Best 7-seater 4x4s
High-quality 7-seater 4x4 cars from rated and reviewed dealers
Last updated October 01, 2025 by
Neil Briscoe
Let’s say you want to head off for a nice picnic in the country. Let’s further say that you want to head off for a nice picnic in the country with six of your friends. You’re therefore going to need a car which can carry seven people, but which has a four-wheel drive system capable of hauling you up muddy lanes and across the occasional damp field or sandy beach.
Or perhaps, and maybe a bit more realistically, you just want some extra seats so that your kids’ friends can nab a lift when they need one, and there’s room for the dog too, and you either live in part of the country which gets lots of snow, or you like the security of having extra four-wheel drive traction on wet and slippery roads.
Whatever your specific needs, we’ve lined up the ten best seven-seat cars with four-wheel drive here, from the Hyundai Santa Fe to the mighty Land Rover Defender, to the entirely van-shaped Volkswagen Multivan.
Carwow puts every new car on sale in the UK through a thorough test before we make our recommendations, checking everything from how much room there is in each seat, to how big the boot is, to how well each car copes in a variety of conditions, on road and on track. Have a look here to find out more about how we carry out our rigorous tests.
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2025
Car of the Year Award
1. Hyundai Santa Fe
Hyundai Santa Fe review
Best for: all-round excellence
The Hyundai Santa Fe is such a good car that we at Carwow didn’t just give it one award, we gave it two — the Santa Fe took home both the Car of the Year and the Family Values Award in the 2025 Carwow Car of the Year Awards. That’s some haul of silverware.
Little wonder, though. The Santa Fe is a great looking car for starters, with a blocky almost Lego-like-look that has genuine character amid a sea of samey-samey SUVs. From the H-shaped lights front and rear to the useful grab-handle in the back pillar — so that you can easily pull yourself up to access a roof box or roof rack — the Santa Fe bristles with design that’s desirable and sensible at the same time.
Inside, it’s the quality that gets you. The big, curved dashboard screens we’ve seen in other Hyundais, and they work as well here as in those other cars. It really helps that Hyundai sticks with physical buttons for major functions — air conditioning, stereo volume, door mirror adjustment etc — rather than just chucking everything on the screen. The chunky three-spoke steering wheel is as good to hold as it is to look at, there’s lots of storage space, and even a UV-light that disinfects your phone as you drive.
In the back seats, there’s a flat floor and space for three adults with plenty of legroom and headroom, but of course the reason that the Santa Fe tops this particular list is that it comes with both four-wheel drive, and the extra seats in the boot to turn it into a seven seater. Those extra seats are on the small side, and adults will only just fit, but they’re ideal for kids, and there are air conditioning controls and USB sockets back there too.
Although the Santa Fe does have four-wheel drive, and it looks a bit like a Land Rover, it’s not really a proper off-roader, so don’t go trying to climb too many mountains in one. However, it’s good for bumpy forest roads, or the occasional lumpy field, so you and your six friends shouldn’t get stuck.
The Hyundai Santa Fe is such a good car that we at Carwow didn’t just give it one award, we gave it two — the Santa Fe took home both the Car of the Year and the Family Values Award in the 2025 Carwow Car of the Year Awards. That’s some haul of silverware.
Little wonder, though. The Santa Fe is a great looking car for starters, with a blocky almost Lego-like-look that has genuine character amid a sea of samey-samey SUVs. From the H-shaped lights front and rear to the useful grab-handle in the back pillar — so that you can easily pull yourself up to access a roof box or roof rack — the Santa Fe bristles with design that’s desirable and sensible at the same time.
Inside, it’s the quality that gets you. The big, curved dashboard screens we’ve seen in other Hyundais, and they work as well here as in those other cars. It really helps that Hyundai sticks with physical buttons for major functions — air conditioning, stereo volume, door mirror adjustment etc — rather than just chucking everything on the screen. The chunky three-spoke steering wheel is as good to hold as it is to look at, there’s lots of storage space, and even a UV-light that disinfects your phone as you drive.
In the back seats, there’s a flat floor and space for three adults with plenty of legroom and headroom, but of course the reason that the Santa Fe tops this particular list is that it comes with both four-wheel drive, and the extra seats in the boot to turn it into a seven seater. Those extra seats are on the small side, and adults will only just fit, but they’re ideal for kids, and there are air conditioning controls and USB sockets back there too.
Although the Santa Fe does have four-wheel drive, and it looks a bit like a Land Rover, it’s not really a proper off-roader, so don’t go trying to climb too many mountains in one. However, it’s good for bumpy forest roads, or the occasional lumpy field, so you and your six friends shouldn’t get stuck.
2. Land Rover Defender
Land Rover Defender 110 review
Best for: Serious off-roading
The Land Rover Defender is the seven-seat 4x4 car that you buy when the emphasis is very heavily on the 4x4 bit. There are few other vehicles that can get into and out of mucky, rocky, dusty, snowy situations with quite the aplomb of the Defender, and the fact that it can do so while carrying seven people in reasonable comfort (or even eight people if you get the longer Defender 130) is just the icing on the cake for our purposes here.
The Defender is a crafty bit of design, with a very modern shape, with clever little nods to classic Defender and Series Land Rover products stretching all the way back to 1948.
Inside, it manages to be stylish while also being a bit mil-spec, with hard-wearing powder coatings for the dashboard, more USB sockets than you can shake a phone at, and hugely comfortable seats front and rear. The third row seats in the boot are a bit on the small side though, if you’re looking at the 110 model, so definitely consider that bigger 130 version if you’re planning to regularly drive with every seat occupied.
If you want the P400e plug-in hybrid version, you can’t have seven seats as the battery takes up space in the boot where the folded third row would go, but you can specify it with a ‘jump’ seat in the middle of the front, which is wide enough for a child (or a very skinny friend) to sit in.
The Defender is really lovely to drive too, with surprisingly accurate steering, and a sense of loping refinement from that long-travel air suspension that makes long journeys truly relaxing. It’s - obviously - no sports car in corners, but it actually handles much better than you’d think. Not great around town, though, where its bulk counts against it, and Land Rover reliability is always a concern.
The Land Rover Defender is the seven-seat 4x4 car that you buy when the emphasis is very heavily on the 4x4 bit. There are few other vehicles that can get into and out of mucky, rocky, dusty, snowy situations with quite the aplomb of the Defender, and the fact that it can do so while carrying seven people in reasonable comfort (or even eight people if you get the longer Defender 130) is just the icing on the cake for our purposes here.
The Defender is a crafty bit of design, with a very modern shape, with clever little nods to classic Defender and Series Land Rover products stretching all the way back to 1948.
Inside, it manages to be stylish while also being a bit mil-spec, with hard-wearing powder coatings for the dashboard, more USB sockets than you can shake a phone at, and hugely comfortable seats front and rear. The third row seats in the boot are a bit on the small side though, if you’re looking at the 110 model, so definitely consider that bigger 130 version if you’re planning to regularly drive with every seat occupied.
If you want the P400e plug-in hybrid version, you can’t have seven seats as the battery takes up space in the boot where the folded third row would go, but you can specify it with a ‘jump’ seat in the middle of the front, which is wide enough for a child (or a very skinny friend) to sit in.
The Defender is really lovely to drive too, with surprisingly accurate steering, and a sense of loping refinement from that long-travel air suspension that makes long journeys truly relaxing. It’s - obviously - no sports car in corners, but it actually handles much better than you’d think. Not great around town, though, where its bulk counts against it, and Land Rover reliability is always a concern.
Best for: Futuristic styling
The Kia EV9 is a great-looking car. That’s not why it’s here, of course. It’s on this list because it mixes a super-spacious seven-seat layout with electric four-wheel drive, but we’ll come back to that in a moment. For now, drink in the way it looks, as the EV9 takes the chunky, blocky styling that doesn’t quite work on the compact EV3, but which works brilliantly when you scale it all up to the Range-Rover-lie proportions we have here. It’s one part Blade Runner to two parts Futurama, and that big clamshell nose opens up to reveal a usefully big ‘froot’ storage area under the bonnet.
The cabin is a bit of a star too, with terrific quality and lots of space although adding an extra little climate control panel to the big sweeping touchscreen hasn’t worked all that well, as it gets hidden behind the steering wheel. The EV6 does that bit better.
There’s loads of room in the EV9 though, and you can actually have it in a ‘club class’ six seat layout with two individual rear seats in the middle row. This list is all about seven-seaters though, so we’ll stick with the three-seat middle row, although the middle seat feels a bit high, hard, and perched up.
As with most SUVs, the third row seats are really aimed at kids, but there’s enough room back there for tall adults to get pretty comfy, so this really is a full-on seven seater. Going for the four-wheel drive option means you get two electric motors and a decent 387hp power output. That does trim your electric range to 313 miles officially, and more like 250 miles realistically, but that’s not bad for such a big, heavy car.
The EV9 is pretty big and bulky to drive around town, although the handy surround-view cameras help, but it’s surprisingly deft on a twisty road — not exactly sporty, but more up on its toes than you might expect.
The Kia EV9 is a great-looking car. That’s not why it’s here, of course. It’s on this list because it mixes a super-spacious seven-seat layout with electric four-wheel drive, but we’ll come back to that in a moment. For now, drink in the way it looks, as the EV9 takes the chunky, blocky styling that doesn’t quite work on the compact EV3, but which works brilliantly when you scale it all up to the Range-Rover-lie proportions we have here. It’s one part Blade Runner to two parts Futurama, and that big clamshell nose opens up to reveal a usefully big ‘froot’ storage area under the bonnet.
The cabin is a bit of a star too, with terrific quality and lots of space although adding an extra little climate control panel to the big sweeping touchscreen hasn’t worked all that well, as it gets hidden behind the steering wheel. The EV6 does that bit better.
There’s loads of room in the EV9 though, and you can actually have it in a ‘club class’ six seat layout with two individual rear seats in the middle row. This list is all about seven-seaters though, so we’ll stick with the three-seat middle row, although the middle seat feels a bit high, hard, and perched up.
As with most SUVs, the third row seats are really aimed at kids, but there’s enough room back there for tall adults to get pretty comfy, so this really is a full-on seven seater. Going for the four-wheel drive option means you get two electric motors and a decent 387hp power output. That does trim your electric range to 313 miles officially, and more like 250 miles realistically, but that’s not bad for such a big, heavy car.
The EV9 is pretty big and bulky to drive around town, although the handy surround-view cameras help, but it’s surprisingly deft on a twisty road — not exactly sporty, but more up on its toes than you might expect.
4. BMW X7
BMW X7 review
Best for: Maximum bigness
The BMW X7 is big. In fairness, it’s actually not really any larger than a Land Rover Defender or a Range Rover, but it just looks bigger. It hulks. If you park an X7 behind a smaller car, the BMW completely surrounds it. The styling does some of the bigness heavy lifting, with that glowering visage where the slim LED lights do a good impression of a bouncer looking, unconvinced, at your ID.
Big enough to make a Range Rover flinch, then, and also big enough to fit seven people in proper comfort. There’s acres of legroom in the middle row, and slightly tight headroom is the only real limitation for the third row if you’re trying to fit full-sized adults in. As befits the X7’s image and price tag, those extra seat are electrically-powered, so they whirr up and down at the press of a button. Fold them down and you have a massive 750 litre boot. You can also have a more luxurious six-seat layout with two individual rear seats.
The X7 feels like a proper BMW to drive too, in spite of its bulk. Air suspension helps, and you’re never unaware of the height and weight, but this is a seriously good way to cross country, seven-up, and with four-wheel drive for all models as standard, you’ll feel happy doing so even in the foulest weather.
The BMW X7 is big. In fairness, it’s actually not really any larger than a Land Rover Defender or a Range Rover, but it just looks bigger. It hulks. If you park an X7 behind a smaller car, the BMW completely surrounds it. The styling does some of the bigness heavy lifting, with that glowering visage where the slim LED lights do a good impression of a bouncer looking, unconvinced, at your ID.
Big enough to make a Range Rover flinch, then, and also big enough to fit seven people in proper comfort. There’s acres of legroom in the middle row, and slightly tight headroom is the only real limitation for the third row if you’re trying to fit full-sized adults in. As befits the X7’s image and price tag, those extra seat are electrically-powered, so they whirr up and down at the press of a button. Fold them down and you have a massive 750 litre boot. You can also have a more luxurious six-seat layout with two individual rear seats.
The X7 feels like a proper BMW to drive too, in spite of its bulk. Air suspension helps, and you’re never unaware of the height and weight, but this is a seriously good way to cross country, seven-up, and with four-wheel drive for all models as standard, you’ll feel happy doing so even in the foulest weather.
5. Range Rover
Range Rover review
Best for: Impersonating royalty
The original Range Rover started out in 1970 as a car that farmers could use for hard work during the week, and then hose the mud off so they could head out for a nice dinner at weekends. A neat idea, but almost as soon as the first one rolled out of a Land Rover dealer, the higher echelons of society cottoned onto the Rangie’s potential as a symbol of wealth and substance.
Now, the Range Rover — and you need a big long-wheelbase model if you want to have seven seats — is posh enough to do battle with a Rolls-Royce Cullinan or a Bentley Bentayga. In fact, those cars were actually created to take on the Range Rover on its posh 4x4 patch, and even then the Range Rover is still the cooler vehicle. It looks great, and nothing this side of a Rolls Phantom wafts quite so comfortably about. It makes this list because… well, because no big 4x4 list would be complete without a Range Rover.
The plug-in hybrid engines do a good job of giving you some useful electric driving range with decent long-run fuel economy, but we miss the handy rotary switches that Land Rover has now binned in favour of all-screen controls (boo!). Mind you, if you’re properly posh you’ll be able to afford the fuel bills of the fabulous V8 turbo version, which is the true successor to that 1970 original. Just watch the reliability…
The original Range Rover started out in 1970 as a car that farmers could use for hard work during the week, and then hose the mud off so they could head out for a nice dinner at weekends. A neat idea, but almost as soon as the first one rolled out of a Land Rover dealer, the higher echelons of society cottoned onto the Rangie’s potential as a symbol of wealth and substance.
Now, the Range Rover — and you need a big long-wheelbase model if you want to have seven seats — is posh enough to do battle with a Rolls-Royce Cullinan or a Bentley Bentayga. In fact, those cars were actually created to take on the Range Rover on its posh 4x4 patch, and even then the Range Rover is still the cooler vehicle. It looks great, and nothing this side of a Rolls Phantom wafts quite so comfortably about. It makes this list because… well, because no big 4x4 list would be complete without a Range Rover.
The plug-in hybrid engines do a good job of giving you some useful electric driving range with decent long-run fuel economy, but we miss the handy rotary switches that Land Rover has now binned in favour of all-screen controls (boo!). Mind you, if you’re properly posh you’ll be able to afford the fuel bills of the fabulous V8 turbo version, which is the true successor to that 1970 original. Just watch the reliability…
2025
Adventurer's Choice Award
Highly Commended
6. Toyota Land Cruiser
Toyota Land Cruiser review
Best for: Surviving anything you throw at it
Here’s a handy tip if you want to avoid parking fines. Just get a new Toyota Land Cruiser, paint it white, and apply some big, black ‘UN’ letters on the side. Honestly, no-one will question you double-parking outside the Post Office ever again…
OK, that’s maybe not strictly legal, but it gives you a bit of insight to the Land Cruiser’s character. The look of this latest generation is the best yet, with some nice retro nods to Land Cruisers of yore (especially seventies and eighties versions) but underneath the ‘Cruiser is the same it’s always been - a massive, hefty, ladder-frame chassis, four wheel drive, and a 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel engine up front which is legendary for its reliability.
This version gets clever detaching anti-roll bars which allow more suspension travel for serious off-roading, but which keep the ‘Cruiser feeling tidy enough through the corners.
It’s not the smoothest thing to drive, and the cabin looks a touch cheap for a car this size. Oh, and the third row seats are pretty tight, but the Land Cruiser makes this list because if you need to carry seven people through some of the world’s most inhospitable environments - the Kalahari, the Darien Gap, central Birmingham on a Friday night - this is the utterly indestructible car for you.
Here’s a handy tip if you want to avoid parking fines. Just get a new Toyota Land Cruiser, paint it white, and apply some big, black ‘UN’ letters on the side. Honestly, no-one will question you double-parking outside the Post Office ever again…
OK, that’s maybe not strictly legal, but it gives you a bit of insight to the Land Cruiser’s character. The look of this latest generation is the best yet, with some nice retro nods to Land Cruisers of yore (especially seventies and eighties versions) but underneath the ‘Cruiser is the same it’s always been - a massive, hefty, ladder-frame chassis, four wheel drive, and a 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel engine up front which is legendary for its reliability.
This version gets clever detaching anti-roll bars which allow more suspension travel for serious off-roading, but which keep the ‘Cruiser feeling tidy enough through the corners.
It’s not the smoothest thing to drive, and the cabin looks a touch cheap for a car this size. Oh, and the third row seats are pretty tight, but the Land Cruiser makes this list because if you need to carry seven people through some of the world’s most inhospitable environments - the Kalahari, the Darien Gap, central Birmingham on a Friday night - this is the utterly indestructible car for you.
2025
Adventurer's Choice Award
Highly Commended
7. Skoda Kodiaq
Skoda Kodiaq review
The Skoda Kodiaq is on this list because it’s basically the ultimate family SUV. That Skoda badge makes sure that the price doesn’t get totally out of control — although it’s not exactly what you’d call cheap anymore — and it also means that you get all the usual handy Skoda touches such as umbrellas in the doors and an ice-scraper in the fuel flap for cold mornings.
Skoda’s also always been big on bigness, at least as far as interiors go and the Kodiaq is no exception. There’s stretch-out space in the back seats, and loads of room, comfort, and storage space up front. The only slight let-down is that the third row of seats is really a kiddies-only area, as it’s just too tight for teens and adults.
Still, you get a massive boot if you fold those seats down, although it’s a shame you can’t have seven seats and the excellent plug-in hybrid engine option, as the battery for that takes up too much space.
The Kodiaq is easy-going and comfortable to drive, and the diesel engines are frugal, but there’s a slight sense that the quality of the cabin isn’t as rock-solid as that of the old Kodiaq, and it’s too easy to bump up the price to very un-Skoda levels if you start adding options.
Skoda’s also always been big on bigness, at least as far as interiors go and the Kodiaq is no exception. There’s stretch-out space in the back seats, and loads of room, comfort, and storage space up front. The only slight let-down is that the third row of seats is really a kiddies-only area, as it’s just too tight for teens and adults.
Still, you get a massive boot if you fold those seats down, although it’s a shame you can’t have seven seats and the excellent plug-in hybrid engine option, as the battery for that takes up too much space.
The Kodiaq is easy-going and comfortable to drive, and the diesel engines are frugal, but there’s a slight sense that the quality of the cabin isn’t as rock-solid as that of the old Kodiaq, and it’s too easy to bump up the price to very un-Skoda levels if you start adding options.
8. Volkswagen Multivan
Volkswagen Multivan review
Best for: When you actually need space
Every other car on this list is an SUV, and that’s not really a good thing. SUVs are fine and all, and people really seem to love them at the moment, but with their long bonnets and lofty ride-heights, they have to make loads of compromises when it comes to fitting seven seats inside. That’s why we so often have to note that the third row seats are only for kids.
Not so with the VW Multivan, which as you’ve probably noticed, is a van. Actually it’s not. Mechanically speaking it’s a tall Passat, but it looks like the perfect middle ground between the electric ID. Buzz and the actually-a-van Transporter in that its slab-sided, but not without character.
Inside is the real treat, though. Not only do you get seven proper, comfortable seats for seven fully-sized adults, the five seats in the back can be lifted out (if you want to actually use the Multivan as a van) or spun around so that you have two seats facing the other three.
The Multivan is a bit van-like to drive, but it’s not bad, and actually pretty refined. The optional four-wheel drive certainly gives you more traction when dealing with poor roads or a trip to the beach. It’s probably the most sensible all round car here, but it’s not cheap.
Every other car on this list is an SUV, and that’s not really a good thing. SUVs are fine and all, and people really seem to love them at the moment, but with their long bonnets and lofty ride-heights, they have to make loads of compromises when it comes to fitting seven seats inside. That’s why we so often have to note that the third row seats are only for kids.
Not so with the VW Multivan, which as you’ve probably noticed, is a van. Actually it’s not. Mechanically speaking it’s a tall Passat, but it looks like the perfect middle ground between the electric ID. Buzz and the actually-a-van Transporter in that its slab-sided, but not without character.
Inside is the real treat, though. Not only do you get seven proper, comfortable seats for seven fully-sized adults, the five seats in the back can be lifted out (if you want to actually use the Multivan as a van) or spun around so that you have two seats facing the other three.
The Multivan is a bit van-like to drive, but it’s not bad, and actually pretty refined. The optional four-wheel drive certainly gives you more traction when dealing with poor roads or a trip to the beach. It’s probably the most sensible all round car here, but it’s not cheap.
9. Audi Q7
Audi Q7 review
Battery range up to 34 miles
Best for: Under-the-radar poshness
Audi’s Q7 is a big and chunky car, but amid a sea of equally big and chunky fellow SUVs, these days it doesn’t seem quite so massive as it once did. It also has rather subtle styling, almost demure when you compare it to the likes of a BMW X7. Yet it’s still an Audi, with all of the posh badge appeal that implies, so the Q7 makes this list because it’s a properly posh, premium seven-seat 4x4 that allows you to pass relatively unnoticed when you want to. Subtlety has an appeal all of its own.
Equally appealing is the Q7’s cabin, which is starting to look a bit old now, but which is also fantastically well-made and supremely comfortable, certainly up front. There’s copious space in the middle row too, although the centre seat isn’t going to be much use much of the time. Third row space isn’t quite generous, but it’s enough for an adult to squeeze in, although this is another big SUV that, annoyingly, won’t let you mix plug-in hybrid power with seven seats.
What’s possibly surprising is just how good the Audi Q7 is to drive, even without going for the sporty V8 SQ7. It’s big and heavy, but feels more alert and agile in corners than you might expect.
Audi’s Q7 is a big and chunky car, but amid a sea of equally big and chunky fellow SUVs, these days it doesn’t seem quite so massive as it once did. It also has rather subtle styling, almost demure when you compare it to the likes of a BMW X7. Yet it’s still an Audi, with all of the posh badge appeal that implies, so the Q7 makes this list because it’s a properly posh, premium seven-seat 4x4 that allows you to pass relatively unnoticed when you want to. Subtlety has an appeal all of its own.
Equally appealing is the Q7’s cabin, which is starting to look a bit old now, but which is also fantastically well-made and supremely comfortable, certainly up front. There’s copious space in the middle row too, although the centre seat isn’t going to be much use much of the time. Third row space isn’t quite generous, but it’s enough for an adult to squeeze in, although this is another big SUV that, annoyingly, won’t let you mix plug-in hybrid power with seven seats.
What’s possibly surprising is just how good the Audi Q7 is to drive, even without going for the sporty V8 SQ7. It’s big and heavy, but feels more alert and agile in corners than you might expect.
10. Mazda CX-80
Mazda CX-80 review
Japanese quality
Mazda makes a lot of noise about its cars being made in Japan, with proper Japanese quality and that’s not entirely marketing puff - the big CX-80 certainly has a high-quality cabin, and as long as you go for the dark leather option, it also looks really classy. Avoid the pale leather and wood combo, though - it looks like the bathroom in a Las Vegas casino.
Space inside the CX-80 is good, and like the posh BMW X7, Range Rover, andthe Kia EV9, you can have it with a club-class six-seat layout. Space in row three is more adequate than generous, but it’s enough.
The best engine option is the smooth and exceptionally efficient 3.3-litre diesel straight-six, but at last here’s a 4x4 seven-seater that allows you to have all the seats and plug-in hybrid power. The CX-80 is a slight let down, though, in that while it has the usual Mazda sweet steering balance, it thumps and clanks over bumps, which makes it feel rather less sophisticated.
Still, in terms of reliability it’s going to be tough to beat, and it’s pretty handsome on the outside too, with the extra length in the bodywork making it looks better balanced than the closely-related CX-60.
Mazda makes a lot of noise about its cars being made in Japan, with proper Japanese quality and that’s not entirely marketing puff - the big CX-80 certainly has a high-quality cabin, and as long as you go for the dark leather option, it also looks really classy. Avoid the pale leather and wood combo, though - it looks like the bathroom in a Las Vegas casino.
Space inside the CX-80 is good, and like the posh BMW X7, Range Rover, andthe Kia EV9, you can have it with a club-class six-seat layout. Space in row three is more adequate than generous, but it’s enough.
The best engine option is the smooth and exceptionally efficient 3.3-litre diesel straight-six, but at last here’s a 4x4 seven-seater that allows you to have all the seats and plug-in hybrid power. The CX-80 is a slight let down, though, in that while it has the usual Mazda sweet steering balance, it thumps and clanks over bumps, which makes it feel rather less sophisticated.
Still, in terms of reliability it’s going to be tough to beat, and it’s pretty handsome on the outside too, with the extra length in the bodywork making it looks better balanced than the closely-related CX-60.
What to consider when choosing a 4x4 seven seater
The first thing you need to consider when choosing a seven-seat car with four-wheel drive is how much you really need the extra set of driven wheels. Very few people actually put four-wheel drive to proper use, and although the penalty in terms of efficiency isn’t as harsh as it once was, you will still pay extra at the pump, or at the charging point, for having four-wheel drive.
Next, you need to consider exactly how much space you need, and what you’ll be using it for. If you actually need to carry seven full-sized adults on the regular, then your best bet is the Volkswagen Multivan, which is the only car here with an actual proper seat for all seven people. There are others - the BMW X7 and the Kia EV9 for instance - where adults can fit into the third row comfortably, but there’s always the person who has to draw the short straw and have the uncomfortable middle seat in the second row.
Finally, and most importantly, you need to work out your budget. While none of the cars on this list is exactly cheap, you will make considerable savings by choosing the Hyundai, Mazda, Volkswagen, or Skoda than you will if you’ve been tempted by the BMW, Audi, the surprisingly pricey Toyota, or one of the Land Rovers.
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