ADVICE NEEDED on People Carriers.........

[HellyBelly]

I've got a thread in the childminder section but wondered if any of you lovely ladies can give me some advice?

I'm selling my Vauxhall Frontera and with the money I'm getting a people carrier. Not sure how much I'll have to spend but should be between £5000 - £6500?

Any advice, opinions etc????

I am a childminder so although I need boot space for a double buggy, change bags etc, I don't need a huge boot for the same amount of luggage (i.e. hols) as I only have one ds atm.

Want one that doesn't guzzle the fuel too much so not really an automatic (as believe these use more fuel?)

Want to get somes idea's before actually selling my car.

Thanks

How many seats are you going to need?

I think a 7 seater should be fine

I have a Grand Voyager (diesel, manual) and it is huge - I think the biggest on the market - but you won't need that sort of space. There are loads to choose from and my dh would know the best for you (he knows a lot about car design etc) but he is in USA right now. Sorry, useless post, just wanted to mention my Grand Voyager!

Are you ever going to have 7 people in and still need space for a double buggy etc behind the back seat? Or will you only have 6 and be able to have one seat folded down/taken out to leave luggage space?

I've spotted a Seat Alhambra which I think is 7 seats, the other day, and like the look of it, but I've not had a good nosey around it, need to tho, as bump on way!

Alhambra is the same car as the Galaxy and Sharan, but better value - but like them, v little space behind 3rd row of seats, so for eg holidays you'd need to do without one seat or get a roofbox or something.

Is it really! fab! sounds good to me, will check this one out further then, as should be able to do away with one seat for hols!

They always got the best write-up of the 3 in car reviews, so if it's in good nick and the price is OK I would go for it, Frizbe

Waiting for hb to come back with her seating requirements now (I love MPV threads, can you tell )

Sorry for delay but don't always get on a lot when childminding.

I won't often need all seats, mainly in school hols.

I currently have 3 toddlers at a time on some days so need to be able to fit 3 car seats. Presuming there'd be an airbag in the front passenger seat, I wouldn't be able to put a child in the front. So far including me that makes 5 seats. I also have 2 older children in the holidays and may also get school pick ups eventually, I therefore would need all 7 seats in the hols. Also need boot space for 1 x double and 1 x single buggy at times (oh, and change bags)

TELL ME WHAT TO BUY

ulysses!!

I swear by mine and often have outings with another childminder, 6 children and 2 double buggys!!! Got mine for £4500, its a 51 plate and had done 92000miles BUT had full service history and runs like a dream!!!

one of my best friends has the seat alhambra and it is a great people carrier.
shes got one with leather seats etc, so easy to keep clean.

little room in the 'boot' but ok for fold flat or umbrella fold buggies and you can always slide a single umbrella fold buggy lengthways through the seats.

I would go for a Previa then - eg this one for £6k. Many of them are automatic though so look carefully. Also the middle seats in 2nd and 3rd rows only have a lapbelt in the older models, but if you are putting toddler seats there that shouldn't be a prob?

You can also search on Estima and Lucida under Toyota, it's the same car but imported from Japan (also RHD) and cheaper. The Auto Trader search page is brill.

The Ulysses family (includes Citroen and Peugeot MPVs) has the same prob as the Galaxy family, not a lot of space behind the 3rd row. Toyota has huge space; so do Grand Espace and Grand Voyager but both are expensive and neither is a Toyota (far more reliable brand).

Blimey you lot - saved me LOADS of research which is great as I have no time for it at the moment!!

You're all great - thanks a lot!!

I have a Ulysses and some days when I pick up from school I have 4 school age kids with bags and 2 toddlers in it, with a double buggy in the boot (along with the schoo bags) and the single buggy I also have between the back 2 seats, no problem.

ULYSESS
ULYSESS

Try here

Erm, I have a Nissan Serena - thay are dirt cheap but absolutely brilliant - so long as you don't get a diesel version, which are embarassingly slow.

They are not "cool", there is not one bit of chrome to be seen on them, and they are basically nissan vans with lots of seats.

The thing I love about them is the sliding doors - means you can see to littluns on both sides without opening the doors into traffic. This in itself is a brilliant feature.

I bought one because I needed a car with 4 doors for new baby, (boo hiss, off goes the 3 door low and impractical number) and DP needed a van to cart his bits around (various ridiculous modes of transport) so it suits us both well, as all seats can be folded in all manner of configurations for various use.

I got the top of the range (if thats not too much of a contradiction of terms) - the Excursion - has twin sunroofs, electric windows, tinted rear windows, the whole kit and caboodle, and no passenger airbag, so you can transport children in safety.

May be a bit old for you though - I just find mine immensely practical without the price tag!

Yes but it's a Fiat, bonkerz

Previa has sliding doors too - or one, rather, in the older version, on the passenger side only, so no opening doors into oncoming traffic, unless you are on the wrong side of the road and I don't think you wanna do that...

well into the sliding doors thing - mine are on both sides, and I confess to dealing with mine on the offside - but only because thats the only side I can put him in due to driveway constraints!

Oh yes, I remember reading a group road test in What Car years ago (so long ago that one of its MPVs was a Volvo 800 series estate with 2 extra seats!) and one of the families couldn't use the Previa because their drive was so narrow the sliding door was touching the hedge.

Not sure why they couldn't reverse in instead but no one suggested that for some reason

ah... Janh - could be similar situation to mine - there is no way to reverse in off a narrow horse and cart track that is a one way road, where the drive is restricted width and the passenger side be on any side other than the one where the wall is - I nearly bought a serena with just one sliding door until I really really thought about it!! And then I had to think about it again, but the maths still didn't work! The sliding door always remained on the wall side. This would have been a nightmare!

But you have to reverse out? See, this is the bit I don't understand - somewhere, somehow, you have to reverse!

lol Janh...

One of my cars is reversed in and the other is driven in forwards. You couldn't swap the reverse/forwards position round due to the approach (single track and one way) and the fact that if you did, the driver wouldn't be able to get out of the vehicle due to walls etc.

This is going to end up me drawing a picture!!!!

lol Janh...

One of my cars is reversed in and the other is driven in forwards. You couldn't swap the reverse/forwards position round due to the approach (single track and one way) and the fact that if you did, the driver wouldn't be able to get out of the vehicle due to walls etc.

This is going to end up me drawing a picture!!!!

ulysess has a sliding door both sides!! Fiats are great i have owned 3 fiat uno (dh drives fiat uno) and have always found them cheap to run, insure and repair!! Our ulysess costs less per month than our mondeo did and we have both of us on the insurance and are covered for buisness use aswell!!!