WHEN it comes to practicality, price, economy and versatility, you get virtually a full house with Citroen's Berlingo.
Clearly styling is not the name of the game, which is just as well although it is probably one of the better looking of the van-like budget MPVs.
It is a utilitarian vehicle that offers enormous, people and cargo carrying space at a budget price, together with a range of clean, fuel efficient engines, particularly the diesel, that will appeal to people in a number of walks of life.
It now comes as a seven-seater for the first time, and is bigger than its predecessor, so you can see the attraction for the large family or even as a potential taxi. The five-seat option is still also available on most models, the seven-seat model tested, is an £800 option.
Fold six of the seats down and you have the practicality of a van, so you don't need to be a rocket scientist to spot the appeal.
It is big enough to a accommodate seven adults in comfort, it sips the diesel fuel while the low CO2 emissions make it cheap to tax or run as a company vehicle and is very well equipped and safe. It is also extremely versatile, switching from a proper people carrier to a full-on load carrier that matches most small vans. That's quite a combination for someone on a limited budget.
It should appeal to other buyers as well. Sporting types will find the huge carrying load that is available when the seats are particularly useful for lugging the likes of angling gear and camping equipment around.
This is a true seven seater. Unlike many MPVs where the rearmost two seats are only suitable for children, those in the Berlingo are full-size and feature all the safety aids of the other five.
The only down side is accessing them. The middle tier tilt forward and with the sliding door you would think access would be a doddle, but it can be a bit of a squeeze for those less able-bodied.
But once in, all passengers feel comfortable and well supported. Headroom is enormous and legroom is good for all.
Storage space with all the seats in situ is a miserly 100 litres, but Citroen have mitigated this with a host of trays, side and rear of seat pockets, overhead parcel shelves and drinks holders. Lashing points and a luggage cover are available when any, or all of the five rear seats are removed to keep the huge amount of cargo that can then be carried, secure.
Fold the rearmost seats, which is probably how you would run the car for most of the time and capacity increases to 470 litres. Remove them and 650 litres is available and strip out all but the driver seat and a massive 3,000 litres is opened up.
Being a people carrier it needs to be safe and the car scores four stars for adult and child protection in the Euro NCAP safety ratings. Features include driver and front passenger airbags and lateral passenger airbags and power assisted, anti-lock brakes.
The interior is comfortable and quite smart. Seats are finished in a neat women cloth upholstery and the centre console houses the gearstick, which frees up space between the front two occupants.
The dash and dial layout is neat, tidy, logical and easy to use.
The 1.6-litre diesel engine is a decent performer. Official figures suggest around 47mpg, but I reckon I did better than this over a steady week of motoring. The gear change has short shifts, but does feel a little sloppy.
Performance is average although it is nippy through the first couple of gears. The ride is comfortable and wind noise is generally lacking until you hit higher speeds. Then the boxy shape means the wind noise become discernible. Tyre noise can be intrusive at higher speeds as well, but overall this is a comfortable motor.
The car handles like a people carrier, in other words, not that well, but that is not the point of the car.
Standard equipment is comprehensive with electric doors, mirrors and air conditioning. There is also a decent radio/CD that lowers the volume when reversing, central remote locking and alarm, tinted glass and front and rear reading lights.
Even better is the addition of 'see me home' height adjustable headlights, speed sensitive wipers and automatic rear wiper. Quite a package for the money.
The range starts with 1.6-litre petrol VT at £11,385, rising to £15,065 for the range-topping XTR 1.6HDi.
FAST FACTS
Citroen Berlingo Multispace 1.6 HDi VTR 7-seat
Price: £12,815
Mechanical: 90bhp, 1,560cc, 4cyl diesel engine driving front wheels via 5-speed manual gearbox
Max speed: 99mph
0-62mph: 15.3 seconds
Combined mpg: 47.9
Insurance group: 4
CO2 emissions: 154g/km
BiK rating: 21%
Warranty: 3yrs/ 60,000 miles