Seat Alhamra or hyundai ?

[RichardW1]

Hi
I have a seat Alhambra 1.9 TDI which I love & it’s a good tug. Ours is only the 90 bhp so is a little under powers on long hills. Didn’t realise they did a higher bhp at the time & it doesn’t like wet grass but that’s the only down sides. Plenty of room, great when your travelling long distances in Europe ect. We take out 2 middle seats which gives more space and great leg room for the kids now 16/13yrs. It’s a 97 r reg and we’ve had it 8yrs and it’s never let us down. We tow an abbey aventura 325 at roughly 78 %. I’m looking at changing the car but don’t know if I should get another Alhambra, the 19tdi SE or a 2.0 LT Santa Fe diesel, I haven’t driven this car but it gets decent reviews on here. They seem similar on performance and pulling power & would be about 78% but I don’t know if I should trade the space and comfort of the Alhambra for the 4 wheel drive of the Santa Fe which would be great for going on CLs at this time of year.
The most cash I could scrap together would be 5k. I know it’s a personal thing bit I’m open to other peoples comments and ideas.
Looking forward to next yrs hols now we’ve decided to go back to France/ Spain.
Cheers Richard W

 

[RichardW1]

Hi
Apologies re above. Heading it should have said Seat Alhamra or Hyundai Santa Fe.
But i pressed the save button by mistake
Richard W

 

[Wendy3]

I'm looking forward to next years hols too. Great weekend by the way !

 

[JonnyG]

Know nothing about the Hyundai, but have a Alhambra 130bhp 53 plate, this replaced my galaxy y plate 115 bhp. Both bought for the reason of towing our 1500kg caravan. Simply put no MPV from their Era upto 2006 can match their balance of capacity and performance/ mpg ect ect. OK so the VW lump isnt the most refined at tickover and slow speed but thats about all i can say bad about these MPVs. good hunting...

 

[RichardW1]

Yes it was fun. I like nothing better than pushing vans & campervans round boggy fields. Thank god for wine and as an added plus you saw the outlander in action well you did till his clutch burnt out. Are you still after one now ? lol
Richard w

 

[RichardW1]

Know nothing about the Hyundai, but have a Alhambra 130bhp 53 plate, this replaced my galaxy y plate 115 bhp. Both bought for the reason of towing our 1500kg caravan. Simply put no MPV from their Era upto 2006 can match their balance of capacity and performance/ mpg ect ect. OK so the VW lump isnt the most refined at tickover and slow speed but thats about all i can say bad about these MPVs. good hunting...

Thanks jonny G
I agree, love the car and a 115/130 would make it about perfic
richard w

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hi Richard,
I have a Renault Espace that I use for towing. Front wheel drive can be a bit of a problem, but in all my adventure i have only been stuck once, and that was on a steep gravel track with a heavily laden trailer full of Scouts camping gear. All it needed was a little assistance from 4 Scouts and once under way we managed to motor to the top.
I have never been stuck on wet grass, its case of planning your route across it, or avoiding it all together.
I'd suggest sticking with the format you know and love.
Look for the higher power version, and your towing will be more relaxed. You should also be able to have your tow bar swapped to the new vehicle.
Compared to the 4x4 the benefits will be the larger interior space, cheaper servicing, better road handling and better fuel economy, and probably lower tax and insurance too.

 

[Mikey_74]

Hi Richard, I can't comment on the Alhambra, but I drove my sister in laws Galaxy Diesel and that was a nice car, I have an 05 plate Hyundai Sant Fe, I've only had it since May, so far so good, I went through a patch of not liking it as it's completely different to what I'm used to (big estate cars) but having got through that now I love it, never any issues when on site regarding muddy fields, the only thing I will say is it left me wanting more power, I fitted one of these diesel tuning modules and it certainly made a difference when towing, I haven't sat down and worked it out properly but quick calculations I think I'm getting high 20's when towing, but our van is 26ft twin axle, big caravan and a big heavy car for still a little 2.0 Diesel.
Hope this helps....
Mike

 

[RichardW1]

Hi guys
Thanks for your comments.
It’s interesting to know what other people think and hopefully it will help me make my mind up.
Richard W