I currently drive a 2010 Skoda Octavia 1.4 TSi DSG Elegance estate which ticked all the boxes when I bought it. My needs have now changed and I am trying to figure out what car would now suit me best.

There are usually only two of us plus a labrador in the car but sometimes I need to take out a total of 6 adults plus the dog and need a car that will accommodate us all. I do @10000 miles a year mostly on A roads, B roads and country lanes as I live nearly an hour from the nearest motorway.

I would like an automatic again but am not fussed about the badge.

I am looking to spend £12k - £13k so most likely the car will be @3 years old. I know that a Ford Galaxy powershift and Seat Alhambra DSG would fit the bill but as I don't need 6/7 seats that much I don't really want a car that large to drive all the time.

Any suggestions, especially ones based on your own experience, would be welcome.

This was my original post in June 2015 and I have now bought a 7 seater but I had to compromise on something - and it turned out to be the automatic gearbox.

Last week I bought a 3 year old Nissan Qashqai+2 1.6 Acenta. I drove a Peugeot 5008 which I hated, and then a Renault Grand Scenic which was better but still felt too much like piloting a barge. The Qashqai+2 was very familiar as I had a 5 seater Qashqai for 3 years before buying my automatic Skoda when a shoulder injury stopped me changing gear. It is an ex motability car with 57000 miles on the clock but has full main dealer history as motability cars have to be returned to the main dealer for everything.

It is a 1.6 petrol which is what I wanted as I have only done 8000 miles a year for the past couple of years and do not expect this to increase. Performance wise, it couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding but it seats 7, it is easy to get in and out of and has a great driving position which is useful in rural Devon where I live. The third row of seats are small, but they will only be used for a few days a year and the second row move forward which gives a little more room, provising both people are quite short.

All in all I'm pleased with my purchase at the moment. Best of all beacuse it's a bit tatty outside, and Qashqai's don't hold their value, I paid less than £9k for it.

Edited by ike2 on 01/08/2015 at 19:42