Overview

The Vauxhall Combo Life is one of triplets – the Citroen Berlingo Multispace and Partner Tepee-replacing Peugeot Rifter – and it stands a chance of emulating the loyal following the French duo have achieved. Its perpendicular styling is indicative of its roots: this is a passenger car version of the fourth generation of Combo van.

Whereas the first two were based on contemporary Vauxhall Corsa hatchbacks, and the outgoing version a re-badged Fiat Doblo, this one is a derivative of the latest PSA Peugeot-Citroen small van. A change that follows PSA’s recent acquisition of the Vauxhall brand. Aside from the in-house competition, the Vauxhall Combo squares up to the Ford Tourneo Connect and Volkswagen Caddy Life, which are all similar van-based people carriers.

Huge amounts of space

Those vertical body panels liberate an incredible amount of interior room, with space for up to seven people. The middle-row seats are three individual chairs – all with Isofix child seat-mounting points, which may prove a strong selling point – while the side doors slide to avoid car park dings from over-enthusiastic kids getting in and out.

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Two lengths of Combo Life will be available, measuring 4.40m and 4.75m nose to tail. Even in five-seater mode, the shorter Combo Life will still swallow 597 litres of luggage, while the longer one has a maximum two-seater capacity of 2,693 litres.

Interior storage is, as you’d expect, immensely practical and there’s a hinged rear screen to access the boot where there isn’t space to open the whole tailgate.

Efficient petrol and diesel engines

A pair of four-cylinder BlueHDi diesels, and a three-cylinder PureTech petrol are offered in the Combo Life, that already see service in a variety of Citroen, DS, Peugeot and Vauxhall cars. Three transmissions are available – five- and six-speed manuals will likely be the most popular, but an eight-speed automatic can be specified if two-pedal driving is preferred.

Wealth of safety systems

Setting the Combo Life apart from non-PSA rivals, there’s a wealth of safety equipment available – much of which is standard, contributing to low insurance groups and high Euro NCAP scores. Lane-keeping assist, automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control are among the highlighted features, but one that caught our attention is the Flank Guard.

Rather than a sacrificial, physical panel, the Flank Guard is a series of 12 sensors along the Vauxhall’s sides that monitor for obstacles such as low-height bollards that the driver might not have spotted.

• Electric Vauxhall Combo-e Life on sale from autumn 2021

Read on for the full Vauxhall Combo Life review