Back in the dim and distant past when we could drive where we wanted and even go on holiday, I was given a challenge. I had to find a car for a trip to France that would take six people plus their luggage.
I thought about the big 7-seat SUVs such as BMW’s X7 and Merc’s GLS. Then I had a brainwave.
Remember people carriers or MPVs? They were the vehicle of choice for big families before SUVs took over the world.
It’s a breed that is now virtually extinct.
Ford still makes the Galaxy and Volkswagen makes the Sharan. Then there’s what was always the thinking person’s MPV, the Seat Alhambra, which is essentially a re-badged Sharan.
And what a great choice it proved to be. Our test car was fitted with the most powerful of the two diesel engines offered (there’s a petrol option, too) which is the 175bhp 2.0-litre TDI unit.
Add to that one of VW’s fine DSG gearboxes and you have the ideal powertrain for long- distance, fully loaded cruising.
This diesel has plenty of power and torque, and is admirably quiet.
There’s not a lot of wind or road noise to hear, either. We were on winter tyres which are slightly noisier but otherwise it’s this lack of noise and feeling of comfort that kicked any thoughts of being in ‘a van’ into touch – and, above all, what you get with the Alhambra is flexibility.
With only three of us in it on the way out, there was stacks of room and all the luggage and bodies were well spread out.
With more people and more luggage on the return journey we had to be rather more careful with our loading plans.
When all seven seats are in place you have only 269 litres of luggage space to play with, but with only five seats that leaps up to 658 litres.
The middle row seats individually slide forward and back so there’s plenty of jiggling room and adjustment available.
Seat doesn’t give a figure for how many litres of luggage area you get when you configure the Alhambra for six people by dropping down one of the pair of third row seats, but we managed to get a lot of bags onto the flat surface of the folded seat.
Fortunately, our rearmost passenger didn’t suffer from claustrophobia. Or at least didn’t complain.
The Alhambra has a sliding door on each side which open and close electrically by touching the interior door handles or via buttons on the key fob.
This is brilliantly practical, especially in tight spaces. And very handy when you’re loading up lots of people and their kit.
The Xcellence is the top of the range model and costs £38,855. Cheapest is the £31,000 SE with a 1.4-litre petrol engine and six-speed manual gearbox.
Compare that to the equivalent Volkswagen Sharan and you’ll see that you save roughly £2,000 by simply choosing the Seat badge.
You sit high up in the Alhambra with a large dashboard spread in front of you that’s comprehensive, rather old-fashioned looking but very easy to operate.
The driving position is very comfortable even after many hours at the wheel.
Like we said earlier, not at all van like. There’s a fair bit of body roll but the ride is comfortable and smooth which is what you want.
Well, nobody has ever suggested that an MPV should be sporty.
The Seat Alhambra is totally out of fashion these days but that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t exist.
I’ll wager that there are plenty of SUV-owning big families who would be much better off with the Alhambra or one of its fellow survivors in the people carrier family.
It’s supremely comfortable and practical, and for the space you get, good value for money too.
THE FACTS
Seat Alhambra Xcellence five-door MPV
Price: £38,855
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel, 175bhp
0-62mph: 8.9sec
Fuel consumption: 38.7-40.4mpg
Co2: 147g/km
THE RIVALS
Volkswagen Sharan 2.0 SEL
Really the same vehicle as the Seat but with a different badge... and it costs more.
Skoda Kodiaq Sportline
The SUV option. Seven seats and very good value. Less practical though.
Ford Galaxy Titanium
Loved by private hire companies and largely bought by them. A sound vehicle.
