Tell me what is good about your car - I need a new one.

[Racingsnake]

Hi. We are thinking of buying a second-hand car and would like some advice.

At present we have a VW Polo and a Puegeot 106, but even with our bijou family of one, we have not got enough space. (Also there are rust holes and the rain is coming up through the bottom!)

We need to be able to carry one child, one friend, one dog, one pushchair, two adults, shopping, interesting things we find in skips, cages for rabbits, etc. We fuel our house mainly by scrap wood we find lying about and manage to carry home in the Polo, but would like occasionally to be able to fit in the dog and the shopping and DH. It would be very useful if it had a split back seat, so DD could sit in her chair and the loot could be packed around her.

It must also be very economical and pretty reliable, because our income is limited.

I love the look of Citroen Berlingo because there is so much space and light (although I know it will make me look like an old lady. )

Has anyone got a car they think fits the bill? Can anyone advise?

Ford C-Max?

We have one, and managed to fit our 5 year old dd in her car seat and a complete bathroom suite (Bath, sink, toilet and taps,pipes, bath panel etc) in the back of ours just by folding down 2 of the rear seats. All the back seats can be removed so you can also use it as a small van.

The Mazda 6 estate is huge in the boot, has split seats, v v v reliable (according to JD Power, What Car etc) and good economy.

sorry but i can't fathom your lifestyle properly (poss just me in a sleep deprived haze though!!)

we have a peugeot 307 sw estate. it has 3 seats in the middle row that all fold down seperatly and easily and a massive boot that either has 2 extra seats in(ours does) or if you take tjose out (v easy) the boot is v big.

we have a renault scenic and thats pretty good, though we now want something bigger but we do have 2 childrne and want a bigger car to go camping with! Want to buy it?

Renault scenic was one idea we had. Where are you?

The estates all look a bit big, but I suppose that the Berlingo is also pretty big.

Not sure I totally fathom our lifestyle either!

Citroen Xsara Picasso also ticks most of your boxes, I think (plus there are zillions of them about, so getting spares is never a problem). Do you often go to France? If so, I think it's good to have a French car.

SE London

One day, when there is nothing much going on, I will tell tea room customers (no, this is not a hijack) about a day spent in a thunderstorm in the Carmargue, with the waters rising, some grandfather clocks, mosquitos the size of Muskateers and the man from Renault Assistance making everything so much worse.

Will look at Citroem Picasso on google.

We have a Skoda Octavia Estate. The boot is impressive, it's pretty reliable and servicing is cheap on the variable servicing schedule. It does 18000 miles between services.

The main drawback is that rear leg room is quite poor.

I second CMOT on the Mazda 6 - we've got the hatchback and it has a cavernous boot, split seats which fold down practically flat, is very reliable, comfortable, and is STILL nice and responsive to drive! I absolutely love it and have driven plenty of other cars to compare it to (was a sales rep). Have fitted four adults, DD in her group 1 car seat, plus luggage for all for a week abroad in it no probs. Likewise have taken loads of big stuff to the tip in it. A (good) while ago Top Gear rated it as their best family car I believe. I will now stop but I think you get the idea!!

we have a honda civic. huge boot, split seats, good to drive, economical, roomy in back.

we have skoda fabio estate - it always starts which is a bonus, cheap to run and service. we have roof bars which helps with the womble lifestyle thing. easy to park as not a huge estate. interior is fairly plasticy and cheapo looking if you care about that sort of thing.

More ideas! Will go and check out the reviews and esp the mpg of your suggestions. Last night we were thinking of a Renault Kangoo - anyone got one of those? I liked its extreme ugliness and the fact that you can apparently hose out the interior if necessary (my car is still full of mud from muddy dog, sawdust and bits of moss from recent wood haul). However, mpg doesn't look too good.

We have a renault scenic as well. It is a fab car but as we have just had another baby making that 3 kids, we need a 7 seater so ours will be up for sale very soon.

We used to have a Toyota Previa. Big and roomy, you could fit loads in. I now run a 12 year old Toyota Corolla. Surprisingly roomy boot and Toyotas never break down, so the RAC man said when he came to fix my expired battery.

Another vote for Renault scenic. Amazing what you can fit in. Great to drive.

Subaru Legacy Boxer Diesel. Meets all those criteria although may be a bit too ££ (not clear what your budget is). Only been out in this format for a year so there may not be many used ones about though. Only economical in diesel version (petrol mpg is dreadful).

Easily accommodates 2 pushchairs, dog, various clutter. Goes very fast (too fast - dh & I have both just been domne for speeding ). Handles brilliantly.

If you're after a Picasso check out drivethedeal.com - new ones available at 46% discounts according to today's paper.

Ohdear - what a great name! It's my 2-year old's favourite phrase: "Oh no - mess!" She has usually made it. You're right; a bit too ££ for us. drivethedeal looks interesting.

Renault scenics still seem to be winning; will look at the toyota as well. And the skoda. And the honda. So many cars!

Quite fancied the idea of the volvo but dh immediately said it would be out of our price range.

That's how I got my name - it was ds1's catchphrase at the time (and he had always created the mess ).

I have a Skoda Octavia which I am to have to change due to my expanding family. (need 7 seater) It is the saloon which has the biggest boot you have ever seen! I have had 2 double buggies a stoller and all of the shopping in it! It has also been so reliable which is a must as far as I am concerned when you have kids.