7 seater car suggestions?

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Mad Scientist
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#1512430 13-Mar-2016 17:24

My late model estima, with all seats up, can fit 5 large sized suitcases in the boot and still have space for 5 more medium ones.

Jaxson

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#1512435 13-Mar-2016 17:46

Dairyxox:

Toyota Isis can be alright.

Man that name now sucks real bad...

Worse than the Toyota Marino or Enema.

We have the Mazda MPV, but they stopped making these for a while after 2007 I think. Did they come back again later on?

Must say the high boot is awesome. Returned a 6 burner BBQ to the warehouse the other day in the boot for example. Great for camping, kids bikes etc, all good.

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#1512589 13-Mar-2016 21:33

In order to be of much help we really need to know:

What is the intended occupant load? (Both typical loading, and occasional loading), Mix of Adults & Children / baby's? Are any of the children likely to become adult size in the next 3-5 years?
What will the driving mix be? Daily long trips, lots of short trips, occasional use only?
What do you mean by "Newish"
What Budget do you have in mind.

Things to think about.

SUV's and smaller minivans's (i.e. Honda Odyssey), typically have tiny luggage space with all seats in use. If there are a lot of weekends away planed (or even trips to the beach with a chilly bin and a few Boogie boards) this will be a pain. A roofbox (if you don't need to fit into underground carparks), or a trailer for holidays could help.
Typically the third row seats in Mid size SUV's are too small to fit adults, even in larger SUV's (i.e. Landcruiser 200 series) they are pretty uncomfortable. If there are lots of kids in carseats, isofix points become an issue. I think it is hard to put a kid in a car seat in the third row of a SUV, meaning the child seats often need to go in the second row. If this is the case, check that the third row can be still accessed without removing the child seat every single time you load the car.
A there is to be often more than 5 in the car, it is ideal if you can access to third row without moving seats around. Moving seats around every time you load/unload the car is a pain, and it is awesome if you can have a walk through to the third row.
If you often go in underground car-parks / parking buildings, check that they have enough clearance for your vehicle. 2.1m, 2.0m & 1.9m clearance garages are common.
Reversing Camera: get somthing with one, or have one fitted. Rear visibility is pretty poor in this class of vehicles, especially if you have heaps of peoples heads in the way.

When we had my wife's family to visit (so a total of six adults), we had a rental minivan.

It was a under 2 year old diesel Hyundai Imax. It was really good for our needs. If you want to fit 6-8 big adult's in, or have a enough luggage space for 6+ peoples holiday luggage airline suitcases this vehicle is the the one you want (or the ford tureno custom / similar vans from VW & Mercedes).

Pros:

Powerful engine
Tight turning circle
Fits in normal car-parks and most carpark buildings (1.92m tall).
Fits 8 adults
Air con to all rows
Dual sliding doors
Walk through between front seats, and first and second row (no need to get out of the drivers door if you park next to a wall or on a high traffic road)
Big luggage space.

Cons:

Have to move the second row to access the third row every time...
Second row spit on the wrong side.
Cant fold any of the rows, Thought it would be easy to fit a mountain bike in without removing wheels, turns out it only just fitted (in the second row).
No cruise control

I was hoping the rental company would give us the new Kea Caravel (the branch I rented from often has one siting in dispatch). I went in and had a look to see if it would suit before I put in the booking. It has a bit smaller interior than the iMax (middle seat of second row sucks, third row was tight for me (183cm tall)), but is way better thought out, has a big luggage space and is very highly specified in NZ. Things like power sliding are standard on all models, and the rental one had things like an electronic adjustable drivers seat. It has quite a cool seating configuration where the middle seat of the second row can be removed to allow walk through access to the third row (leaving 2 captains seats in the second row), or the captains seats can be stood up vertically in a single motion to clear the way for third row access. I don't think there are any used ones on the market yet, but the new ones come in a lot cheaper than a new santa fe.

The previous generation Kia Canaveral has very powerful (I think it is around 200kW), but thirsty V6 petrol engine. If luggage space is important only consider the "grand" long wheel base variant.

The SsangYong Stavic looks like good buying, if you can stand the styling. brand new diesel for $40k. Decent luggage space, middle seat in the second row can be removed / tilted up to make it a 7 seater with walk through access to the third row. Styling is more SUV like than it's compeditors i.e. no sliding doors (and it is available in 4wd).

If the above are too big, I would look to Japanese Used import Van's like the toyota alphard, toyota valfire, Nissan Serena, Nissan Elgrand etc.

joff_nz

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#1512591 13-Mar-2016 21:36

We've got a jap import odyssey - 2004 model. 'RB1' chassis. I'd whole-heartedly recommend it, especially considering the prices of them now. We've had ours for nearly four years, in which time value has gone from about $14k that we paid to probably 6ish.

If you're going to look at one, make sure it's the 'absolute' model (200hp instead of 160, 5speed tiptronic instead of CVT, partial leather interior, factory privacy glass, lip kit)

You'll need to give a little more info to get a more specific recommendation.

Yabanize

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#1513235 14-Mar-2016 19:16

Toyota ipsum

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#1514055 15-Mar-2016 23:40

Toyota Alphard.

A larger MPV style vehicle commonly used for VIP transport in places like Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia etc.

Really good vehicles - very comfortable. No problem with servicing in NZ.

xpd

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#1514192 16-Mar-2016 09:10

Yabanize:

Toyota ipsum

Thats the little brother to the Verso, and I wouldnt want 7 adults in the Verso :)

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#1514234 16-Mar-2016 09:57

Geektastic:

Toyota Alphard.

A larger MPV style vehicle commonly used for VIP transport in places like Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia etc.

Really good vehicles - very comfortable. No problem with servicing in NZ.

If you're going minivan I'll throw in the Nissan Elgrand

Geektastic

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#1514783 16-Mar-2016 23:31

joker97:

Geektastic:

Toyota Alphard.

A larger MPV style vehicle commonly used for VIP transport in places like Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia etc.

Really good vehicles - very comfortable. No problem with servicing in NZ.

If you're going minivan I'll throw in the Nissan Elgrand

The one you want is the Alphard 'Royal Lounge'.

The entire rear passenger space is given over to but two reclining Business Class style seats in plush leather, with more wood veneer than a veneer factory, built in drinks cabinets, TV screens, work desks etc etc.

zocster

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#1514793 17-Mar-2016 06:18

Geektastic:

joker97:

Geektastic:

Toyota Alphard.

A larger MPV style vehicle commonly used for VIP transport in places like Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia etc.

Really good vehicles - very comfortable. No problem with servicing in NZ.

If you're going minivan I'll throw in the Nissan Elgrand

The one you want is the Alphard 'Royal Lounge'.

The entire rear passenger space is given over to but two reclining Business Class style seats in plush leather, with more wood veneer than a veneer factory, built in drinks cabinets, TV screens, work desks etc etc.

That's over 100K new ouch

Andy Ghozali Geekzone Member	E: andy@ghozali.ru M: +64 21 395 458 A: Andy's Business Services, 231 High St, Christchurch 8011, NZ
www.andy.mobi

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#1514802 17-Mar-2016 07:50

Didn't realise Kia has upped the ante, bringing in the new Carnival with the best engine in the world ...

440nM torque at 1750rpm ... that will make your passengers fly

If you don't like Kias, at least go drive it and you will know what I mean ... the feeling of taking off in a jet plane :)

jjnz1

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#1514885 17-Mar-2016 10:04

I have just bought a new Nissan X-Trial ST 2WD 7 seater... The third row has a car seat anchor point which is great for my family and short distances (kindy etc)...

I would rather prefer the ST-L 2WD 7 seater version, but for some reason they are not available in NZ, only AU.

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#1515132 17-Mar-2016 17:39

joker97:

Didn't realise Kia has upped the ante, bringing in the new Carnival with the best engine in the world ...

440nM torque at 1750rpm ... that will make your passengers fly

If you don't like Kias, at least go drive it and you will know what I mean ... the feeling of taking off in a jet plane :)

My Land Rover has 7 seats and 300 Bhp from a 4.4 litre Jag engine - it's pretty quick for a 2 tonne + car....

MikeB4

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#1515137 17-Mar-2016 17:44

jjnz1:

I have just bought a new Nissan X-Trial ST 2WD 7 seater... The third row has a car seat anchor point which is great for my family and short distances (kindy etc)...

I would rather prefer the ST-L 2WD 7 seater version, but for some reason they are not available in NZ, only AU.

I just purchased a new ST-L 4WD X Trail, while testing I tried out a 7 seater one and I could not get into the back seats. My wife did but she is only 5' 3" but she still looked like she was chewing her knees.

The 3rd row is definitely only for kids.

MikeB4

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#1515138 17-Mar-2016 17:45

Geektastic:

joker97:

Didn't realise Kia has upped the ante, bringing in the new Carnival with the best engine in the world ...

440nM torque at 1750rpm ... that will make your passengers fly

If you don't like Kias, at least go drive it and you will know what I mean ... the feeling of taking off in a jet plane :)

My Land Rover has 7 seats and 300 Bhp from a 4.4 litre Jag engine - it's pretty quick for a 2 tonne + car....

Have you taken it around the Tora Coast ?

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