SIL got the new model of this car and is equally happy, and the seats are mounted on trails,making it easier to adapt the space in the car.
I got an older Peugeot 807 and so far it hasn't let us down,the one thing i think is important when buying such a big car in Switzerland is to make sure it has got sliding side doors (?) ,because the parking spaces are not everywhere big enough to open the doors wide enough for anyone to get in or out of the car.......
My husband is considering the fact that the Espace drives like a car vs. Voyager that drives like a van. On the other hand, I'm looking at the Voyager's sliding doors and folding seats (they must have improved it since you've looked at it) vs. Espace normal doors and you have to take seats out which is a nightmare.
Bran new 2008 arriving april/ always Diesel. I'm already used to van type cars mine now is a Mercedes Vaneo.
To me this sounds like Galaxy all over again...
Drives like a car, not like a Van and has fold-flat seats,
only thing missing are the sliding doors.
And no, I'm not in any way affiliated with Ford, just a very happy customer
Espace for the win. Voyager is outclassed in this company.
The biggest problem I find with the ncap test site is that they list out cars with stars given to them. In the case of the Voyager the full test report admits that they could only test a UK version of the car which does not have the equipment of the continental version of the car. Effectively it is not close to as safe as the LHD version. In other words, buy a car in the UK and Ireland and the test report is accurate, buy a car in a continental European country and you can throw the test report in the bin - it is not the same car they test...
That is really the best comment anyone has made in this thread. I totally forgot the reason we dismissed the Espace, apart from the arrogance of the guy trying to sell it, was that it does not have sliding doors and having to reverse the car out of its parking space to put children in, blocking the car park in so doing was just too much hassle.
I do know plenty with an Espace and most are happy with it but that was just too much for us.
As for the Peugeot 807, Citroen, Lancia it does have one known problem in that the engine protection cover under the car occassionally comes loose. If you have had your car serviced by a dealer then they should have corrected this problem. Other than that they are amazingly reliable.
Structurally and in terms of safety the car is exactly the same. The conversion process is done at the factory and involves a completely different firewall (opposite way around) and dashboard. As far as I am aware everything else structural is the same and it is just to importers spec levels after that.
The crash testing done by Euro NCAP is pretty much the best indication you can get on a cars safety and I don't buy the LHD/RHD argument when the conversion is done off the assembly line. Different story if it is done after market in some chop shop.
Also be aware that the NCAP is only one element of safety. In my personal opinion safety comes in 2 parts... safety in terms of protection if you get into and accident, and safety in terms of preventing you getting into an accident in the first place. In these days of ABS, ASR and any other acronyms you care to think of many cars are much safer. However not all cars are alike in this respect.
Many American cars designed for the American market still use leaf springs and a live rear axle for their suspension (this technology literally went out with the wagon!!!). This kind of suspension does nothing for a cars handling , hence so much tire squeal from many American cars. In a country like Switzerland with many twisty and potentially icy roads a European designed car built for the European market will be much better.
I drive a Skoda Fabia and a Renault Trafic Panel van, I personally feel that my 2m high 5m long panel van handles better and is thus safer in terms of avoiding accidents then pretty much any American car I have ever driven.
My money is with the Espace, The common rail diesel engine in the car is very smooth and has nice long service intervals. I would advise if buying second-hand though get newer then 2005/6 as the older ones had a turbo problem.
I went for a Legacy too. It's probably the ugliest but best car I have owned in every respect. Subaru are one of the few remaining car companies who actually make an engineering effort when producing a car, further than that they go the additional distance and assemble it properly. The downside is that you are driving around in what can only be described as a personality vortex.
I challenge anybody to name a Chrysler that is either a marvel of engineering or is assembled properly.
The Espace is an easy choice here, and it pains me recommend anything French.
Can you stretch to a Volvo XC90?
This info from the Top Gear site on the Espace. They recommend the Grand Espace for the extra load space. In silver.
This about the Other One .
4wd, 7 (clever) seats, decent build quality, good safety, better looks than the other 2.
If I were to regularly drive to a ski station at the weekend with 6 other people it's what I'd buy, assuming the missus wouldn't agree to a Defender.
For 99% of people 4wd is not a necessity. ASR will get you up most snow covered streets and when that fails chains are still an option. Even with 4wd police still insist on chains on most snow covered streets.
Safety is equalled in many other cars. The days of Volvo being the safest brand on the road is over... In fact in many cases Renault actually surpasses Volvo in terms of safety.
If you really need 4wd... you can't beat a proper off roader (defender, patrol etc) then a wanna be. As Clarkson says (as an owner of a XC 90 himself) its 4wd system wouldn't get you across a field!
I’ve heard good things about the Volvo but I didn’t go to see it I think it has the same problem I found with the Land rover Discovery (this was at the beginning of my search) the space when all seats are in use is minuscule.
the luggage space? Yes (honest answer).
I agree in every respect, I wasn't suggesting 4wd as a means to drive through snow drifts, more to keep you on the motorway at 6am while the gritters are still out.
I have owned both vehicles, an Espace and a Voyager. Both vehicles are comfortable and easy to drive. For comparisons, I prefer the Voyager as opposed to the Espace. The Voyager is more dependable and reliable to drive (I had a lot of mechanical problems with my Espace and it seemed that with the Espace, every month a new problem creeped up). The Voyager is not good on short-distance milage while the Espace is. Long-haul, the Voyager is better than the Espace. I felt safer driving the Voyager than the Espace. Cost benefit goes to the Espace over the Voyager.
Hope this post helps a bit.....
Peace
the main danger being that you still go slow into danger. 4WD means 4 Wheel DRIVE not 4 Wheel STOP - you still suffer from the same laws of physics when coming to a halt (alright, technically you can choose what you crash into )
Providing your not going sideways already!!!
Mind you some people make a living out of driving sideways but I think that's off topic!
Music to my ears