7seat car survey!

[LittleLegsCM]

Afternoon all! :waving:

As the title says I'm after info on 7 seated cars! I'm desperate to get rid of my knackered Peugeot estate and have been looking at the ford galaxy & vauxhall Zafira (and just saw a VW touran which looked ok although a bit smaller) but can't decide what's best.

So for those that don't mind sharing, what 7seater do you own? Whats it like to run? Tax? Insure? Etc. Are there any big pros & cons to it? Oh and when all 7 seats are in use, what's the boot like?? (if theres one left! Lol)

Any help/advice would be fab :thumbsup:

[BuggsieMoo]

Ive got a Citroen C8 with Ateam sliding doors (fab for small parking spaces). Its a 7 seater but can be converted to an 8 seater for about £100. The seats all come out so it becomes a van (infact it is based on a citroen van chassi). All the seats turn around so you can face out the doors, out the back and they have their own seatbelts attached to them so there is no chance of no seatbelts. No lap belts - all over the shoulder belts.
Me and hubby drive it an dpay about £500 a year for business use. However he does have 18 years no claims which helps. Its diesel so more economical on fuel.
I love the car! x

[BucksCM]

At the moment I have a Fiat Ulysse. (citroen C8 equivalent). It's spacey, I have 2 lo in big car seats, a "bucket" seat and 3 booster seats. They all fit comfortably. The boot space when all seats are in it isn't huge but bigger than my old Zafira. £100 to fill with diesel, £250 per year tax.
The seats I have in this car would not fit as well across the middle of the zafira. I did like that car though!

[blue bear]

I've got a vwsharan. 7 seats, five come out, all five point seat belts. Two of the seats convert to booster and baby seat which is fab, less storage of car seats on the weekend.£300 a year ins. Boot not massive I get my p&t sport in.
I'm on my second sharan, lovely car.

[Pipsqueak]

Kia Sedona - 7 seat (old style)
roomy and spacious I can get my P&T's in the boot space plus other stuff
3rd middle seat in the rear is lap belt though

good reliable vehicle - £420 for insurance inc business use
diesel - bit of a thirsty car but on the whole ok

[Tazmin68]

Hi
I have an 07 plate zaf. 1.6 petrol really happy with it. I can fit either two single buggies which I connect together or a cosatto twin lunar and two micro scooters in boot whith all seats up. Tax is 180 and 450 insurance which I don't think is bad. If I could manage with just one single buggy I would prefer a Hyundai Santa fe as the boot space is even less but I like the height of the Hyundai. But I am more than happy with my zaf. That's saying something as my hubby works for Hyundai.

[funemnx]

The biggest thing I would look would be sliding doors - so much easier to get small people in and out of car seats! :thumbsup:

Kia Sedona has a nice big boot too :)

[nipper]

I'm getting my new car next week, it's an ex motability zafira with only 8,000 miles on the clock, three yrs old and looks brand new, owned by an elderly lady and cost me £3,000 to part exchange for my old car. Up until now I haven't driven anywhere for childminding purposes, instead using the bus or walking so I feel like I have the whole world at my feet. We used to have a vw touran, but they are quite expensive compared to the vauxhalls. Road tax is about £120 per year, not made enquiries about insurance yet...

[Twinkles]

We have a Zafira - I hate it. Awkward to get children in the very back seats. Awkward to move car seats etc. Tiny boot.

We also have a 9 seater VW Caravelle which I LOVE. Sliding door , roomy seats , massive boot.

No idea about insurance etc ( that's mens work and he's out )I do know the Caravelle uses a lot more petrol , but i think it's well worth it.

[Monkey26]

Ive got a Citroen C8 with Ateam sliding doors (fab for small parking spaces). Its a 7 seater but can be converted to an 8 seater for about £100. The seats all come out so it becomes a van (infact it is based on a citroen van chassi). All the seats turn around so you can face out the doors, out the back and they have their own seatbelts attached to them so there is no chance of no seatbelts. No lap belts - all over the shoulder belts.
Me and hubby drive it an dpay about £500 a year for business use. However he does have 18 years no claims which helps. Its diesel so more economical on fuel.
I love the car! x

I have the c8 as well, had it since beginning of April and can honestly say I love it! I have converted mine to the 8 seater (2 spare seats bagged up in my loft!)... The bench cost me approx £200 on eBay as they are gold dust these days but best thing I've done, I can do the school runs without having to totally rearrange the car!!! :) the sliding doors are a godsend as well :D xx

[hello kitty]

I drive a Chrysler Grand Voyager which is fab. Sliding doors, seats fold into floor if space needed and a huge boot which takes a double pushchair comfortably. Insurance not too bad either. ;)

[mrs robbie williams]

Afternoon all! :waving:

As the title says I'm after info on 7 seated cars! I'm desperate to get rid of my knackered Peugeot estate and have been looking at the ford galaxy & vauxhall Zafira (and just saw a VW touran which looked ok although a bit smaller) but can't decide what's best.

So for those that don't mind sharing, what 7seater do you own? Whats it like to run? Tax? Insure? Etc. Are there any big pros & cons to it? Oh and when all 7 seats are in use, what's the boot like?? (if theres one left! Lol)

Any help/advice would be fab :thumbsup:

ive got a zafira and hate it :mad: its such hard work getting car seats in and out and faffing around with putting the back seats down to get the double buggy in let alone the poor dog who gets squashed inbetween buggy and sometimes other back seat. I had a chrysler grand voyager before and LOVED it - i cried when we sold it :blush: it was petrol and 3.5L and cost a bomb running it but i think diesels are more econimical xx

[Chimps Childminding]

I also have a Zafira and hate the fact that once you have car seats fitted into the middle row you can't move it to get other children in or out of the boot - not too bad if you don't need all the seats, but a right pain in the backside if you do!! Also the boot is tiny with the 2 back seats up - my double buggy won't fit :(

We used to have a Renault Espace which I loved, just it was really old and we couldn't afford a newer one the Zafira was much cheaper!! I would love a Kia Sedona or Crysler Voyager if I had the money - but I don't :crying:

[Playmate]

Ive got a Citroen C8 with Ateam sliding doors (fab for small parking spaces). Its a 7 seater but can be converted to an 8 seater for about £100. The seats all come out so it becomes a van (infact it is based on a citroen van chassi). All the seats turn around so you can face out the doors, out the back and they have their own seatbelts attached to them so there is no chance of no seatbelts. No lap belts - all over the shoulder belts.
Me and hubby drive it an dpay about £500 a year for business use. However he does have 18 years no claims which helps. Its diesel so more economical on fuel.
I love the car! x

I'm another C8 fan will be trading mine in this year and getting my 3rd one. Mine is insured for about £400ish. :D

[sharonmanc]

So glad you asked this as I need a 7 seater, I am looking at the VW Sharan

[MaffAnna]

I have a 57 zafira. It's cheap to buy / insure (£250 comp inc business) / run (£68 for 425 miles) . Cheap and cheerful I suppose.

It does have a few downsides which have been mentioned but you can work around them! You can move the middle bench if you have an isofix car seat and a seat belt one in the middle.

Also the Baby Jogger City Mini fits in the boot with all seats up and its quite a nice pram.

At the end of the day you get what you pay for. If I wasn't cm ing I wouldn't buy one, ever. BUT for this job, on a small budget it's not too bad. (And I am a harsh critic, just ask DH lol)

[Carol M]

I love my Zaf :blush:
59 plate, 1.6 petrol, bought it new, had a 52 plate Zaf before.
£290 to insure standard road tax. Good on petrol for minding.
I can fit Apollo Sport double in boot with all seats up but as others have said if baby seats in middle row, tricky to get at back seats. this car suits me as I only have 3x lo's so use the back 2 seats and one seat in middle so can get lo's in/out easily.
Carol xx

[LittleLegsCM]

I have a 57 zafira. It's cheap to buy / insure (£250 comp inc business) / run (£68 for 425 miles) . Cheap and cheerful I suppose.

It does have a few downsides which have been mentioned but you can work around them! You can move the middle bench if you have an isofix car seat and a seat belt one in the middle.

Also the Baby Jogger City Mini fits in the boot with all seats up and its quite a nice pram.

At the end of the day you get what you pay for. If I wasn't cm ing I wouldn't buy one, ever. BUT for this job, on a small budget it's not too bad. (And I am a harsh critic, just ask DH lol)

Funny enough, i have a baby jogger mini double LOL x

[stargazer1]

I'm getting my new car next week, it's an ex motability zafira with only 8,000 miles on the clock, three yrs old and looks brand new, owned by an elderly lady and cost me £3,000 to part exchange for my old car. Up until now I haven't driven anywhere for childminding purposes, instead using the bus or walking so I feel like I have the whole world at my feet. We used to have a vw touran, but they are quite expensive compared to the vauxhalls. Road tax is about £120 per year, not made enquiries about insurance yet...

Thats how we got out Zafira, ex motability, 3 years old but our had 19000 miles on. I love my Zafira!! I know it can be a bit awkward to get all the seats in and out but I didnt want a bus, we wanted a family car with the option for the extra seats. Its so reasonable on tax and insurance, costs no more than our old Peugeot, and for me is perfect. If you look at the bigger cars they are without doubt easier regarding seats etc, but depends what you are after xx

[LeeMarie]

I had a zafira for almost 10 years. It was a brilliant smaller 7 seater and very economical to run/tax/insure. But as others have said getting children in and out of rear seats was awkward and the boot space with all the seats up was tiny. A couple of months ago I got a peugeot 807 (like citroen C8) which I love! I don't know how I managed for so many years without sliding doors and it much roomier inside. Only thing I'd like is an bigger boot as I'm still trying to work out which double pushchair does what I want and will fit in the boot.
As a cost comparision my insurance was/is- Zafira £280 Peugeot 807 £420,
tax - Zafira £185 Peugeot £250
fuel - have gone from a petrol to diesel and I'm not spending much more than before.

[francinejayne]

I have a mazda 5, it's a nice car, love the sliding doors, small boot when all 7 seats in use and the middle seat on the middle row is tiny!

DO NOT get a diesel if you do lots of small journeys - I have found out to my cost that there is a known design fault with diesel mazdas with the diesel particulate filter (DPF) which means it will end up in the garage every 4 months and will cost you a few hundred £ each time!!!

you have been warned!

am seriously thinking of part exchanging mine now but can't afford to :(

[Monkey26]

I had a zafira for almost 10 years. It was a brilliant smaller 7 seater and very economical to run/tax/insure. But as others have said getting children in and out of rear seats was awkward and the boot space with all the seats up was tiny. A couple of months ago I got a peugeot 807 (like citroen C8) which I love! I don't know how I managed for so many years without sliding doors and it much roomier inside. Only thing I'd like is an bigger boot as I'm still trying to work out which double pushchair does what I want and will fit in the boot.
As a cost comparision my insurance was/is- Zafira £280 Peugeot 807 £420,
tax - Zafira £185 Peugeot £250
fuel - have gone from a petrol to diesel and I'm not spending much more than before.

Have you tried sliding the boot seats an inch more forward?? I can get my Britax b-dual in the boot of the c8 (which i couldnt do with all seven seats up in my Renault grand scenic) with all 8 seats up :thumbsup: but the middle row has to be right forward and the boot row about half way :thumbsup: xx

[uf353432]

I have a Galaxy and I really rate it.

All 5 seats are independant and full sized - when I say independant I mean you can move them on their rails forwards and backwards to get the optimum amount of room.

Will all 7 seats in use I can still get my britax B dual in the back (upright) and still space beside it. When the seats are folded down they create a flat base - so gives great storage capacity and because the seats are independant some can be folded down and some can remain up - very flexible.

Mine is a diesel - I find it to be pretty reliable fuel wise - costs to run are not massive.

If you can get one with panoramic roof and middle storage unit that is a good purchase - keeps the car nice and light and the storage from the unit is massive especially if you are packed up with kids.

I've not actually found any fault with the car, we've had it a couple of years now and it works really well as a family car and working as a childminder

[charleyfarley]

At the moment I have a Fiat Ulysse. (citroen C8 equivalent). It's spacey, I have 2 lo in big car seats, a "bucket" seat and 3 booster seats. They all fit comfortably. The boot space when all seats are in it isn't huge but bigger than my old Zafira. £100 to fill with diesel, £250 per year tax.
The seats I have in this car would not fit as well across the middle of the zafira. I did like that car though!

We could be the same people :laughing:

I also had a Zafira but now have a Fiat Ulysse, loved the Zaffy until it went wrong. Totally love Una, especially with her sliding doors, great for when people park too close to you!

My insurance was less than £300
Tax is dearer due to it being a 2.2
And to fill it up with diesel :eek: but it does last as I don't use it for school runs.

Carol xx

[loocyloo]

bucking the trend ... i have toyota verso ... 5 seats, with 2 in the boot. tiny boot with all 7 seats up, but with jiggling i can just get my double stroller in.

nice to drive and doens't feel like a bus! reasonable insurance and ok on fuel!

i love it! had a hyundai trajit ... worse car in the world. say no more!

DH is planning to get a mitsibushi outlander next! we need a 4 wheel drive, but i want a car looking car!

[Karaza]

I have a citroen synergie 2001 plate.
5 toddler seats in it currently stage 1's mainly all easy to get them into, sliding doors & boot can hold lot's - last week was two double pushchairs and a single. I personally hated galaxy and zafira as boots were too small.

[wellybelly]

I HAD a Renault Scenic Megan and I WOULD NOT recommend it at all. Being an 05 plate you would think it would still be ok, but it was totally unreliable and cost me a fortune to fix! Thinks like the back windows would just decide to not work when being in the down position... this cost me £75 a time to fix. The electrics went, the ingnition electrics went, the head gasket went and the engine management system went twice. It was a horrible experience. I got rid in the end as part of a trade in for DH new car.

I would never have a renault ever again!

[LittleLegsCM]

I have a Galaxy and I really rate it.

All 5 seats are independant and full sized - when I say independant I mean you can move them on their rails forwards and backwards to get the optimum amount of room.

Will all 7 seats in use I can still get my britax B dual in the back (upright) and still space beside it. When the seats are folded down they create a flat base - so gives great storage capacity and because the seats are independant some can be folded down and some can remain up - very flexible.

Mine is a diesel - I find it to be pretty reliable fuel wise - costs to run are not massive.

If you can get one with panoramic roof and middle storage unit that is a good purchase - keeps the car nice and light and the storage from the unit is massive especially if you are packed up with kids.

I've not actually found any fault with the car, we've had it a couple of years now and it works really well as a family car and working as a childminder

The galaxy is definitely what I'm swaying towards! What year is yours? I really want a mk3 (from late 06-11) I can get one for a minimum of about 5000 which if I can £2000 for my estate won't be too bad.

I like how the seats are all independent and it seems so much more roomier without feeling like a tank (if that makes sense?!)

[Shar]

I have a Toyota Previa, 04 new shape. 7 full size seats, massive boot, sliding doors. Had it 3 years now, no dearer to insure, tax etc than my last car (zafira). Petrol is the only difference, but it's worth it.:thumbsup:

[Paulab]

I have a Chrysler Voyerger, sliding doors, can stand up in side to strap lo's in the back, all 3 point seatbelts, have mcclaren twin techno & 1st wheels single in boot, but do wish I had a grand for extra boot space,
Had a zaf before hated it! So difficult strapping in the back back as we called it :)

[Hayley102]

Hi
I am looking at the Toyota Verso. I really like the fact it feels like a normal sized car and yet can give me the flexibility to fit my 2 children and the 3 little ones in the car during the school holidays. At the moment one of my mindees is term time only so I don't have to fit 5 children in the car but he goes to school next September so have started looking for 7 seater. I am also fed up of having to remove car seats if I want to give my children's friends a lift to/from clubs etc. I was looking at 1.6 petrol but have been advised to look at 2 litre diesel! Have tried out car seats and can fit 2 in back and still get to boot seats. Only issue is bucket car seats don't fit in boot very well - but I can work round that easily.
I had a Zafira about 7 or 8 years ago and didn't like small boot and unlocking car seats to get to seats in back.

[DudleyChildmind]

I have a Zafira and I love it. The boot is huge which is great for pushchairs etc. I have two child seats in the back but I wouldn't be able to add another childs seat because there isn't enough room to be able to fasten the seat belts. I usually use boosters in the rear of the car as it's easier than trying to fit a third car seat :)

[notts]

I have a Fiat Ulysee and love it! Sliding doors, so practical considering what we do! 7 individual seats, big boot, very powerful. Downside is price, its thirsty and high insurance group but I wouldn't swap it. The Ulysee, citreon C8 and peugoet something are all the same :thumbsup:

[md0u0131]

I have a Citroen c4 Grande Picasso, absolutely love it. It has 3 isofix, easy backseats, huge boot, dead easy to drive, cheap, economical.

[samb]

I have a VW Sharan. I have only had it a few months so can't speak for a lot of experience but...

The individual seats make fitting car seats so easy - you can adjust forward and backward on own runners so for example the infant seat I have needs a longer seatbelt to fit round - just push seat back and hey presto seat belt fits! I always keep a booster on 1 side of the middle row as it is easy to get out of the way quickly to get in the back row. In terms of boot space - I have a huuuuge buggy (Hauck duett) and it fits - I have 1 back seat pushed back and 1 pulled forward. The one pulled forward is the home of the forward facing 9month-4 yrs car seat where I sit the 13 month old as he has the shortest legs so doesn't matter that the seat is pulled forward - this gives me more boot space on his side and so the frame of my buggy goes behind this seat standing up and I have bought a strap to attach it to the car seat so it doesn't fall out when I open the boot. The top seat part fits perfectly behind the back seat that is pushed back. Any bags of the children go by their feet or in passenger seat foot well - I have 5 kids max at a time so the front seat is always empty.

Money wise - I had an Audi A4 estate before - both are diesel and fuel consumption is pretty much the same. I fill up for approx £75-£80 and the fuel thing says I get about 600 miles for this. Insurance - I am with Morton Michel and I pay £30.88 a month fully comp childminding business full no claims. - This is actually cheaper than my last car without business insurance! The tax is £215 a year.

I used to drive a Toyota Previa (8 seater) when I was nannying and the thing I liked most about it that my Sharan doesn't have is the sliding side doors and also the Previa had a little step up so easier for the kids to get in. The Previa although an 8 seater had normal style back seats (3 stuck in a row- bench style) and so it was more difficult to fit car seats and also if you want to remove seats you had to remove whole loads of seats. I only had an umbrella fold buggy in this car but loads of luggage from the kids including violins, guitars and sports bags so would say its boot was slightly bigger. Fuel consumption was ridiculous but maybe as it was petrol? Don't know about any other money related issues with it as it was their car.

[Louise_Oaktree]

I also have a MAZDA 5 and I LOVE it. I looked at the Zafira and the Mazda 5 definitely has more boot space and everything about it seems better quality, also I couldn't live without the sliding doors now - FAB for getting kids in and out when parked between cars.

I have 1 fixed car seat at the very back, then one on the second row and 3rd in the front. Then the rest of the seats are booster seats. If you don't need all 7 seats the middle row middle seat folds away so kids can walk through the 2 seats to the back. I liked it over the Zafira because it has split seats in the middle row so can leave a fixed car seat in and still move the other 2 seats forward to access the back.

Just wish I could have afforded the extra £2k for the sport!!!

[Tina O]

I drive a hyundia i800..... it's fab!:thumbsup:

It's an 8 seater with a full huge boot space!

It has sliding doors for easy getting kids in and out... It is a big car, cannot go into multi-storey carparks as too tall and need a good size carparking space.... but I can park it in my normal size garage and still get out if I use sliding doors.....:laughing::laughing:

I call it my 'bus' as it's so big... so not for the faint hearted, more minibus than car....

No good me telling you running cost etc as I'm in Germany and it's all different and tax free, but I paid less than some people paid over here for their Smax!:D

[Kats Kids]

Was thinking of geting a Zafira - but looking at the comments, wil probably look at a Voyager. Does anyone know what the differance in usable boot space is between the normal and grand?

[Little Bear]

I purchased a fantastic 7 seater Seat Alhambra this year and love it. There is lots of space for the children, the seats slide out of the way to get to the back seats and I can get a double pushchair, wellies, picnic etc in the boot whilst fully loaded with kids.

Can't recommend this car highly enough after I've had a Renault Grande Espace - Rubbish and Renault Grande Senic - slightly better but not as much room as the Espace

Tax is a tickle over £100 for the year

[funemnx]

I drive a hyundia i800..... it's fab!:thumbsup:

It's an 8 seater with a full huge boot space!

It has sliding doors for easy getting kids in and out... It is a big car, cannot go into multi-storey carparks as too tall and need a good size carparking space.... but I can park it in my normal size garage and still get out if I use sliding doors.....:laughing::laughing:

I call it my 'bus' as it's so big... so not for the faint hearted, more minibus than car....

No good me telling you running cost etc as I'm in Germany and it's all different and tax free, but I paid less than some people paid over here for their Smax!:D

Drool, I want one of those please!! :D

[LittleLegsCM]

Drool, I want one of those please!! :D

:laughing::laughing:

[Demonjill]

I have a Kia Carens 7 seater

It's fabby...proper seats in third row, isofix in middle row.
So practical to have 5,6or 7 seats boot not big with 7 seats in use but I usually have 1 seat down and that's great.
I don't often use the back row tbh but will rather pop one kid in the very back than in the front seat!

Its quite good to run and tax is about £165 so not bad
I got the diesel which is economical but as someone else mentioned watch out for particulate filters...give the car a good run every wee while!

Im looking for a petrol verso for this reason:thumbsup:

[Chatterbox Childcare]

I have a Toyota Previa - 8 seater and I love it but they are not made anymore

I also have a Honda 6 seater which i do not like and we are looking at trading to a Mercs van fitted with seats.

[Murdockg]

We have just spent the last 4 or so weeks checking out every 7 seater going (or at least the affordable ones).
I had a zafira. It was great for size but the seats were a nightmare. I would never buy an old style one again whilst I was childminding. The new one is fantastic. The seats are amazing but they only came out in Feb 12 so a nearly new one is impossible to find. Test drove a Touran. Two different size diesel engines apparently. The smaller sized engine is affordable but it felt like a van to me. It also felt like something out of the 80s. It was so old fashioned inside. -The interior is important to me. I really wanted something with a sliding door but everything affordable had high mileage. The Kia sedona has been discontinued apparently, the Grand Voyager drinks fuel, the Seat Alhambra and VW Sharan are too new and expensive. The Mazda 5 and Ford Grand C Max both have 7 seats and sliding doors but are a little small. Boots are way too small.
Have compromised on sliding door and have bought a Peugeot 5008. Had it 5 days and love it so far. The seats are fantastic, so flexible and a good size. Loads of storage under the seats when all 7 are in use. Not sure how it would fare with a buggy though!!! if you have older children you can't fault it!

[smurfette]

Have a renault grand scenic and we are happy with it for running costs .. Traded down from a petrol Hyundai trajet which we loved but guzzled petrol .. Think the diesel version is less thirsty. Also have had a ford galaxy loved all the separate seats and boot wasnt too bad when all seats up but again a guzzler.

I find the grand scenic small for the kids .. Very read seats are best for age 3-7 with a High back booster ., I do put two stage 1 seats in but they aren't a great fit and the baby's legs have little room as they stick straight out in those seats. My 6 year old is happy in the back but my 8 year old Is squashed.

If Money were no object for running costs would go back to trajet or galaxy far preferred them but we are saving Around 60 euros a month which you can't sniff at

[Bluebell]

I have a zafira - seats are a pain but for the money much more affordable for an investment to buy. would like to ultimately upgrade but I am pleased so far.
I part-exchanged my 52 plate fiesta for an 03 zafira and paid £200 so I am well pleased! (advantage of having worked in a car dealership for 4 years!!)

I used to have child seats in middle row and my boys used to clamber over into the back so I didn't have to move seat forward but that was a bit rubish so I now put car seats in back and my boys highback booster seats/boosters cushion in middle so can move bench forwad without the restaraint of the seat belts. If I need a third car seat I'll have to adjust or put it in the middle seat of row.

I have had problems with my back because of climbing into the back carrying a child and then leaning forward to strap in. if child is old enough I put them in and stand them up in the back and then climb in after them to save my back.
Also moving the bench back and then forward to get children in and out is fine so long as you don't park on a hill and there are a lot of hills where I live so that hurts my back too because it makes it so heavy!!

I guess I don't love it but its working for me at the moment with what I could afford!

[bluechair84]

I have a Fiat Ulysse, 03 reg so far so good. Loads of room, much more than Zafira we looked at. I move all the seats up to get max boot space, have double Phil & Teds, single umbrella buggy and bags in there and there's still room! Great manual sliding doors, was told to keep away fom electric doors as lots of probs and a fortune to fix. Very basic car that does the job.

amo :clapping: