Review of the new Mitsubishi Grandis - Business User's View

Life as a rep isn't so bad these days. The quality of the Little Chefs is better. There's the Birmingham Toll Road to make cross-country commuting more bearable. And the standard of the kind of medium range motor the fleet manager's likely to give you for the journey has changed beyond recognition.

Think back ten years - then ten years before that. Motorway marathons were things you psyched yourself up for with a stock of Mars bars and a few bottles of Red Bull. No longer. At the wheel of a car like our long term Mitsubishi Grandis, you've the kind of luxury normally reserved for the Chairman.

Of course it helps that our long term car is a Warrior model equipped with all the bells and whistles that you might not bother with if you, rather than your company, were paying the ownership cheque. Having said that, even the most basic medium range family car these days comes with things like air conditioning, front and side airbags and a decent stereo. To these things, our Grandis test car added satellite navigation, leather trim and electric almost everything. It's well equipped, as we said. As for the price, well the DI-D diesel version we have lists from £23,116 but you can buy Grandis models from around the £19,500 mark - or less if you opt for the petrol variant.

For business buyers of course, these figures are often only the starting point for negotiation with some mainstream brands. The Grandis however, is universally recognised as a car sitting at or near the top of its sector. No other large MPV model handles better and in terms of running costs, the car is exactly where it needs to be. The 162bhp 2.4-litre diesel unit manages a top end of 121mph and it dispatches the benchmark sprint in a sprightly 10.8 sec. Fuel consumption? Well in this variant, you should average just under 45mpg on a regular basis. Resale values can't quite compete with those of the German marques (though they're not far off).

"To overlook the Grandis in this sector would be a mistake. Any business traveller who's tried one will tell you that..."

The ride and handling are better than any previous mid range Mitsubishi model. Just when you think the ride has been optimised for high-speed cruising, the Mitsubishi's suspension shows that it knows what to do when presented with a corner. It deploys its power noticeably better than MPVs of yore as well. Despite being fitted with traction control electronics as well as a standard stability control system, the Grandis is rarely forced to fall back on their safety net. At speed, you get some tyre noise but surprisingly little wind or engine roar.

The 2.0-litre DI-D engine is a turbocharged DOHC 16-valve unit of the direct injection configuration. Its 134bhp output is generated at 4,000rpm and there's a sizable 310Nm of torque available at 1,750rpm. Mitsubishi actually sourced the unit from Volkswagen and with it installed, the Grandis takes on a healthy turn of speed. Full size 7-seat MPVs that can hit 60mph from a standing start in 10.8s are rare indeed and the 121mph top speed will be more than adequate. Of course, it's economy rather than performance that drives buyers in this sector and returning an average of 43mpg, Grandis DI-D is well capable of wrestling sales from rivals. You will pay around £1,200 more for a DI-D than you would for the equivalent petrol Grandis but the superior economy and punchy engine characteristics make this look like good business.

Let's try to get a handle on the Grandis' dimensions. At 4755mm long, it's a good 10cm longer than a Ford Galaxy. It's also a good deal narrower, its wasp-waisted 1795mm width making it less broad in the beam than a Ford Fiesta. That swooping roofline also means that it's low slung, never reaching more than 1655mm off the deck, making it low for an MPV. That's about 14cm lower than a Toyota Previa. If headroom in your garage is an issue but you need seven seats, the Grandis is an interesting option.

The Mitsubishi certainly scores over rivals in terms of sheer space available inside and by the innovative nature of its seating arrangements. The car's 'Hide & Seat' concept involves a rear row of seats that can be individually folded away into the floor in a simple operation that takes seconds. No longer will you have to fold and tumble seats, leaving ugly, greasy mechanisms exposed, nor will you need to risk a herniated disc by lugging these bulky units into the garage only for the cat to spend a penny on them whilst you're out.

With the second and third row of seats folded in place, there's 1545 litres of cargo capacity available. Park it in a salubrious inner city neighbourhood and you could almost rent it out as a studio flat. The third row of seats isn't just a crude bench as in most vehicles of this ilk. Both seats can be reversed to provide a rear facing vantage point - ideal when viewing an outdoor event as the rear tailgate provides an excellent rain shelter. What's more, both these seats can be individually reclined for additional comfort.

In a market sector dominated these days by excellence, it's easy for motoring journalists and Fleet Managers alike to take the Grandis' talents for granted. Even to overlook the car in conversations dominated by cars like the Ford S-MAX, Volkswagen Touran and Mazda5. That would be a mistake. Any business traveller who's tried one will tell you that.