Vauxhall Zafira 1.8 SRI 2005 - Present

The Vauxhall Zafira is the nations favourite MPV. It's a title that has been richly deserved for a consistent performer over it's lifespan. The most recent incarnation has seen little changes made to improve it's usability as well as the performance, but nothing to detract from the workhorse performance that motorists associate with the big Vauxhall.

Inside the cabin there's room to go. The option of either two or three rows of seats and headroom aside the ability for anyone to sit anywhere. In truth the rear seats are best suited to children as larger people are likely to feel a little claustrophobic in the back. The cabin is effortlessly versatile with the rear row of seats easily folded away. The second row of seats have the facility to slide back and forth, which adds to the flexibility of the seating arrangements. The rear row can recline but their legroom is dependant on the row in front. In the drivers seat the position is something of the van driver. This has good and bad points as it gives a good view of the road, but at the same time isn't necessarily conducive to the most comfortable ride. The seats are firm and supportive, without being overly padded. The controls are nicely laid out with everything in it's most logical position. The indicators stork doesn't click into place, which in the time I was driving the Zafira I never got hold of. You could push them on and they'd go three flashes or just keep going if they kept going you then had to push the stork in the other direction, but not too much as you'd be indicating the other way. This was only felt on the motorway as they automatically corrected themselves when cornering on smaller roads.

Driving the Zafira you're struck with how versatile the engines are. The test model was the 1.8 SRI edition which was punchy throughout the rev range and offered good levels of pull from low down. It was hardly a sports car but this is a big family vehicle not a racy little two seater. The manual gearbox was easy to use and offered slick gearchanges. On very steep, twisting hills occasional shifts down into first were necessary but even these could be undertaken without any major concern. At higher speeds the Zafira is a competent cruiser that can really scoff up those motorway miles. It offers drivers the ability to take a lot in their stride, whether it's room to take people, luggage or a load of Ikea furniture, the Zafira feels unflustered about distance or conditions.

The handling is assured with the suspension set up to blend comfort and control very nicely. The steering is a little divorced from the road but it easy at slow speeds. The cornering of the Zafira is assured and precise, the benefits of sharing the chassis with the nimble Astra are clear to drivers from the first pull off. It's had to escape the fact that you're driving a big vehicle, but there is relatively little bodyroll and the ride comfortable throughout the cabin.

With the back seats occupied there is very little boot space in the back but with the seats folded down there is oodles. The seats fold easily with a little pull, push and a shove (forgive me if I'm getting too technical), they're stowed away and you can load up that flat pack bedroom set.

The storage spaces in the cabin ensure that you've got room for all the nick knacks that you want to carry. The sunglasses holder above the driver door was too small for my sunnies and could probably do with being either expanded or removed. That is nitpicking though.

The Zafira is a versatile and competent motor. It's not got performance to make your skin tingle but it's got enough to make driving an event, albeit a minor one. The sport button on the dash may have just been a placebo but I'm sure it squeezed a little more acceleration out of it...

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