Which MPV? Toyota Corolla Verso - Ford C-Max - Renault Grand Scenic

artvandulet

I'm about to buy a car and have narrowed down to one of these 3.
I need one that will fit 3 child seats in the back.

I have about 6k + an 02 Focus to get a car so price wise looking at an 05/06 1.6 petrol version of one of the above.

Im hearing so many differing opinions on what to go for and thought I might ask here and see if I get any clearer answer. I'm not well up on cars at all.

Corolla Verso - extra 2 seats is handy - most of ones in my budget are 05 and about 100k miles on them.
Ford C-Max - Could get a newer lower mileage one of these for around the same money.
Renault Grand Scenic - Am often told to stay away from French cars particulalry Renault & Citroen. Is this right? Will a 2nd hand Renault ultimately cause me more grief? There's plenty of them for sale which leads me to wonder.

Any suggestions or comments greatly appreciated!

peteb2

didnt think the C Max took 3 seats in the back. You sure you are not getting mixed up with an S Max?

artvandulet

As far as im aware I can fit 2 booster seats and a baby seat in a C-Max but am aware that its tight and would need to test my specific seats. The S-Max would fit all 3 but out of my price range.

The_Honeybadger

You'd easily get a 2007 xsara Picasso with that budget, IMO it doesn't deserve the bad rep it has and will fit 3 full seats across the back.

If you can stretch a little you may even get a 07-08 c4 Picasso which would be a far better / nicer car. They are 1.8 but the difference in fuel consumption, tax & insurance would be negligible.

artvandulet

The C4 picasso certainly looks like a really nice car but what about Citroen's reliability? Is it any better/worse than the others?

barura

May sound a little outside the box but how about putting one of the baby seats in the passanger seat (beside the driver) and then you can fit the other adult, baby seat and kid in the back of the focus?

Just a suggestion, could save you some money.

The_Honeybadger

artvandulet wrote: »

The C4 picasso certainly looks like a really nice car but what about Citroen's reliability? Is it any better/worse than the others?

I have a petrol one and no problems whatsoever, I service it on time which is a help. They are a bit underrated IMO, I'd have no reservations about getting another one.

artvandulet

barura wrote: »

May sound a little outside the box but how about putting one of the baby seats in the passanger seat (beside the driver) and then you can fit the other adult, baby seat and kid in the back of the focus?

Just a suggestion, could save you some money.

You cant fit an adult comfortably in the back of a focus with 2 child seats. Its a squash for a woman and near impossible for an average size man. Otherwise would defo prefer to save the money!

bazz26

The Mazda 5 might be worth looking at, it's a 7 seater too and has a handy sliding door at the side. Not sure if it will meet your needs but they are normally cheaper than their rivals. Avoid the 2.0d though, that engine is known for having major problems.

barura

artvandulet wrote: »

You cant fit an adult comfortably in the back of a focus with 2 child seats. Its a squash for a woman and near impossible for an average size man. Otherwise would defo prefer to save the money!

I was thinking on the back seat it would be something like this:



[Baby seat] [Kid] [Other adult]


[Driver] [Baby seat no2]

Alas, I cannot recommend a vehicle as I don't have any experience of MPV's. Best of luck!

artvandulet

bazz26 wrote: »

The Mazda 5 might be worth looking at, it's a 7 seater too and has a handy sliding door at the side. Not sure if it will meet your needs but they are normally cheaper than their rivals. Avoid the 2.0d though, that engine is known for having major problems.

the sliding doors would be a very handy feature. what are Mazda like? i haven't heard much about them.

bazz26

artvandulet wrote: »

the sliding doors would be a very handy feature. what are Mazda like? i haven't heard much about them.

The petrols are very reliable.

artvandulet

anyone have opinion on the Honda frv?

NIMAN

I have read up a bot on them, they get rave reviews from most owners, but don't think they are the economical and their style is one that you either love or hate.

But Honda would be a good buy for reliability.