OK, I've been a little busy and haven't visited for a while, Work has been manic for the last 4 months.
But life goes on, the family is on the increase and my Bora is getting a bit long in the tooth. I've decided that the MPV thing is great (Love the Touran), but I'm looking for something a bit bigger.
I've had a look around, and in terms of size/value/practicality, the C8 seems like a good deal. The HDi 120 (non-FAP) seems like the best engine for price, and I've read HJ's review, but it was quite a long time ago.
Has anyone had experience of the C8, and if so, what are the upsides (and the downsides)
Thanks
Charles
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 1.9 TDI
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 11/10/2007 at 20:04
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They have been known in the past to suffer from waterleaks caused by poor sunroof design. there are a lot of electrics under the floor! need I say more
Doc
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Ah... so that design flaw is not limited to VW then, who also put their electrics in the floor and then gum up the works with either leaky pollen filter housing ,waterlogged Battery housing or blocked Sunroof drains
So, best to avoid the sunroof (I'm not bothered about that anyway), the triple sunroof seems overpriced and a bit of vanitywear.
Thanks!
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 1.9 TDI
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I've had a C8 from new for 3 years. It's the HDI 130 6 speed with reverse sensors and roof rails. It's been a comfortable on long or short distances. For work it travels locally with the seats folded, the rear full of handyman and gardening gear and a ladder on the rails, and towing a small trailer, rarely more than 40 mph. On holiday it tows 1300 kg of caravan and the seats are full of an assortment of children and adults. The boot handle was replaced under warranty because the silver coating flaked off. The rear door rails were also replaced because of rust. The handbake adjustment siezed or failed and it's had new calipers, disks and pads on the rear; Citroen only paid for the calipers and fitting. I've had no electrical glitches yet; it does about 28 mpg locally which will rise to 36 mpg solo on a run. Coming from a Synergie with 90 bhp, the extra oomph is useful. I think the automatic wipers could work better; they seem to wipe continuously in drizzle and sometimes go to intermittent in a downpour. It's a roomy, comfortable hack that doesn't inspire me in the least. For due diligence's sake I looked at a Galaxy when I was going to change the Synergie but nothing about that car felt "right" to me. It's my 18th Citroen which says as much about the local dealer as it does about the car, and probably a good enough reason to feel alien in the Galaxy. Good luck. HTH.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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Thanks. Useful to know. I'm taking a testdrive tomorrow and it will be interesting
I think the swing factor seems to be the sliding doors. Few MPV's in this category have this: Grand Voyager seems to be the only other one, but it gets panned by most reviews
The 807 is essentially the same car, different badge, but I had a bitter customer experience with Peugeot, and I hear Citroen Customer service is much better (and thankfully their UK HQ is 1 mile up the road from where I live!) Although the nearest dealer to me is miles away.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 1.9 TDI
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Charles,
Don't discount the Grand Scenic either. It's a useful bit bigger than the Touran/C-Max etc without having to go to the full blown MPV. It might just be what you're looking for.
1.9 dCi 120 non-FAP is the one to go for. Smooth, quiet and effortless.
Cheers
DP
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04 Grand Scenic 1.9 dCi Dynamique
00 Mondeo 1.8TD LX
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DP
Thanks. Actually I test drove the Grand Scenic when I bought my Touran in 2004. I have to say it was a good car, but the Touran won us over in certain areas.
I'm actually looking for something a little bigger - Galaxy / Sharan size, but the current Sharan drives like a bus and is due replacement, and I don't have a good feeling about most things Ford.
The Espace could be a runner though....
Charles
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 1.9 TDI
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I'm actually looking for something a little bigger - Galaxy / Sharan size but the current Sharan drives like a bus and is due replacement and I don't have a good feeling about most things Ford.
My S-Max (you could go Galaxy if you need extra space) has done 22k in last 6 1/2 months with no issues. I'd recommend it as it drives nicely as well. Averaged 43.7MPG (true, not fuel computer lies) over those miles on mostly motorway driving.
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What about the Kia Sedona?
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The number I see coming of lease with mega starship mileages and they still run as sweet as a knut leads me to believe they are extremely good and far cheaper to run than KIA/HYUNDAI
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Like Haweye, we bought a C8 as a replacement for a Synergie - ours is just over 4 years old now. Like him we also had a rear handle replaced because of flaking plastic lacquer.
The car is great as a cross-Europe cruiser or for ferrying stuff down the tip. The sliding doors are a real boon, not just in car parks but also to ease loading. The sensors sometimes play up, but you can always shut them. The fold-down kiddy mirror is great but can interfere with the alarm sensors, so remember to fold it up when parking. We have no sunroof but the rear washer pipe has become detached twice and soaked the electric rear hatch handle and rear sensors. In fact our rear handle needs adjusting slightly now, as does one of the sliding doors which has gone slightly out of alignment. The roof rails are a bit fragile and don't always slide back as they should.
Ours is the 110 HDI auto and we seem to average 30mpg. The miriad of electrics can and do play up, and I think it is definitely worth keeping up a warranty on it - diagnosing faults can take time.
We now have 6 in our family, which means we now have that problem of plenty of seats but little luggage space when we go away - T5 Caravelle here we come?
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Alot depends on how you wish to use the seating. In our case we frequently travel as 6 plus luggage which means removing a rear seat, in the C8 and Galaxy and Espace this is a reall ball ache, not least cos the seats are really heavy, and then clutter up the hallway (we don't have a garage). So we wanted a car with fold flat seats in back row.
Zafira and Grand Scenic too small for us, the kids (4) are growing up and the elder ones are as full size adults.
Many of these factors may or may not be relevant to you so one mans apple pie is someone elses bacon butty!
Eventually we chose a Mitsubishi Grandis, and nearly a year on are still thrilled with it.
See my reasoning in detail - including comments on many cars we considered along the way.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=48948&...f
Guy
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