Struggling to choose suitable car - which MPV?

Anomaly100

Current car 58 plate citroen grand c4 Picasso. Love driving it due to raised driving position, great visibility, spacious cabin, easily fit three child seats across the back, massive boot and option to use additional seats if necessary.

Car is now getting expensive to keep going. Faults are appearing that take time to fix and its awkward not having the car if its being repaired. So looking to replace it but got so much choice don't know where to start.

I've considered the following

New shape Citroen grand c4 Picasso
Ford smax
Ford grand c-max
Seat Alhambra
Nissan qashqai + 2
Vauxhall zafira tourer
Volkswagen Sharan
Volkswagen touran
Volkswagen caddy maxi

My eldest child is 9 and my annual mileage tends to be around 10k. In an ideal scenario this car would last 8 years so I don't need to buy another MPV ever. We could spend up to about 15k although the less the better.

Just to add into the mix. I would really like the car to have Bluetooth and sat nav although not essential.

I'd be very grateful for any advice.

pstuart

The Seat Alhambra is a rebadged VW Sharon, built in the same factory but cheaper because of the badge!

traceyed1

Hi have you considered a Kia carens? they are a 7 seater and very roomy. Also you will get 7 years warranty with them or the balance of it if buying used. I have one and have been pleased with it.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201605264325102?search-target=usedcars&make=kia&model=carens&price-to=15000&year-from=2013&keywords=3&page=2&radius=1501&searchcontext=default&postcode=dn365da&sort=default&onesearchad=new%2Cnearlynew%2Cused&logcode=p&adPos=3

parking_question_chap

The car is only 8 years old, either its badly designed or you are not looking after it very well. If its the former I suggest you remove a newer version from your short list.

BeenThroughItAll

What's wrong with the current car, and where are you taking it to get it fixed?

Spending 15 grand to replace an eight year old car sounds like madness to me, when you could spend far, far less properly fixing anything that's wrong. I very much doubt that your existing car won't be able to do another eight years and 80k miles for a fair chunk under 2 grand a year, which is what you're talking about spending.

Anomaly100

The current car has an electrical fault. No one seems to know if its fuse box, ecu or wiring loom or all three. This is the latest in a line of electrical faults. Its not just the cost of repairs but the problem of getting around while car is being fixed or just looked at.

I also don't trust it which limits where I go. It broke down at 5pm Xmas eve halfway to Scotland tow truck got us to where we wanted to go by about midnight but it wasn't how I wanted to spend the evening.

It isn't a well built car, I've had lots of electrical faults, the suspension has had to be repaired more than once due to known faults on this model but to drive and for practicality its great. I've been told the newer model is much better built.

[Deleted User]

I had a Citroen c8 and understand fully were you are coming from. They are lovely cars to drive but are money pits when problems start. Do not get another French car. With up to 15 grand to spend you could get something completely out of the box... A Jap import such as a Nissan Serena. So much luxury car for your money and Japanese reliability.

wba31

After doing my research I have just put a deposit on a Ford S-Max - granted it was only £7k for a 2009 model. If I had £15k to spend my choice would have been much bigger and i would have looked at the Seat Alhambra, however the Galaxy is quite "rolly" and although the S-Max is still as big, it's centre of gravity is lower so it handles more car like. The back 2 seats are small, but we have bought it for a massive 5 seater really, as opposed to wanting a 7 seater.

I did a lot of my research on honest john, then went to test drive actual cars

FreddieFrugal

Unfortunately MPVs are less reliable than smaller cars. None of the cars you suggested are particularly reliable.

The best ones from your list would be the Fords.

I was looking at new shape C4 Picasso when the reviews first came out as it looked good and spacious. However what puts me off is the Citroen badge coupled with already poor reliability reports and the fact they made all the controls for radio, air con etc. through a touchscreen - have to swap menus to alter settings. That's much more awkward than having dedicated switches.

Also French car manufacturers can't manage even simple electrics - so why they all put in more complicated stuff I don't know.

Dashboards always failing - so the idea of having every system wired up through one touchscreen control is terrifying!

SEAT have a very poor reputation for reliability and dealer service - which I hadn't realised until I looked past the glowing 'expert' reviews for cars like the Leon and actually looked at owner reviews.

Likewise with the Qashqai - glowing reviews from the car reviewers but that doesn't follow through to the ownership reports.

So from your options it's Ford S Max or Grand C Max.

Don't get me wrong Ford aren't perfect either but seem better than Citroen or VW group - at least they're cheap to repair.

dadrock

We've had a 08 Mazda 5 for 3 years now. Had a CMax before that for 7 years. The mazda is slightly bigger, has 7 seats, rear sliding doors and performs much better. No bills so far. I like it as it's a bit more like a car than a lumpy mpv with all the mpv functionality. Worth a look if one comes up nearby.