Time To Trade In The Bus ?

[scrote]

Your views are very welcome...........

 

My twin boys now 2 and a half, my daughter 9 - we do not have the need for that extra space now the boys are todlers - equally we like the room of the bus and the ability to go away for a weekend without a fuss with all thier stuff!!!!!

 

We have an 02 Galaxy Giha with 105k on the clock and are torn between an upgrade to a newer version of the same or maybe a change? I like the Passat estate but would consider a Safira - although reviews have been poor.

 

Anyone down-graded from a bus and regretted it ?

 

There must be people in a similar position in the past who can advise - please let me have your views.

 

Scrote

[stevie m]

Hi scrote, i am in the middle of down grading. I have 3 kids who are older than yours and do not want to go anywhere when they see me at the weekends. I have just bought a 04 volvo and i am looking forward to driving a car again. I loved my 51 reg galaxy but during the week i used it to go up and down the motorway for work and although i loved it for its comfort i felt as though it was too big just for me. I have spent a lot of money on it too (due to the mileage) so having a car with over 100,000 miles less is appealing too and i hope will give my wallet a break. :(

[NikpV]

having 3 kids 8,5,2 and a mil I will try and keeps ours for a while - given plenty of money I would upgrade to a recent sharan for a while at least, still like to be able to take the kids friends out with us so the extra seats/room is worth it - may soon end up in your situation though stevie so difficult to say

[mk2vr6]

may soon end up in your situation though stevie so difficult to say

 

what's that Nik divorced with bad taste in cars? if it comes to the stage in life where you get the urge to buy a volvo you should really reach for the phone and ring the samaritans or just top yourself and be done with it :(

[stevie m]

I rang them first but they put the phone down on me laughing and said it was Jeep Cherokee Day !!!! :D :D :(

[gregers]

:( ;) :(

[richyboy]

whatever you do dont down grade to a zafira,

i sold my mk1 galaxy and got a zafira gsi turbo

it was the worst car i've had, i had it 2 weeks and sold it for another galaxy

[singh]

We went from a Gal to a Passat and missed the Galaxy a lot...the main thing was the extra space and the ability to take all the seats out whenever required.

[Smilge]

Hee hee ... ... nowt wrong with ST Mondeos and I can see you in an ST TDCi Estate and much better looking and value for money than a Passat. The handling and torque is awesome and not much slower than the 3.0L ST220. It'll p*** all over a Jeep Cherokee as well ...... :27:

[searcher]

Most things will

 

We only have two kids so dont really need all that space but i would also miss it. Even if its just to take a load of crap to the tip the space is so usefull

[mumof4]

that reminds me..must visit the tip............

 

 

wooohoo!!!!! :27:

[Smilge]

Use the toilet like everyone else!

[teresa]

yeah i went from a 7 seater to a 2 seater lol do regret it at times especially last week when i went to collect grandaughter from staffordshire if it was bigger we could of all gone and took it in turns driving but i ended up stopping over the night it will be worse when i take her back monday as im driving there and back in same day.. i know its only just under 400 miles but it took me 4 1/2 hrs get there and 6 back so will be driving for a min of 10 hrs... so yes regret it at times like these

[bigdaddy]

I am looking at trading in the old gal, was looking at a V40(03), V70(V) or a vectra(04), all diesel estates, and the V40 as won so far, the spec and equipment are far greater than the vectra, the V70 being older has less spec, though the mpg for a 2.4 is amazing

 

V40

 

V70

 

Vectra

[mumof4]

woohoo!! big d, where the devil you been?...guess what i got near me.....a Farmfoods!!.LOL... Haggis here we come, mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....

[malcolm.dobell]

My three penny-th

 

I'm currently in Val d'Isere 755 miles from home. average 43mpg from my Alhambra 130 SE PD. Although numberous complaints of sore bottoms from my family, for me, a well upholstered 57 year old it was truly comfortable - cruising at 75 with cruise control up and down some reallt steep hills and up the mountain roads to the resort. I have never had a vehicle as good as this one and am really struggling to think what i might want to buy when the family moves out!

[wibble]

I wouldn't consider a zafira due to the reduction in space. I met up with a group of 6 people after a rather long journey and believe 7 in mine would have been far more comfortable. With 6 people I would have removed (or folded in the MKIII) a seat and regained loads of luggage space. Unfortunately there were 8 of us on that trip so I ended up with a mini bus - 200+ miles - never again. I've even had 6 people and an electric wheel chair in the galaxy which would have been impossible in the zafira.

 

I've just upgraded from MKI to MKIII and like the ability to flatten the seats rather than remove them. For a people carrier it drives like a car and for luggage has the load space of a decent sized van.

I spotted that the new Chrysler voyager has a similar approach to the seats but probably a better system an possibly comparable pricing though I found their web site to be even worse than Ford's for not giving detail. At least Ford have the configurator that almost works. Chrysler seem to think that saying their cars have folding seats is good enough. What about sat nav, entertainment & adaptive cruise control that they don't appear to mention. They probably come as standard for the price where Ford start at a lower price then you add these as options.

[mk2vr6]

I spotted that the new Chrysler voyager has a similar approach to the seats but probably a better system an possibly comparable pricing though I found their web site to be even worse than Ford's for not giving detail. At least Ford have the configurator that almost works. Chrysler seem to think that saying their cars have folding seats is good enough. What about sat nav, entertainment & adaptive cruise control that they don't appear to mention. They probably come as standard for the price where Ford start at a lower price then you add these as options.

 

for the optional extras you have to open the link :P http://services.chrysler.co.uk/pdf/accessories_voyager.pdf then you can see whats available :16: it's as you say they sell vehicles at a set spec/price, the higher the spec the higher the price! then if you wish you can add the options, they do it this way to keep their prices down and their orders from the factory simpler, from what I could gather you buy the vehicle at a set spec and then the dealer fits the optional extras you want after the car is delivered! that way the factory only makes three or four models and can turn them out quicker none of this 5/6 months waiting like several members have had with their galaxy's! the way ford used to be! you can have it today in black or..... black the choice isnt yours :D

[Mary]

I upgraded from a peugeot estate to a Sharan because my parents are getting on and we needed a car that my mother especially could get into and out of easily as she is partially disabled. My 2 boys 4 and 6 also like it cos we can now pick up their pals .

Its also handy for picking up my daughter and her 2 kids 5 years - 6 months.(god I'm a Granny!!) The comfort is brill but having test driven a Volvo V70 Estate its nothing compared to it.

All said though if I am upgrading to a newer car in future it will be to a Sharan or Alhambra.

[Jez]

I used to have a Alhambra back in 2001 as a company car, it was changed a couple of years back for a Passat estate.

The Passat is a big car but i missed the size and comfort of the Alhambra.

My wife was made redundant last year and we bought a Galaxy, the kids love it and will not go in the Passat anymore!!

 

Now all i have to do is fix the Aux heater - had to pull the fuse to stop people from telling me the car was on fire!!

[scrote]

OK - mind made up - we plan to up-grade the bus to a newer one.

 

Small dilema - Have had a few probs with the current model which I have fixed - but there will be faults registered which a dealer will spot and probably haggle down the value - has anyone near to Bury St Edmunds got a VAG-COM so I can clear them ? - Or do you think this is not ethical ?

 

Scrote

[insider]

Just disconnect the battery for 5 minutes - that will clear any fault codes in the ECU memory.

(Make sure you have your radio code though!)

[Smilge]

Scrote I wouldn't bother as a dealer will only look at the general condition inside and out if you are part x'ing it. Any problems with it will be sorted out when they come to service it for the new owner. ....... not your problem then.

 

Even at that age it will probably end up down an auction if it's a main dealer.

Edited April 18, 2008 by Bleeno

[stevie m]

Scrote it will more than likely go to an auction mine did. I know they lost on mine too ! (insider info :P )

[gazza007]

Hi Scrote,

1st post for a while.

I have now owned a Passat 2.0 DSG Diesel Estate for the past 8 months after trading in my Alhambra as like you I didn't need the space especially as I have been on my own the last couple of years.

The SEAT was a great car & served the ex & 4 children well, yes I miss her but in reality, didn't need the 7 seats & too many silly niggles with the A/C, Aux heater, Wiper assembly, Master & Slave clutch servo's. I also found that I was convenient taxi which p***ed me off at times.

I love the B6 Passat for different reasons but it enables me to carry the kids & dog when required but serves me well as a solo cruiser.

The car is packed with safety features, the 140 bhp is rapid especially with the DSG transmission, which is a must as it is the best transmission you can get. Electronic Handbrake with auto-hold is fab once you get used to it. The car blows warm air in 2 mins & cools as req using the semi-auto climate control. The car is much quicker than the SEAT but is lighter & has 25 bhp more, mpg avg about 43, 55-60 on long runs.

My rec is test drive the Passat but make sure you try one with the DSG box.