Motoring: Get carried away with the Sharan

NEW this year: the completely revised seven-seater Alhambra and Sharan people- carriers from Seat and Volkswagen. They are longer by almost nine inches, nearly four inches wider and virtually the same height. They are both built in the same factory in Portugal and it is a toss-up over which to buy.

Prices favour the Seat, which opens at £23,045 for the 150ps 1.4 petrol and £24,010 for the Volkswagen with the same engine. The price gap widens in favour of the Seat because alloy wheels are a £460 extra for the Volkswagen, and the rear parking sensor would add another £440. Each item is fitted to the entry-level Seat, and VW even charges £75 more for metallic paint.

I put the conundrum to Volkswagen. The reply: “It is a tricky question to answer directly. We would say that these are not identical products and this must be borne in mind. What’s more, each brand negotiates pricing policy with its own head office pricing and marketing department and will position its own product to be competitive with a basket of rivals which is relevant to its brand positioning. People find it hard to understand but, although we are in the same automotive group, we compete with Seat in some market segments. Fortunately this has not proved over the years to be detrimental to the performance of either brand.”

Hmm. Get it? Hidden print: they can charge more for a Sharan because it is a Volkswagen. The Alhambra knows its social caste, a rung down. It would be interesting to see where Audi and Skoda versions of the vehicle were pitched.

Integral to the Sharan and Alhambra are sliding rear side doors and centre and rear seats which fold flat when not needed. Both these features are better in most respects than what went before. The sliding doors allow easier and wider entry and exit of passengers or cargo and are more manageable in tight parking areas than hinged doors. They are slower to operate than a hinged door but with the remotely controlled electric power option become hands-free. Anyone who has twisted a G-string, hamstring or indeed a tendon removing a seat from an MPV will know why fold-flat seats are better. These removable seats are heavy items. Few of us would be able to lift one to shoulder height using one arm. When removed, you need somewhere to store the seat or seats (not a happy option if you live in an upstairs apartment), and obviously that seat is out of use until you replace it. The only deficit of the foldaways is they take up space on the floor when flat.

I wanted to give the vehicle a thorough test. The example was a Sharan but the comments would apply to the Alhambra, because they are virtually twins. Criticism of one or two operational glitches had best be confined to the Sharan.

And there it was, fitted with the most economical engine in the range, the two-litre diesel in 140ps tune with 236lb ft of torque, with a six-speed manual gearbox and second-tier SE trim, yours delivered for £27,540.

The shimmering but subtle metallic iridium grey paint adds £495. The power-sliding doors added £635, plus another £495 for the powered tailgate – options you can manage without but do appreciate. A navigation unit with voice control, a rear-view camera, parking assistance and a suite of multimedia connections were another £2,090. It also had a detachable tow bar and associated electrical fittings which added nearly £500. Integrated child seats in the centre outer chairs were £400.

Wanting to give it a thorough test, I did the sensible thing and removed the child seat additions and the rear roller blind.

Next I flattened the centre and rear seats, after storing some minor luggage in the relevant recesses exposed and then hidden as they fold. I then inserted two bikes (a mountain bike on Michelin road tyres and a loftier hybrid) after removing each front wheel, so that they stored upright, upside down. Then stacks of bags, clothes for wet weather, clothes for hot weather, helmets, gifts for various hosts in France and a barrel-load of UK mail for friends who spend summer in France. There were maps for England and France in case the sat-nav went daft, which it did within an hour of setting off, getting out of sorts at the M1/M62 interchange.

There was enough space left for the French bike I’d be bringing back, plus the usual wine, Basque dry cider, French and Spanish groceries, reciprocal gifts of Norma’s jams and chutneys, plump marrows for chutney, sloes from Gironde and cheap London gin from Spain to go with them, walnuts from the Pyrenees and a box of bric-a-brac from the street market where I’d bought the Mercier in August. A co-driver completed the contents list.

That trip I’d been on the plane (Jet2 to Bergerac, reasonably priced, no complaints other than the insolent credit card surcharge). This time the Sharan was shipped Portsmouth-Caen, Bilbao-Portsmouth (Brittany Ferries, no snags, worth the money for my itinerary).

French motorway tolls now take their toll, but the risk of using the regular roads was evident on an almost-empty D-road south of Angouleme. Straight, Saturday afternoon, no natural hazards and presumably nothing else for a couple of France’s finest to do except point a radar gun at you. It was a 90km section and the driver was not speeding.

The Sharan is fitted with a speed limit reminder chime, though it is not automatic, you must set it. It also had cruise control but not the more useful speed retention setting. The navigation mapping included a speed limit symbol, but this was shy of the actual limit far too often and so not trustworthy: another blot with the software mapping.

After getting accustomed to the different feel of an MPV – they do not “drive like a car” whatever you may have read, but have some sway and a different steering dynamic and take a shove from side winds – all went well enough. The engine’s gritty torque made up for the modest bhp for a load carrier, and the unit was only loud when pulling hard.

The seats and the “ride” were so comfortable on long journeys that I never even thought about discomfort. The higher seating position in an MPV improves forward visibility, helping with anticipation and making things more relaxed.

I liked the automatic parking brake and the hill-holder clutch. The stop-start only conked out about ten times, but that was because one or other of us put the gear into the wrong ratio. I liked the lidded compartment on top of the dashboard and the drawers under the seats – all useful places for documents. I also liked its thirst, which ranged from 52-58mpg and even showed 62mpg on a long section.

The name Sharan, by the way, is of Persian derivation, meaning “carrier of kings” or in my case, things.

Verdict: Mostly regal. Check out the Alhambra and the Ford Galaxy too.