Advice on what 2nd hand MPV to buy?

firemansam4

Hi,
I know very little about MPV's, at the moment I drive a little 1 litre opel Corsa , it is cheap and economical and although its small it does what i want and does not cost me much to run.
But due to our family size about to get larger it looks like i'm going to be forced to get a larger car that will fit 4 children and 2 adults.

We have a very small budget and could maybe stretch to about 5 or 6 grand, maybe if push came to shove a bit more if we had to find it.
Been looking at mpv's in this price range and I would like to go for something economical to run, at the moment my Corsa averages about 50 mpg and we would normally put about 60 euros worth of petrol in it a week, if i was to go for a petrol mpv I reckon i will be paying at least 30 euros more a week just on petrol before any extras on tax ect.
So then that makes me want to look at diesels more, and I have been looking at 2 models in particular which is a opel Zafira 1.9cdi or a vw touran 1.9 - which both look quite economical, I know the Zafira does not have a great reputation but they are so popular that any parts required for them should be cheap and easy to source.

Just wondering if any one has any suggestions or advice on this, any would be welcome. many thanks.

biko

I doubt you'll see anything close to 50mg in an older mpv but I could be wrong.
Perhaps a large estate car?

Check out
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-reviews/39808/best-used-mpv
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/askhj/answer/32922/which-used-mpv-

beauf

Never had one but the Trajet always looks like a lot of space for the money. Theres also the older Ford Galaxy and VW Sharan.

bazz26

Old Ford Galaxy/VW Sharan or Seat Alhambra are worth looking at, full size MPV which will allow you to carry 4 children, 2 adults and all their gear in comfort. 1.9 TDi would be easy enough on diesel too.

Zafira might struggle if you need to carry baby stuff/buggies as well as little people. I also don't like how close to the rear window the 3rd row of seats are too.

beauf

IMO theres three class of MPV. mini, mid sized and full sized. If I had 4 I'd be going for a full sized one.

MAJJ

Have a VW Touran 1.9TDI used for two adults and two kids, with back seat down you'll have very little boot space. I agree with Bazz26 you'll
likely need a full size Ford Galaxy/VW Sharan or Seat Alhambra or Trajet.

El Kabong!

The Trajets can eat gearboxes, so be careful. Also they tend to have bigger engines.

I think you are on the right track with a Zafira. You can get them with 1.6 petrol, so not overly high running costs. Should be plenty about and like you say, cheap enough parts etc.

I would expect the Touran to be overpriced for what it is.

You should also consider the Mazda 5.

You will probably find Citroen Picasso and Renault Scenics etc too at good prices as people are probably scared of them. But if you get a good deal you might pick up a 1.6 petrol Picasso and have a bit of money left over for any 'unusual repairs'.

beauf

firemansam4 wrote: »

...we would normally put about 60 euros worth of petrol in it a week,....So then that makes me want to look at diesels more,...

I think I'd be going for diesel if your putting in €240 a month in a 50 mpg petrol car.

The only reason not to get a full sized on is if you're tight on parking (or the smaller MPV is a lot cheaper). A Touran (4,405mm) is shorter than a Passat Saloon (4,769mm) for example.

Ford S-Max (4,770mm)
Passat Saloon (4,769mm)
VW Sharan (4,634mm)
A Touran (4,405mm)
Zafira (4,317mm).

You see this difference in the width for child seats and legroom in the middle and then in the rear for boot space. The boxier the shape the roomer it will be.

Zubeneschamali

A Fiat Multipla diesel?

We ran one for 7 years, brilliant family car. 6 full size seats: all the same size as the drivers seat, and a reasonable boot.

MAJJ

Maybe a Citreon C8 , lot's of room. I know someone with a large family that has one of these and it's a workhorse for them with few issues and owned for years.

That said I agree with el kabong and peoples perceptions of issues etc.

Just a sample of a few at random

http://www.carsireland.ie/make/citroen/c8/search-results.php?make_id=16&model_id=141&page=0

firemansam4

thanks for all the replys!!!

Yea I have been looking at a few of the ones mentioned, the reason i was thinking of the zafira or vw touran is because 1 back seat can be folded down to make more room, at the moment i get 3 kids in the back of my corsa in all there car seats, so im confident i should get 3 in the middle row and maybe 1 in a back seat letting me put the other down to make more room, the sharon doesnt seem to have that option.

Strangely the vw toran does not look too much more expensive than some of the other makes ive been looking at.
I never really looked into the Citreon or fiat models before so will have to check them out as well as the Passat Saloon and trajet

beauf

I think the sharan rear seats are removable not fold flat on the older model. You have to have some sort of cover for stuff in the boot then. I think its one of the improvements in the newer model.

There almost no space behind the rear seats in the touran. You'll get a squishy buggy in there or a small soft bag or two, thats about it. The seats are decent size, its just a bit tight to get into them. Some don't like kids being so close to the back windows. Might be ok if its for occasional use. But for long trips or constant use you might like something with a bit more space to crumble in case of accident.

firemansam4

Yea I suppose i will need to have a look at them myself to see what they are like space wise, I still have a bit of time yet before I will need to get one but just trying to get a few ideas for now.
I was looking at that site carsireland.ie, it gives a good few details like mpg and space details, great to compare the different models. One other model I was looking at was the Citreon grand picasso which looks nice but may be a bit out of my price range

Well thanks for all the advice anyway, given me a bit more to think about