffed in an Audi allroad with a roof box then ordered a Q7 when we got home. If you have a 110 and plan to have more than one child, order a 130 now.

I borrowed my neighbor's Thule hitch box for a college move-in trip and it's cumbersome. Thule Transporter Combi | Thule | United States
Here is the swing part we own for a hitch bike rack: https://1up-usa.com/product/rakattach

Rather than a hitch box, my advice would be to get a big roof box for extra cargo capacity: https://www.rei.com/product/239069/t...-3-roof-box-xl
You can always add a cheap hitch cargo rack and place waterproof containers on it too.

 

Congrats on the upcoming new arrival! There is soooooo much stuff in the beginning. I have two kids and I remember thinking “why in the world is there so much baby gear!? This is insane!” I was hauling around a pack and play, a stroller, a Snoo, bottle warmers, etc. even for just for an over night trip.

That is good advice about the rooftop box, I got the biggest Thule box I could fit on an outback at the time and it made a world of difference. I would suggest that route as well.

Now that they are a little older there is much less stuff to haul. A 110 works great for us. We have the third row and put one of their friends back there a couple weeks ago for a school pick up. We also took a trip to the lake last week and brought a boat up top and all the boat gear (life jackets, paddles, kayak chairs), plus my climbing gear, plus all our regular trip stuff and food in the back and still had room. The height of the cargo area goes a long way (the “clear view” rear view mirror helps), but my wife is also some sort of Tetris packing wizard.

Enjoy your sleep while you can!

 

I have the genuine LR 110 second row seat covers (and the front row ones too)... and FWIW, I do like them a lot.

Now that I think about it, I am not sure they have holes in them for the latch mechanisms for baby seats that are in the bottom of the seatback area, at least I can't find the holes. I don't have kids, but you should chk with the dealer on this.. .

 

I've got them too. Dogs take up the backseat, and we're normally muddy up front! However I am not super pleased with them. The front lowers tend to come untucked and they generally move around a lot. Am half thinking of ordering some Melvill and Moon ones https://melvillandmoon.com/melvill-a...n-seat-covers/, not too sure if they have access to the car seat clips.