For some time now I have been mulling over the idea of purchasing a 7 seater. Folks who know me might think this strange since my immediate family unit totals four and I have a penchant for cars that find themselves classified in the performance category. Perhaps it’s just age but these days a performance vehicle just doesn’t seem to make sense anymore. One can never really use what it has to offer and based on that fact alone the price of buying one does not seem like good value to me. Rather get something that suits my active lifestyle and accommodates the whole family plus their luggage. Trouble is a 7 seater seams to be neither fish nor fowl since it’s either a big family car or a small people mover depending on your point of view. To my mind if you are going to go on holiday with all the family and paraphernalia that accompanies them you will still need a large cargo area in addition to the seats lest you are willing to tow a trailer. Nothing says tourist more than a trailer attached to your pride and joy and besides, who wants the additional hassle?

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This leads us to the category of Mini vans. They certainly major on practicality but other questions arise. Can I afford one? What’s it like to live with every day? How much does it cost to run? Will it get stolen? Will it fit in my garage? With this thoroughly undecided mindset I decided to spend some time with an example of the breed and see if I could answer some of those nagging doubts.

A day before my annual pre spring break down to the South Coast I was fortunate enough to snare an Opel Vivaro 1.9 CDTi Bus. Vivaro’s are fairly commonplace in Panel Van form, the Bus version less so.  From the outset it should be borne in mind that the Bus is derived from a commercial vehicle, that said, so is most of the competition. Another possible area of concern for me was the power plant, essentially a small 1.9l Diesel turbo unit with rather modest power claims. Would it be up to the task I wondered?

So, the usual pre holiday rush then of trying to get all those pressing work issues squared away even though one’s heart just isn’t in it with the prospect of the beach in mind. I arrived home late in the evening with a million things to be done prior to our dawn departure. My wife, bless her organised socks, already had bags packed, snacks prepared and I was left simply to pack the Vivaro. There were to be seven of us tourists in total as my in-laws were along for the ride and, by popular demand, my children had conspired to smuggle their cousin into the entourage. The Vivaro is essentially a 9 seater with three rows, each seating three passengers including the driver. Only the centre jump seat in the cockpit is designed for smaller passengers with all other pews providing ample space for normal sized adults.