With sprog number four on the way in the Purple household I have to get a bigger car (the one I have only has two seatbelts in the back and I need three). Mrs Purple drives the 7 seater so I don’t need another one but I will need to be able to carry the four kids from time to time. When I sell my own car I should get €17k to €20k. I have been looking at a ‘07 Mondeo (new model), a 5-series BMW or an Audi A6 (all 2L and Diesel). Can anyone recommend one of these or a different car that will be reliable and engaging to drive? I don’t like Passats as I find them incredibly boring to drive and overpriced and I’m not a big fan of French cars as they are unreliable and expensive to service/fix.
car for driver plus four children
- Thread starter Purple
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Might depend on exactly what 'engaging' means to you Purple.
My opinion FWIW is that the three you mention will all be good to drive - the Mondeo will probably have a better, more refined balance of grip/handling/comfort etc; more grown up & sensible if you like, the BMW more grippy and sporty feeling, and the Audi maybe somewhere between the two? more 'luxurious' drive though.
A6 I'm sure has the most room, but if it were me, I would go the for the Mondeo for drive, reliability & value.
My opinion FWIW is that the three you mention will all be good to drive - the Mondeo will probably have a better, more refined balance of grip/handling/comfort etc; more grown up & sensible if you like, the BMW more grippy and sporty feeling, and the Audi maybe somewhere between the two? more 'luxurious' drive though.
A6 I'm sure has the most room, but if it were me, I would go the for the Mondeo for drive, reliability & value.
Yea, I'm heading towards the Mondeo. It's much bigger than the A6, which came as a surprise to me (it's the same size as the old Ford Scorpio). I've been driving an ’08 one for the last few weeks (a 1.6L petrol) and it’s really a great car, if a little underpowered.
Two booster seats and one car seat (I can have that rear-facing in the front).
DubShelley
Registered User
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But that rear-facing one is only for small babies right? What happens when he/she grows out of it and needs a proper car seat...
VRS eh?
... have no idea what that means...!
Exactly. For a start you need a car where passenger side air bags can be disabled easily. I don't know how easily this can be done in the current Mondeos. But they are wide so i don't any problems with two boosters and child seat in the back. One thing to watch is that the newer Mondeos are so wide they are hard to fit through the gates of many older houses.
Octavia VRS? You don't know what that is?
http://www.pistonheads.com/doc.asp?c=145&i=12946
http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/skoda/octavia-vrs-2005.aspx
They are about 20k 2nd hand
I am in the same dilema at the minute and have been looking at the Multimac.
www.multimac.co.uk
Mrs Paul24 has a Mazda 6 and it will take the biggest multimac available.
The guy was in Ireland and we seen the unit. It is very substantial and I borrowed some neighbours kids and managed to get 4 kids in the 3 - 6 year age group in the back all strapped in while still wearing coats.
Our 6 month old was quite happy in the baby seat when we tried him.
My other alternative was to have to change the Mazda 6 for a seven seater, simething I hadn't planned to do.
The Multimac is probably all in about €2000, which is a hell of a lot of money but a lot less than having to change the car.
He has a chart on his site that shows what size seat fits in what car. Surprisingly the mazda 6 is one of the wider cars along with the A6.
I will be purchasing one of these systems in a month or two.
Paul24
www.multimac.co.uk
Mrs Paul24 has a Mazda 6 and it will take the biggest multimac available.
The guy was in Ireland and we seen the unit. It is very substantial and I borrowed some neighbours kids and managed to get 4 kids in the 3 - 6 year age group in the back all strapped in while still wearing coats.
Our 6 month old was quite happy in the baby seat when we tried him.
My other alternative was to have to change the Mazda 6 for a seven seater, simething I hadn't planned to do.
The Multimac is probably all in about €2000, which is a hell of a lot of money but a lot less than having to change the car.
He has a chart on his site that shows what size seat fits in what car. Surprisingly the mazda 6 is one of the wider cars along with the A6.
I will be purchasing one of these systems in a month or two.
Paul24
Well if the Mazda6 is in the picture as regards room, I'd take it over the others TBH.
IMO, it looks better than the others on offer, great value & cheap servicing too. Most of all, is the legendary reliability - but I'm a stickler for reliability so it will often win me over even if, say, the ride isn't up to scratch for example. Although AFAIK, the new 6 drives well too.
IMO, it looks better than the others on offer, great value & cheap servicing too. Most of all, is the legendary reliability - but I'm a stickler for reliability so it will often win me over even if, say, the ride isn't up to scratch for example. Although AFAIK, the new 6 drives well too.
Bell Butts
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Skoda Superb can take three child seats in the rear.