Which MPV, Corolla Verso or Zafira.

relax carry on

I posted a few weeks ago convinced I was going to get a Ford Focus C-Max but I have now seen that having a 7 seater would be more practical for the next 5 years or so.

I've narrowed it down to either the verso or zafira.

The examples I've come across in my price/year/millage range put the verso on average at 10500 for a 2007 with around 50000 miles. The zafira is the same apart from mileage. It's roughly 35000.

Both are 1.6, from dealers and petrol.

So the question is:

Which one would you go for and why?

Thanks

relax carry on

Just bumping this trying to get a recommendation from anyone. Two links below are examples of what I'm looking at.

http://m.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=6913377713578470

http://m.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=201223208543261

Thanks

Lex Luthor

We have a Verso but its the 2.0 diesel so not sure what the 1.6 petrol is like
We hired a 1.6 Zafira a few yrs ago for 2 weeks and to be honest, it wasnt a bad car. The 1.6 petrol was a good enough engine and pulled along well. Space wise, its probably slightly bigger in the boot than the Zafira
However, I would have the Verso over the Zafira imo, but only marginally

relax carry on

Lex Luthor wrote: »

We have a Verso but its the 2.0 diesel so not sure what the 1.6 petrol is like
We hired a 1.6 Zafira a few yrs ago for 2 weeks and to be honest, it wasnt a bad car. The 1.6 petrol was a good enough engine and pulled along well. Space wise, its probably slightly bigger in the boot than the Zafira
However, I would have the Verso over the Zafira imo, but only marginally

Cheers. However within the budgetary constraints I've set myself, is a gap of 15,000 miles for roughly the same price and year worth it? Zafira at roughly 35000 miles and Verso at roughly 50000.

BostonB

For me it would be the Verso, because in my experience Opel Dealers are abysmal.

bazz26

relax carry on wrote: »

Cheers. However within the budgetary constraints I've set myself, is a gap of 15,000 miles for roughly the same price and year worth it? Zafira at roughly 35000 miles and Verso at roughly 50000.

50k miles is not high for a 5 year old petrol car, condition and service history would be more important.

stimpson

My next door neighbor has the 1.6 petrol Verso and he says it's woeful on petrol. Loves the car otherwise. I have a new shape 2.0 diesel and I get around 7 l/100 km.

The Citroen C4 Picasso is worth a look to. It was on my shortlist.

colm_mcm

Of the two I'd have the verso, the seating system in the Opel isn't great if you're going to be using the 2 small seats. The verso is a bit smaller but nicer inside.

bbam

We had a Zaferia for about 5 years. 1.6 petrol.
Was a very nice car, never have any trouble an I understand they are easier on petrol than the Toyota. I loved driving the Zaferia and it wasn't too underpowered, maybe just for overtaking when well loaded.

I used the very rear seats myself , just so I'd know what they were like. They are actually supprisingly comfortable although a bit shallow to the floor, I'm near six foot.

Slight niggles.
Very little boot space with all seats up, common in these mid size MPV's.

Raising the rear seats. You have to slide the back seats forward to get last two seats up. This is messy if you have a child seat strapped in as it has to be released and then strapped in again.

We moved to a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso 1.6 Turbo Diesel and its a real step up in room, comfort, economy and design. Maybe you should try one out too.

BostonB

bbam wrote: »

...Raising the rear seats. You have to slide the back seats forward to get last two seats up. This is messy if you have a child seat strapped in as it has to be released and then strapped in again....

That sounds like a real pain.

colm_mcm

It is. It's the same system as was on the original zafira. The verso can slide the middle row seats individually and the seats can pull out of the floor as long as the middle seats aren't reclined.

Verso luggage cover is a pain to use though.

BostonB

The VW Touran doesn't have that limitation AFAIK.

relax carry on

bazz26 wrote: »

relax carry on wrote: »

Cheers. However within the budgetary constraints I've set myself, is a gap of 15,000 miles for roughly the same price and year worth it? Zafira at roughly 35000 miles and Verso at roughly 50000.

50k miles is not high for a 5 year old petrol car, condition and service history would be more important.

Both examples seem in great shape as do all of the ones I've viewed online. Also they majority seem to have full service history. So given that, would you still opt for a 50,000 mile Verso over a 35000 mile Zafira?

Thanks

relax carry on

bbam wrote: »

We had a Zaferia for about 5 years. 1.6 petrol.
Was a very nice car, never have any trouble an I understand they are easier on petrol than the Toyota. I loved driving the Zaferia and it wasn't too underpowered, maybe just for overtaking when well loaded.

I used the very rear seats myself , just so I'd know what they were like. They are actually supprisingly comfortable although a bit shallow to the floor, I'm near six foot.

Slight niggles.
Very little boot space with all seats up, common in these mid size MPV's.

Raising the rear seats. You have to slide the back seats forward to get last two seats up. This is messy if you have a child seat strapped in as it has to be released and then strapped in again.

We moved to a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso 1.6 Turbo Diesel and its a real step up in room, comfort, economy and design. Maybe you should try one out too.

Going to be running two car seats at the same time for a while as come September we will have a newborn and two year old so Zafira might be a pain with moving car seats to access the third row seats.

Just had a look online for the Grand Picasso and using my budgetary constraints already mentioned, it seems to give virtually no options.

Thanks for the info though.

relax carry on

colm_mcm wrote: »

It is. It's the same system as was on the original zafira. The verso can slide the middle row seats individually and the seats can pull out of the floor as long as the middle seats aren't reclined.

Verso luggage cover is a pain to use though.

So the seating arrangement in the Verso would be better in your opinion? Hopefully going to have this car for quite a while so am trying to get as much info as possible.

Thanks again.

relax carry on

BostonB wrote: »

The VW Touran doesn't have that limitation AFAIK.

The Touran looks solid if a little basic. But as its a Volkswagen, it should be good quality.
Thanks, I'll check it out as some seem to be just about coming in my range.

whowantstwoknow

relax carry on wrote: »

Going to be running two car seats at the same time for a while as come September we will have a newborn and two year old so Zafira might be a pain with moving car seats to access the third row seats.

Just had a look online for the Grand Picasso and using my budgetary constraints already mentioned, it seems to give virtually no options.

Thanks for the info though.

Just because online search engines dismisses cars, when it comes to the hard sell you'd be surprised what you will get for your cash.

I'd say test drive the cars first..

W

Lex Luthor

the 2nd row seating in the Verso is great, especially being able to move them all individually back and forward and tilt
The floor space aswell is excellent as there is no tunnel for the exhaust

relax carry on

whowantstwoknow wrote: »

relax carry on wrote: »

Going to be running two car seats at the same time for a while as come September we will have a newborn and two year old so Zafira might be a pain with moving car seats to access the third row seats.

Just had a look online for the Grand Picasso and using my budgetary constraints already mentioned, it seems to give virtually no options.

Thanks for the info though.

Just because online search engines dismisses cars, when it comes to the hard sell you'd be surprised what you will get for your cash.

I'd say test drive the cars first..

W

Cheers. Will be doing that alright but I've already tried to factor in a bit of negotiation on the price into my budget.

But let me know what you think of the below.

Have a 2007 Ford Focus Hatch 1.4 petrol with 87000km on the clock with full service history and in perfect nick. It's the keyless LX Connection model. Would love to get 6500 on a trade then max 3000 cash on top. Gives me 9500 to get there with hopefully the dealers meeting me there or thereabouts with negotiating.

Or is that just wishful thinking.

BostonB

relax carry on wrote: »

The Touran looks solid if a little basic. But as its a Volkswagen, it should be good quality.
Thanks, I'll check it out as some seem to be just about coming in my range.

Problem with VW, is they can have an ABS failure. So get one with a warranty, or that has that done. It effects lots of VW, Golfs etc. But otherwise I like the Touran.

In a MPV ideally you want 3 fullsized (or close to full size) seats across the middle row. Too many have a half seat in the middle which is pointless for babyseats. Also need a lot of legroom between front seats and middle row, as the parent generally spend a bit of time squeezing in to adjust things wit the kids/babies. Also look to see if theres a spare wheel. Many don't and have a foam kit instead. If you are rarely do long trips its less of an issue.

When I was shopping one, budget dictate what I got, and I didn't want a French one, though if the right one in good condition came up I would have got one. Anyone I know who has a french mpv hasn't really had any problems, indeed some of the Fords and VW have had more problems.

bazz26

Mazda 5 tends to be overlooked but is worth having a look at, sliding side door is handy.

http://www.driving.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=6913379506880980

Pottler

BostonB wrote: »

The VW Touran doesn't have that limitation AFAIK.

Be my fave as well, hired one a week or so back in France and loved it, but it was a 2.0tdi and new. It is my new wish list car for the family. Very nice. One I had was the -Cross, with awd. Lovely machine.

colm_mcm

Few comparisons with the seating;

You've got a child seat in the drivers side middle row seat, you want to get kids into the back row

Verso: put child in child seat, pull the (only) lever on the passenger side middle seat, the seatback angles forward and the seat slides, kid goes in, pull lever, slide seat back, release lever.

Zafira: unbelt the child seat on the other side, tilt the seatback forward, slide the whole middle row bench seat forward, put child in back, slide forward, put child in middle row.

This gets to be more of an issue the more kids you have.

Another example, pulling the seats out of the floor.

Verso: pull lever on rearmost seatback, pull out seat cushion.

Zafira: unbelt child seat in middle row, slide bench forward, pull seat out (awkward enough to do) slide middle row back.


The touran 7 set doesn't come with a spare wheel which is a pain, can't remember how the seats work, but I thought they had a bench seat in the back too?

relax carry on

bazz26 wrote: »

Mazda 5 tends to be overlooked but is worth having a look at, sliding side door is handy.

http://www.driving.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=6913379506880980

Cheers. Nothing coming in under the budgetary constraints I've set myself.

relax carry on

colm_mcm wrote: »

Few comparisons with the seating;

You've got a child seat in the drivers side middle row seat, you want to get kids into the back row

Verso: put child in child seat, pull the (only) lever on the passenger side middle seat, the seatback angles forward and the seat slides, kid goes in, pull lever, slide seat back, release lever.

Zafira: unbelt the child seat on the other side, tilt the seatback forward, slide the whole middle row bench seat forward, put child in back, slide forward, put child in middle row.

This gets to be more of an issue the more kids you have.

Another example, pulling the seats out of the floor.

Verso: pull lever on rearmost seatback, pull out seat cushion.

Zafira: unbelt child seat in middle row, slide bench forward, pull seat out (awkward enough to do) slide middle row back.


The touran 7 set doesn't come with a spare wheel which is a pain, can't remember how the seats work, but I thought they had a bench seat in the back too?

Thanks. Looking like the verso so. Time for test drives though. Hopefully the dealers will negotiate a bit on price as the versos are right at the top end of my budget even with my hopefully 6500 trade in.

Lex Luthor

colm_mcm wrote: »

Few comparisons with the seating;

You've got a child seat in the drivers side middle row seat, you want to get kids into the back row

Verso: put child in child seat, pull the (only) lever on the passenger side middle seat, the seatback angles forward and the seat slides, kid goes in, pull lever, slide seat back, release lever.

Zafira: unbelt the child seat on the other side, tilt the seatback forward, slide the whole middle row bench seat forward, put child in back, slide forward, put child in middle row.

This gets to be more of an issue the more kids you have.

Another example, pulling the seats out of the floor.

Verso: pull lever on rearmost seatback, pull out seat cushion.

Zafira: unbelt child seat in middle row, slide bench forward, pull seat out (awkward enough to do) slide middle row back.


The touran 7 set doesn't come with a spare wheel which is a pain, can't remember how the seats work, but I thought they had a bench seat in the back too?

very good points....

I know my 2 lads love the idea of being able to individually slide and tilt their own seats on long journeys. Also, due to the fact that the middle seat can also be moved separately, we have had an adult sit there at times between them in comfort, even though they are both on boosters.

I guess aswell if you had a baby or small toddler, the middle seat pushed fully forward allows you to have easier access to them from the front

Best of luck in your search...I know we spent ageas looking for a good one, so take your time and one will come along. If you can even sell your own private it will broaden your search. That is what we did and we found a top spec Sol diesel being sold privately for a good price and very low mileage (colm_mcm will vouch for that )

We have it 5yrs now and apart from servicing costs, it has had only 2 issues. One was the heater plugs (one or 2 of them) failed after 90,000km - put that down to a lot of stop/starting the car over the yrs as its mainly used for school runs). The windscreen washer pump for the front window died a few weeks ago (nothing major)
Starts every day no bother and even over the last yr or 2 I've suggested to my wife would she consider trading for a newer car, maybe smaller and every time the answer is she is very happy with the Verso

relax carry on

Lex Luthor wrote: »

colm_mcm wrote: »

Few comparisons with the seating;

You've got a child seat in the drivers side middle row seat, you want to get kids into the back row

Verso: put child in child seat, pull the (only) lever on the passenger side middle seat, the seatback angles forward and the seat slides, kid goes in, pull lever, slide seat back, release lever.

Zafira: unbelt the child seat on the other side, tilt the seatback forward, slide the whole middle row bench seat forward, put child in back, slide forward, put child in middle row.

This gets to be more of an issue the more kids you have.

Another example, pulling the seats out of the floor.

Verso: pull lever on rearmost seatback, pull out seat cushion.

Zafira: unbelt child seat in middle row, slide bench forward, pull seat out (awkward enough to do) slide middle row back.


The touran 7 set doesn't come with a spare wheel which is a pain, can't remember how the seats work, but I thought they had a bench seat in the back too?

very good points....

I know my 2 lads love the idea of being able to individually slide and tilt their own seats on long journeys. Also, due to the fact that the middle seat can also be moved separately, we have had an adult sit there at times between them in comfort, even though they are both on boosters.

I guess aswell if you had a baby or small toddler, the middle seat pushed fully forward allows you to have easier access to them from the front

Best of luck in your search...I know we spent ageas looking for a good one, so take your time and one will come along. If you can even sell your own private it will broaden your search. That is what we did and we found a top spec Sol diesel being sold privately for a good price and very low mileage (colm_mcm will vouch for that )

We have it 5yrs now and apart from servicing costs, it has had only 2 issues. One was the heater plugs (one or 2 of them) failed after 90,000km - put that down to a lot of stop/starting the car over the yrs as its mainly used for school runs). The windscreen washer pump for the front window died a few weeks ago (nothing major)
Starts every day no bother and even over the last yr or 2 I've suggested to my wife would she consider trading for a newer car, maybe smaller and every time the answer is she is very happy with the Verso

Thanks. Getting the feeling that most people are going for the Verso. Will take my time and check it out. Had considered selling my Focus privately but I don't think I want the hassle. I know I'll lose a bit on the trade in but that's the price you pay I suppose to have a dealer handle everything.

Rubberlegs

Recently got a 1.6l petrol VW Touran, can highly recommend it. Went for a 5 seater, as the amount of times I'd need the extra seats it wasn't worth it. Checked out a 7 seater, and my not quite 5ft daughter sat in the very back, and hated it, her knees were right up. Also with the extra 2 seats up, there is absolutely no boot left whatsoever. The boot in the 5 seater is massive. I find the car very solid and safe feeling on the road, and I love all the storage inside. A baby seat and 2 adults sit comfortably in the back. Had been considering the Zafira, but my last car was a VW too, so I went with what I knew.

BostonB

73Cat wrote: »

...Checked out a 7 seater, and my not quite 5ft daughter sat in the very back, and hated it, her knees were right up. ...

Dunno if you meant the touran, because I've had one and a medium sized adult could fit fine in the rear most seats, without a problem.

http://www.volkswagen.com.sg/etc/medialib/vwcms/virtualmaster/cml/models/touran/touran_2010/content.Par.0024.Image.jpg/to1168_660x420.jpg

http://www.autopressnews.com/2010/06/Volkswagen/new_Touran.shtml

Though like you said the boot is gone with the 7 seats up. We only managed a couple of small bags and at a squeeze a stroller. Though you can have one down and one up and still have some boot.

The advantage of the 5 seater touran is it comes with a spare wheel etc, in the space of the 2 extra seats of the 7 seater.

I'd say if you want to carry 7 people a lot, and luggage you need something bigger than these mid sized MPV's, Touran, Scenic, Verso, Zafira. Though the advantage of a mid sized MPV is that they are shorter than a Passat Saloon. For something bigger look at the SMax, Grand Scenic, Hyundai Trajet etc.

BostonB

colm_mcm wrote: »

...
The touran 7 set doesn't come with a spare wheel which is a pain, can't remember how the seats work, but I thought they had a bench seat in the back too?

Theres no bench in the touran. They are individual seats. The middle row slide front back, and recline separately.

BostonB

The S Max would probably be my choice but they tend to be pricey. Quite long too. No spare wheel either AFAIK. Much more choice of MPV in the UK though, and they tend to have a better spec.

Rubberlegs

Dunno if you meant the touran, because I've had one and a medium sized adult could fit fine in the rear most seats, without a problem.

Yes it was the Touran. She looked uncomfortable sitting in the very back, her knees were up quite high. I tried it myself, I'm only 5ft, and I don't think I'd have travelled very far, I found it quite cramped.

BostonB

You can move the row in front forward too. The main problem for adults we found was access. Not the easiest seats to get in and out of. Thats probably true of all mid sized MPV's. For temporary kids seats they seemed ok. If you were using them all the same you'd have to go for a larger MPV like the Galaxy etc. I would prefer that, but the OH wanted something smaller for parking etc.

Pottler

I hired a S max in the UK a while back, also a diesel, and I absolutely loved it as well - very quick(ok, to me), super economical and nicely put together, but I preferred the Touran - it felt very solid, very agile on the road, nicely quick and a vast boot(5 seater). Missus and kids also loved it so I'm thinking of getting her one. I hate the Zafira, no real solid reason why, just do not like the looks, the drive or the image. The Verso looks good enough to me - BIL has one, I've never been in it, but his missus is very pleased with it and it has never given any grief, but again, it's a diesel. On a side note, I got stuck with a Fiat Multipla in London for a week with the family, absolutely hated taking it, hated the looks, hated everything. After 3 days of driving it with 2 small kids, me and the Missus and plenty of congested city driving.... I feckin loved it... I actually did not want to give it back, just for the nippyness, the practicality and the brilliant steering,clutch and gearbox. They look gack, but they really work as a family car. In fairness, there was 100 miles on the clock, not too sure how well they wear the miles though but I've two fiat vans and a fiat car as a work hack and they give zero bother even with big miles up.

Technique

stimpson wrote: »

My next door neighbor has the 1.6 petrol Verso and he says it's woeful on petrol. Loves the car otherwise. I have a new shape 2.0 diesel and I get around 7 l/100 km.

The Citroen C4 Picasso is worth a look to. It was on my shortlist.

My wife has a 1.6 petrol Verso, it give around 40mpg on shortish runs and has never really given any bother in our 8 years of ownership and 110,000 miles. On the downside, it is rather underpowered.

stimpson

Technique wrote: »

My wife has a 1.6 petrol Verso, it give around 40mpg on shortish runs and has never really given any bother in our 8 years of ownership and 110,000 miles. On the downside, it is rather underpowered.

Is that 40mpg calculated or is it from the trip computer?

At the end if the day fuel economy is really about driving style. I once got 4.8l/100km on a trip to Sligo by keeping it at 100 kph.

Technique

stimpson wrote: »

Is that 40mpg calculated or is it from the trip computer?

At the end if the day fuel economy is really about driving style. I once got 4.8l/100km on a trip to Sligo by keeping it at 100 kph.

It's from the trip computer. Anytime I've checked, it's 38 or 39mpg average (apologies for the olde worlde terminology, not sure what that is in l/100km).

I've never checked the actual mpg, but it's definitely not a thirsty car.

ShamoBuc

Zafira v Verso, Verso for me. I bought a 09 1.6 petrol Verso a few months ago and am very pleased with it. It's mostly for school runs which are close enough so not too bothered about mpg as we'll only be doing about 12k k a year but if you had longer runs it moght become an issue. Very happy with the seating abilities - 7yr, 5yr and 4 month old, so the individuality of the seats is a bonus.
Took the Zafira for a test drive and while it was fine I felt better in the Verso - if that makes sense.

relax carry on

ShamoBuc wrote: »

Zafira v Verso, Verso for me. I bought a 09 1.6 petrol Verso a few months ago and am very pleased with it. It's mostly for school runs which are close enough so not too bothered about mpg as we'll only be doing about 12k k a year but if you had longer runs it moght become an issue. Very happy with the seating abilities - 7yr, 5yr and 4 month old, so the individuality of the seats is a bonus.
Took the Zafira for a test drive and while it was fine I felt better in the Verso - if that makes sense.

Thanks. That's a great help.

Dub_Jim_Royle

So, Relax Carry On,

One year on and I'm asking the exact same question.
Which did you go for and was it a good choice?
Cheers

colm_mcm

Best thing is to PM the OP, they don't post in motors too often.