You can transport your kids comfortably with these €10,000 French MPVs

If the German delegation is there to quickly transport the occupants to their destination (so that you are relatively unaffected by the screeching in the back) and the Japanese delegation is there to ensure that you arrive (so that you are not confronted with screeching in the back of the emergency lane), then here are the French who ensure that the screaming in the back is comfortably lulled to sleep. But which one should it be if we want to spend 10 grand: Citroën C4 Grand Picasso, Peugeot 5008 or Renault Scénic?

Citroen C4 Grand Picasso 1.6VTi Collection – 2013 – 105,411 kilometers – €9,750

We kick off with this artistic Citroën C4 Grand Picasso. Artistic, because Picasso’s signature adorns this van. And ‘van’, because of the three it looks and feels most like a bus: behind the wheel you sit higher and more upright. Two owners have traveled a ton in ten years with the 120 hp VTi. Not as sensitive as the more powerful THP with turbo, but timely and good maintenance is necessary. Fortunately, the asking price includes a one-year Bovag warranty and, given the relatively low mileage, we would dare to make this purchase. For that money you get a gentle giant: a light and generous interior for people and luggage thanks to large window areas and a far-reaching windscreen.

The ‘artfully’ designed dashboard requires getting used to, as Collection has the 3-SRR-18 with, among other things, cruise control and climate control, navigation system, aluminum roof racks, LED daytime running lights, electrically folding exterior mirrors, parking, light and rain sensors, hill assist and a tow bar and a nice collection of stuff. But you mainly buy an MPV for its variability. With five separate seats in the back, that’s fine. Seats six and seven can accommodate two small children.

In any case, we wouldn’t go out with seven adults. The turbo-free power source lacks just a little bit of pulling power to keep up smoothly. Apart from that, the C4 Grand Picasso is not a pushover and fast cornering is not for him either. The chassis and furniture are simply too comfortable for this and the carriage is too high. No, long trips where you still feel fit upon arrival is more his thing. However, it is not a shabby device either: the payload is no less than 795 kilos (but is that desirable?), which can easily fill the luggage space (208 to 1,951 liters). The hook can carry 1,300 kilos, the maximum nose weight is 60 kilos, while the roof can support 80 kilos.

Signaling

Brand Lemon
Type C4 Grand Picasso 1.6VTI Collection
Construction year November 2013
Mileage 105,411
Asking price €9,750
Where to buy? Vakgarage T. Verlaan BV, Harmelen

Technical data

Engine 4 cyl. in-line, 1,598 cc
Max. assets 88 kW/120 hp at 6,000 rpm
Max. couple 160 Nm at 4,250 rpm
Luggage compartment 208 l/576 l/1,951 l
Max. trailer braked 1,300 kilos
Avg. consumption 1 in 14.5
0-100 km/h 12.3 sec
Top speed 186 km/h
All data according to factory specifications

Peugeot 5008 1.6THP Family 7P – 2011 – 141,373 kilometers – €9,500

If you consider a stronger engine necessary for the same budget and shop at the same group (PSA), you will automatically end up with the infamous THP machine – which is then in an older and more experienced used car in terms of mileage. This applies to this Peugeot 5008 in the briefly supplied Family version. A comprehensive, accurate maintenance history is mandatory! Here are also two ex-owners, the provider is selling it including a six-month Bovag warranty. The more or less blown version of the VTI is not that much faster (or less economical!) than the naturally aspirated version, but it does have more pulling power at a considerably lower speed. That makes it sportier on paper. In practice too.

The appearance is less bus-like (catches less wind), the seat is lower and the dashboard has a sportier cut, with the beautifully designed center console featuring the shifter of a six-speed gearbox instead of the five-speed gearbox of the VTI. The materials used are also of a slightly higher quality and the Peugeot is even more luxurious. In this 5008 we find, among other things, a large panoramic roof. When it comes to seating comfort and interior variability, we don’t have to explain anything to Peugeot (here too, five separate seats in the back that can be varied to your heart’s content). The Citroën is lord and master in hard liters.

And by extension: on seats six and seven, adults may have even more to make do. In terms of driving experience, it is only comfort that counts with the C4, the 5008 adds a dose of zest for life. However, the 156 hp power source is not stronger on all fronts. At 615 kilos, the loading capacity is a lot less, while the roof can carry 75 kilos (but purchase roof racks first). The – not present – towbar can carry 1,550 kilos, the maximum nose weight is 70 kilos.

Signaling

Brand Peugeot
Type 5008 1.6THP Family 7P
Construction year May 2011
Mileage 141,373
Asking price €9,500
Where to buy? Autobedrijf Scholten Markelo BV, Markelo

Technical data
Engine 4 cyl. in-line, 1,598 cc, turbo
Max. assets 115 kW/156 hp at 6,000 rpm
Max. couple 240 Nm at 1,400 rpm
Luggage compartment 194 l/679 l/nb
Max. trailer braked 1,550 kilos
Avg. consumption 1 in 14.1
0-100 km/h 10.5 sec
Top speed 195 km/h
All data according to factory specifications

Renault Grand Scénic TCE 130 Energy Bose 7P – 2013 – 152,197 kilometers – €9,450

After having portrayed a VTI and a THP, we are already seeing a stream of responses from reviewers. To prevent choice stress (or not!), a third candidate comes from Marianne’s country: the Renault Grand Scénic. The midi MPV, then called Mégane Scénic, was not the founder of that segment (just think of the striking Nissan Prairie from 1981), but it was the one that made the handy van immensely popular.

We see all that experience in this Renault Grand Scénic: smaller and larger containers and compartments everywhere in the interior and here too five separate rear seats, so that there is plenty of versatility. If you remove everything that can be removed or folded down, more than 2 cubic meters of loading space is available. Okay, time to zoom in on the 88-TSK-4. This one is not quite the youngest of our trio, but it does have the highest mileage: three previous owners have driven just over a ton and a half with it. It is narrowly the cheapest, but the provider is unfortunately silent about the warranty. In terms of motorization, it is between the other two: the small 1.2 turbo unit delivers 130 hp, good for performance at THP level, but with lower consumption, thanks to the available start/stop system. And not to forget: a better image. The Grand Scénic thus manages to maneuver itself cleverly between the other two. And more: because the digital dashboard has Picasso features, the seating position is again at 5008 height. Seating and driving comfort also tend towards the brand with the lion: good comfort and driving characteristics that have a touch of dynamics. The Scénic steers quite sharply for a midi MPV. Sun blinds in the rear doors, a BOSE installation and partial leather upholstery are present, but a panoramic roof, for example, is not. The hook (which is also available!) can hold 1,300 kilos. This occasion seems to strike the – French – golden mean in everything

SignalingBrand Renault

Type Grand Scénic TCE 130 Energy Bose 7P
Construction year August 2013
Mileage 152,197
Asking price €9,450
Where to buy? Massehuis Auto’s, Varsseveld

Technical data
Engine 4 cyl. in-line, 1,198 cc, turbo
Max. assets 96 kW/130 hp at 5,500 rpm
Max. couple 205 Nm at 2,000 rpm
Luggage compartment nb/564 l//2,063 l
Max. trailer braked 1,300 kilos
Avg. consumption 1 in 15.6
0-100 km/h 10.7 sec
Top speed 190 km/h
All data according to factory specifications

Which of these French midi MPVs suits you?

In summary: tastes differ, but perhaps the Citroën C4 Grand Picasso is the most pleasant to the eye. Of these three, he is the comfort king. The seven-seater version of the Peugeot 5008 is much more dynamic. But that dynamism is ensured, among other things, by the sensitive THP engine. The Scénic is pretty much in between its rivals on everything. A kind of everyone’s friend, and with that he shows Renault’s experience in this area. Which of these three French midi MPVs would you dare to try?