The CRDi is very decent car, We drive the UK spec and have put 4000 miles on it since the end of April, including a camping trip. Fuel economy is fine on long journeys & if you are light on the accelerator but like anything else if you accelerate hard & drive fast the car it will drop - see the other posting re fuel economy for more opinions. It's not designed for fast performance but handles well for it's size.
It's a great car for long journeys, the driving position in very comfortable & being that little bit higher than a standard car makes loads of difference.
We had a Vauxhall (Opel) Corsa before buying the Carens so the extra space is great.
Rear visability is poor for reversing because of the height but we bought a reversing lens that fits on the inside of the rear window which helps a lot.
Any questions just ask or PM me again.
Chris.