Any information on VW Touran or Ford S-Max or Opel Zafira or Volvo V50

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casiopea

Registered User
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Hi Folks,

First time posting on car & motoring.

After many years of being non-car owners my husband and I now need to invest in a car. After a lot of research we have narrowed our choices down to:

* VW Touran:
5+2 seats, Energy B, 180 Gram (CO2) per KM, Gas option.
Cons: The 2 optional seats at the back dont fold totally flat (to make a larger boot) like their competitors do.
Pros: Energy level, husband likes it.

* Ford S-Max
5+2 seats, Energy E, 224 Gram (CO2) per KM, Ethanol option.
Cons: A little bit more expensive
Pros: By chosing the ethanol option (available in March) the CO2 number reduces to approximately 50. Excellent boot room for buggys, snowboards and mountain bikes.

* Opel Zafira:
5+2 seats, Energy A, 138 Gram (CO2) per KM, Gas option.
Con: The energy level is excellent but Opel Zafiria are quoting energy level for the gas option where as all other quotes are for the diesel options. By that I mean the 138 is a little bit deceptive in that the other cars will have similiar quotes (like the S-max) when they have the gas/ethanol option on the market.

* Volvo V50:
5 seats, Energy E, 220 Gram (CO2) per KM, Ethanol option.
Very different to the other cars in style.

We are starting test driving now. Energy efficiency is important to us, as is space. I was wondering if posters here have experience with any of the above and can comment?

Kind regards,
Casiopea
 
Looks like you've done your homework!

Haven't had actual driving experience of any of these, but any feedback/anecdotal remarks that I have heard all seem to point to the Ford for driveability, reasonable reliability and comfort.

Can't comment specifically on emissions/efficiency I'm afraid.
 
Just note that the ethanol option for the S-max and the V50 result in a 50% VRT reduction, so has quite an effect on the price
Also be aware that there are very few E85 pumps in the state. I have an S40 Flexi-fuel but I've only got E85 into it once, due to lack of proximity of a pump on any regular routes that I take
 
Thanks Caveat,
I have heard that for ford and similarly for volvo.

I didnt really cover what we need a car for - we hope to have a family car - that would also accommodate visiting relatives and have boot size for all the mountain paraphernalia as well as baby paraphernalia!

amgd28 said:
Just note that the ethanol option for the S-max and the V50 result in a 50% VRT reduction, so has quite an effect on the price
Also be aware that there are very few E85 pumps in the state. I have an S40 Flexi-fuel but I've only got E85 into it once, due to lack of proximity of a pump on any regular routes that I take
Click to expand...

Thanks AMGD28, both good points and important to consider. We actually live in Switzerland so we wouldnt be eligible for the VRT reduction, but there are other promotions here to encourage purchasers to "buy green". From a pump perspective switzerland has many E85 and Erdgas (gas) pump options. However once you leave switzerland we've noticed (thanks to google) that italy and france have very poor E85 and gas options. Indeed France has 3 Erdgas pumps (!) and Italy something similiar. Definitely a con for the gas option.
 
casiopea said:
* VW Touran:
5+2 seats, Energy B, 180 Gram (CO2) per KM, Gas option.
Cons: The 2 optional seats at the back dont fold totally flat (to make a larger boot) like their competitors do.
Pros: Energy level, husband likes it.

* Ford S-Max
5+2 seats, Energy E, 224 Gram (CO2) per KM, Ethanol option.
Cons: A little bit more expensive
Pros: By chosing the ethanol option (available in March) the CO2 number reduces to approximately 50. Excellent boot room for buggys, snowboards and mountain bikes.

* Opel Zafira:
5+2 seats, Energy A, 138 Gram (CO2) per KM, Gas option.
Con: The energy level is excellent but Opel Zafiria are quoting energy level for the gas option where as all other quotes are for the diesel options. By that I mean the 138 is a little bit deceptive in that the other cars will have similiar quotes (like the S-max) when they have the gas/ethanol option on the market.

* Volvo V50:
5 seats, Energy E, 220 Gram (CO2) per KM, Ethanol option.
Very different to the other cars in style.
Click to expand...

4 very different vehicles. Touran and Zafira are most similar. Medium sized MPV's. Not room when all the seats are used. Not great to drive either.

S-Max is a newer design, and is/was European car of the year. Much bigger and more spacious, and based on Mondeo chassis, so it's a considerably better drivers vehicle too. 1.8 TDCI diesel is a low polluter.

V50 is a Focus based lifestyle estate.
 
Guys,

Thank you all for taking the time to respond very much appreciated.

RS2K said:
4 very different vehicles.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is down to the fact that neither myself or husband are "car people" and as such are never really interested in car asthetics. We were discussing this last night and this is down to us to answer and is a question we should address soon.

RS2K said:
Touran and Zafira are most similar. Medium sized MPV's. Not room when all the seats are used. Not great to drive either.
Click to expand...

Very interesting, thanks so much, any particular reason why they arent great to drive.

Am I missing something but why pick MPV or estate for two people?
Click to expand...

Because we arent going to be 2 people for long ;) Capacity we are looking at 5 people (us 2, baby, parents).

The area we need to prioritise I feel is whether or not we need a car for the mountains. We would be up the mountains at least once a month and here that lifestyle is sustainable with young children - but maybe we shouldnt let that dictate our car choice (and avail of public transport when we do go up). I feel in answering that question we can rule out the S-Max (city/mountains) or Volvo (city only).
 
casiopea said:
Very interesting, thanks so much, any particular reason why they arent great to drive.
Click to expand...

Regarding the Touran and Zafira. Most MPV's are somewhat uninspiring to drive. They are high sided vehicles with a higher than normal centre of gravity. They are not really designed for driver feedback and driving enjoyment.

In corners the suspension will allow some higher than normal amount of bodyroll.

In reality you'll simply corner slower.

The S-Max is based on the new Mondeo platform, which is good, and Ford make some of the best handling vehicles available.

If you are looking at going into the mountains a bit, surely a 4wd vehicle should be your choice?
 
I spent a bit of time in Switzerland and when you say driving up the mountains, I presume you will still be using roads.

MPV's are rarer in europe than here and estates are more common. Do you think this might have an impact on resale if you chose the mpv over an estate?

Of the lot, I would choose the S-Max.
 
It sounds to me when you have 5 passengers boot space will be most important. Just changed from 7 seater same size that you mentioned. Would you consider a peugeot 407 estate 1.6 hdi or an 807 2.0 hdi 1.6 only 5 seats best boot space I have had. 807 you could have and configuration of 5 seats and plenty of space for buggy, snowboard etc and have pulling power for mountain roads.
 
After many many years being a Toyota drivers we (myself and Mrs CW) switched to a Ford S-max. We were moving from an Avensis Estate 1.8 petrol due to an expanding family.

We looked at the Touran, the Zafira, the Corolla Verson, and of obviously the S-Max. Got to admit emissions were not on the list priority wise but of all of the those we opted for the S-Max 1.8 TDCi 6 speed because:

We wanted a car/mpv with a five star NCAP rating.
We wanted a 5 + 2 arrangement where all the seats can fold flat.
We wanted good fuel ecomomy.
We wanted the versitility to carry 2 adults 3 kids a dog and all the stuff you need for a long weekend away (and still be able to pop up the extra seats when you get there).
We wanted a car that wouldn't kill us on tax and insurance costs.
We wanted a car that would be comfortable for long trips to the South of France.

But most of all we bought this car because of the drive. Once we both drove it we were sold. I had read lots of posts on car formus about how well ford's drove and to be honest I read them as yeah yeah Ford nuts! But boy were we blown away by the handling of the S-Max. Five months on and we both still love it.

My advice is go drive them all and see for yourself.
 
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