LuCaspeRobin + Thomas ;-)

For some time now we've been looking around for a new car. We're very happy about our current Honda Civic Aerodeck, but just like last time we bought a new - read secondhand - car, it was also because of space. The same goes for the car that we almost have bought, the Seat Alhambra 1.8 20VT. It seats 7 people spaciously, has all the luxury you can ever imagine, even a navigation system, and it's only 5 years old. But that's not all, it drives almost like our Honda, or to be more precise, it drives like a Honda, a Honda Shuttle or Stream, both of which I have taken for a spin over the last year or so. It shifts like a Honda and it accelerates like a Honda. Only difference is that this engine has a turbo, which kicks in at around 2000 RPM. So you have the 150 BHP ready at an earlier moment, not needing to pull that many revs before having maximum power and torque. And the best part: it can be tuned to a staggering 210 BHP ;-).

All in all we're very lucky to have come across this car, especially since we've been looking on and off for the last 18 months at several kinds of automobiles. We were really in need of a new set of wheels, of a different kind of transporation. But in the end the Honda's we looked at were to pricy, the Volvo's not big enough (seat only 5 - we wanted just that littlebit more, an extra seat or two to bring someone else along when we plan to go somewhere, like my Mom), the same goes for the Skoda's and the Mazda's. We ended up with this car because of the two extra seats and the reputation of the WAG 1.8 litre turbo motor. And having figured these two things out, the Ford Galaxy fell off (not the desired engine and looks quite dull) and the Volkswagen Sharan (too pricy, same specs as the Seat) as well. Also the trio Fiat Ulysse, Peugeot 806 and Citroen Evasion, and the Renault Espace, fell short, this time due to their weight. Yes I remain a Dutchy, looking at all aspects of price when I buy something, and the taxes we had to pay for the last quartet each year was just too steep. So it all came down to finding a good Seat Alhambra 1.8 20VT. Not an easy task...

I trawled many a secondhand carsite (Autotrack, AutoTelegraaf, Autoweek), but didn't really find one in our pricerange. Until I came across one at a local garage in a small place called Lienden, in Gelderland. It was called Nidro Auto's, named after its owner Nico Drost. Pretty soon we had established a good connection with the salesrep and it felt good. Especially after having taken the occasion for a spin with the whole family. The car felt good, with the people of the garage we felt good, the whole picture seemed good. After having discussed it thouroughly and having received a more than fair price for our old trustworthy Honda Civic Aerodeck, we pretty soon figured out that this should be our next car.

Sebastiaan went back on Thursday (the 27th of April) and took the car for a long drive along small winding dikeroads, through pitoresque villages and speeding along the highways. After two hours and a thorough inspection of all sides of the car, also the underside, and reading the complete servicehistory of the vehicle, it was time to decide. Was it a Go or a NoGo? Sebastiaan ended up discussing the price for some time with the salesrep and after some give and take we ended up with a price we both could live with. The deal was confirmed by handshake and a couple of signatures. If all goes as planned we'll be driving home in our "new" car on Saturday the 6th of May ;-).

Posted by Sebastiaan Naafs - van Dijk | top