CHEVROLET ORLANDO 2.0 VCDi LT 5dr (2011)

Fantastic tardis

We got the Chevrolet Orlando about six months ago just before our fourth little one arrived, thought we'd need the extra space. We were trading up from an old Fiesta so it was really massive for us to begin with, and really we spent the next few months just finding more and more clever little spaces dotted around the place.

The best part in terms of space is the way the back seats flip around. The boot is pretty small when all three rows of seats are up, but it's probably about the same capacity as the boot in the Zafira my dad drives when all seven seats are up in that. But the seats flip down really easily in the Chevrolet Orlando, and they stay inside the car so you don't have to find somewhere to put them. I found that off putting about a number of other MPV cars.

It's basically a school and tesco sort of car for us, and it does well on all the basics. Tax and insurance are reasonable. The fuel economy I think is a bit better in the Chevrolet Orlando than our old Fiesta, about high 40s MPG in a straight line -- although we're mostly doing town driving so it doesn't quite do that well day to day.

I marked down the performance a bit because basically it's not exactly a Porsche, but it's certainly powerful enough for everything you need. The diesel doesn't feel sluggish or noisy, and I'm pleased with it for the improved fuel economy.

I've nothing much to say about reliability of it since we've only had it six months. There was a small problem with a catch in the boot, and the dealer took quite a while to sort it out. I didn't really get the best impression about how the dealer will treat us in future with potentially more serious repairs. That's something we perhaps should have asked around on really, the reputation of the dealer. Ho hum, we'll see.

All that we're really missing in our Chevrolet Orlando is aircon, but we live in Scotland so it's seldom needed! Besides I think that was available as an option or something if we wanted it. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone eyeing up a similar sized family car.