hi all, need a 7seater ,i like the kia sedona and the seat alhambra , the sedona it has the 2.9 mercedes engine but been told they have a lot of electrical issues, the seat has some good revues ,anyone had any experiance with these.

thanks Bev.

I have heard a lot of bad comments regarding the Sedona's electricals too, although I have no personal experience of said problems. If its new, then the warranty should cover any problems (although hastle), if its an older model, you would hope that the problems had been ironed out by the previous owner.

Are you looking to buy new or used?

The old Seat Alhambra was the same as the VW Sharan and Ford Galaxy so they should be fairly problem free. The new one is pretty much the same as the Touran, which drive nice and are reliable. Plus there are plenty of VW specialists around, so service costs can be kept down.

The Vauxhall Zafera and the Ford S-max are comfortable to drive and worth looking at too.


But since you have posted this question on a Fiat forum, you shouldnt be looking any further than a quirky looking Multipla or a Ulysse...

what is your budget? and what sort of age are you looking for

Budget is 2000 so the older models .

I have a 7 seater Volvo v70.
2.3 t5,loads of room,all the creature comforts,looks nice and 240bjp as standard.
For sale of you want it.

Failing that I used to own a Renault Megane scenic.
Nice and cheap,go for the 1.6 petrol,
Dead reliable (some coil,instrument panel And keycard issues) and looks nice.
The main thing is out of all the people carriers it actually drives and handles like a car not an mpv.

I went for the Volvo as I prefer the cars.

x1/9 is about spot on, i've had a few variants of these over the years.

Another to consider though is the Toyota Previa diesel - i had one for 4 trouble-free years and it was brilliant, plus the sliding doors are a bonus for parking.

My ex has a Chrysler voyager which is pants, and the very worst i had was a renault espace; awful fuel consumption, woeful reliability and crap to drive

Thanks for the offer jbt but I want something with low insurance and good mpg , will have a look at the scenic,and will have a look at the previas also

Thanks everyone.

Have a look at a Mitsubishi Grandis. 7 seats and still space for luggage. A good friend of Mine had one and having travelled in it I was Very impressed. Sliding door is very practical. Mazda 5 also worth a look. Not as much space as Grandis but middle row centre seat can be left out to leave corridor. No luggage space when all seats are used though, but sliding door good for tight parking spaces. I would like a Grandis but they are hard to find.

If you don't need 7 'full size' seats than I'd look at Megane Grand Scenics.

The 2 rear seats fold into the floor giving you a proper boot unlike full size MPVs (We've previously had 2 x Galaxys and a Ulysse).

Had ours nearly 4 years now and apart from consumables it's been perfect. It's done 85k and averages 33mpg (It's the 2 litre petrol model).

I know French cars have a reputation of dodgy electrics but so far mine has been glitch free.

This isn't a million miles from you

This would be my mastermind question having got loads of kids and had a number of the things over the years including 7 seater estates, my favourite being the Citroen Famille an amazing machine (on the few occassions it actually ran). The Volvo is great too.
The best (by far) is the VW Caravelle you'll probably need £4k to get a good one but older ones are worth a look. I'd avoid the Espace (odd driving position) and like most people carriers very little 'boot'.
On your budget I'd seriously consider one of the Japanise grey imports like the Toyota equivolents of the Previa, they have loads of kit as standard (some are FWD) and pretty reliable and cheap.They have unfortunate names like Estima and even Eninma but they shouldn't be a pain in the a**e despite the name!

regarding jap import previas, the diesels are notorious fpr blowing headgaskets and cracked heads on the 2.2 turbo diesel lumps but they will run on chip fat

We run a 1.5 Dci Grand Scenic and thus far, it's been pretty good. Again, consumables only and the boot is massive with the rear seats down and still has usuable space with them up. Had a MK1 before that and it too was very good, sold it at 112,000 and it was still going fine.

it would have to be the elgrand had a few , but not the one with the nissan neo engine they blowup left rigth and center i have a nice one on the wate now but a paid a lot as its top spec

realy like the elgrand theres two near me, but outside my budget.

if its a old shape you like then import one your self there cheap now in japn as we can now import the newone with out an IVA TEST

Wife had a Sedona for a few years. Sold it 2 years ago to get a Shogun LWB. Both of them very good 7 seaters. Never had any problems with Sedona. She had 48,000 miles when we bought her and 117,000 when sold. Used her as a towing machine for a 1.6t caravan. She chugged along all day. Also gave in excess of 30mpg however driven. Ran it on cooking oil until they raised the price to the same as diesel.

Wife liked it that much that she is considering selling the Shogun and getting another one. If you get the top of the range it comes with dvd player with built in screen for the kids. The older ones have a better setup than newer ones built as a 55 plate onwards. Middle 2 seats turn around so all in the back are facing each other. Also makes it easier to get into back seats.

Added to all this is Merc reliability. Would recommend keeping away from petrol version. Less economical and not as powerful. Not a Merc engine either.