18th July 2023
Russell Campbell
Buying aseven-seater doesn’t mean your enthusiasm for cars has to be consigned to the scrap heap – on this list, you’ll find eight machines that back up this theory. As you’d expect, you can choose from big, smallish, affordable and not-so-affordable SUVs, but here you’ll find a small handful of alternatives that are just as practical. Keep reading for a guide to the best eight seven-seaters currently on sale.
1. Land Rover Defender 110
The Land Rover Defender 110 is about as excellent as seven-seaters get, although a car as capable as the Landie may seem overkill for the school run.
Not by us, of course. The qualities that mean a Defender can conquer jungles also make it an incredibly comfortable car to drive with a raised driving position that makes you feel like the king of the road, air suspension that’s incredibly comfortable and a range of powerful engines that are suited to shifting a fully loaded car.
Inside, the Defender is a well-judged mix of retro modernity with chunky knobs and buttons backed up by a pair of crystal-clear infotainment screens. Space in the front five seats is excellent, but the third row that folds out the boot is better suited to kids. But if you need even more room, there’s always the 130 model.
Inside, the Defender is a well-judged mix of retro modernity with chunky knobs and buttons backed up by a pair of crystal-clear infotainment screens. Space in the front five seats is excellent, but the third row that folds out the boot is better suited to kids. But if you need even more room, there’s always the 130 model.
2. Volkswagen Multivan
If you want a van-based people mover with some semblance of cool, a Volkswagen is your only option and the Multivan – complete with its handsomely boxy shape and two-tone paint job – is probably your best bet.
It’ll certainly feel like a winner from the inside. Okay, so VW’s infotainment isn’t the most intuitive, but it looks good and is slick to use. All the VW’s seats slide backwards and forward on runners and can be removed entirely for serious load-lugging. Factor in the seat-back picnic tables and a substantial lidded cubby in the car’s centre, and families will find the VW hard to resist.
Resisting the VW will be easier for enthusiasts. But fun driving isn’t remotely what the Multivan is about. The PHEV version serves up nippy performance, decent economy (on a full charge) and is incredibly relaxing in EV mode. You can’t ask for much more than that.
3. Dacia Jogger
The Dacia Jogger hits on a magic formula. It’s cheap but very cheerful, igniting all kinds of memories of the old Matra Rancho. And when we say cheap, we mean it – the Jogger is your most wallet-friendly route to seven-seater ownership.
Inside, it’s as basic as you’d expect, with hard plastics and cheap upholstery everywhere, but does that matter when you’ll unleash it on six of your nearest and dearest? Probably not. What matters is that all the seats can easily fit tall adults, and with the third row folded away, the boot is enormous.
Amazingly, the driving experience is pretty good. Paired to the bone in terms of equipment (you do at least get a stereo and air-con), the Dacia rides well, feels light and nimble, and has punchy performance from its turbocharged petrol engine. However, it’s a noisy cruiser.
4. Peugeot 5008
The Peugeot 5008 shows us that a dull family bus doesn’t need to look like a dull family bus, with a face modelled on a yawning lion with fang-like daytime running lights and piercing headlights.
The inside is even more eye-catching. Peugeot’s highly-stylised i-co*ckpit design means the car’s digital instrument binnacle sits high on the dashboard above a tiny steering wheel. Next to the instruments, you get a large central infotainment screen that’s packed full of fun animations that make rival systems feel dull.
Unfortunately, the 5008’s driving experience is staid, and the small steering wheel feels plain wrong in a car this size. But you’re unlikely to care; the 5008 is a relaxed cruiser, and each of its seven seats has room for adults.
5. Mercedes-Benz E-Class estate
Specified with a pair of fold-out boot seats that kids will go wild for, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class is a vast German-wagon-shaped reason not to buy An. Although, the dwindling popularity of estates means the new E-Class is unlikely to have this feature, so you had better be quick.
The E-Class is worth getting your skates on for. Inside, the current E-Class still feels super posh, with a beautiful flowing dashboard design backed up by an endless infotainment screen.
Your reward for sticking with a wagon comes when you hit the road. The E-Class is incredibly smooth and refined to drive, and, fitted with the optional air suspension; it has a ride quality to rival the S-class. You also get the pick of the E-Class’ excellent engines; only the V8 E63 isn’t available with seven seats.
6. Skoda Kodiaq vRS
The Skoda Kodiaq is potentially the best car Skoda has ever made, which is saying something because the company’s not known for building duffers. In classic Skoda style, it’s based on the VW Tiguan but has more space and costs less; it also feels nicer inside than its VW cousin.
Nothing about the Kodiaq will wow you, but it’s perfect for getting through life with as little resistance as possible. Inside, the infotainment is a paragon of intuitiveness, and along with seven roomy seats, you get loads of smaller storage areas. You even get practical touches like an umbrella hidden in the door and an ice scraper under the fuel cap.
Fitted with the optional adjustable dampers, the Kodiaq has a floaty ride to rival a softly-spring American saloon but hit Sport and the big Skoda handles neatly. The engines, meanwhile, are unspectacular but effective – the 245PS (180kW) in the vRS is smooth and gives a decent turn of pace.
7. Mercedes-Benz GLB
The Mercedes-Benz GLB seems like a tardis – it’s smaller than the GLC yet has two extra seats. In reality, the Merc’s third row will be tight for adults, but it’s fine for occasionally carrying children, and the rest of the time, it means you’re not left driving a great hulking SUV you don’t need.
The GLB gets (or at least is available with) all the good stuff found in Merc’s larger offroaders. Inside, its high-tech, turbine-vented cabin feels a cut above the competition, and you can have it wrapped in leather and bathed in pretty ambient lighting. Friends will gaze in wonder at its trick augmented reality sat-nav.
Comfortable suspension and an excellent automatic gearbox make the GLB an easy car to spend lots of time in, and you can choose from petrol, diesel, PHEV and pure-electric models.
8. Audi Q7
If you’ve got family and kit to shift about, you can’t go wrong with the Audi Q7. Beautifully built inside, a recent update brought a pair of modern stacked infotainment screens, bringing the Q7 in line with Audi’s latest models.
While electric SUVs like the Audi Q8 e-tron are all the rage, a six-cylinder diesel engine is still the right fit for a heavy SUV like the Q7, and Audi’s big diesels are excellent. They’re incredibly smooth and produce bucket loads of torque, making the Q7 an ideal long-distance cruiser when you factor in its cosseting air suspension.
All seven of the Q7’s seats are roomy enough for tall adults, and even with all the seats in use, you get space left over for luggage. It may be one of the older seven-seaters on this list, but the Q7 is still one of the best.
Land Rover
Skoda
Mercedes-Benz
Peugeot
Dacia
Volkswagen
Audi
List
