KIA CARENS 2.0 CRDI GS 5dr (2006)

Great family vehicle, no problems at all, Kia are better than people think

As a single mum of four I really need a reliable car that isn't going to mess me about, and my Carens hasn't let me down... yet! It's actually just about still in the five year warranty period, and it's done about 60 thousand miles.

The funny thing is I get a lot of people sort of having a bit of an odd reaction to it. I think it's a bit like Skodas, Kias used to be a bit of a joke but now they're a lot better, so people don't quite know what to think. That doesn't bother me though. Actually I'm getting the last laugh because it was so cheap in comparison. The dealer was very friendly and generous too, threw in a number of extra bits and pieces.

I had a go in quite a few cars of the same sort of size (especially the Zafira and the Galaxy). Those two I thought were a bit kind of bulky, plus I'd heard pretty bad things about the reliability of the Zafira. In the Carens I really liked how easily I could see all around it. For parking a big car like this, being able to see all round is really important. The beepers for parking are a real god send as well, tell you when you're close to things. I was so confused by them to begin with but actually got used to them pretty quickly.

The controls inside for things like the temperature are all really nice and clear, lovely big buttons and all very clearly labelled. It's ever so slightly tricky the way that the ones for the windscreen heater and some others are in front of the gear stick, makes them a tiny bit fiddly to reach, but that's just a small thing really.

I like the stereo, it's very easy to use and the CD player can handle MP3s on CD as well, which is really good, especially for my kids. It's good that I've got control over all the windows from the driver position too.

One criticism is that there's a pullout drinks tray in the back which the kids have all but broken by accidentally kicking it. It just pokes out into the leg room of the middle seat so it's a bit silly really. What's nice is that they get their own air controls back there. Also around the gearstick I feel there could have been maybe better use of that space. As it is I tend to rest my sunglasses in the leather surrounding the gear stick, which isn't perfect, especially as the dash is a bit slippery and slopey, no good for just resting things on.

The seat controls in the front are really easy. That was another big plus over the Zafira, which had these pathetic twiddly things that took an absolute age to recline back and forth. The boot is huuuuuuuuuuuge, and with the back seats down it's reeeeeeeeeeaally huuuuuuuuge, got four bikes in there once. Haven't used the seats that open out into the boot space much, but when we have used those there's still a fair amount of boot space left.

It's a fab car really, hasn't given me any trouble at all and makes travelling with four kids really as easy as it could be - which isn't easy but still!