Vauxhall Zafira?

[carolfoy]

Do you have one, how has it been? how long have you had it and are there any recurring problems? If you have experienced any breakdown have these things been 'typical' of the model or just bad luck?
thank you

 

[natalielongstaff]

my friend has got one and she thinks its great.....she had a problem with the ignition key not being recignised but it was easily sorted.
i prefer my ford galaxy tho

 

[carolfoy]

Yes I looked at that too, a bit out of my price range but far superior on the interior (hey I did a rhyme!) friends have the one with the in house dvd etc and its lovely, can't seem to find anyone with a good OR a bad word to say about the zafira so I guess that just means 'average' and that just about sums me up!

 

[allie5]

We looked at them when we changed our car last, but to be honest, I found them very dated compared to other makes. The interiors are really naff and "plasticy".

FIL has one and loves it - he does loads of miles and hasnt had many problems so it seems they are reliable enough. I think "average" is probably the best way to describe them!

We liked the 7 seater Grand Scenic which was much more stylish than the Zafira - might be worth a look!

 

[carolfoy]

Yes Allie5 totally agree with the interior comment, I've looked at the scenic and love it, Renault have a very high standard of interior, but I'm getting rid of my Renault Laguna because of the unreliability (very long story won't bore you with it) and although have had 5 renaults with this one being the worst will not be going renault again mainly due to the distance of the dealers from me and having to take days off work just because of breakdowns (constant) etc.
I'm not trying to have a flashy car or anything I just need a little reliability and cant afford japanese!

 

[alisonbestford]

We bought an automatic Zafira in March and I absolutely love it

I have a friend who has one too (but manual) and she loves hers too

I find it much easier to drive than our previous Ford Focus as it's quite a 'high ride' and I seem to have trouble finding cars I'm comfortable driving, without the need of a cushion!

One other thing I've noticed is that it's a 'heavy' car to drive.
I hope that makes sense and, personally, I don't consider it a negative factor

We do an awful lot of driving - especially fast, motorway driving - and the acceleration is great.

Up to now I don't have a bad thing to say about it but guess I could be proved wrong at any time....

We looked at the Ford Galaxy too but I couldn't justify the extra cash for a few more 'fancy' internal features

My dad has owned a couple of Renaults over the years and wouldn't buy one again as he found them to be unreliable too.
He's been a firm 'Vauxhall' man for the last 10 years

 

[snookhams]

I now own my second Zafira and love them - my first was a manual, and I now have an automatic which I am looking at trading in for a newer one. I have had no problems other than spare wheel's being stolen, but I now have a k-lock so that won't be happening again.

I can't see why you think the interior is more plasticky looking than other vehicle, I like the added bonus of the 2 extra hidden seats which on normal occassions we would not need only if we are taking any extras over and above the 4 of us.

 

[carolfoy]

Thanks guys you've instilled me with a bit more confidence ( I pick it up tonight!) Snookhams, please don't think I'm knocking the interior, its perfectly adequate for my needs but is a lot more plasticky and 'cheaper' ie the trim isn't as good, hardly any internal storage etc compared to my laguna but i'm not buying it for 'plushness' so it really isn't an issue, I only mentioned it because when I asked an AA man last night what he thought of it (and these guys know their stuff) he just said 'hardly ever see them, interior a bit crap but overall very good' so that kind of made up my mind 'cos if the AA don't see them very much then thats a bonus!

 

[March Hare]

Hi

Had a Zafira on an '02 plate from new.Its has worn well with three boisterous kids and (touch wood) has never let us down. I agree its not all that glamorous, but it's cheap to run, service and tax. We had a top of the range Espace previously, which was very nice, but it cost a fortune in repair bills and servicing! The way I look at it the less spent on motoring means more money for holidays.

MARK

 

[carolfoy]

Thanks Mark, just what I needed to hear, My friends all think I'm mad (they seem to have an idea I'm a 'flashy' car person, don't know why!) Also they think I'm crazy as they see me as a 1 adult, 1 child family so 7 seats seems extravagant but I'm ALWAYS trekking other people around and I'll probably use it more as a 5 seat big boot car, have had a couple of 'sports' type cars which I've loved but got fed up with having no boot space, in an ideal world I'd have 1 big and 1 small car but can't afford it! the amount of times I need a big one compared with small is far outnumbered.
I'm just a bit sick of the thought of getting it as I've had soooo much grief with 'friends' getting at me for my car choice

 

[DisneyDes]

We looked at the Zafira last year when we were changing our Scenic. We too thought the inside dated so in the end went for the Toyota Corolla Verso - another (occational) 7 seater and we haven't looked back (especially as it has parking censors ). DS loves the DVD player and DW & I love the comfort of driving it - though don't enjoy the speeding ticket DW picked up in it yesterday

 

[FizzyPop]

We looked at the Zafira too I liked the look of them but we thought it was still a squash getting all six of us in there even though it was a seven seater. We decided to go for a Grand Chrysler Voyager in the end.

 

[Tron[ADS]]

My in-laws have a V plate Zafira with 30k on it, and they love it. Its extremely practical, although something recently went on the air conditioning that cost about £800 to be repaired (and that was at a private garage !). They would have left it not working I think, but the heater wouldnt deliver hot air either because of the fault. Aside from that its been great for them.
My sister bought a 1 year old diesel sri model last week and she is extremely impressed with it. I had a quick drive of it and it felt good.
The new diesel models are much better though as they have finaly got round to introducing the common rail engines into Zafiras.

Consider also the new Mazda 5, which is also a 7 seater (if required), but has sliding doors, and I think looks much nicer - Wish I could afford one, or if I was a bit more flush, a Voyager, which I really like.

 

[carolfoy]

Thanks Tron, I picked it up last night and so far so good, I was just a bit depressed yesterday as EVERYONE was having a go at me for getting it but with no constructive criticism at all! just getting at me for being single and having a large car! Its actually smaller than my Laguna just taller and with better all round vision so in my eyes its no different to an estate car, would have loved the mazda 5 or indeed any other japanese model of the same but I can't afford it!

 

[Kernow_Clan]

Thanks Tron, I picked it up last night and so far so good, I was just a bit depressed yesterday as EVERYONE was having a go at me for getting it but with no constructive criticism at all! just getting at me for being single and having a large car!

Carol

You should know better than to listen to the small town attitude at home.
What colour is it so I know which one to look out for??
If you see a blonde loon in an Audi A4 flashing his lights `tis me

 

[TotallyAngelic]

I have a zafira and it's great...and easy to fit 4 kids (teenagers) plus tent etc when we go camping...I don't know how I managed without it!

 

[Cyrano]

Looked at Zafira, but settled for Citroen Picasso. Would not consider a change

Reid