Honda FRV or newer 7 seater

TooObvious

Hey,

I need a new car for my growing family. Mrs TO would like a seven seater - Citroen Grand Picasso, but I would prefer a Honda FRV because a) I like Honda's and b) I'm not a fan of the rearmost seats in the current crop of 7 seaters. 6 seats is enough for my family plus a friend, or enough for my family without me and 2 friends!

Anyway here is the quandry, there are not many FRV's for sale, I would prefer a low mileage 1.8 but these are like hens teeth, so I'm considering a 2007 2.2 CDTI. Although the asking price is low enough, the tax is exorbitant. Would i just be as well off buying a 2012-2013 Renault or Citroen with the low tax and a monthly payment, or just buy the Honda outright and suffer the tax?

That's a vague question by any stretch but opinions would be most welcome.

Mr.Boots

In my opinion
Higher tax for the Honda but lower deprecation than a newer car.
I got a citroen a couple of years ago for wife. Lovely car but too many niggles.
There are a few interesting 7+ seater Japanese imports around if that's your thing
Honda Stepwagon ect.

grogi

Mr.Boots wrote: »

In my opinion
Higher tax for the Honda but lower deprecation than a newer car.
I got a citroen a couple of years ago for wife. Lovely car but too many niggles.

I have one for more than two years now. Not a single issue bar the chrome peeling off the key - replaced by Citroën while I had a coffee...

TooObvious wrote:

Would i just be as well off buying a 2012-2013 Renault or Citroen with the low tax and a monthly payment

Get a MkII 2.0 HDI with EAT6 (Aisin Automatic).

There are a few interesting 7+ seater Japanese imports around if that's your thing
Honda Stepwagon ect.

I wouldn't touch a Japanese import for a few reasons, mainly:
- issues getting insurance. While one will get cover eventually, the availability of quotes is significantly reduced.
- mechanical differences. While they might seem identical to European counterparts, they are often different under the bonnet. Even body parts can differ. That might be acceptable for exotic sports car, for a daily driver waiting weeks for a spare part is not acceptable.
- issues with FM coverage

Mr.Boots

Good point RE parts
I thought I was unlucky with the citroen but the mechanic said he's sees more problems with them than other makes. Mine has a 2ltr hdi
Nothing major thankfully but, I've owned over 50 cars so far and this one, whilst it isn't the worst, it's nowhere like various Toyotas, subaru, mazdas, mercs I've had.
So much lucknof the draw with cars I always think.
I think her next car will be a Honda, love those new civics

colm_mcm

Have a look in the uk. Don’t bother buying a pre 08 FRV diesel, the tax is crazy and it’s not like they’re really cheap to buy.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?sort=sponsored&radius=1500&postcode=ln12na&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&make=HONDA&model=FR-V&year-from=2008&page=1

TooObvious

Thanks for the advice lads. I think a UK import 1.8 might be the best option then.

Zubeneschamali

Have you actually sat in a loaded FRV? It does not have 6 full size seats.

If you don't care about the 6th seat, an S-Max is a better 5 seater.

I would agree with comments above on poor quality from Citroen - sis-in-law bought one in 08, lots of bits fell off including one of the rear seats falling off its rails.

TooObvious

Ah, I know they're not all full sized - but our kids are ranged in age whereby 1 of them no longer needs a booster. So we have two adults, a 10 year old, 6 year old and new one due on April. The wife will be driving it and as she only works half days she ends up carrying other peoples kids - this works fine at the moment but a new child bumps up the seat requirement by 1 only - hence the need for 6 seats.

Another reason though, was I was chatting to my 6 year old one day in the car with it parked up, she sat up on the armrest between the two front seats, it reminded me of years ago sitting on the box between the seats of my Dads landcruiser (no seatbelt, jacket underneath for cushioning) and I realised how nice it would be to have her beside me in her little chair every now and again!

Del2005

What about the Fiat Multipla? 6 seater and Fiat aren't as bad as their reputation.

TooObvious

I love the original Multipla, but the wife hates them, and she'll be driving it so it's a no go.

NIMAN

Previous FRV owner, fantastic cars.

pajosjunkbox

I was in the same dilemma last year. Had a Skoda superb estate but it couldn't take 3 car seats. I was starting into building a house so didn't want the expense or car repayments.
Anyway I bought a 2008 FRV EX 1.8 as I already had a 06 1.8 civic which I love. Heres how I find the FRV after a year of ownership ....

Pros :
Well built and takes a family with 3 small kids well.
The front middle seat can be used as arm rest or for an extra passenger.
Boot isn't affected by seats .
Excellent engine
Cheap to buy
Should be reliable
It's 2008 so not as picky about kids keeping it spotless

Cons

High tax 636 euro
Feels tinny compared to VAG cars
Can be a bit of feedback from steering wheel
Not the most economical but we do mostly short trips. Low thirties mpg
Boot isn't huge but we get by.


All in all it will hopefully serve its purpose reliably for a couple more years. The civic I have is definitely more solid to drive with steering for some reason much better. FRV steering wheel tends to move a lot in accordance with bumps on road. It's more annoying than anything else. Due new tyres and tracking and balancing so will see how difference that makes.

TooObvious

Thanks Pajosjunkbox for the review. Interesting to note and some food for thought with respect to the boot. I suppose with 3 kids, 1 a baby, the extra boot space in a 7 seater might be an advantage over the FRV.

Zubeneschamali

TooObvious wrote: »

Thanks Pajosjunkbox for the review. Interesting to note and some food for thought with respect to the boot. I suppose with 3 kids, 1 a baby, the extra boot space in a 7 seater might be an advantage over the FRV.

As long as you get a relatively modern 7 seater with fold-flat seats in the boot.

The older ones with removeable seats that do not fold flat are a pain in the hole. You either keep seven seats in the car or do your back lugging huge lumps of furniture into the house and storing them.

ewj1978

Have you looked at a Mazda 5? Have one and the sliding doors are the job.

NIMAN

ewj1978 wrote: »

Have you looked at a Mazda 5? Have one and the sliding doors are the job.

But a 6 seater for sure.

I was in one once, anyone who tries to tell you its a 7 seater is having a laugh.

ewj1978

Plenty of times that little middle seat has been used to good effect

colm_mcm

You upgrading to a 7 seater so

TooObvious

Looked at an FRV at the weekend, reliability aside, my good lady perceived it as "too tinny" and I would concur with her. So the search goes on, next on list now is a post 2007 Mercedes E Class estate with the 2 seats in the boot. Someone mentioned a Mazda 5, I'd agree that the middle seat is just too small and we only want the rearmost seats for occasional local use as opposed to having to use them for jaunts down the country.

grogi

TooObvious wrote: »

Looked at an FRV at the weekend, reliability aside, my good lady perceived it as "too tinny" and I would concur with her.

Another things with them is that the driver sits "on the door". The position was moved outside to make room for the third seat. And while for a petite person this would not be an issue, some more muscular specimens might complain...

TooObvious wrote: »

So the search goes on, next on list now is a post 2007 Mercedes E Class estate with the 2 seats in the boot.

Volvo V70/XC70 had the same patent, but it was abandoned with 2007 model. Maybe consider XC90 as well?

NIMAN

grogi wrote: »

Another things with them is that the driver sits "on the door". The position was moved outside to make room for the third seat. And while for a petite person this would not be an issue, some more muscular specimens might complain...

Funny enough, I thought it would be the same but I think with the FR-V you are in a natural driving position.

Now, the Fiat Multipla is another matter. If you see one coming towards you, the driver looks like they are lying over against the door. Not so on the FR-V (imho).

TooObvious

grogi wrote: »

Volvo V70/XC70 had the same patent, but it was abandoned with 2007 model. Maybe consider XC90 as well?

Yeah, aware of this one alright, but the pre-2008 V70 has aged badly compared to the e-class IMHO. XC90 out of the question, no need for an SUV.

slavedave

Current 2005 fr-v owner (1.7l petrol). Family of 6. Our only car for the last 6 years being a galaxy owner before that. It has been an amazing family car and if they produced an economical, low tax version of it currently I would buy another. The handling and engine are perfect for town driving. Light steering and high mobility. A bit unexciting and definitely under geared for long motorway cruising (we have made regular trips fully loaded up to Cornwall). The boot is not small compared to 7 seater cars and is always free when seating capacity is full. With the seats down there is a ton of transport space. I have supplemented carriage capacity with a tow bar for a bike rack and a trailer, and a roof box when we needed extra storage coming back from holiday.
Our has been impeccable with reliability, and has only needed attention on wear and tear in the last 18 months for non consumables. I have been able to source the parts and do the work myself because, otherwise, you would weep with the price of spare parts and Honda servicing! Main problems were a jammed rear door (several fr-v / civic owners reported this) and it was a three day pig of a job to rectify with a replacement for locking assembly, suspension links replacing, and a tricky indicator control unit (mega euros to buy and fit by Honda but it cost me 80 for a reconditioned unit from the UK - again a common about fault for fr-v /civic owners, but an hour of work to replace). I needed a new key recoding after jump starting a friend a few years back - there are records of this happening if you don't follow a precise sequence of connecting leads.
Mileage of around 7-8 litres/100km over the course of ownership.
Brilliant car overall though! I loved the multipla but my wife had better judgement and I don't regret it at all. I imagine the diesel would be more rounded car but the tax would be scary. Would recommend it to any family.
All the best with your search!