COMPACT 7 Seater Family Car, under $15,000

Hoju on 06/08/2018 - 13:18
Last edited 06/08/2018 - 13:24

Sorry, ANOTHER 7 seater thread, but a little different as we are looking for the most compact 7 seater, hoping to avoid the SUV / people mover vehicles that are in the Poll.

We've stretched the life of our 2001 A class hatch a while, and fit 3 kids in the back, the pram in the boot and so on.
With a 4th on the horizon and some costly repairs to the hatch coming up, we've thought about just ditching it and getting something for 4 kids + 2 adults a bit earlier than needed.
Plus we are finding now that we are unable to have the kids' friends over or take them home easily as we don't have space in the car.

As the A class (long wheel base model) is a real Tardis, huge on the inside but a really compact car measuring 3776mm, easy to park and drive, we are hoping for as small a 7 seater as possible.

Criteria are really:
- Small as realistically possible
- under $15,000
- around or under 100,000km
- back row and boot space not a huge issue as it will be for kids < 10
- will need to have access to back row with 2 x car seats in the middle row though

Trawling Carsales I found that the smallest 7 seaters are:

  • Peugeot 308 XSE (4500mm long)
  • Kia Rondo (4545mm)
  • Nissan Dualis +2 (surprisingly as it's an SUV?)

  • Citroen Picasso (pre 2013 facelift 4590, after that probably too expensive

  • The Nissan Cube was another option, but we feel we might be buying into trouble as they are all >10 years old from what I can see

The Odyssey and Kia people movers just seem like driving a bus to me.
Sorrento and Santa Fe are options but are bigger than we'd like.

We are leaning towards the Nissan mainly because having had a Volvo and Mercedes and been stung by huge repair costs, the Peugeot and Citroen have us a bit worried.

If anyone has any thoughts on the above models and what they would add to it, please comment, it would be much appreciated.
Thank you!

Automotive

Comments

    • Hoju on 08/08/2018 - 15:22

      Cool thanks for that - consensus seems to be that it’s definitely worth a look so I guess we’ll give it a go

  • Wardaddy on 08/08/2018 - 15:58

    Get a Mazda 3 and put a couple of the kids up for adoption. I know it sounds radical but you'll all thank me in the long run.😋

    • Hoju on 08/08/2018 - 16:20
      +1

      Haha or just strap them on the roof on a beach chair?!

      • duckworth on 09/08/2018 - 00:02

        Or get yourself a lobotomy for having 4 kids.

  • syousef on 08/08/2018 - 16:47
    +1

    I vote Kia Carnival or Grand Carnival. Yes it's a bit bus like but it drives well. You want to move 6 people. So you want a bus. You just haven't realized it yet. As others have said kids don't stay small, and you don't want to have to choose between kids and luggage space if you go on holiday.

    About 6 weeks ago we were able to get a 2013 Grand Carnival with 91k on the clock for $15k. The other car my wife liked was the Mazda CX-9, but we were looking at $5-7k more for less room. Granted the luxury versions of the CX-9 had a nicer interior but it just wasn't practical. So far the Kia has done everything we've needed including a trip to the snow. (Snow chains are horrible though and it's not a 4WD so we needed them at one point. But that's relatively minor.). We did come from a Ford Wagon though so this was only slightly larger. A minor thing but the sound system on the Kias are nice too.

  • mini2 on 09/08/2018 - 09:54

    Forget about the Cube3. Had one, it was gutless though admittedly it's the 1.4 and even with just 1 person on board it was struggling. Have had 5 people on board before and let's just say even the slightest incline was a monumental challenge. The 3rd row realistically isn't going to cut it.

  • [Deactivated] on 09/08/2018 - 09:56

    You’ll get used to driving whatever car you go for in the end.

    I think the 7 seater Rondo is more like a 5 seater + 2 extras in the back as compared to the Odyssey which can be a full time 7 seater.
    Also note where the baby seat anchor is. If you put the baby seat in the middle row and the anchor point is on the roof then the 3rd row might see a strap in front of them

  • ozssc on 09/08/2018 - 11:12

    For around $15,000, you should be able to pick up a 2010 Kia Sorento. It might have a few more kms than 100,000 but if you go for the diesel option, it should stand you in good stead for well beyond 200,000km. I have one and still going strong. One thing to consider though is depending on the spec level (SLi & Platinum), if your rear shocks go, you could be up for $3,000+ for the pair (as they're self-levelling)!

  • onlyletters on 09/08/2018 - 13:11

    Get it with long warranty and not worry about expensive repairs, honestly, you need to drive them all

  • pformag on 09/08/2018 - 14:55

    Santa Fe? They are not that big

    • Euphemistic on 09/08/2018 - 20:54

      It’s all relative, but I’m pretty sure there would be many calming them compact, especially the current versions.

  • krisspy on 09/08/2018 - 19:11

    My mate recently got an 08 elgrand imported from Japan. $16k delivered and registered with 56 thou on the clock. It'll fit the family easily, the leg room in the 3rd row is bigger than any suv or minivan in the market. Leather seats, captain chairs on 2nd row, dual sunroof, TV for an android box and 3.5l engine from the 350z lol.

  • Hoju on 27/08/2018 - 11:09
    +2

    Well in the end we went with the Kia Rondo

    We ended up with a 16 month old MY17 model with 5.5 years of warranty still left on it and only 18,000kms on the clock, immaculate condition.

    At the same price point we were looking at a 5 year old Dualis with 50-70,000km and no warranty
    Or a 5-6 year old Honda Odyssey with more than 100,000km on the clock

    We crossed off the Citroen and Peugeot due to the risk of significantly expensive repairs
    THe Peugeot also has removal back seats that obstruct the boot space when not in use, unless you take them out completely
    THe earlier Picasso is just too old to risk facing repair costs, and the back seats were a bit flimsy. The later model looks great but is just too pricey

    The Rondo itself is much roomier than the Dualis
    The middle seat is a proper middle seat, with enough room for an adult, as with the back seats - you can individually slide the middle row seats forward if there's someone in the back row who needs the extra space
    The middle on the rondo has a baby seat anchor point below, so wouldn't be obstructive - based on some rough measurements, you could fit 2 x boosters in the middle row on one side and in the middle, and be able to access the boot via an end seat if needed

    The Dualis middle seat is as small as our A class middle seat, and the row would be a real cramp with 2 baby seats

    The downside of the rondo is a lack of sunroof and front parking sensors, but the satnav and rear parking camera look great, plus there is quite good visibility anyway
    It also lacked a little oomph on test drive but that was with 3 adults and 2 kids in it so it was loaded I guess.
    Roof rack bars would have been nice too

    Overall though very content with getting a nearly new car close to our budget, with so much warranty and pretty exceptional roadside assistance for another 5.5 years
    It's a solid feeling unit that we hope will last many years!

  • mozatihom on 28/08/2018 - 08:01

    Consider the Mitsubishi Grandis, for others in the same boat as the OP.

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