Volkswagen Sharan review

• For: Space, flexibility, sliding doors
• Against: Getting old, dull to look at and drive
• Verdict: Spacious, flexible and practical seven-seat family MPV

Remember the Volkswagen Sharan? Launched in 2010, some of the kids who travelled in the back of the earliest cars have probably grown up and fled the family nest.

A decade later, the Sharan soldiers on as one of the few proper seven-seat MPVs left on sale in the UK. It might be old, but it offers a level of flexibility that a seven-seat SUV cannot hope to achieve.

All the seats offer enough space for adults, while in five-seat mode it offers sufficient luggage capacity to rival an estate car.

Subjectively, the Seat Alhambra looks more stylish, and the platform-sharing Spaniard also offers better value for money, but the Sharan has the prestige of the Volkswagen badge on its side.

There are three trim levels available: S, SE Nav and SEL, with prices starting from around £31,500.

Pick of the engines is the 2.0-litre diesel, although the 1.4-litre petrol is fine for school runs and shopping trips.

KEY INFO

• Launched: 2010
• Facelifted: 2015
• Due for replacement: TBC