advice needed

hi all i need some advice I'm looking to buy a ulysse and took one out for a test drive it was a p reg 2.0 petrol,i have never driven one if these before and found that the clutch was really quite stiff i said about this to the sales man and he said it was like because it was a fiat, is this true? and what do i need to look out for when buying one of these cars as i was stung big time when i bought my last mpv which was a Toyota lucida your advice would be much appreciated