Our Imax arrived today. Soooo excited. Here's a couple of pics (before I put the carseats in)







And I get to be first one to drive it when I pick the girls up from school this arvo

Looks fantastic, you must be rapt!!

Show me the picks with car seats in and then it will be real people mover porn.....

It looks nice in the white . Oooh and you've got the tinted windows! They're on my wish list!

And just in case you drive like me...

The thing that makes it easiest for me to drive is remembering that it almost pivots on the rear wheels so go a little further than you think before you swing into a park .

I have the nudge bar ... the nose is a little longer than you think if you're used to driving a 4WD or a regular van so work out a point of reference because you need to get exactly to the front of most shopping centre car parks to have enough room to open the boot safely .

Enjoy! I love my iMax!

Oh well, since you asked so nicely Note: I don't have 2 sets of twins (although I often think anyone looking in our car window at the seats would think that). When we had an accident a couple of months ago we got new seats, so that's why we've got 2 sets of identical ones (although set for different heights)

Here's my 3yo. The seat next to her is for my 20th old.



Another shot of the middle row. Plenty of room on the side for my 10yo. That is the 'single' seat, so the girls will slide that one forward on it's own to access the 3rd row.


And there is the 3rd row. I can just squeeze between their boosters if needed, although it wouldn't be very comfortable. 10yo could fit there a bit easier than me (lacking hips and all that), but if we needed to we would put the 2 boosters next to each other and then the spare person should have more space on the side.


I really love that with all lap sash belts and 6 anchor points we can put any child anywhere in the back

Oh thanks for the tips Kristen! It will take me a while to get used to parking, that's for sure. And DH is busy clearing a bit more junk out of our garage because it's slightly longer than the Tarago so won't fit with stuff along the front (nose) wall of the garage!

Funny to see this post today, as I was just dreaming about a new car while sitting in traffic. I saw an iLoad go past and thought "I'd love an Imax, but I'm sure they don't come with leather seats." (Which led me to reminiscing about the days when cloth seats were a luxury, and most people just got vinyl - I wish we could go back to those days!)

wow. where's the fanning myself emoticon?????

Thank you soooo much for the carseat pics!!!!

Omg, I am so jealous. Congratulations and safe motoring! By the time I'm able to afford one of those I won't need one! lol. But I can dream. Am off to wipe the drool...

Congratulations!
Petrol or diesel?
Would you like to let us know what the cost for the CRAB was, and where you had this done?


Leather seats + kids = tears, scratches, gunk trapped in stitching...
Cloth seats + kids = just get them dry/steam cleaned when they get dirty!

now THAT is cool!
Enjoy Also you can practice learning where the front end, ends, in your driveway against something soft at the front, iykwim? or put one of those... 'flaggie little things' (?! name?!) on the front end. roundy end cars are harder than ones where you can see the front end esp if you're blunt (short) like me.

nice one!

We got the petrol. Would have loved the diesel but couldn't afford the extra. CRAB cost $670, the dealer had it done for us. We're in Sydney so if anyone wants the name of the place I can let you know. Funnily enough the CRAB was cheaper than the towbar



I can't see the front end of any car I drive , but I'm already finding this easier than the Tarago, just because of the shape of the nose. The bit I can see at the top is closer to the actual front than it was on the Tarago, if that makes any sense.

the local dealer told us they only had 3 anchor points, so we got the Kia GCarnival instead (with the dreaded lap-only in the middles)...were we dupped??

The extra 3 anchor points are added using a CRAB.

Congratulations - I am very, very jealous - Enjoy!

oh ditto - The only reason I can now is because we have a Prado w roobar and I have a special seat thingie made LOL

I was quoted $450 for the CRAB bar in Canberra .

Mine got its first dint today - teaching the 16yo to park in the Coles carpark .

Oh, my poor keyboard, covered in drool, LOL.

I am test driving an Imax tomorrow, pretty sure that we are going to get one. How long did it take for yours to be delivered, or did they have it in stock?

We are looking at a second hand one (only 1 year old) but in a diesel.

I seriously cannot wait to get a new car, tossing up between an Imax and a Tarago, mainly due to the lap sash belts.

How are you finding it with fuel so far?

When we ordered they had run out so we had to wait for a new shipment. So it was about 6 weeks I think between ordering and arriving

Fuel- so far it's only been 4 days of around town driving (school run, 2 trips to the shops), I haven't even looked at the gauge.

Have you considered a VW Caravelle or Multivan?

Can probably get this one cheaper than the asking price:
http://www.carsales.com.au/all-cars/bncis/...id=128DF91A8240

We looked at the Imax but ended up getting a grand carnival instead. The Imax seemed too much like driving a bus for me and we didnt like the fact that the seats cannot be removed or layed down (we have a dog we have to seat also!)

But apart from that you cant beat the Imax for space and price! We are still waiting for our Kia and will be another 3 weeks!!

Definitely going for an imax after today. The test drive sealed the deal for me- was even comfy when i sat in the third row. I dont like the solid seat on the VW, plus we want an 8 seater.

Mandy- can you PM me the name of the dealer you bought from? We are north of Sydney but trying to find a good deal plus great service is hard.

Solid seat?
Multivan is a 7 seater, and Caravelle is an 8 or 9 seater.

LOVE IT

The CRAB doesn't take up too much of the boot space, I am impressed It's top of my list for our next car (even though we only have four kids, four teenage boys will need as much space as possible ).

The back seat that doesnt split, I like a 60/40 split seat if possible.

I must have only looked at the multivan, that was the 7 seater. The VW just didnt tick all the boxes we wanted.

Anyways, DH made the final decision and we are going for the Imax.

Ikeaqueen- i reckon your boys would fit in ok, i sat in the back of one for part of the test drive and i was pretty comfy.

The iMax's rear seat isn't split fold either though.


I'm surprised you say this because a VW has much more standard equipment than an iMax.
Cruise control, extensive trip computer, tinted windows, climate control, 6 speed auto, front and rear parking sensors, 3 year roadside assistance, can remove some or all rear seats, same insurance and servicing costs...

I'm only mentioning these points because we had decided on an iMax, but were lucky enough to get a VW Caravelle for less than a diesel iMax.

I would have been tempted by a Caravelle for less than my iMax (though I'm very happy with the running costs of the diesel!) but I thought the boot was quite a bit smaller?

I'd like to be able to remove the rear seats!

I've just brought an Imax last week and it should be delievered to the dealers today, tint and reverse park camera fitted tomorrow and pick up available on Wednesday. Yay !!! I can't wait.

I've been quoted $450 for the CRAB bar but mine is being placed on the floor behind the seats. Can I ask why yours is where it is or is that just the way they installed it?

DH and I brought ours as the Territory is just too small to seat 4 kids and we will be driving from WA to QLD in a few weeks time so definately needed more space.

I can't wait for mine to arrive and install all the car seats etc. Another question, would you fit three car seats in the back row? I have 2 Hi Liners and a Maxi rider I'd like to place there.

Thanks and Enjoy.

Can I ask, what's the fuel consumption like? How much (roughly) to fill the tank etc?

If your CRAB bar is installed on the floor behind the seats it's not being installed correctly to take into account the angles of the tether, or so I've been told. Unless it's placed just inside the hatch which means your tethers will really mess with the boot space!

Thanks Sorceress.

Apparently this is where this company places them and they are approved by WA road authorities but I do get what you mean about the angle, although it would be similar to the anchors being placed in the back of the seats really.

DH has found another company though that is going to put them in the floor for us which is what I would rather for roughly the same price as the CRAB bar.

Don't want to loose too much boot space as that is one of the main reasons why I am buying the car plus I have a Bernese Mountain Dog that needs to fit in there comfortably.

Even with our CRAB where it is you could fit a small horse in there comfortably. I don't know why they did it there, they didn't give any options. It doesn't bother us at all. Fuel consumption: We still haven't had to fill the tank, but it's not unusual for us because our driving is routine around town stuff. Even the 40 min trip to the Hospital last week for a checkup didn't put much of a dent in the fuel level

Carseats: No idea. I don't have much idea on the relative widths of various carseats, although apparently our boosters (Barcelonas) are one of the widest? As it is now I wouldn't fit a carseat in between them, but if I put the two boosters next to each other I might. Fitting 3 in the middle row would be no problem.

Well my fuel light is on now after a trip to Sydney and back (from Canberra) and a few short runs around town .

Thanks guys. I saw my car get unloaded from the truck last night and I am in love. I get to pick it up later today as the tint and reverse camera still needs to be done.

Love the colour too. I got the new silver. Originally the dealer said mine was the dark grey colour and then he rang me to say that that car was actually damaged so I had the light silver or white to choose from but when it arrived yesterday they realised that my silver is actually darker than they expected and it is in the middle of the two.

Will post a photo later today if you'd like to see it and fingers crossed I'll fit the 3 car seats in the back.

Thanks for the info regarding fuel consumption too.

We decided we needed a new car before we moved interstate - just weren't confident our very loveable Grand Voyager would last the distance. So - on the Tuesday we rang the local Hyundai dealer asking about iMaxes. They had none in stock, but by Monday we were packing up and heading interstate in our new iMax!!

LOVE it! SO much space, for sitting and for shopping/prams/luggage etc. It's much easier to drive than I thought it would be and I love the feeling of sitting up higher like a 4WD. Fuel has been great too - we filled the tank 2 weeks ago and it's still got half a tank to go - and I do the school, run twice daily, plus shopping etc AND we're new to the area so I keep getting lost, backtracking, forgetting things and going back etc etc!

So happy to have found an Imax Lovers Support Group lol. I still harbour a secret crush on the Nissan El Grand, but the iMax is doin it for me right now!

There's a few of us now.... slowly converting Australia one large family at a time

Just thought id bump this up- Im loving my Imax! So much room for the kids without pushing or fighting, and the storage space- OMG!

LOL, maybe we need an Imax lovers thread in this section? Id definitely recommend one to anyone who has kids, large family or not!

Oh, I'm still drooling

It's still top of my new car list!

Just wondering, has anyone else got the grey titanium colour? Just wondering how they go in warmer weather, if they heat up more than other colours? Not that i can do anything about the colour now but im just wondering.

Oh, and i sat in the third row today between the kids on the way home and im impressed at just how much room there is. I could happily sit there on a long trip- as long as DS1 hasnt had baked beans the night before.

Dark colours aren't a factor anymore with aircon!

Thanks blaast!

Actually, on the air con- it has vents for both the middle and back rows- how cool is that??? The kids love it cos they actually get the cool air on them.

I find it heats up quite a lot and I don't like being unable to wind down the rear windows to cool it down quickly. Yes, there's air con all the way to the back BUT it still takes a while to cool down. Our 4WD rear row cooled down faster.

Mine is grey . It does seem to get quite hot...

We are looking at an imax atm and just wondering if anyone can answer these questions -
Does anyone know the ancap rating for the 2008 2.5L model? I can only find from 2009. Apparently there were some structural changes from the earlier model.
Does anyone have any pros/cons re: petrol vd diesel? DH is keen on the diesel because it has more safety features, I'm worried about the cost of servicing a diesel...
We saw one 2008 model with some controls on the steering wheel, but I thought I remembered from when we were looking at them new in 2008 that there were no controls?
The other question DH had was about the air con, but I can see that's already been answered
I've been loving this car for years now, it's about time we just got one

I didn't know they were out here in 2008? Must have been only just.

I haven't noticed any increased costs in servicing the diesel, but it's still less than 2yo I suppose.

When dh was in Korea earlier this year he was driven everywhere in an iMax - they seat up to 12 there (significantly reduces the boot space though ) .

I must not like I must not like LOL

it's great to hear how pleased you all are with your cars!
Happy safe travels to you all.

Well I've had my Imax for approximately 3 months now. Still absolutely love it. Drove from WA to QLD in it and even had to sleep in it on the side of the road one night and it was so comfy.

I've just ticked over 10,000km. Fuels great, I think we filled up 6 times coming over averaging approximately 750km a tank. Obviously with city driving we are now getting less than that but not much less.

I ended up not getting a crab bar for the additional anchor points. Hubby found someone to install them on the floor. We paid $120 for each point so $360 total. It's great having 6 anchors and being able to move them all around.

I forgot to take some photos so will do that shortly and put them up. Excuse the fact it needs a wash though, lol.

Oooh - where on the floor are the points? Are they close to the back of the seats or the boot door? I was worried that using points on the floor would mean too many tethers taking up boot room, but if they're not all the way back I might be tempted again...

Will take photo to show you but they are close to seat.

ETA - Currently uploading to photobucket so will put photo's here soon :-)

Oooh I can't wait to be part of the club

Imax's came out February 2008. I'm not sure yet what month the model we are looking at is.

So do your Imax's have steering wheel controls?

Oooh, I'm lurking to see anchor points! Bit exciting

Mine is 2009 and doesn't have anything on the steering wheel. Oh, a horn.