Back in 2002 when I first moved to Peterborough I had no idea where I wanted to work or what direction I wanted to take. A chance meeting at a recruitment agency found me working at Sycamore BMW in Peterborough for a few very happy years. I had never considered working in a Motor Dealers but straight away I felt at home, the Sycamore team welcomed me in and soon came to feel like family. Testament to that is that I can still go in there 2, 5 or even 10 years after I have left and although the showroom has changed the team are still there and still welcome me with a big squeeze. Sycamore are the same with their customers too which is why they keep going back year on year to update their cars and their client base continues to grow.
So when I was contacted by them a few weeks ago to see if I would be interested in putting one of their latest models through its’ paces I was delighted to say yes. Being a family of 5/6 they asked if I would like to try their 7 seater family car. Wracking my brains I could only assume that they meant a 7 seater X5 but I was wrong, I hadn’t realised that in September 2015 BMW released the 2 Series Gran Tourer to rival the Vauxhall Zafira Tourer, the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso, Ford Grand C-Max, Volkswagen Touran, Toyota Verso and the Kia Carens.
So yesterday, this beauty of a car was delivered to my house ready for us take on some new adventures. I have been reading up on the literature and have been impressed with how it all looks on paper. Just check out the comparison table I have compiled below. You’ve got to admit it looks good but of course it’s all in the drive and usability as a family. I have a few ideas up my sleeve about how I would like to test the Gran Tourer but if there is anything in particular you would like me to try then please drop me a note in the comments and I shall see what I can come up with.
Compare the Competition
| OTR Price | 36 Monthly
Payments |
With 2nd and 3rd rows upright | With 3rd row folded away (to parcel shelf) | With all seats folded away (2nd and 3rd rows folded to roof) | |
| BMW 2GT | £27,940 | £393 | 160 ltrs | 720 ltrs | 1,820 ltrs |
| Ford G C-Max | £25,285 | £409.55 | 88 ltrs | 728 ltrs | 1,715 ltrs |
| Citroen C4 GP | £24,149 | £326 | 165 ltrs | 537 ltrs | 1,,851 ltrs |
| VW Touran | £28,530 | £394 | 137 ltrs | 743 ltrs | 1,857 ltrs |
| Vauxhall ZT | £23,940 | £448 | 152 ltrs | 710 ltrs | 1,860 ltrs |
Standard Specification
The figures above are all based on the base model of each brand, obviously you can add options and increase specification if you want something a little more but with that comes an increase in price across the board.
The 2 Series Gran Tourer comes with Navigation, Automatic Tailgate and the option of Four-wheel drive technology as standard which none of their competitors offer on their base models. Very few of the competitors offer safety features such as the BMW Active Guard which reduces the likelihood of a front-end collision, BMW Emergency Call or BMW Online. Now I don’t know about you, but when I am transporting my family I want them to be as safe as they can possibly be.
I shall be back to tell you more once I have got behind the wheel and travelled enough miles to tell you all about it!
Very nice, I love the colour. I’m sorry i’m not much of a car person but it look really nice. xx
Haha not everyone can be into cars. This colour is called estoril blue, it’s one of my favourites x
7 seater sounds useful so the grandparents can join in family fun too xx
Exactly, perfect for large families, grandparents and friends. It’s better to be sociable 🙂
We have to use a 7 seater being a 6 person family, we currently have a zafira but this looks fab, wish we could afford one!
Check out the prices, it’s cheaper to buy a new one of these on PCP than a new Zafira by £80 a month!! How cool is that?! X
Look forward to hearing more about – it certainly sounds like it might be great for family adventures!
Thank you, we are looking forward to some adventures!!
When we we looking for a 7 seater we checked our BMW and couldn’t find that they actually did one. This looks lovely and I look forward to seeing how you get on with it
What a lovely car and so spacious too. Great for a large family.
She’s a beauty isn’t she. We took her out this afternoon, just a trip to the shops but the Beans loved it. Especially Jelly Bean who had a table to play with his toys on. I kept finding little pockets and buttons each time I looked around, it’s fab!
I love the colour – my Dad works for Mini/BMW and I am always happy when it brings different cars home!
I have to admit, I do miss working in the motor trade, I used to love driving all the different cars. Definitely a perk of the job x
Ooh it looks a beast!! I love the colour too, rarely see this colour nowadays!
Ooh do you think so? I think it looks quite small but I do drive an 8 seater van so anything looks small in comparison. It’s a beautiful colour, really eye-catching and makes the car look sporty. I love it!
I don’t know much about cars and usually like them based on colour lol x
Haha fair enough, I’m a little bit the same with beauty products but I’m getting there 😉 x
Firstly how can it be 14 years since you moved?! It feels like yesterday we were out for your leaving meal!
I had never considered BMW before I didn’t realise they did big family cars like this. As ours are all getting bigger we will need something larger soon so will be interested to see how you get on with it!
I know, scary where the time goes isn’t it!
This is the thing, the Gran Tourer has been on the market since September but people just don’t think of BMW as being a ‘family car’ brand but this is a perfect car for families, especially ones who want to keep their family safe.
It sounds like a great option for a family car. Can’t wait to read more about how you get on with it
It really is, I am loving driving it and the children love getting out and about in it too.
Wow thats a lovely car! i didn’t know they did a 7 seater to be honest x x
Beautiful isn’t it. The Gran Tourer has only been out since September, I have to admit it totally slipped under my radar too but I’m so grateful to be offered this opportunity as it’s perfect for families and a true BMW to drive. I hadn’t realised how much I missed sitting behind the wheel of one xx
Wow, I love the look of this. Looking forward to hearing about it.
She’s a beauty isn’t she! Hubby and I are already arguing over who gets to drive!