Nice People Thread No. 14, all Nice and Proper

silvercar

Mr ivyleaf seems happy to take the saleslady's word for it, and seems to think I'm fussing about nothing, but when that space between the rows of seats is so important for us it seems very unwise to me to order a car that we haven't had a chance to sit in, based on the salesperson's word that there's an equal amount of space.

You need to see it in person.

Find another dealer who has one in stock and look at it.

Generali

ivyleaf wrote: »

Am I just being silly?

No you are not being silly. You need to sit in the car you are going to spend a lot of money on. You'd be crazy to do anything else.

If anyone questions tell them I said so.

hjd

ivyleaf wrote: »

What do the NP think? Am I just being silly?

No, you are not being silly. You need to try out the model you would be buying.
I have a 5 seater C Max, and leg room seems OK to me. I am long-legged (34" inside leg), I have a husband and mother who are both almost 6 ft tall and a son who is 6' 2" and we can all fit in mine.
I also wouldn't take a salesperson's word for it about something so important.

michaels

ivyleaf wrote: »

But. But. We had the test drive in the 7-seater version, and we don't really need 7 seats, so would rather have the 5-seater version.

I asked if the 5-seater really has as much room between the first and second row of seats as the 7-seater does, and the saleslady said it has; but there was no 5-seater one available there, so we couldn't compare the two, and she didn't offer to get one from somewhere else (not sure how feasible that would be anyway as the dealership's an independent firm) so we could sit in it and check.

My query was prompted by noticing that the 5-seater C-Max is much tighter for space between the first and second row of seats than the 7-seater version. (Again, the test drive was in the 7-seater.) So I suspect the same may be true of the Citroen.

Mr ivyleaf seems happy to take the saleslady's word for it, and seems to think I'm fussing about nothing, but when that space between the rows of seats is so important for us it seems very unwise to me to order a car that we haven't had a chance to sit in, based on the salesperson's word that there's an equal amount of space.:(

What do the NP think? Am I just being silly?

Agree you need to check but I would have thought it depends whether the 7 seater and 5 seater are the same length and the difference is only whether the rear two seats are fitted or whether they have different wheel base/length in which case of course rear space is likely to differ. In the Citroen isn't the 7-seater called a 'grand' picasso and basically a longer vehicle?

Spirit_2

ivyleaf wrote: »

That sounds really lovely, Spirit They sound a delightful couple!

On another subject, it's time for us to choose a new Motability car. At the moment we have a Vauxhall Antara. We both like it a lot, and would have simply extended its lease for another 2 years....but my hips have started to complain when I get into it - I'm 5 ft 5in, and it's a fairly big step up and a big step across IYSWIM. So we've been looking for a replacement that's (a) on the current Motability list at an affordable advance payment (i.e. less than £500), and (b) a bit easier for me to get into.

We narrowed the shortlist down to 2 possibles; the Ford C-Max and the Citroen C4 Picasso (a new model came out last year.)

We've sort of decided on the Citroen, as when we had a test drive there was loads of knee room between the first and second row of seats, which would mean we could go out/on holiday with DD1, DSIL who's a tall chap, and DSIL's big Guide Dog. My OH is 6ft 3in so needs the driving seat a long way back, and DSIL would sit in the front passenger seat, as Guide Dogs are trained to sit in the front footwell. So the front passenger seat needs to be a long way back too, when he's in the car.
There was plenty of room in the back seats when both front seats were all the way back!

So far so good!

But. But. We had the test drive in the 7-seater version, and we don't really need 7 seats, so would rather have the 5-seater version.

I asked if the 5-seater really has as much room between the first and second row of seats as the 7-seater does, and the saleslady said it has; but there was no 5-seater one available there, so we couldn't compare the two, and she didn't offer to get one from somewhere else (not sure how feasible that would be anyway as the dealership's an independent firm) so we could sit in it and check.

My query was prompted by noticing that the 5-seater C-Max is much tighter for space between the first and second row of seats than the 7-seater version. (Again, the test drive was in the 7-seater.) So I suspect the same may be true of the Citroen.

Mr ivyleaf seems happy to take the saleslady's word for it, and seems to think I'm fussing about nothing, but when that space between the rows of seats is so important for us it seems very unwise to me to order a car that we haven't had a chance to sit in, based on the salesperson's word that there's an equal amount of space.:(

What do the NP think? Am I just being silly?

Try before you buy. My last car I tried a "sport version" and wanted a non sport model. when my new car arrived the engine and trim was none sporty but the seats still the same low, bucket like shape.I never liked them.

Generali

michaels wrote: »

What's happened to Sydney since Gen moved there?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3430102/Matt-Barrie-s-scathing-review-Sydney-s-nightlife.html

LOL, yes. Once I got here the authorities realised I was having too much fun and just needed to calm things down a bit :cool:

FWIW, it's not just the nightlife that's FUBAR'd, the housing market (or at least the apartment market) is going the same way. A couple of days ago one of the big banks that has about 60% of its loan book in mortgages stated that it thought house prices would rise by 1% a year for the next 2 years (well it could hardly say they would fall).

Then this morning a broker put out a horrible note on the market for new flats in Sydney. About 30 seconds after it landed in my inbox our very mild mannered portfolio manager (really a very nice man) barked across the office, "Hey, xxx. Please tell me that you sold xxxxing everything in XXX. They're xxxxed".

XXX is down a third in the last 6 months and I think might even go to $0 although will probably be bought out before that as they have some pretty tasty contracts of the sort that you only get if you are matey with politicians.

michaels

So are we right in thinking that Mr G is effectively 'str' at the moment (ie effectively short housing because he suspects capital values may decline by enough to make renting cheaper overall)?!

Spirit_2

Had a driving lesson today. My instructor told me he had never had a disability assessment candidate have to take a test again:(
He speculated that because I have followed the DVLA advice and had voluntarily had an assessment at their recommended centre, that the DVLA have decided to send me to a normal test centre. The only difference between a full test and my assessment is I do not have to do the theory.

Supposed to have confirmed my test date to DVLA by today. DVSA cannot turn around a date within 8 weeks so more delay likely . Provisional licence is supposed to lapse on 17th May.

Weaknesses

Need to check mirrors ever 4-5 seconds, far more frequent than I was doing, not just mirror signal, manouvre.
Parallel parking, need to adapt to using lollipop, My judgement was a bit off so I need to learn a systematic technique. TRied it and was OK need a bit of practice.

Reversing, I had a bit of confusion in deciding which way to steer. Need to concentrate, not instinctive anymore.

Looking over my left shoulder in an exaggerated way is a bit stiff, will work with physio.

Overall OK for today

Generali

michaels wrote: »

So are we right in thinking that Mr G is effectively 'str' at the moment (ie effectively short housing because he suspects capital values may decline by enough to make renting cheaper overall)?!

I'm short housing because I've taken a bet on educating Mrs Generali.

A lot of money, well into 6 figures, has gone to getting Mrs Generali into a position where she can earn <£30,000 a year.

Going flat housing is the next step which will hopefully happen this year and will happen before the end of 2017.

hjd

michaels wrote: »

Agree you need to check but I would have thought it depends whether the 7 seater and 5 seater are the same length and the difference is only whether the rear two seats are fitted or whether they have different wheel base/length in which case of course rear space is likely to differ. In the Citroen isn't the 7-seater called a 'grand' picasso and basically a longer vehicle?

C max 5 seater and 7 seater are also different vehicles. 5 seater has standard doors, 7 seater has rear doors that open backwards instead of forwards.