Black is new black (Vauxhall Zafira Comfort 1.6i 16v 5-door MPV)

Member Name: JohnCleese

Product:	Vauxhall Zafira Comfort 1.6i 16v 5-door MPV
Date:	11/11/08 (610 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Spacious, clever seating layout, cheap, easy to drive, affordable service

Disadvantages: fuel and oil thirsty

Last year we decided to replace our ageing Polo with something more spacious to accommodate for our family growth. We were expecting to become a family of four. We moved to a new, bigger house but my wives maternal instincts didn't stop there and she suggested that a family car would be a good idea. I quickly adopted the idea as I knew that Polo is getting close to the 10th birthday and although it was a great value for money and served me well during a year of intense commuting it was destined to spend more time in garages than on the road for the rest of its life.

We looked at various spacious cars which would suit our budget. The only two left in the hat were Fiat Multipla and Vauxhall Zafira. Our main criterion was to fit 4 of us plus 2 grand parents occasionally in one car. We didn't want something too big as most of the time there will be just 4 of us. Also our budget was not allowing us to go for a new car or most expensive choices. We have established that Toyota Corolla Verso is excellent car but most models were 5 seaters and it was costing much more. Multipla looked perfect as it has 6 separate seats. Many people hate the design so it would be difficult to sell. Also it looks very wide so we finished with 3 year old Zafira. We went for 1.6 engine because it spend less petrol and most of the time the car is not overloaded so it looked strong enough for us. We were thinking between Club (basic version) and Design (few extra options already built in). We tried both cars and it seems that seats are much better, more comfortable in the Design model. There is also a leather steering wheel, better dashboard instruments design, as well as little exterior details which made us to go for Design.

We bought from the dealer specialising in Vauxhall Zafiras and he said that most popular colours are silver and black and they always come with 100-200 pounds extra price tag. We had a choice to go for other colours but they were so bad that it was obvious why silver and black were so popular. We got our black 2004 Zafira and we never looked back.

I am still teased by my wife that I can always switch to another business if my current career goes in the wrong direction. She thinks black Zafira could be a good undertaking car.

Anyway I won't be telling you that Zafira 1.6 makes 0 -60 in 12 or 22 secs, or how much mpg you can make. Sorry, but I am not paying that much attention to statistics when it comes to cars. I'll tell you what I like and what I don't like and you judge for yourself.

I like:

- You don't have a feel that you drive huge car. Driver's seat height and position is well done so you really feel like you are in an Astra. It is easy to drive and turn. Parking it is easy as well (cannot speak for women as I am male)
- Very clever design with 5 standard seats and 2 seats which could be set up in the boot area if needed. All seats are spacious apart from 2 seats in the third row which are not designed to be used by huge adults or all the time.
- Classic and simple design of speedometer. Very easy to read and I like seeing big rpm displayed as well.
- Design model has commands for radio and CD on the steering wheel which is very handy
- Relatively cheap to service, very popular car so easy to find spare parts
- Very affordable pricing
- Air condition

I don't like:

- For some reason the engine drinks a lot of oil. I checked everything and heard from many sources that that is how it is supposed to be. Now I just add 1l of oil for every 1000 miles. It looks to me more like a tractor engine than modern car engine but I cannot complain that performance is bad.
- Obviously it spends more petrol than smaller cars. It is not that bad compared with other similar cars but for us that would be an issue which could make us decide to sell it at some point in future. That is the price to be paid for a bigger space.
- There is no boot space left when all 7 seats are used. Not too bad for us as we don't travel by car very long distances and 6 seats is OK most of the time but could be an issue for some people.
- It would be nice to be able to use ISOFIX system for child seats. I hope they implemented them in newer models.
- Image of 'school-run' vehicle for mid-class stay-at-home mums. Not a big issue for me as I don't think my car is there to help me make an impression about myself but I know a lot of people are too conscious about cars they drive.

All in all very comfortable and spacious car for not a lot of money. Recommended to families with children, people who don't mind driving a car with not so much WOW factor, people who like no-nonsense approach in interior design, undertakers (only black version) ...

... and now for something completely different ...

Summary: Good family car for a modest budget

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