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This blog has been created by a mother of four who was in desperate need of a 7 Seater car. All posts are written from the perspective of the family rather than a car geek. If you want to Contact us please email us: info@7-seater-cars.co.uk.
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7 Seater * UK
Hello
Your website is brilliant- thankyou.
I have a question if I may?
What is the cheapest 7 seater for road tax? or perhaps the overall cheapest to buy and run?
We were looking at a year ish old sedona due to the warranty. Or can you recommend anything better?
Many thanks
Chris
CB,
The Peugeot 308 SW is the cheapest at Band D, £90 at the moment for the year. But we’ve got a Kia Carens because of the 3.5 years left on the warranty. It’s pretty good MPG, (40 ish) and the road tax is £150 for the year. But running costs aside, we bought it because of the warranty. We could cope with mileage, servicing, Car tax etc – but we just couldn’t cope with a gearbox going or something major. But the Carens has a very small boot space when all the seats are up. We’ve just been to Tenby, (hence the late reply), and it was a bit of a squash with the four children. All our luggage went in the 7th seat space folded down. But it did the job!! If you need that extra space you could always buy a roof box from Amazon for about £60. If the Sedona has the full warranty on it and it’s the right price you should consider it.
Watch out for the emissions, that will determine the CAR TAX Band. Each model has a more economical version, for example the Zafira ranges from Band F up to Band K.
Thanks for liking the website. It’s still very new (6 months). Were working towards adding more information but it all just takes a lot of time.
Hats off to you for taking the initiative! It’s a fantastic site. We drive a Doblo Family and it’s the best car we ever owned but we are now looking at buying a 7 seater with seats that fold down into the floor rather than having to get out the allen keys and clearing a space in the shed whenever we need the extra load space. My wife’s fallen in love with the Chrysler Grand Voyager because of the swivelling middle seats (!) and my question is, are there any other cars out there that have this facility whilst still being capable of folding the seats away into the floor. (The VW Caravelle was rejected because the seats didn’t fold). Hope you can help, HN
Both the Kia Carens and Vauxhall Zafira have seats that fold flat. However you will loose on boot space when all seats are upright. I have a Carens and I love it. With one hand I can move the seat from upright to flat. I’ve taken a few pictures of my Carens which might help you make up your mind: Kia Carens Pictures.
The Chrysler is lovely and you might have a job on your hand persuading your wife to buy a different model.
Thank you for your comments about the site. We still have a lot of work to do to make it perfect. Thank you and Good Luck.
Oh sorry – NO OTHER CARS have the swivel seat facility.
Hi, help!! I am looking for a 7 seater car, not a 4 wheel drive, that has a great size boot when the extra seats are folded down. Didn’t want to go too large and want to watch for tax and insurance. At the mo I have a picasso 5 seat.
Heather
What’s your budget? I would say the largest boot with seats up is the Mitsubishi Grandis. It is a really long car. However it falls into Band I for tax which is currently £200 a year.
Thank you but I’m okay.
hi i need some advice on the best 7 seater to run i have £2.500 to spend and havnt a clue where to start. i also need 1 with boot space and i dont like the seats which fold out of the floor. many thanks donna.
Your going to be limited because of your budget. You should be able to pick up a 2nd hand Galaxy, Peugeot 807 or Alhambra for your budget. They all have fixed seats. They are not the cheapest 7 seater to run. A Toyota Verso has fixed seats too, and they go on forever. My Father in law’s is on about 150000 miles now, (Petrol).
The problem you may have is that the cars with flip seats, (Kia Carens/Zafira) are slightly smaller and are therefore cheaper to run. To get the best deal you need to look wider afield. Such as Ebay: http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk/Buy-7-Seater-Car.php – but then again you need to be sure that your not buying a DUD. Look at sellers profile. Make sure you are happy with your purchase.
Good deals can be had for Ex-Mobility models. These types of cars usually have lower mileage and have been well looked after.
Yes it’s good !!
Hi,
I’m looking for a 7 seater with decent boot space AND sliding doors.
We currently have an older Berlingo multispace 5 seater but expecting child no4 in the summer so need more seats !!
I love my berlingo and would heartily recommend it. I wouldn’t want to move away from the sliding doors as they are SO useful when parking up and getting out a gaggle of young kids (our oldest will have just turned 6 when no4 arrives!).
Can’t afford a new car – hoping to keep the car under 10,000, round about half that if it’s possible but want something that will still be reliable. Not too much to ask is it
Many thanks for your advice
PS LOVE the website – really useful to have all the options listed in one place !
Thanks Catherine,
I’ll get back to you over the next few days… with a substantive response.
xx
Catherine,
A lot of the newer 7 Seater Cars have sliding doors. For example the Grand Scenic, whereas older versions don’t. For your budget your obviously looking for a 2nd hand model, so why not one of the following:-
Citroen Dispatch Combi:
http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk/citroen-dispatch-combi.php
Fiat Doblo Famlily Edition
http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk/Fiat-Doblo.php
Citroen Berlingo Multispace – new model
http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk/citroen-berlingo-multispace.php
2nd hand Peugeot 807 for just over 5K – sliding doors
My personal recommendation would be for a Kia Sedona (sliding doors). If you can get one that is only a year or so old you’ll still have around 4 years of full warrantee left. I have a carens (i love it), but no sliding doors. 2nd hand models are quite cheap considering the age of the car.
GOOD LUCK FINDING A CAR – AND WITH THE BABY !
What a fantastic idea for a site – thanks for setting it up. Do you have any idea which cars can fit three high-backed boosters (or two high backed and one short booster seat) in the second row (if any do)? Many thanks!
The Citroen C8 does, I know because my sister in law has one and at one time she had the same problem with 3 children under 5. She uses 6 of the seven seats and can fit her whole buggy (unfolded) in the space that is left.
The width of the c8 is 1818cm. But cars such as the Galaxy, 807, alhambra are also pretty wide (over 2m). Take a tape measure and make sure you look for whether the seats are shaped, (bucket). It’s when the seats are this shape that fitting car seats is difficult. Good Luck !!
Oh and thanks for liking the site… I’m hoping to improve it’s look soon !!
I have to strongly disagree with the review of the Dodge Journey. I owned a new Touran for 4 years and am still running an 08 Zafira alongside an 2010 Dodge. The Dodge beats both hands down for space, reliability, build quality and comfort (yes, it is genuinely comfortable). Throw in the price and it’s one of the best kept secrets of 7 seat motoring.
I don’t know what the motoring press have against it – reading some reviews including the one on this site (drives like a tractor – eh?) I’m tempted to think that some reviewers haven’t actually driven it. Lots of people who have sat in it and a few who have borrowed it are also very impressed.
If I have any criticism to make it’s that the front and rear bumpers are plastic and flex but in another way that’s saved us from many a carpark ding.
Hi,
Re: Dodge Journey Review
Thanks for writing. I have changed the review on that page to be more balanced. No one likes the Kia Carens either, (my car) and I love it so I know how you feel when someone says something negative about something so good.
One of the content writers reviewed the dodge journey, but it is my intention to drive and review all 7-seaters during 2012 myself and you’ve made me want to drive the Dodge Journey first.
I started the website on my own, whilst bringing up four children, supporting a husband and working full time. The popularity of my site has been overwhelming and I can only apologise if it didn’t meet your requirements, but it is work in progress and I am constantly aiming to improve it.
Thanks for your comments – I have taken them on board.
http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk
email: info@7-seater-cars.co.uk
Hi, I have a Fiat Scudo 8 seater which is brilliant but very expensive to insure. I tried using the Quote Zone on your website but the model is not listed in the drop-down so I can’t fill it in. That happens on GoCompare, Confused,com as well. Where is best to try for cheap insurance for an 8 seater?
Ian
I would phone them up. Usually the problems are with nine seaters, not eight. It also maybe that its classed as a commercial vehicle. The Fiat Scudo is a great spacious car that is excellent for the family. However it is mainly used for commercial purposes. Sorry I can’t be more help.
Thanks very much, I have sent off an email. Great website by the way!
Awww thank you for saying the site is great.. I still feel like I have a 1000 things to do before I’m happy with it, but it’s “work in progress”..which is sometimes tricky with four children. Good Luck with your insurance !!
Help!
We have a 2005 Honda crv4 which we’ve always found helpful to put baby v in and out. My parents, in their 70s often accompany us at weekends. Baby v number 2 is due in May so we need to lose the Honda and move into 6 or 7 seat territory.
We live in a fairly rural area so fuel economy is important. Mrs v who will be driving the thing ideally would like something of a similar height off the floor as the Honda so the usual car type vehicles are off limits. The Nissan terrano looks ok but not sure? Can you please help?
Paul
The Nissan terrano is a 4WD but although the price is quite good the mileage would be high and the third row of seats face backwards. I don’t think that rear facing seats are not ideal for long journeys. Although you live rurally it sounds that you don’t really need a 4WD if you’ve survived thus far with a Honda CRV. The Honda FRV has two rows of three seats with prices starting from £2,500. But fuel economy is probably around 40MPG. With the prices of fuel going upwards more with diesel than petrol – i’d keep an open mind about buying Petrol. Demand for diesel has gone through the roof, hence the raise in price.
The cars I would definitely consider are the Kia Carens, Nissan Qashqai+2, renault grand scenic, Ford Grand c-Max, VW Touran or peugeot 308 SW. But all of that depends on your budget and what is for sale in your area. If your doing a private sale make sure you tripple check the documents so that you don’t get conned. Take a picture with the person selling the car.
I don’t have an outright favourite 7-Seater. Although I own a Kia Carens which I think is great. Fuel economy and Tax are good too. It is also at the same height as the CRV.