vauxhall-combo-life-long-term-review

Vauxhall has an incredibly diverse range of cars on sale, a few of which stand out above the class average. Add in the fact that it still offers some of the largest Target Price discounts in the market (something it is trying, without huge success, to cut back on), and there are very good reasons to consider buying one of its better models.

However, you need to choose carefully, because it is also a brand in transition. It has a newish parent company – the same one that owns Citroën, DS and Peugeot. And while Vauxhall’s newer models tend to be competitive, some of the others feel dated; a quick check of our star ratings will reveal which is which.

Still, given the recent success of sister brands Citroën and especially Peugeot, each new launch should make its range more appealing to buyers.

VAUXHALL

COMBO LIFE

The car: Vauxhall Combo Life 1.5 (100PS) Turbo D S/S Energy XL 7-Seater Run by: Alan Taylor-Jones, new cars editorWhy it’s here: To see if the Combo Life is a sensible alternative to a modern SUVNeeds to: Offer plenty of space, provide a comfortable ride on long journeys and have a raft of equipment and modern safety tech

<hr />Price £23,765 Price as tested £26,735 Miles covered 1267 Official economy 42.2-50.8mpg (WLTP combined) Test economy 40.0mpg Options fitted Multimedia Navi Pro (£450); Parking Pack (£400); Winter Pack (£200); Child Pack (£250); Dark-tinted rear windows (£110); Opening tailgate with tints (£305); Roof rails (£150); Spare wheel (£110); Head-up display (£355); Electronic climate control (£200); 230V socket (£50); Wireless charging (£105); Brilliant Paint (£285)<hr /><h3>20th June 2019 – Multi-storey manoeuvres </h3>There’s no getting around the fact that my Combo Life is a big car. It’s substantially taller than the Audi Q7 or Bentley Bentayga and has a longer footprint than the Range Rover. You might imagine, then, that getting such a vehicle into the What Car? multi-storey car park – a building that already bears the scuffs and scars of many a kerbed wheel and scraped bumper – would be difficult.

Thankfully, it’s not, because Energy versions of the Combo Life come with front and rear parking sensors as standard, plus the optional Parking Pack I added brings a multitude of cameras. I can choose from multiple angles, including a bird's eye view and a 180deg wide-angle view, or simply let the system decide itself which is the most helpful.This, combined with light steering, makes manoeuvring the Combo Life into my preferred spot several floors up no more stressful than in any other car.For all the latest reviews, advice and new car deals, sign up to the What Car? newsletter <a href="https://pages.haymarket.com/whatcar/wcar-form.html">here</a><h2><a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/vauxhall-combo-life-long-term-review-1/n19620">Read more on our long-term Vauxhall Combo Life &gt;</a></h2><h3><a href="https://www.whatcar.com/tag/long-term-tests">See more long-term test reports &gt;</a></h3>

The car: Vauxhall Combo Life 1.5 (100PS) Turbo D S/S Energy XL 7-Seater Run by: Alan Taylor-Jones, new cars editor

Why it’s here: To see if the Combo Life is a sensible alternative to a modern SUVNeeds to: Offer plenty of space, provide a comfortable ride on long journeys and have a raft of equipment and modern safety tech<hr />Price £23,765 Price as tested £26,735 Miles covered 1267 Official economy 42.2-50.8mpg (WLTP combined) Test economy 40.0mpg Options fitted Multimedia Navi Pro (£450); Parking Pack (£400); Winter Pack (£200); Child Pack (£250); Dark-tinted rear windows (£110); Opening tailgate with tints (£305); Roof rails (£150); Spare wheel (£110); Head-up display (£355); Electronic climate control (£200); 230V socket (£50); Wireless charging (£105); Brilliant Paint (£285)<hr /><h3>20th June 2019 – Multi-storey manoeuvres </h3>There’s no getting around the fact that my Combo Life is a big car. It’s substantially taller than the Audi Q7 or Bentley Bentayga and has a longer footprint than the Range Rover. You might imagine, then, that getting such a vehicle into the What Car? multi-storey car park – a building that already bears the scuffs and scars of many a kerbed wheel and scraped bumper – would be difficult.

Vauxhall Combo Life long-term review

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Plenty of space for all the family and their paraphernalia</li> <li>Comfortable ride for everyone inside</li> <li>Seats with plenty of adjustment and versatility of layout</li> <li>Engine that can cope with a full load of people and luggage</li> <li>Excellent efficiency to avoid big fuel bills</li></ul>

Practicality is king in the MPV market, which has taken a hit as buyers have turned towards trendier SUVs. There are still plenty of decent offerings to suit most budgets, though, with Citroën fielding a particularly strong line-up. The French manufacturer’s Berlingo offers bags of space for not much money and you can easily haggle off thousands of extra pounds in discounts, too.

Citroën also scores with the larger Grand C4 Spacetourer, which offers seven seats, lots of oddment space and appealing running costs for something so large. A similarly priced and even better option is the Volkswagen Touran. Meanwhile, if you prefer a premium badge, there's always the BMW 2 Series Active and Gran Tourers or Mercedes B-Class and V-Class.

But for something sizeable that's still decent to drive, we’d recommend you check out the Ford Galaxy, which can offer three rows of seats and decent luggage space at the same time. It’s not that much pricier than the smaller S-Max.

Could Vauxhall’s van-based people carrier be the perfect lifestyle vehicle? We’ve got three months to find out

Vauxhall Combo Life long-term review        

Citroën is probably most famous for its quirky design, and the latest cars from the brand live up to this tradition. In fact, it&nbsp;tends to keep away from sportiness altogether and instead tries to put comfort first.

Value (but not cheapness) is also key to the appeal of most Citroëns. And the company’s range includes everything from a tiny EV (the Ami) through to the C3 small hatchback and&nbsp;the large van-based&nbsp;Spacetourer MPV.

Its range of SUVs are all badged Aircross, and like the rest of its range place emphasis on comfort, not speed.

CITROEN

If you want a new car but would rather not spend much, Dacia is a great place to start your search.

This budget brand builds some of Britain’s cheapest new cars, including the Sandero hatchback. And don’t think cheap automatically means corners have been cut, because the Sandero has been commended at the annual What Car? Car of the Year awards on numerous occasions.

Other Dacia models include the&nbsp;higher-riding Sandero Stepway, seven-seat Jogger, and rugged Duster SUV. And while these cost slightly more than the Sandero, they’re still priced aggressively enough that they’re really only competing directly with used cars.

Dacia manages this by borrowing mechanicals and technology from its owner, Renault, to minimise development costs.

DACIA

Ford builds some of the most popular cars in the UK, including the Fiesta and Focus hatchbacks.

This success is partly down to longevity and the fact that there’s a Ford dealer around every corner. However, it’s also because Fords tend to offer good value and be among the best cars in their respective classes to drive.

The company’s huge range also helps; it offers everything from the small – but surprisingly practical – Ka+ to the large and lavishly equipped Edge SUV.

Meanwhile, other highlights of the range include the S-Max and Galaxy people carriers, the Mondeo executive car and the Ranger pick-up.

FORD

MAXUS

Mercedes’ line-up is vast – ranging from the A-Class family hatchback through to staple saloons such as the C-Class and E-Class, and onwards towards multiple SUVs, luxury saloons and even sports cars. Coupés and convertibles are thrown into the mix as well.

As one of the ‘big three’ German brands, Mercedes most often finds itself competing with Audi and BMW but more recently has found itself fending off Jaguar and Volvo, too.

Mercedes models are known for comfort. One example of this is the E-Class, because while the Audi A6 has a plusher interior and the BMW 5 Series handles better, the E-Class is probably the most comfortable for a long motorway journey.

MERCEDES-BENZ

Peugeot has its strongest model line-up for some years, with some of its cars now rated by our testers as being among the very best available.

Highlights focus around the firm’s newest SUVs, the 3008 and 5008. The 5008 was named Large SUV of the Year at the 2018 What Car? Awards, thanks to its appealing blend of space, interior quality and low running costs.

That bodes well for future launches, too, because many of the learnings from these cars will be passed on as new versions of existing cars are launched – something that could take many years, because the Peugeot range is so big, ranging from an entry-level supermini with the 108 to an executive saloon with the 508, up into the SUV range and also vans.

Buyers should evaluate some of the lower-rated cars in the range more carefully, though. Some are now quite old, and are subsequently left behind in terms of quality when compared with the opposition, making them below-average buys, in our estimation.

PEUGEOT

The VW Group famously spends more money on research and development than any rival – and as a result, perhaps it should be no surprise that our testers rate its cars so consistently highly.

The fact that many of those cars use the same underpinnings also helps, because it means that if they get it right once, they have the foundations to keep on getting it right.

However, the Volkswagen brand faces plenty of tough competition, often from within, because the rapidly rising Seat and Skoda brands that are also part of the group have access to the same technology.

VOLKSWAGEN

VIVARO LIFE

It was inevitable that the Vauxhall Combo Life Electric would go up market with its new name change (from Combo e-Life). So this electric <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/best-mpvs-and-people-carriers-2022/n17001">MPV</a> is now available in a choice of two trims rather than just one: how profligate!

There’s also a choice when it comes to seating arrangements and body length. You can add an extra pair of chairs instead of having a boot in the regular-sized M version, or pick the extra long XL model to have seven seats plus a bit of cargo space.

That’s very similar to the size options offered by the near-identical <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/berlingo/estate/review/n23857">Citroën e-Berlingo</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/peugeot/rifter/estate/review/n23858">Peugeot e-Rifter</a> – which share the same underpinnings – but they don't allow you to combine&nbsp;seven seats with the shorter (and easier to park) M bodystyle.

Powering the Combo Life Electric is the same electric motor and 50kWh battery pack that can be found in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/citroen/c4/hatchback/review/n22375">Citroën e-C4</a>. Remarkably, the batteries don't affect practicality, so you still get a huge amount of interior space. The addition of a battery pack does cause problems for those needing a wheelchair conversion with a low floor and ramp, but <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/make/vauxhall">Vauxhall</a> will sell you a traditional diesel-powered alternative if you ask your dealer nicely.

But the question you want answering is whether this electric conversion has helped (or hindered) this car, and whether the Vauxhall Combo Life Electric better to live with than the original.

In this review, we'll tell you all about it, and compare it with the rivals you might be considering. We'll be covering everything you need to know, giving this MPV rating for performance, practicality, running costs and more. We'll also compare it with rivals.

Once you've chosen your next new car, MPV or SUV, you can find the lowest price by searching our free&nbsp;What Car? <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals">New Car Deals</a> service. It's a good place to find the best <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/category/electric">new electric car deals</a>.

Electric MPV is practical and very well-equipped but costs more than similar alternatives

Vauxhall Combo Life Electric

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Sufficient range between charges to fit in with most people’s lifestyles – and in the real world, not on some far-fetched official test </li> <li>Quick charging times and compatibility with the most ubiquitous types of public charging points </li> <li>Priced to be within the grasp of more than just the privileged few </li> <li>As with any car, ride comfort, practicality and ownership costs can’t be ignored</li></ul>

We define an electric car as one that runs purely on battery power and has no tailpipe to puff out nasty chemicals.

The best of the breed offer sufficient range between charges to fit in with most people’s lifestyles – and in the real world, not on some far-fetched official test cycle.

NEW REVIEWS:

Vauxhall Combo Life long-term review

Could Vauxhall’s van-based people carrier be the perfect lifestyle vehicle? We’ve got three months to find out...

20th June 2019 – Multi-storey manoeuvres

Read more on our long-term Vauxhall Combo Life >

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