Moving from Passat to MPV which one to ease the pain

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Bamhan

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I currently drive a Passt TDi, 07 which I will have to get rid of by January, need a 7 seater then.
I am currently test driving MPV's but am so dissappointed in them.
I drove a Hyundai Trajet at the weekend and there was no pick up at all.
I love my Passat, love the pick up, the power, ease of driving and handling etc.
Can anyone reccomend a 7-seater which is a decent car to drive in terms of power and driveability.
 
I drove a ford galaxy (1.8 diesel I think) for a couple of days while my car was in the garage. I liked it a lot, thought the acceleration was good. Handling OK too, but i guess you ain't going to get a mpv with better handling than a saloon.
 
A friend of mine had the same dilema last year and after test driving most MPV's available he settled on one of these...

[broken link removed]

I've had a go in it and it's not bad but as already said there will be a big differance power and handling wise between a car and a MPV.
 
The best handling and most car like 7 seater is the Ford S-Max. You'll need a 2.0 TDCI diesel to get the "pick up" you need I reckon.
 
Considering the Passat isn't all that remarkable to drive, I dunno what you are expecting. But as said earlier the S-Max is rate by all Mags as the best handling MPV. Evo magazine often remark (they use it as a camera car) that its better than some of the so called sporty cars they sometimes review. I've never driven one myself. You can get the similar VW engines in the VW Touran and VW Sharan if thats of interest. Neither is meant to be anything special to drive, but not bad at the same time. The usual VW "solid" handling etc. I'm looking at the Touran myself. Its a bit more compact the the van sized Sharan, S-Max.
 
Funny that!

We traded in our '06 1.9 TDi for a '07 1.9 Tdi Sharan (automatic). Agree that 'pick up' is not really to be found in a people carrier - don't think they are really made for that somehow. The Sharan has reasonable acceleration, I mean overtaking is just slightly less decisive than the Passat, but a car with zip it is not!
Once you have entered the MPV world, you have entered the 'nice n easy' world, where 'pick up' usually means "kids, football, 8pm - and get some bread on the way home"!;)
 
Whats the point of dismissing all MPV's based on a automatic diesel?

You can buy MPV's with 200bhp and sub 8 sec 0-60's. Is that enough pickup?
 
recently bought a 03 Galaxy TDI 115bhp Ghia, has great pickup and comfort is second to none looked at all the alternatives and found this the best. the Seat and Volkswagon are exactly the same car as the Galaxy just the spec inside is different. I am getting 53mpg on a long spin from it which i think is very good.
 
aircobra19 said:
Whats the point of dismissing all MPV's based on a automatic diesel?

You can buy MPV's with 200bhp and sub 8 sec 0-60's. Is that enough pickup?
Click to expand...

Who mentioned automatic?
And if you know of such great MPV's suggest a make and model.

I agree the Passat is not exactly a sports car but in my opinion it handles well, has good acceleration and very good boot space etc.

To gain one extra seat you have to compromise a heck of a lot in terms of driveability in my opinion in any of the MPV's I have test driven.

I am looking for some suggestions on what is a good MPV, I will test drive the C-Max and the Galaxy at the weekend, thanks for the suggestions.
 
Galaxy is your only man

Bought one in the UK 4 years ago - gonna keep it for another 3-4 and go over again - bought 2nd hand from www.cargiant.co.uk

Even after VRT, I would have saved 2 or 3 grand compared to similar priced models

Excellent family car - I bought the Ghia model 1.9TDi Auto Diesel - 45 to 50 MPG on a journey

There are 3 models starting at the LX, the Zetec and then Ghia

Good Luck
 
Mitsubishi Grandis also has a 2.4 turbo with similar performance to the above mentioned. Looks a lot better too IMO.
 
The only one I could find was a non turbo.
Mitsubishi Grandis 2.4 MIVEC 0-60 mph: 9.7 seconds 165bhp
 
Theres a 2.0 turbo diesel. Maybe theres some odd ball import models. I don't think any of them are much to look at myself. There are all one step removed from a van/minibus. I probably prefer the more boxy like ones, like a Touran etc. The Honda stream and Grandis are a bit too swoopy for me. Fan of the 80's I guess.
 
How about a jeep? My bro got a long wheel base land crusier - it has 7 seats prob not the best on fuel and tax but if you are not doing huge mileage then it would be grand.

They had a mazda mpv previous to that and found that the lack of boot space was a killer with a full crew on board. No room for the gear bags and hurlies and buggies. Because of the engine size they are prob going cheap at the moment too.

Just another option...
 
Silvergirl we looked at the lancruiser LWB alright but it is a devil for getting kids in and out of. The last two seats are more occasional seats really where as I would need them in action all the time.

I do both city and rural driving and very high milage as well.

Will test drive a few makes and models at the weekend and see how I get on.
 
The S-Max is a great looking car but the boot space with the 7 seats in is very bad.
The galaxy is not as nice looking but has far more boot space.
I drove a Passat before and didn’t rate it for handling (but the acceleration was OK). There was just as much poke in Mrs Purple’s old Galaxy (1.9L TDI 115 bhp).

The other option is a 4X4 such as a Volvo XC90 but, in my opinion, the large MPV’s are nicer to drive and have far more car like handling.
 
I don't get why they think if you've 6 or 7 people you won't need the luggage space to match. Which is why you see a lot of 4x4's and MPV's with roof boxes.
 
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