The Vauxhall Combo Life is available in standard or XL size and both offer decent space for five or seven, with the larger car adding even more room for the seats in the back (that can also be removed altogether). Either way you can get three Isofix child seats across the middle row – with a 60/40 split on the five seater and 35/30/35 on the seven.
While legroom is good all round, the slightly narrow shape of the Combo Life means there’s not a huge amount of space in the middle pew. Sliding rear doors are standard, which helps passengers or pets getting in and out too.
The standard Combo Life is 4.4-metres in length, while the larger Combo XL weighs in at 4.75-metres – still conveniently short compared with large seven-seat SUVs like the Audi Q7. You won’t have any problems parking it in a standard garage and even tight bays will pose little drama thanks to those sliding rear doors. This is one area where the Combo Life’s van-like proportions allow it to comprehensively outshine five- and even seven-seat family cars.
Pick a standard length five-seater and you’ll get 597 litres of boot space, while the long wheelbase Combo Life XL boasts 850 litres.
That’s not the whole story though because with the rear seats folded down, the volume of the standard car triples to 2,126 litres, with a 2.7-metre maximum load length. Pick the longer version and you get 2,693 litres, and a 3.0-metre maximum load length, thanks to a front passenger seat that's able to fold flat.
Is it safe?
French parent firms’ expertise in safety intact
Great equipment for the class of car
Easy to drive too, with good visibility
Given its durability and rigidity, safety should be good. The Peugeot Rifter scored four stars in tests by Euro NCAP in 2018, and because they are the same models underneath, its rating applies to the Vauxhall too.
Three Isofix mounts in the middle row is a good start, plus there’s a good amount of standard safety kit on offer, including:
The basic equipment list includes equipment that is standard across all versions of the Vauxhall Combo Life.
3x3 point rear seat belts
ABS
Air conditioning
Audio remote
Body coloured bumpers
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Driver`s airbag
Electric mirrors
Folding rear seats
Front electric windows
Heated mirrors
Height adjustable drivers seat
Isofix child seat anchor points
Lumbar support
PAS
Passenger`s airbag
Remote locking
Service indicator
Side airbags
Steering wheel rake adjustment
Steering wheel reach adjustment
Traction control
Equipment by trim level
To view equipment options for a specific trim level, please select from the following list:
Equipment included on some trim levels
Alarm
Alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Heated seats
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Steel wheels
Design equipment
Design standard equipment
Steel wheels
Design optional equipment
None available
Elite equipment
Elite standard equipment
Alarm
Alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Elite optional equipment
Heated seats
Steel wheels
Elite XL equipment
Elite XL standard equipment
Alarm
Alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Elite XL optional equipment
None available
Energy equipment
Energy standard equipment
Alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Parking sensors
Energy optional equipment
None available
Energy XL equipment
Energy XL standard equipment
Alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Parking sensors
Energy XL optional equipment
None available
Euro NCAP Rating – 4 stars
The Vauxhall Combo Life was tested by Euro NCAP in 2018 and was awarded a 4 star overall rating.
This overall rating is calculated from the following individual ratings:
Euro NCAP provides motoring consumers with a realistic and independent assessment of the safety performance of some of the most popular cars sold in Europe.
The safety ratings are determined from a series of vehicle tests, designed and carried out by Euro NCAP.
These tests represent, in a simplified way, important real life accident scenarios that could result in injured or killed car occupants or other road users.
