Family car

[MiddleoftheRoad]

Going round in circles for a family car for our family of four (twin 13yr olds). We are all short!

I like the Qashqai and Sportage, but our budget is 12k and we'd like a car that's a few years old tops. although I love the high position and safety on motorways of MPVs I sigh at the thought of driving a massive car around town.

Currently, I have a 13 yr old Picasso that's dangerous to drive as it cuts out frequently with no warning and loses steering, so I need a car asap.

We bought a Kia Venga as my husband's car in Dec which I like but it has no tech.

I'm thinking of a Citroen Cactus. It has all the tech, a cheapish price tag and would be 2018. It does not have a high driving position, but it's still higher than most hatches.

Questions: Does a family car have to be huge? What about motorway protection?

Does anyone have a Citroen Cactus?
Is the Qashqai (or Sportage) hard to park/manouvere?

Tell me what your family car is!

Hyundai Tucson’s are good.

If you shop smart, you can often get good deals. Buy a car that is a year or two old, just before the new registrations are released - they will be wanting to shift existing stock to make space for brand new ones, even more so if there is a new shape coming out

Noted!
I think I know the Auto Trader website inside out now.

We have a qashqai and ease of parking is about the only thing I like about it
The rear us very cramped with two teens. Getting a third person in the back is almost impossible.
The boot is small and an impractical shape.
It is underpowered and acceleration on motorway or pulling away at lights on a hill is very poor.
Visibility is poor.
I really dislike it.

Thanks for sharing your experience Seeline.
I really enjoyed my Qashqai test drive but am reading mixed reviews, especially on the petrol 1.2

Get one with parking sensors and reversing camera, then it can be any size you like.

Yeah mine is the 1.2 petrol. I sometimes doubt it has an engine at all! The gear ratios are really odd too. I've had it 5 years now and still haven't got used to it. Frequently stall it due to lack of power. I never stalled my old Renault Scenic which I loved.

I'm test driving a Yeti and Cactus later. I loved the test drive on the Sportage and Qasqai (but it was a newer 1.3 and out of price range).
I got excited by the CitroenC3 Aircross (a 2018 'Picasso' with tech for 11k!) Only to find the drive was shocking.

Too much choice. Thank you for these suggestions.

I’d recommend my Skoda Karoq, but I don’t think they’ve been around long enough to fit your price criteria. It was a new model a year ago. Look at other Skoda models though. They’re on a VW platform, but much cheaper.

I had a Qashqai and liked it, but I prefer the Skoda. Much more comfortable and easier to drive.

My cmax didnt have sliding doors. It was 2013 and I loved it but it did cost alot to repair x

I got a sportage 2 weeks ago and I absolutely love it, mine has the reverse camera for parking.

So I test drove the Yeti and Cactus. I absolutely love the Yeti.

Now I have another question. Been driving for nearly 30 years and always had manual but I quite fancy automatic and my car dealer has both a manual and auto. I tested the auto a bit and thought I could get the hang of it, but does anybody have experience of auto?

I hated my electric handbrake in a lease car so hoping it's not like that on hills with autos (I'd roll back as I'm possibly a crap driver).

Just 'bumping'my own thread as posted at 2.30 in a panic and been up worrying about automatic.

Off to test drive a manual Sportage today as (and I know this is silly) but the Yeti doesn't have DAB and I love my Absolute 80s!

My Yeti does, are there any other garages with Yetis available

OP: autos take a bit of getting used to, but if they have an eco setting, you'll be astonished at the fuel economy. All the big HGVs are auto now, which with 12 gears is a lot less stressful.