So I have my 2.4 Prestigio. I like sitting in it a lot. The boot is a let down compared to a Golf Estate! Power is, needing work. A merc 2.7 or 3.2 feels more solid and a bmw 335 will break tyres loose on the throttle. Still I guess it's only a 2.4 so to be expected.

My dilemma is this, I don't have leather/much kit (even the Hyundai I got for my mum has electrochromatic dipping rear view, my friends old Galaxy has heated front screen and folding mirrors, my old Octavia had full heated leather and xenons). So I can find an interior one day (I'd buy another and swap it over) but have yet to see one with the electric pack option and xenons. I can get an aftermarket double din satnav/dab and fit that. I can fit the larger turbo I have on the workbench and do like the alfa guys and make 300hp.

All this means spending a lot of time/money.

I'm tall and like the tall screen/headroom and big seats. I want a 5/6 cylinder engine with some punch and don't want 4x4 due to fuel economy and performance loss. Plus I can't fit in many, the high up floor plan makes them cramped. A ML270 I look after I can't sit in properly and neither can I see traffic lights out of a Tiguan. I can just about fit in a Q7 but you have to have your foot to the boards and the thing on two wheels to hussle it round town doing 10mpg, it's so heavy/big externally.

Can you guys think of anything else? I fix cars and drive them all day, but I can't think of much that can compete with that 10cm greater interior height. Should I pursue this project and turn it into the car I want, or should I find a later fully loaded one in Europe and convert it to RHD? (this is quite easy to do compared to some of the projects I do)

This is a bit of a 'pub' question but it's specific to those that have experience of the Croma's ability to move people in comfort including those that are very tall. I also like the ability to fold the passenger seat, put the blinds up, sit in the back feet out for an hour at the motorway services having a sleep on a very long trip! Not many cars you can do that in.

Comments please! Greg.

I don't know why anyone wants mega-power and/or sports car handling in a Croma. I don't know about anyone else's, but mine feels and sounds like it's falling apart if I throw it at a corner. It can't be just the suspension, it's the high centre of gravity and that tall body flexing.

If you find the 2.4 underpowered then there's probably no hope - you've got the wrong car!

But yes, you're right - if you're tall then there's nothing to compare with a Croma really. I had to drive a "normal" car recently, and had forgotten how bad it was - like I was curled up in a ball just to fit in the thing, with my neck bent back so I could see out and my hair rubbing on the roof lining. I guess most cars are designed for "average plus a bit" height, no problem if you're smaller, big problem if you're bigger. Plus everyone wants their hatchback to look like a coupe these days.

I've got a Prestigio too, and the folding front seat was the reason for buying it. I used it just last week, to get some lengths of wood in.

I'd say go for the customising. It sounds like you want to anyway - let us know what you're doing, it should be a great (if a bit mad) project. You certainly wouldn't get 300bhp off the shelf anyway, so you might as well.

Good luck - let us know what you end up doing!

I'm not really sure why I would need to have a poor handling/slower car just because I can fit in it, in the same vein as if I wanted a soft top sports car why shouldn't I want it to be economical and drive it steady (for example the TT convertible and such come with a economic 2.0tdi engine).

I don't think there is anything wrong with a drivers call also being spacious. My Volvo 3.0 24v that I put all IPD suspension and heavily uprated anti-roll bars on handled quite nicely and had a gem of an engine, some people said you shouldn't try cornering in an antique dealers car but again I don't see why the two are mutually exclusive.

As for 300hp, a bmw 535d or similar with it's 3.0 engine will happily chip for around £300 to 313hp/630Nm. Some variants in the X5 I have seen listed as 380hp.... We are still talking no hardware changes

I'm quite happy cruising around don't have to race. But when in a 5.0V8 or similar, it's nice when you overtake a truck on an A road to get pinned in your seat and pass it before you can count to 3 or stress that something is approaching from the other side, back in your lane ease off, speed coast down and carry on cruising. I don't see why I can't enjoy that an a nice seat ;-)

Anyhow I may have found something, but I think it's a bit bigger and most are 4x4, but some striking similarities....

http://www.wildingmotors.com/06r320cdise4x410450.htm

Take a look at those rear seats.... take the 3rd pair out and a HUGE boot, they even come with panoramic roof option like Croma and dvd system built into the headrests etc. It's supposed to be tall inside. I wish they did a 2wd version with the 2.7 I-5, that would be a closer rival to the Croma...
http://www.tuningkit.com/chiptuning/bmw/5er/f10/535d-230kw/index.php

Doofer said:

I don't know why anyone wants mega-power and/or sports car handling in a Croma. I don't know about anyone else's, but mine feels and sounds like it's falling apart if I throw it at a corner. It can't be just the suspension, it's the high centre of gravity and that tall body flexing.

If you find the 2.4 underpowered then there's probably no hope - you've got the wrong car!

But yes, you're right - if you're tall then there's nothing to compare with a Croma really. I had to drive a "normal" car recently, and had forgotten how bad it was - like I was curled up in a ball just to fit in the thing, with my neck bent back so I could see out and my hair rubbing on the roof lining. I guess most cars are designed for "average plus a bit" height, no problem if you're smaller, big problem if you're bigger. Plus everyone wants their hatchback to look like a coupe these days.

I've got a Prestigio too, and the folding front seat was the reason for buying it. I used it just last week, to get some lengths of wood in.

I'd say go for the customising. It sounds like you want to anyway - let us know what you're doing, it should be a great (if a bit mad) project. You certainly wouldn't get 300bhp off the shelf anyway, so you might as well.

Good luck - let us know what you end up doing!

Click to expand...

Just to add some insult, my Croma has now broken a front spring :-/ On top of needing front and back brakes, cambelt, couple of bad injectors, various bushes, track rod inner joints and turbo making not so nice noises, already had dpf delete and swirl flaps disabled as they were causing trouble and all the glow plugs replaced as some had failed... Oh the joys of buying a high mileage car (47k) lol

Have you seen an R class in person? I happened to see one a while ago and they are huuuuuuge - like a posh bus. I don't know how they compare on dimensions, but it must be a lot longer than a Croma.

But yes, probably not crap like a Croma. There again, you could buy 4 Cromas for that money and swap the bits about until you got one that worked!

Good point Doofer. It does look nice, but may be way too big. Especially if I get annoyed I can't throw stuff around the city in a hurry when I need to be somewhere 8 minutes ago. Will have to have a look at one though, just out of curiosity. Those seats do look nice inside....

Quite willing to have a go at making a nice Croma, apart from I have been trying for a year to buy one with a light leather interior, one with electric pack, one with xenons. Have seen two so far with leather, all manual, one sold before I could get to it and the other looked really badly worn after 90k and I turned it down even though only £2,000 in a half decent car....

Mine doesn't handle too bad but the Koni FSD standard height but superior self selectably adjusting dampers are amazing and available as they do them for this platform. That and bigger anti roll bars/poly bushes would sort it out, I did all that to my previous car and it would quite comfortably be all over any 3-series etc like a rash. It's amazing when you start putting really good quality stuff on and set it up nicely how it can feel like a totally different car. My last one went from understeer heavy to neutral and about 25% the body roll but still with a compliant ride!

Problem is I can't find any Croma's to take the bits off....

Doofer said:

Have you seen an R class in person? I happened to see one a while ago and they are huuuuuuge - like a posh bus. I don't know how they compare on dimensions, but it must be a lot longer than a Croma.

But yes, probably not crap like a Croma. There again, you could buy 4 Cromas for that money and swap the bits about until you got one that worked!

Click to expand...

I considered a R class Greg, but theres something about them that just isn't right, it's like a posh van, just not right!

Stick with pimping the Croma, sounds a great project. Any pics?

Guess you've seen this one? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-55-F...4727246?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2ec80c07ce

That ones got none of the extras Greg wants - and its been for sale for over a year (I was going to see it before I purchased my 2.4 a year ago today!).

I may know where there is some non-electric leather going.......

Yes I think I went to view that one, but got nothing on it really :-/ Maybe there is one or two out there fully loaded but where.... R class, van, I love vans?

Greg123 said:

Yes I think I went to view that one, but got nothing on it really :-/ Maybe there is one or two out there fully loaded but where.... R class, van, I love vans?

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Stop everything, I have the answer...

Van-like - Check
Good for tall people - Check
Stylish - Hmmm.....

Doofer said:

Stop everything, I have the answer...

Van-like - Check
Good for tall people - Check
Stylish - Hmmm.....

Click to expand...

And you can even buy kits to convert them into a mini campervan. But stylish, maybe not so much

Love it! I have a motorhome so quite down with the campervan idea.... Sadly I don't think it will be rivalling the 2.4 Croma or an E-Class in terms of performance or luxury, which is also a criteria....

Only the pictures in the AutoItalia magazine (which I still haven't seen, never got sent any or a copy as promised) I'll have to see if I can get hold of a copy sometime - it was my car with the wheels I did in the photoshoot.

TempraTDSX said:

I considered a R class Greg, but theres something about them that just isn't right, it's like a posh van, just not right!

Stick with pimping the Croma, sounds a great project. Any pics?

Click to expand...

Found a suitable Croma, shame about the price, it's LHD and in Italy.... but it does actually have light heated electric leather that I have been looking for...

http://annunci.ebay.it/annunci/auto/torino-annunci-bairo/fiat-croma-2007-2-4-mjt-20v-aut-must/45921861

It's also a lot of money.

Yes you could actually buy a Merc R class (40+k new) for that. Or two E classes. Or 4 or 5 broken Croma's without any interesting bits.....

Doofer said:

It's also a lot of money.

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