Does anyone make them any more?
Renault used to make a 7 seat version of their 21 estate, there was the Peugeot 504 and later the 505 with 3 rows of seats not to mention the fantastic Citroen CX that was about as long as a very long thing and there used to be an option on the Volvo 240 to have a couple of rear facing seats in the boot of them.
Nowadays all 7 seaters seem to be MPV type, has the 7 seat estate car died the death?
Largely yes as you say to have been replaced by the MPV/4x4 type.
XC70 still can I believe, and the V70.
I have an S Max which is a pretty roomy variant of the part time 7 seater and I'm not sure I'd want to go any smaller for any length of time. even my 8 year old and his mates look big in the back back seats.
I recall all those wombat - maybe not the Renault, but the 504 and the inestimable CX Safari wasn't it? Think Merc did a vast 7 seater barge as well...
E-Class Mercedes you can have the option for 2 child seats in the boot. It does look like there are not many choices, not surprised as they are usually a crash/crumple zone.
As an SMax owner i am required by STW law to say that it is the best. However, in this case, it is.
@wombat when we needed a 7 seater we went for the 4x4 route (Shogun), XC90 is a good choice too these days. The full on MPVs (Galaxy etc) are souless but very effective and huge with a few seats out, great for bikes and camping kit.
Ford S-MAX, Toyota Verso, Vauxhall thingymabob and a few others.
The new Disco sport will be in 7 seat too but XC90 is a good choice.
peugeot 308SW ?
if you've got a couple of little ones in child seats make sure you try them in all the combinations your likely to use.
There are very few cars that you can comfortably sit 2+ Child seats + an big kid / adult side by side in the middle row. Also not many of the back row ones come with Isofix.
maybe the rear facing 7 seat estates have Insurance problems like the older /Discovery with the side seats?
Yup, MPV is more profitable seemingly. 308 SW is as close as you get to a normal estate car for three rows forward facing. If you're looking for older, Honda Stream is very car-like, but thirsty. As an Irish Catholic family, we had the 504 and CX Familiale, Saab 95 and various bench seated 70s barges when I was a boy.
You don't have to go that big to get 'occasional' 7 seats in a 4x4.
Look at Mitsu Outlanders, Chevy Captiva, new X-trail...
Renault Grand Scenic has 7 seat option
Yes. E class can still come with 7 seats. Can't think of any other estates. However there are loads of MPV, SUV as above.
Harry_the_Spider - MemberAs an SMax owner i am required by STW law to say that it is the best. However, in this case, it is.
I'm with you on all three points there.
not surprised as they are usually a crash/crumple zone
I hear this said a lot, but - as an owner of a VW Sharan - I'd feel safer with my kids in the 3rd row of that than the back seats of something tiny like a Toyota Aygo.
PS the Sharan is an ace 7 seater. The middle row is 3 full sided adult seats and even the 3rd row are more than just kid seats.
not surprised as they are usually a crash/crumple zone
Stilltortoise is right here. Sit in the back of a Eclass and see how far you are from the tailgate (particularly your head). Now do the same in a Aygo or even some MPV and which do you think is safer?
not surprised as they are usually a crash/crumple zone
I hear this said a lot, but - as an owner of a VW Sharan - I'd feel safer with my kids in the 3rd row of that than the back seats of something tiny like a Toyota Aygo.
I think you've missed the point - it wasn't said about the rear row in a three row MPV (which is designed to be a seating area), but about the "extra" seats sometimes fitted into what is designed as the luggage area of a traditional estate car.
Sit in the back of a Eclass and see how far you are from the tailgate (particularly your head). Now do the same in a Aygo or even some MPV and which do you think is safer?
The one where the seats aren't in the bit that's designed to crumple in a crash? Doesn't matter how far you are from the tailgate if it's designed to concertina towards you on impact..
Another alternative is a Fiat Doblo or similar, there is a family version with 7 seats, popular taxi around the Med.
I just think the more spacious mpv is a better place to be, and the increase in space is also useful to the buyers of such vehicles.
No one really wants a cramped estate full of people, when you can climb in a full size mpv...
Hmmm,
It just so happens that our 57 plate S Max 2.0 Titanium is going up for sale after it's service and MOT at Ford on Thursday. 66k FSH.
Email if interested
The 7 seat estate car died becuase it wasn't as good as an MPV 🙂
Ford S-MAX, Toyota Verso, Vauxhall thingymabob and a few others.
Which are all MPV's, you tool. Really, if you don't bother reading the OP, and obviously know nothing on the subject, why bother posting?
In answer to the OP, yes.
Reason. MPV's are just better.
7 seater Volvo 240's were ace though! And the Citroen CX Safari. What a machine!
Austin Montego Countryman?
Which are all MPV's, you tool. Really, if you don't bother reading the OP, and obviously know nothing on the subject, why bother posting?
Steady on princess, if you read the thread above it says there are not many estates as MPV's have taken over that space so I suggested a few. Anybody with even a little bit of intelligence (except you obviously) can read between the lines that the thread was going that way.
And while you are suggesting not posting if you don't have anything valuable to add, perhaps I could suggest the same for you? Unless of course it makes you feel superior by pointing out that strangers on the internet may be wrong.
Go ride on your bike, feel the wind in your vagina and enjoy the day, you may even like it.
Go for a 2006 year XC90 and some red trousers. Worked out less for us than buying a 1.6 C4 Picasso. Until we came to tax the bugger or drive anywhere.
Disclaimer: I make very bad decisions.
Oh, just remembered the Qashqai+2 - I checked that out. Not quite an SUV not quite an MPV but basically room for an umbrella in the boot with the 7 seats up, thats why we binned it.
Go for a 2006 year XC90 and some red trousers
😀 - you forgot stinky labrador for the boot. AGain, we rejected this on the basis of running costs.. quite liked it, the car not the trousers... but felt slight Guardianista angst even sitting in it. Which is a shame as it was actually pretty practical for our lives, unlike many of our friends who own them.
our Nissan Qashqai+2 has seven seats, the rear most fold into the floor.not huge but fine for kids.
10/10 there Hooli. 🙂
🙂Steady on princess
To be fair the OP did mention MPV in the original post
I see the point of MPVs, I have had a couple of Zafiras (a 51 plate and an 03)in the past and found them to be hugely practical but essentially a dull place to be.
I'm, not looking for excitement but I don't want to feel as though a bit of me dies every time I get in the car.
I am looking at changing the Wombatmobile (see what I did there? 😉 ) but not for another 6 months or so and have been met with blank looks when I've spoken to car dealers about 7 seat estates. As I do in the region of 18k miles a year a 4x4 isn't really an option as the running costs are simply too high on all the ones I've looked at.
Incidentally, the 504 familiale was a brilliant car, I took my driving test in 2.3 non turbo diesel one, the look on the examiner's face was a picture when he saw it parked in the test centre carpark 😀
I don't want to feel as though a bit of me dies every time I get in the car.
Get a life, then. It's just a car. The idea that the level of excitement in our lives is somehow dependent on the car we drive is pretty pathetic.
Do extreme sports, be a musician, read great literature, challenge yourself, these things will keep you alive. Buying a 5 series touring will not.
Grr.
Steady on princess, if you read the thread above it says there are not many estates as MPV's have taken over that space so I suggested a few. Anybody with even a little bit of intelligence (except you obviously) can read between the lines that the thread was going that way.
Er, no. Anyone with 'a little bit of intelligence' will already know what an MPV is (except maybe you, who couldn't manage to name three, but felt inclined to post anyway). If you think the OP doesn't know what an MPV is, you are making the mistake of thinking his level of intelligence matches yours. You won't get far in life thinking like that. 😉
Steady on princess
🙂
Plus let me just mention the excellent Kia Carens 7 seater MPV....
The idea that the level of excitement in our lives is somehow dependent on the car we drive is pretty pathetic.
I agree.
I want wherever I am to be a nice place if at all possible, be it on a bike, in my house or in my car. I'm not after stimulation or excitement from my car, I just want to feel that I'm in somewhere that I'd chose to be rather than somewhere that I have to be
The idea that the level of excitement in our lives is somehow dependent on the car we drive is pretty pathetic.
I agree.
I disagree. Surely life is all about making the most of everything you do. If a huge part of your life is spent behind the wheel of a car why would you not strive to make that experience stimulating and enjoyable. It doesn't preclude doing all the other stuff that makes life worth living.
I drive an MPV 😆
If a huge part of your life is spent behind the wheel of a car
... then something is very wrong with your life....
Do extreme sports, be a musician, read great literature, challenge yourself, these things will keep you alive. Buying a 5 series touring will not.
you know these things are not exclusive? you can do cool things AND drive a nice car...
... then something is very wrong with your life....
Judging by the traffic on the roads every morning and every evening, spending significant time in a car is a part of many people's lives. It's a huge sweeping statement to suggest their choice is "very wrong"
Can you get away with 6 seats?
The honda FRV seats six and you have 3 isofix points in the rear, think its the only on to do so.
why has no-one just ignored the word estate in the title and recommended a T5 with a load of seats bolted in?
standards are slipping I tell ye