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My daughter-in-law hasn't yet got the hang of not having babies (keep the tablet between your knees, dear) so something with at least 6 seats will soon be required. Any thoughts/advice for about £3.5k?
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SEAT Alhambra tdi. (Or the VW/Ford siblings)
Great car, easy to drive. Loved ours, but too big for just the two of us as a shopping cart.
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Yeah, I'd not disagree with Dodger.
I had a Galaxy TDi auto (2003) for several years, did what it needed to do without drama and was pretty pleasant to drive, given the nature of the car. Bit too noisy on the motorway was my main gripe.
Spares are plentiful and cheap. There are a few well known weaknesses, but they're robust overall and those weaknesses are well known and easily fixed if they crop up. There are a couple of big, friendly, helpful forums out there for guidance.
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SEAT Alhambra tdi. (Or the VW/Ford siblings)
Great car, easy to drive.
Horrible to ride in, though. My airport taxi firm has a note on file not to send one to pick me up. I much prefer the Alhambra's direct competitor, the Audi A8L.
Perhaps it doesn't matter if the occupants of the rear half are all tinies in boosters, but it's not a great place to be an adult, especially a tall one.
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Yes, the rear seats are a bit low to the floor for a lanky person, but I don't think that will be a problem for the OP. At 6'0" I find them just about acceptable. Front seats are fine. I too would recommend one (having had a Mk1 Sharan).
The newer (current shape) Galaxies or S-Max are far better in every conceivable way than the Mk1s/Galaxy/Alhambra, but decent ones will be out of budget.
Last edited by: Boxsterboy on Tue 28 Jan 14 at 12:11
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>> to send one to pick me up. I much prefer the Alhambra's direct competitor, the
>> Audi A8L.
Direct competitor? A8L starts at 62k list, Alhambra 25k.
Such a jester that beast, chortle chortle.
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Direct competitor? A8L starts at 62k list, Alhambra 25k.
Well done, Z. Gold star. Funnily enough, I was aware of the apparent absurdity myself.
And yet - especially since neither of the examples I travel in is likely to have been bought new - two drivers who choose them for essentially the same work have examined the market and bought one of each. Either driver might have made the other choice. They charge me the same amount for the airport run, too. All that makes the A8L and the Alhambra, in this context at least, direct competitors.
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>> Direct competitor? A8L starts at 62k list, Alhambra 25k.
>>
>> Well done, Z. Gold star. Funnily enough, I was aware of the apparent absurdity myself.
>>
>>
>> And yet - especially since neither of the examples I travel in is likely to
>> have been bought new - two drivers who choose them for essentially the same work
>> have examined the market and bought one of each. Either driver might have made the
>> other choice. They charge me the same amount for the airport run, too. All that
>> makes the A8L and the Alhambra, in this context at least, direct competitors.
I doesn't, really. Second hand A8L is 30k (5 years old under 50k) Similar Alhambra is 10k The drivers haven't chosen them for essentially the same work, one is aiming for the regular account executive work, the other gets the social security mummies with screaming vomiting kids
Really, that are not direct competitors under any circumstances.
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Relax, Z, it was a bit of fun. The ironic throwaway comment occurred to me before the possibility that it might contain a tiny grain of truth.
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Something along these lines maybe:
www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201401141007714
link amended to remove postcode - presumably it was yours?
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 28 Jan 14 at 10:08
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>>link amended to remove postcode - presumably it was yours?
Thanks, it's where we lived about 10 years ago.
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do not be tempted by a Touran at 3.5k It will be a whole heap of trouble.
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A phrase that I've NEVER heard is…..
"I'm really pleased with my Renault Espace!"
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Humph's is engraved in his memory.
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Honda FRV?
If you like em big a Ssangyong Rodius, my sister has an '08 manual one and she said the only problem, other than finding a big enough parking space, is that once you have a 7 seater which also has a boot big enough to take all the baby junk while all seats are in use, you get too used to that level of space which no other big MPV can match - I know, I went out car shopping with her. 5 cyl Merc diesel engine, well made and cheap as chips.
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>> If you like em big a Ssangyong Rodius, also has a boot big enough to
>> take all the baby junk while all seats are in use, you get too used
>> to that level of space which no other big MPV can match. 5 cyl Merc diesel engine, well made and
>> cheap as chips.
>>
... and as ugly as sin.
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>>... and as ugly as sin.<<
You get used to it, my sister has had alot of interest from other parents she knows who ride in it, most of them value the practical value over the looks. Get it in a dark colour and the styling isnt so obvious.
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>> >>... and as ugly as sin.<<
>>
>> You get used to it, my sister has had alot of interest from other parents
>> she knows who ride in it, most of them value the practical value over the
>> looks. Get it in a dark colour and the styling isnt so obvious.
You could creosote it.
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>> You could creosote it.
So if it gets stolen it's easier to fence?
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And the tax disc is in the post.
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ON the post. nailed on.
Last edited by: Zero on Tue 28 Jan 14 at 15:29
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>> ... and as ugly as sin.
>>
That's an understatement. Looks like it was styled by a group of people who never met.
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Honda Stream? tinyurl.com/ouqy4e9
I had and loved a Honda Shuttle, but they are all a bit old now. Bomb proof though
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Thanks for all the replies. Nice to have suggestions we haven't thought of, so don't stop!
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Howl about one of:
tinyurl.com/pwtjnko
Last edited by: Dog on Tue 28 Jan 14 at 19:34
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We also had a Citroen C8 for 10 years. Never let us down although the minor electrics were getting a bit hit and miss towards the end. And reading other reports suggest that we were relatively lucky with ours. Plenty of those in budget, and sliding doors are a real boon for getting small ones in and out.
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>> Howl about one of:
>>
>> tinyurl.com/pwtjnko
>>
And tie someone to the roof?
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Just ask for a volunteer to be left behind. I don't think you'd have to ask twice.
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Or a volunteer to push if it has 5 bods inside!
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Another vote here for the Shalhamaxy.
We bought outs in 2005 as a pre reg - we were on the look out for any of the 3, but oddly we found a Sharan that was cheaper, in fact we paid for a pre reg slightly less than motorpoint wanted for 12 month old 10Ker
Anyway, its a 130 bhp SE and in the 8 years we've had it every MOT has been passed with nothing other than advisories.
Approaching 100K now and the only issues to date have been a/c packed in( but not bothered to repair), DMF last year (ouch, but only big bill) couple of sets of pads + 1 set of discs, new battery last month and servicing
Not exciting to drive, but OK, and plenty quick enough even loaded up. 6 speed box standard of diesels, but can remember when from - ours turns in an average 42mpg, but 48 - 50 possible on a run, so a cheap way to shift the crew
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As I've mentioned before, we run a Honda FRV - 3 kid seats fit across the back easily, 3 seats across front mean an extra grandparent can come along too.
59-reg, bought at 9 months old and 9k miles, now on 61k miles. Other than servicing (12.5k intervals) has had front and rear discs/pads. Had a line of rust at top of windscreen which was fixed without issue (rust killed, new windscreen strip, and roof respray by Honda a few months ago).
1.8 petrol with 5 speed TC auto (29mph/1000rpm in top) and returns 33-35mpg loaded up driving on A-roads (managed central Scotland to Manchester at 70-80mph with just me and the gaffer - a smidge over 40mpg). Pure town driving returns around 26-30mpg.
Tyres are the ubiquitous 205/55x16, and gets about 30k miles from a set (current Alpins look set to manage this or a little more).
With 6 seats occupied you still have a 430 litre boot which easily takes a wee pram/buggy/etc.
As an estate car it's pretty impressive: rear seats and middle front seat fold flat individually.
On the road it's about 3-4" wider than a Civic but is much the same length so pretty easy to drive.
I think they stopped making/selling at around 59-reg, and any in Honda dealers seem to car a fair premium.
I've 6'5" and have no problem driving it for hundreds of miles on holiday around the UK, the missus is little more than 5ft and manages fine too.
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>> Honda dealers seem to
>> car a fair premium.
And some. I looked at a S/H one as alternative to Berlingo. For £13.5k I paid for new Berlingo I might have got a 58 FRV.
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>>For £13.5k I paid for new Berlingo I might have got a 58 FRV.<<
A chicken shed usually is cheaper than a car.
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>> A chicken shed usually is cheaper than a car.
Beaky Chugger!!
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Be fair, Bromp - with his record, he ought to know.
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>>Be fair, Bromp - with his record, he ought to know.<<
Aye, I do it on purpose, they call it a lifestyle choice. I have found doing the complete opposite of what people suggest usually works out better, nothing worse than following the flock with all the other wooly types :-)
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>> >>Be fair, Bromp - with his record, he ought to know.<<
>>
>> Aye, I do it on purpose, they call it a lifestyle choice. I have found
>> doing the complete opposite of what people suggest usually works out better, nothing worse than
>> following the flock with all the other wooly types :-)
Your record with buying cars is the worse here. If there was a league table for unreliability, issues and agro you would have been relegated!
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edit or should that be top of the league!
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>>Your record with buying cars is the worse here. If there was a league table for unreliability, issues and agro you would have been relegated! <<
The number of cars certainly but most were reliable. Only three that I can think of broke down and that was a Ford, a Daewoo and a Vauxhall. Buy old cars and do 15k a year in them, they always need stuff doing, any fool can spend 20 grand on a new car and use it all day problem free. The best cars I have owned have been the Daihatsus easily.
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>> The number of cars certainly but most were reliable. Only three that I can think
>> of broke down and that was a Ford, a Daewoo and a Vauxhall.
Rubbish - most have been unreliable that you have had to get rid of. I don't know anyone with such a consistently appallingly bad record of buying problems. Or unsuitable cars.
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>>>nothing worse than following the flock with all the other wooly types :-)
Yep all those sheep heading for the best pasture... what are they up to?
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>>And some. I looked at a S/H one as alternative to Berlingo. For £13.5k I paid for new Berlingo I might have got a 58 FRV.
I paid about £13k for the 9 month old dealer jobby in May 2010 when they had just pulled the plug on the FRVs (they had 3 in stock, all petrol-autos).
Having been in a Citroen Picasso last week I would suggest interior quality and solidity are an order of magnitude better in the Honda - at 60k miles there is no sign of deterioration in how it drives/operates, or the interior.
Can't comment on a 'lingo, although I do enjoy hiring a Transit van each year between Xmas and New Year for around £100 from Enterprise to shift crud between houses or to the dump.
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Cannot now remember what engine etc I looked at though it would certainly be manual and preferably diesel.
Didn't progress beyond looking at dealer websites.
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Diesel is 2.2 140hp jobby with 6 spd box (manual only).
Only downside with manual really is the '2CV' style parking brake that pulls out from under the dash (to accommodate the middle front passenger).
The auto-petrol is a little low on overtaking grunt on A-roads, although you do learn the sweet spots (VTEC Yo! kicks in at around 4000 and pulls trongly to 6750) so using kick-down or manually downchanging helps. 1st will run to 40, 2nd to near 70, and 3rd almost 100 (theoretically) without the slightest hint of straining.
Handling is really rather good on the FRV with decent ride on poor surfaces - wide track and double wishbones all round I think.
Last edited by: Lygonos on Wed 29 Jan 14 at 12:20
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A quick scour of Autotrader suggests that in Midlands they're still pushing £10k for a late model diesel at franchise or similar. Pentagon and like have mid spec 110Hdi 'lingos new for not much more, which might have been my comparator before we decided on the 115 and XTR trim.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Wed 29 Jan 14 at 12:21
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If the OP likes the 'challenging' looks of the Ssang-Yong Rodius but fancies the versatility of a Honda HR-V, I have the perfect solution.
A Fiat Multipla (Mk1 - not the blandified Mk2).
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>> If the OP likes the 'challenging' looks of the Ssang-Yong Rodius but fancies the versatility
>> of a Honda HR-V, I have the perfect solution.
>>
>> A Fiat Multipla (Mk1 - not the blandified Mk2).
>>
For those with a taste transplant only..
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"If the OP likes the 'challenging' looks of the Ssang-Yong Rodius"
Steady on - I'm not visually impaired (yet), although I realise that you can't really see it from the inside. I quite like the taxi seat arrangement option, but I have a feeling that my daughter in law will run away screaming if she sees one. She didn't even like my idea of a Berlingo for the previous vehicle!
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"3 seats across front mean an extra grandparent can come along too"
That's me! I don't know why more 'people carriers' don't have 3 across the front - the Multipla always seemed a good idea to me. Thanks for the info.
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>> "3 seats across front mean an extra grandparent can come along too"
>>
>> That's me! I don't know why more 'people carriers' don't have 3 across the front
>> - the Multipla always seemed a good idea to me. Thanks for the info.
Trouble is you get a car that's as wide as a Transit type van. OTOH I recall a Dutch family arriving at a French campsite in an early model Multipla towing a small trailer.
It disgorged a family of six and frame tent the size of a small bungalow!!
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I remember three abreast easily in my old mans Mk1 consul - thought of as a big car in its day but now very narrow. Had column change of course.
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Thank you, Dog. We'll let you know.. :-)
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...I don't know why more 'people carriers' don't have 3 across the front...
Because three don't fit very well, unless they're very slim. It may work in Japan, elsewhere in east Asia, or in southern Europe, where people are still reasonably compact, but in northwest Europe?
I tried one in a showroom in 1997 or so, and felt I was too close to the door for comfort and that anyone in the middle seat would have got my elbow in the ribs or face enough to want to retaliate or get out. If a litre of Coke is just enough to give your kids a treat, you might not even get the door shut.
Yet Lygo is about my height and seems happy, so perhaps we should have persevered. After all, the Verso we bought instead didn't turn out to be a towering success, even if it did have room for my elbows.
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Front-middle and rear-middle seats can slide backwards in the FRV (and I believe the Multipla) to accommodate the chunkier people.
Again the automatic gearbox with no need to be pumping clutches and switching gears probably makes it easier with 3 across the front.
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What was wrong with the Verso, Will? That was about to get on my shortlist...
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Whether the Verso suits will depend on your priorities. As a short-range, high-capacity family bus, it's very good: five good seats, two adequate ones (although no luggage space when they're in use), easy to get in and to install tinies in their boosters, lovely snicky gearchange and light clutch, and very well put together - ours was showing no signs of wear after four years. Our dealer - Listers of Stratford - was very good and helpful.
But we wanted a long-distance family touring machine and there it's not so good. The high profile makes it noisy at speed, and the stiff springing to control the body gives the ride a high-frequency jiggly quality that becomes fatiguing. Nor are the seats quite big or supportive enough for long journeys, and the audio system is dreadful.
Might still suit your D-in-L, of course. I think the three-row version we had appeared in 2004 (ours was a 2008) and it will take five adults if that's important. Luggage space isn't great even in two-row mode, but you can fold seats in any combination. In short, test it - as we perhaps didn't - as you're intending to use it.
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Shame you require 6 seats because you can 'pick one of these up for a shade under £19k.
I'm almost arf tempted myself.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/mitsubishi/mitsubishi-asx-2010-road-test/?section=video
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'A phrase that I've NEVER heard is…..
"I'm really pleased with my Renault Espace!" '
You'd have heard it from me from 1989 to 1994: 125,000 miles with the only major problem being a head gasket at something over 100,000 miles and thus forgivable. That was of course long before the post-2000 collapse of build quality.
It wasn't just chronic ugliness that made the Fiat Multipla a comparative flop: much as we love our children, having a bambino yell 'Are we nearly there?' into one's left ear is another thing altogether. The similarly configured Honda FRV was less ugly and more reliable, and much appreciated by Lygonos and others, but even that wasn't in production for very long.
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"FRV was less ugly"
Only just. The rear view was particularly unhappy, IMO, but I quite like the configuration. Son's family have a lot of clobber and he's in a band when he's not toting them around, so permanent cargo space is a definite plus. Not many yet below £4k, but worth looking out for, perhaps.
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My mother has a Multipla. She loves it. It's her third one, and she's looking for another one now as this one is wearing out.
I drove it a couple of weekends ago, and from that perspective it's fine for what it is - feels just like an Italian car should, light clutch, positive, enjoyable gearchange, feels far peppier than it has a right to. Doesn't feel as wide and unwieldy as it looks.
But, when I am a passenger in it, I hate it. The ride is harsh and jiggly, and it's the first car I've been in since I was 13 in which I feel travel sick. On a 25 minute journey, I almost had to ask the driver to stop to let me out to vomit, about a mile from our destination. Almost ruined the lovely lunch we were going to at a spectacular costal spa/restaurant thing.
I'm trying to guide Mum away from getting another one, she's going to look at getting a brand new Dacia Sandero Stepway as an alternative (no use to the OP, granted).
Last edited by: Alanović on Thu 30 Jan 14 at 09:48
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He got a Galaxy 2.3 in the end. Pre-2006, so the tax won't be quite so bad, and the heated front screen is worth a bonus point. Should I mention the engine mounting bolts' tendency to fail, though?
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Should I mention the heated front screen's tendency to fail? Mine gave up, under warranty happily. I think they're 800 quid to replace, I understand people seldom bother on older cars.
Should be pretty reliable overall, although I shudder a bit at the MPG from a 2.3 petrol.
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I'm hoping if the screen lasts 10 years, it's should be OK for a few more. We shall see, no doubt! I assume the Autoglass replacement, if required, will be sans heating...
I think he's resigned to a bit more fuel consumption - at least it's not the VR6 version!
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Which MPV? - Roger.
