2002 Ford Galaxy Zetec review from UK and Ireland

Air-con never worked very well. It cools, but only just. In hot weather, 28C or above, it struggles to keep the interior pleasantly cool.

Heater direction controls failed at 40000.

Headlight height adjusting motor failed at 30000.

Eats front tyres (7000 miles per set on average, although this particular car is driven very hard)

Front brake pads rarely last between service intervals.

A nice car, pleasantly relaxed on motorways, surprisingly agile on twisty roads considering it's an MPV. Superb brakes, although will fade if really pushed; heated front screen a real bonus in winter.

Auto gearbox hunts a bit and is slow when driven in full auto mode, but in semi-auto it makes the car fun to drive so long as it's revved hard. The 2.3 engine has little pull below 4000 revs, but once above that pushes this heavy car along at a surprising speed, although the 4 speed box really needs another ratio to cover the big hole between 1st and 2nd.

The downside is its heavy fuel consumption, rarely over 22mpg. A 2200 mile motorway journey through Europe returned an average of 25mpg - admittedly mostly at 100-110mph, but even at 80mph it only improves to around 27mpg.

Its biggest failing is its terribly uncomfortable and unsupportive seats. Every single passenger who's ever been in the car for more than 30 minutes has complained that they need to hold on to support themselves. A real let down, probably only acceptable to those who'll potter along motorways and drive very slowly elsewhere.

If you'd prefer a Ferrari, but need an MPV and can cope with its terrible fuel consumption, a 2.3 Galaxy may well pleasantly surprise you. Mine's been driven fast and hard, and whilst clearly not close to being a sporting drive, is a fun, well balanced car, that doesn't suffer the horrible and sloppy understeer of some of its rivals.