As readers will no-doubt be aware from my previous reviews, the MPV type of car is one of the hardest to get just right.
To fit seven people into a car and still keep a reasonable comfort factor is obviously a great challenge for the motor manufacturers and almost always involves compromise in one form or another. Either the sixth and seventh seat are made very small, making them suitable only for smaller children or all day-to-day luggage space is dispensed with. Some have achieved the interior space but at the expense of a practical and compact design, the result being some very nice, but at the same time, very large offerings.
The Grandis is different. It doesn't pretend to be anything other than a seven-seater MPV. There's no off-road, 4x4, opulent palatial limousine, load-lugging aspiration here. It is a brilliantly designed compact and comfortable vehicle which can carry seven adults comfortably and get them to their destination economically without having to put on a roof box to carry their handbags.
My first thought when I saw it was how long it seemed to be, but when comparing the dimensions of other popular MPVs it's actually not that different. Its lower profile and sleek contour take you from the traditional boxy outline of an MPV to a much more streamline and elegant design, which is pleasing to the eye as well as being very kind to the wallet.
It's a versatile performer too. When not needed, the third row of seats disappears completely into the floor, offering an enormous and very accessible luggage space, quite unbelievable when you take your first look at the exterior of the car. The rear seats can also be reversed to be rearward-facing for those times when you want to sit under the cover of the hatchback.
We had the pleasure of taking the Grandis for a spin through some of Somerset's nicest stretches of road, down past Cheddar Gorge, along the South Avon border and we eventually took a break to the beautiful and previously-reviewed Charlton House Hotel in Shepton Mallet. The weather was glorious, the scenery was even better and few parts of the country can offer the sort of winding open roads on which to simply enjoy the pleasures of driving. The gearbox is satisfyingly chunky and has the added advantage of having the extremely long-legged sixth gear to make the whole cruise quiet and relaxed whilst at the same time keeping the fuel consumption staggeringly low. I couldn't help commenting again when I took the bags out of the back at how capacious this car can be.
For anyone with three children, who have to carry all the necessities for a trip away, including the prams, highchairs, toys, not to mention the main part of the baggage, the Grandis makes it all so effortlessly easy. There's no 3-dimensional jigsaw here. There's more than enough space for it all. Even with five kids there's still the knowledge that they'll all be seated comfortably, and in the event that the luggage area behind the 3rd row fills up, there's always the roof-box option if needed. The retractable load cover makes sure that all this space isn't on view to all who pass by, so leaving your bag in there won't encourage the have-a-go opportunist who loves the wide open spaces that a long estate-type car offers as it will be well out-of-sight.
Driving the Grandis is a very pleasant affair. You're high up and it gives the air of being a long way back from the front. It has a very deep dash with some huge storage spaces built in. I would seriously warn against keeping your emergency Toblerone in there though, because if the sun shines, you'll be drinking it with a straw! Another little touch I quite liked was the dash-mounted gearstick, which apart from being ergonomically well-placed, gave the front of the car a very spacious air due to the extra room available between the two front seats.
I suppose you're wondering what the answer to the ultimate question is: would I buy one? I'd have to think long and hard before doing so, but on balance I thing personally the battle between suitability and versatility is a hard-fought one. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my experience with the Grandis, I would be more tempted, myself, to consider its rougher and tougher big brother the Outlander, which despite its main weakness, that of the small and uncomfortable rear seats, it had that bit more to offer as an all round family car and that versatility would tip it for me.
Nigel Crawford
June 2009
Model Driven:
Grandis 2.0 DI-D Equippe Man. |
Saab 9-3 Sportwagon
