Vauxhall Zafira + 7 seat car hire

Does anyone know whether the above seat 7 people comfortably?

Im going to Italy in September and need a 7 seater to get from the airport to the villa and have seen a quote for £320 for the week for a Zafira - most other quotes are for in excess of £500.

There will be luggage too, obviously, but people can have it on their laps for a short while, surely!

recommend you watch this first http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fUsWCsxnuc

recommend you watch this first http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fUsWCsxnuc

so, apart from the safety aspect, can 7 people die in comfort?

with the 2 back seats up you have virtually no storage space. Also the people that sit in those 2 seats need short legs and not mind being uncomfortable for the journey. Its really a 5 adult + 2 child car. Having had a Zafira a few years back they are ok cars - but we wouldn't touch one again after the 5th Gear test.

Personally If it was me I would go for the 2 car option, not only for the added comfort but for use during the holiday, one party can go to one place and the other party somewhere else.

The easy answer is No.

If you want a) comfort and b) luggage space you need something like a Grand Espace or a Merc V230/280.

I agree with mrdearlove its a 5 adult + 2 child car, the rear seats really arn't suitable for adults and the boot space is minimal when they are in use.

I would only choose a Zafira if I was 'overtired'.

A few years back I went with 6 others to Southern France for 2 weeks, where we had hired 2 new Renault Laguna DCis. Have to say that it was the best decision in car hire that I think I've ever been involved in. The Renaults were economical, swift and utterly comfortable.

Thanks for the info guys. I've checked and it IS cheaper to hire 2 cars, but the others aren't convinced about it - they see it as a waste of money (??) and only one car will ever be used.

I'll speak to the owner of the Villa to see if he has any contacts.

On another note - anyone driven in Sorrento? I've heard it's effing mental??

You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find a company who actually have availability for large cars / vans.

They all say 'on request' but when you actually request it, they all come back 2/3 days later and say no.

At this rate, i'm going to be walking everywhere!!

We had the same problem a few weeks ago when we went to Spain.

Whatever you end up booking, they probably won't have in stock when you get there anyway.

We had the same problem a few weeks ago when we went to Spain.

 

Whatever you end up booking, they probably won't have in stock when you get there anyway.

marvellous.

What did you end up doing?

there are 3 drivers in the group, so could get 2 cars, but dont really want to.

have you tried Sixt? I got a blinding deal on a Zafira from them in Spain. Was cheaper than the basic car from anyone else. We sat all the kids in the middle row so no saftey issue that trip!

marvellous.

 

What did you end up doing?

 

there are 3 drivers in the group, so could get 2 cars, but dont really want to.

There were 11 of us (6 adults and 5 children). We wanted to get a people carrier and a small car. As you've discovered though, cars that seat lots of people are very hard/expensive to obtain.

We ended up booking 2 Peugeot Partners, as we thought the luggage space would come in handy, and a Corsa-sized car.

What we actually ended up with when we got there was 1 Peugeot Partner, a Peugeot 407 estate, and a Renault Megane estate. And of course we had to pay for full tanks of petrol for the two estate cars, despite not using all the fuel and them having bigger tanks than the cars we ordered.

overtired

Thanks for the info guys. I've checked and it IS cheaper to hire 2 cars, but the others aren't convinced about it - they see it as a waste of money (??) and only one car will ever be used.

 

I'll speak to the owner of the Villa to see if he has any contacts.

 

On another note - anyone driven in Sorrento? I've heard it's effing mental??

So let me see if I've got this right. They want to pay a bit more for less convenience yes..? They say that only one car will get used. OK, hire 2 cars and use 1 of them. It is still cheaper than hiring a big people carrier. My guess is that as soon as they realise that several people can go out, and not confine the others to where ever they are staying, they will see the benefit.

Just give them a scenario defining the obvious benefits of 2 cars [apart from it being cheaper anyway] and see if they have contorted imaginations to go with their flawed logic. If you are correct on the price, then the only scenario where their doubts are still valid is when all 7 people get in the one carrier, all the time, as one people carrier will use a bit less fuel than 2 cars being used all the time. Any other situation, and the 2 car option wins hands down.

So let me see if I've got this right. They want to pay a bit more for less convenience yes..? They say that only one car will get used. OK, hire 2 cars and use 1 of them. It is still cheaper than hiring a big people carrier. My guess is that as soon as they realise that several people can go out, and not confine the others to where ever they are staying, they will see the benefit.

 

Just give them a scenario defining the obvious benefits of 2 cars [apart from it being cheaper anyway] and see if they have contorted imaginations to go with their flawed logic. If you are correct on the price, then the only scenario where their doubts are still valid is when all 7 people get in the one carrier, all the time, as one people carrier will use a bit less fuel than 2 cars being used all the time. Any other situation, and the 2 car option wins hands down.

COmpletely agree St Landrew. I've kept scouring the net, and found an italian website that hires out some Duplo thing (in escence a mini bus) for €522 for the week, so am going for that.

still think that the 2 car option would be best - not leaast because i wouldn't have to drive everywhere!

You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find a company who actually have availability for large cars / vans.

 

They all say 'on request' but when you actually request it, they all come back 2/3 days later and say no.

 

At this rate, i'm going to be walking everywhere!!

 

I would believe it because I couldn't find anyone when I was out there last month. We stayed at a colleague's villa but immediately before we went out, his daughter blew the turbo on his Scenic so had to try to find something at

short notice.

Apparently, the rental firms haven't taken up as many cars due to the economic downturn and expect lower levels of tourists.

At one car hire place they said that a firm at Alicante airport charged €600 for a Fiesta for a week demand is that high.

COmpletely agree St Landrew. I've kept scouring the net, and found an italian website that hires out some Duplo thing (in escence a mini bus) for €522 for the week, so am going for that.

 

still think that the 2 car option would be best - not leaast because i wouldn't have to drive everywhere!

Tell us all about the extra you ended up paying when you get back.

Tell us all about the extra you ended up paying when you get back.

what do you mean? I've had confirmation email saying that pre-paid booking is made. do you think they'll charge extra when we collect it?

I've never hired a car overseas before...

what do you mean? I've had confirmation email saying that pre-paid booking is made. do you think they'll charge extra when we collect it?

 

I've never hired a car overseas before...

Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I meant how using a single big vehicle cost you in terms of inconvenience and fuel, rather than hiring two smaller vehicles.

Calm, calm.

Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I meant how using a single big vehicle cost you in terms of inconvenience and fuel, rather than hiring two smaller vehicles.

 

Calm, calm.

ha - that's good.

think it'll be a beast on petrol, so you're right - i'll spend the GDP of a small African country in a week!

:smt118

I've got a 58 plate Zafira at the moment and an adult really wouldn't want to spend much time in those back seats, even without being hit by a lorry! Also you will have absolutely no luggage space so unless you can get a roof rack and roof box as part of the deal forget it!

overtired

I believe that it's "oh, they're tired"

Got back yesterday from a great week in Italy.

The Car (read mini van) was great, and well, well worth the hire. There was 6 of us using it the majority of the time, and 8 at times - and there was ample room at all times.

The car was fine, the driving in Italy was absolutely nuts!!

the driving in Italy was absolutely nuts!!

I hear ya!

Last month I drove down through Austria into Italy via the Brenner Pass to Verona. From there I drove along to Milan then up past Lake Como and into Switzerland.

The roads I used were of awful quality, the signposting is rubbish and everyone drives like they've just necked a bottle of vino!

Also, driving and trying to park in the centre of Verona on opera night isn't to be advised!