Advice needed on 7 seaters

code-a-holic

Which one is the best value for money?
We need a 7 seater that still gives enough boot space for a double buggy and a large suitcase(at least!).
Ideally a automatic would be good so that we can share driving(hubby only has auto license).
Want something economical as will be doing school run which is twisting lanes and up hill, but we often do motorway runs too.
I like the look of a zafira but from looking in one it looks to cramped and no one over 8 would be able to sit in the back!
Hubby likes the toyoua lucidas etc but i dont like the seat plan in the back row very much.
What do we do!!! I currently have a scenic but you cant fit 3 babys in their seats in the back - nightmare on family outings!!

All help appreciated....... :j

grumpyoldgit_2

I had a Chrysler Voyager which wasa good car - built well and nice to drive with VERY versatile seating.
You can pick them up quite cheap second hand - go for the Common Rail Diesel version as the petroil is a bit under powered unless you have the huge American gas guzzler engine.
The Grand Voyager is a bit longer and should meet you needs exactly.
Once out of warranty I had no trouble getting it serviced locally at considerable savings on main dealers.
GoG

helen21_2

the zafira would be no good for you, if your using all seats there is no room for nothing else.

bigbill

Hi

Look at a hyundia Trajet.

5 year warranty
3 years RAC memebrship
3 years servicing

Under £14,000

Had one from new and no problems over the last three years.

Threadhead

bigbill wrote:

Look at a hyundia Trajet.

My friend has one of these and she loves it. Dont think the boot is huge though.

I had a ford galaxy auto, which was good too, but again, small boot.

Another friend had a Savannah (not sure who makes them), which looked like an estate car, and had a massive boot. It was a pretty old car though, so I dont know how easy they are to get hold of.

bobsa1

I've just got rid of my Zafira, simply because I could not fit an 11 year old, 8 year old, 2year old in car seat and pram in the car comfortably.

I now have a galaxy which I am really pleased with. I loved the look of the grand voyager, however heavy on diesel (I do town school runs and the mpg scared me) I looked at a misibushi Grandis, which looks like an estate car but has 7 seats. You could fit an umbrella fold double buggy but probably not a suitcase in the boot.

I looked at the new landrover discovery, you could not fit all you need in one of these.

I think the toyota previa looks bigger than the galaxy but I could not get hold of one.
That might be worth a look.

I also looked at a mitsibushi pathfinder which looks fantastic and had seven seats and loads of boot space, mpg is not good though.

Hope this helps

Counting_Pennies_2

I went in a Chrysler Voyager on holiday. We were picked up in Australia with luggage for a 5 week holiday for three adults and one child plus a buggy. All this went into the boot, the driver was obviously skilled in stacking items. There were three huge suitcases, three flight bags and the buggy.

In fact the Voyager was picked out for us on a taxi rank by the taxi operator because we needed the biggest car available.

The seating arrangement is brilliant.

The back set of seats is a bench style slightly raised up with three seats along the back, then two nice arm chairs are in the middle of the car. You don't need to lift them in order to get into the back, you just walk between the two seats. Then there are the standard front two seats.

I think there are the options of either folding down the two middle seats or removing the back three for more storage if necessary, but you might want to check this out.

I loved this car, there was a sense of luxury about it all. I am sure it was one of the top of the range models, it had a tv screen and all the other fantastic extras, it was by far the most luxurious journey I have had for a long time.

If we were going for a people carrier here this is the car we would go for.

funky-footprints

another lover of the chrysler grand voyager here !! the new ones are totally stunning and they have far more space than anything else we sat it, it was terrifying to start, so heavy to drive and i felt like it would take 10m years to brake, but i had been used to driving little nippy manual numbers, and also driving such a big car when it is automatic terrified me, i felt so out of control !! we lpg converted ours so totally reduced our petrol bills, although a hefty sum to convert its well worth it if you plan on keeping the car for a while.

We had an automatic, because my dh lied to me and said you couldnt get manual ones, that was because he found a realy good deal on a 2nd hand one !!! i since have researched and yes you can get manual ones, so next time i change my car, (sold the old one for current estate ) im having another chrylser, (manual this time) totally gorgeous car, fab for long journeys, and fab for all those kids !!!!! go get one !!

Spendless

We have a VW Touran. All the seats move independantly of each other, so you can come up with the seating/room combo you wish. I personally do not find the back 2 seats comfy, but the children are fine with them.

code-a-holic

Thank you all, now i know some names to do searches on!
The mpg on 7 seven seaters is scaring me - but i guess its my own fault for producing a ever expanding family!
:T

sjpkgp

I have got 4 kids and a VW Sharan, which I like better than a couple of other ppl carriers I was given while my car was being serviced. One thing I have found great is the Sharan has integral child seats (i.e. a booster cushion comes up and a child seat pulls down) This must have saved me hours over the year, and I hate trying to get car seats in in tight spaces, in the rain etc....

Also, it means that the whole car is accessible - I have noticed that if you have bulky car seats in, some kids end up climbing in from the front etc.

The back seats are seperate and all seats ae removeable.