Page 1 of MPV opinions please!

My trusty Audi 100E was rear ended last week, and SWMBO has said she wants an MPV this time.

Requirements:
7 seats + luggage space (so no Zafira class stuff)
Preferably manual
We don`t do that many miles so diesel not essential, but I`d prefer not to have a gas guzzling 3.3l lump in there, so petrol Grand Voyager is out of the question.

Budget around the £4-6k mark.

Started looking at Sharan/Galaxies, but there seem to be a few comments re reliability (any owners care to pipe up?). Ditto Renault Grand Espace (mk3 model).

Having realised that diesel is not an essential, we looked round an old shape Previa yesterday - not bad, but the manual box ones are all low spec without air con, and it`s a lot of glass.

So - Previa seems a decent option, but do I bite the bullet and go for an auto with air con, or stick with the preferred manual? Perhaps a diesel Grand Voyager would do the trick, but there seem to be comments about servicing being pricey.

The real pain is that we really need a car by the time the school hols start, as we want to get some camping in.

So, what do people reckon?

Give this lot a go... plenty of reviews....

Parkers

used them when I`ve bought cars in the past.....

Thanks!
In fact I`ve been going round and round that website for the last 7 days, as well as www.honestjohn.co.uk (which is a handy resource). The Previa does seem to get well spoken of, apart from the crash test results. If only they did a manual with air con...

Fiat Ulysse?

Big, galvanised, cool looking and bags of kit

One here for a gander and it`s not even mine!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FIAT-ULYSSE-ELEGANZA-JTD-2004-04-AUTOMATIC-DIESEL_W0QQitemZ110004963211QQihZ001QQcategoryZ9843QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

This item was edited on Tuesday, 11th July 2006, 05:16

If you like the previa you could look here Estima
Great recommended seller on there Seller

This item was edited on Monday, 10th July 2006, 22:05

Really loved the Chevrolet Grand Caravan last year while on the other side of the Atlantic & surprisingly fuel efficient (Larger engine can mean more economy as it doesnt have to work as hard as lower rated engine).

Dont forget the fold down seats (Zafira) bays are handy stowage area`s for smaller bags & kit like cameras, we were still able to get 4 wheely bags + Laptop wheely bag + THO shopping purchase`s in the rear behind the last row of seats. ;)


I consider myself an optimist, albeit an optimist with cynical tendencies and a dark side that Lucifer himself would find a little creepy. (Perhaps you've noticed.) You don't normally associate cynicism with an upbeat pov. But I have exactly that combination and will defend it.

This item was edited on Monday, 10th July 2006, 23:52

Thanks people!

Rass - the info re the Zafira`s interesting, as we`re hiring one when we go to Cyprus this summer (6 of us) - so glad thre`s some luggage space. However, we have two dogs, and go camping, so we need more cabin space than that.

Dogma - I`d originally been warned off the Estimas by a mechanic who said they all have wierd parts and are hard to maintain, but then my local mechanic (who would be the guy who services it, most likely) said yesterday that he woulodn`t be too worried about that. So I did some research, and discovered Tapajen - who happen to be about 8 miles away from where I live!
Your recommendation of him backs up what I found out on the Estima Owners Club website which I also found. So I`ll be calling him today - thre`s also another supplier called Algy`s Cars who`re based in Bristol where our main office is, so they might be worth a look too. Think we`re going to go for an Estima, to be honest!

What does THO mean????

Surely the other half would be TOH??


why take life so seriously..its not like you are going to make it out alive

The Hooved One (Unicorn).


See? I do pay attention round here ;)

Quote:
The Hooved One (Unicorn).


See? I do pay attention round here ....or The Horned One

(....me too! ;) )