Vauxhall Zafira | A Dad's Review

Vauxhall Zafira Review

You’re given an option….

You’re no longer a single Dad, and it’s no longer just the two boys home for half term, you have added four girls (or is it 3 girls and a special lady?) to the tribe!

The experience of a convoy trip from South Wales to Blackpool on a wet October Friday evening in separate cars was enough to make us decide that we definitely needed a vehicle to transport the new “tribe of seven” on a mixture of ‘round the corner’ and ‘great escape’ journeys.

My initial thoughts, after years of driving around in a relatively luxurious ‘grand-tourer’ with oodles of space and blissfully tranquil surroundings, were that of ‘minibus’ or ‘van’. I was waking at night in a cold sweat as memories of childhood adventures in a Transit camper van were treading dangerously close to reality.

As the perceived need steadily became real, it was time to bite the bullet and see what the options were. The ‘People Carrier’ / MPV / ‘Big Car’, or whatever it is described as these days, comes in many guises: big and luxurious (but thirsty) and able to tackle roundabouts at Mach2, as enthusiastically demonstrated by an eager salesman; big and not-so-luxurious (and terribly impractical); small and poky (only 5 seats) and then of course, the Vauxhall Zafira.

A very helpful and friendly salesman at the local dealer showed us the ins and outs of how the middle seat slides, tilts, reclines, splits, concertinas etc…, how the rear two seats could comfortably accommodate generously proportioned adults, and once his boss’s drums of creosote and paint had been removed from the rear luggage area, we were able to take to the wheel and go for a spin.

After a couple of years driving in the semi-recumbent position, it came as a pleasant surprise to be sitting up, looking forward and yet still comfortably cradled in the comfy seats. The driving position, I must say, is one of the very big plus points about the Zafira. The visibility is nothing short of excellent and due to the very square profile at the back, parking is an absolute doddle!

Ah, but how will this ‘family carrier’ satisfy the caveman within me? I wondered…. Would I still be able to comfortably scoot past the tractor / excavator / novice learner driver on that one-and-only straight bit between home and town? Would I be mimicking frustrated, fist-waving HGV drivers who had spent the last five minutes building up sufficient revs, only to be thwarted at the last second by Mrs Griffiths in her pristine Morris Minor doing her statutory 31 mph? Now was the time to find out!

Down a gear…, right foot down….., hold tight….. Blimey! There is something under there!

Although not a contender for the next British Rally Championships, the ride for both front seats and the cheap seats in the rear stalls is confident and comfortable. A recent six-and-a-half hour journey along England’s South Coast with seven bods (4 of whom were in the throes of prime teenagerhood) and their baggage ended with nerves intact and a noticeable absence of moans and groans. Can’t be bad!

Another big bonus with the Zafira compared with its rivals, is the ease with which you can move, slide, drop, or magic-away the back seats. Who else, on an impulse purchase at Ikea, could fit a set of steel-frame bunk beds, two mattresses, 4 under-bed storage boxes (and the other 5 carrier bags that everyone inevitably picks up from Ikea when going to buy some candles), inside the car, with all doors closed? I reckon we could even give Pickfords a run for their money!

Overall, the Zafira has been a complete revelation. I never expected so much space, comfort, practicality, economy and performance to be available in one low-cost package. For those with seven family members to take from A to B, I wouldn’t recommend anything else!

Review courtesy of www.thebabywebsite.com