any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000

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Sat 20 Jun 2020 18:32
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

What to buy?

My wife has been a big Honda loyalist for years - three Shuttles and then a Stream, but now that's beyond economic repair. We really like the engines and reliability. The options for our rather niche requirements seem to be Toyota Verso or possibly a Ford S-Max. (I am not bothering to consider the Zafira.) Otherwise it's only a Mitsubishi Grandis which is rather old, or indeed an imported Honda, like an Odyssey (which drives very well.) She wants something roomy but not enormous, ie. not a Previa/Estima or similar. Parking sensors/camera are a must! Any thoughts advice or warnings??

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Sat 20 Jun 2020 20:42
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - badbusdriver

I'm struggling to make sense of this!.

I am not bothering to consider the Zafira

Why not?. Given you want a petrol auto 7 seat mpv which is not too big, the Zafira is an obvious choice. The 1.4t with torque converter auto is a reliable enough combination even if it isn't, ultimately, going to be as reliable as a Verso. Also, the turbo engine is much more muscular at lower revs than the Verso's n/a 1.8.

You don't want an Estima or similar because you seem to feel they are too big, yet you are considering an S-Max, which is bigger!. You are also discounting the Grandis, but on the grounds of age, as opposed to it being pretty much the same size as an Estima?

As to Japanese import MPV's, the problem here (assuming you do actually need 7 seats) is that only the very newest will have 3 point seatbelts on all seats. Most will have a lap belt only in the centre of the rear benches. Highly unlikely that you will find anything with proper belts all round for £12k.

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Sat 20 Jun 2020 23:22
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

You don't want an Estima or similar because you seem to feel they are too big, yet you are considering an S-Max, which is bigger!.

I hadn't twigged that the S-Max was that big as we have not yet driven one. (Maybe we won't). Good point about the seatbelts. This is why I asked the question. thank you

Edited by Benet on 20/06/2020 at 23:22

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Sun 21 Jun 2020 06:00
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - nellyjak

Well..I have an Estima..a V6. (4 years now)..and I'd urge you to give them a look...way more bangs for your bucks...and reliability as standard.!!!

BUT...yes, mine is 7 seater with al the isofix but it is a lap belt in the middle of he rear seat.

Not a problem to me because I use it in dayvan form mainly..just me and the missus.

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Sun 21 Jun 2020 07:07
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - daveyK_UK
Ssangyong Turismo
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Sun 21 Jun 2020 07:45
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - badbusdriver
Ssangyong Turismo

Not available with a petrol engine.

Note to the OP, i'll tell you another car which is bigger than an Estima, a Honda Odyssey (10cm longer, same width)!.

Japanese MPV's, in my experience (i've researched them plenty!) tend to be grouped by width. The bigger ones are around 1.8m wide, this would include the Honda Odyssey and Elysion, the Toyota Estima and Alphard, and the Nissan Elgrand. Then you have the mid sized ones, these tend to be around 1.7m wide (much narrower than the UK norm) and would include the Toyota Noah, Honda Stepwagon and Nissan Serena. There are smaller ones again, which can be had with 7 seats. This would include the Toyota Sienta and Honda Freed.

But even the biggest of these are smaller in width and around the same length as an S-Max. So, maybe you should have a re-think about exactly what size of car is too big?

Also, still wondering why the Zafira is not on the radar?

Edited by badbusdriver on 21/06/2020 at 07:46

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Sun 21 Jun 2020 10:17
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - badbusdriver
Ssangyong Turismo

Not available with a petrol engine.

Also, absolutely huge!. At over 5.1m long, the Turismo is closer to a minibus in size than an MPV!.

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Sun 21 Jun 2020 14:01
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

You're obviously well-informed! But the Odyssey does seem to have come in two versions, one rather like the old Shuttle which then turned into the Elysion , the other, which we are considering, smaller and more 'car like' See https://www.japanesempvspecialist.com/used-car/honda/odyssey-m/2-4-vtec-automatic-7-seater-dvd-player-alloys-grade-4-b-fresh-import/for-sale-in-uxbridge-west-london/aetv13289059/

Re Zafira not being on the radar, maybe it's just because of the poor reliability rep of Vauxahalls. But maybe I'm being snobbish.

Edited by Benet on 21/06/2020 at 14:02

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Sun 21 Jun 2020 12:05
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - SLO76
If it has to be an auto id forget the S-max. Ford’s Powershift is so notorious thwarted class actions against the firm accross the globe. They’ve finally accepted that it’s not right and binned it in favour of a conventional torque converter box in new models.
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Sun 21 Jun 2020 15:34
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - SLO76
If it has to be an auto id forget the S-max. Ford’s Powershift is so notorious thwarted class actions against the firm accross the globe. They’ve finally accepted that it’s not right and binned it in favour of a conventional torque converter box in new models.

*there are class actions
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Sun 21 Jun 2020 20:48
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Theophilus

I've had Toyota Versos for the past 11 years (not auto) and would very happily commend as completely reliable and not expensive to insure or service.

However, you need to consider why you require a 7 seater - we use the rearmost seats for grand-children, but they are now in their teens and getting rather too big to sit in the back for long journeys - fine for 10-20 miles but the space is really rather tight for longer distances.

If the back seats are for occasional use, or by younger children, then go for a Verso - but if you want to take a large family on holiday I would advise you to look elsewhere.

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 14:20
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

If the back seats are for occasional use, or by younger children, then go for a Verso

Yes it is for occasional use only . It may well be a Verso. I have a Toyota Auris myself. But the wife has great loyalty to Honda.

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 14:26
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

If the back seats are for occasional use, or by younger children, then go for a Verso

Yes it is for occasional use only . We may well end up with a Verso. I have a Toyota Auris myself. But the wife has great loyalty to Honda.

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 16:26
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Pezzer

Mazda 6 ?

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 17:03
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Ian_SW

I don't think anyone's mentioned a Prius+ yet, which would be in budget for an higher mileage example. Should be pretty reliable, and use a lot less petrol than any other automatic 7 seater.

I wouldn't write off the Zafira without looking at it or driving it. They account for about half of all petrol automatic 7 seaters between £10k and £12k on Autotrader. The higher spec ones are surprisingly nice places to sit in, the seats in the top spec one I had as a hire car a couple of years ago were the most comfortable I'd had in anything for a good while and everything inside felt pretty solid and well designed compared to earlier models. The Zafira's lack of desirability would mean a newer and lower mileage car for the money.

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 21:38
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

I might consider the hybrid though Cat Converter thefts are rife in my area. I am put off the Zafira by the fact that I insist on a spare wheel and they don't even provide space for one, so it would have to just sit loose in the boot

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Mon 22 Jun 2020 21:28
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

Mazda 6?

This is a very good looking car but I don't think it comes as petrol automatic

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Tue 23 Jun 2020 00:26
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Avant

It was the Mazda 5 that had 7 seats, but again I don't think there was a petrol automatic.

I sympathise - the problem is that the models which are now in your price range are mostly diesels, as that was what we were being encouraged to buy when they were new.

If you don't want a Zafira or a Ford with powershift, then it'sprobably between the VW Sharan, Toyota Verso and Citroen Grand Picasso. A 2.0 litre VW would have the more reliable wet-clutch version of the DSG.

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Tue 23 Jun 2020 10:40
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Pezzer

ooops I meant a Mazda 5, but apologies I didn't realise there was not an auto option.

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Tue 23 Jun 2020 12:35
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Engineer Andy

Mazda do make 7 seater petrol auto cars - unfortunately none are available in the UK (they are in the US, Canada, the Far East and Down Under).

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Fri 26 Jun 2020 22:30
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

It's been decided. It will be a 2016 Verso. Just under the budget. From a main dealer but not a Toyota main dealer, and I think that makes it a little cheaper.

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Fri 26 Jun 2020 23:08
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Avant

Good choice, as you realised all along. Good luck with it.

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Sat 27 Jun 2020 13:02
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Theophilus

... and should still be covered by the excellent Toyota 5 year warranty

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Sat 27 Jun 2020 23:31
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - SLO76

... and should still be covered by the excellent Toyota 5 year warranty

Assuming it has a full Toyota history. Accept no excuses otherwise, if every stamp isn’t from a Toyota dealer then the warranty is gone and you need at least 12mths worth of good quality cover in place of it. Not that I’d expect one of these to ever go wrong to be fair but you never know.
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Sun 28 Jun 2020 21:28
any - ?? Seven seats + petrol + automatic, under £12,000 - Benet

Good choice, as you realised all along. Good luck with it.

Thank you. I am just a little nervous about burning oil because my older Auris (1.3 petrol) suffers from this problem. The clue is the black soot on the inside of the exhaust pipe - it pushes out oily crud when starting from cold. This is a known problem with the petrol Auris and I wonder if it's also known with the petrol Verso?

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