To ask for your family car recommendations please?

[flowergirl24]

Family of 5. Need a new car as our short range EV is just not practical for us.
Needs:
Decent boot space (currently a Nissan Leaf so anything similar sized or bigger would be great)
Would like a high driving position
Decent safety features
Ideally get 3 across the back, but eldest coming up to not needing a full HBB

Does anyone have recommendations? My head is just swimming on auto trader and I can’t make any decisions.
Budget is 15K cash - would rather buy outright than do PCP.

Have had a normal car for a while so I would like something a bit nicer and bigger.

Another Dacia Duster owner here - love mine! It’s basic, reliable and big enough for us ( camping, taking kids to and from uni etc).

Same! I have a 2014 Freelander 2 and it is the best car! I love everything about it (but it is quite pricey to run and isn't ULEZ compliant). Contemplating changing it for something cheaper to run that can be taken into London but I just cannot find anything that I like more. I basically want the exact same car but with a more economic engine hahaha

We have a Hyundai santa fe. The boot space is huge but you can also lift an extra two seats up. So the boot becomes smaller but handy if you don't use them all the time.

Skoda Karoq or Seat Ateca

I keep asking DH if we can get it converted to electric or hybrid.

We looked at these two and the Nissan qashqai. All three are very similar in size and shape but we discovered that we could get a bit more for our money in terms of spec, age and mileage if we went for the Nissan. So we did and got one at 18 months old and we love it

The kia does have a 7 year manufacturers guarantee though so although the sportage will be a little more expensive than the qashqai, if that’s important to you depending on how old the car is that you buy you may have a reasonable period of guarantee left with the kia

@flowergirl24 I doubt you'll be disappointed with either a Skoda, Volvo or Toyota. Toyotas and Volvos regularly go well over 200,000 miles so don't fret too much about mileage. Newer cars with higher mileage can be really good value.

Yes the warranty was our number one criteria given all the trouble we'd had with the Tucson (which didn't cost us a penny, but did cause more than a few grey hairs). We had MIL's Qashqai when the Tucson was off the road and didn't like it at all, but they are very popular.

Skodas are brilliant. We are on our 2nd Octavia. Massive boot, even before you put the seats down, lots of useful tech, reliable, economical. We fancy a higher sitting car next, as we are getting older, thinking if a T Roc or one if the Seat/Audi/Skoda equivalents, but like our current 7 year old Octavia so much, we are a bit reluctant to change. I suppose we might hang on and see what the incoming gov are going to do with taxes on cars. We think our next car will be our last car, so hope it will last for 10 years or so.

Mitsubishi Outlander, I've had a diesel and now have a phev. Plenty space in the boot, loads of legroom for back seat passengers. Diesel has a third row of seats so can seat seven, phev doesn't as the batteries take up that space, although it still has a very roomy boot.

We've just got a Qashqai and love it although I dont need to worry about car seats anymore so not sure how they fair on that point. BUT we live in Qashqai land. Every other car is a Qashqai and our son works in the factory so it was an easy choice for us.

We have an Octavia and really like it but I don't think it's necessarily the best car if you need space for 3 kids in the back - depends if they're still in bulky car seats or not. (We have 2 kids.)

I have a Discovery Sport that I love, it’s really comfortable, has two extra seats in the boot space and it’s been a great car for us, it’s 7 years old now and has been fine BUT everyone comments on how unreliable they are and how silly we are not to trade it in while it’s still ok.

My friend likes her Tucson.

I love my Honda self-charging hybrid crv. High driving position, reliable, seats 5 comfortably (3 adults, 2 children), very easy to drive, and a good safety features.

🤣🤣🤣🤣 oh my god. Run away!

Volvo’s all the way. Previously reluctant convert - they are amazing, far better than the Land Rover, Range Rover and Audi’s we’ve had in the past.

My friend's Volvo is gorgeous, I wish I could afford one.

Yes, sadly I think that’s my issue. I know that they are great cars, but for that kind of money the mileage is quite high on them or they are quite old.

So, dream car but too expensive: XC60 and defo priced out of XC90
Ruled out because of reliability: Land Rover anything
In the running:
Nissan Qashqai
Skoda Octavia (but would prefer higher up car)
Kia Sportage
Hyundai Tucson

Any others?

I looked at a Mitsubishi Outlander @Elle200 but it looked a bit, well, basic. Perhaps it was just that model. A previous would be great actually as I’ve got solar so it would be worth it for us.

Any others? Yes, Skoda Karoq or Seat Ateca as I mentioned up thread. (PPs recommended the Karoq too.)

I AdORE our s max. We have a 2015 model, there’s 3 isofix in the middle and it genuinely fits 3 toddler seats. The boot without the two back seats is huuuuuge - I regularly fit in pushchair, suitcase, couple of balance bikes with no real need to organise them (!) we drove a 2012 and the back 2 seats folded ok but In the 2015+ they go completely flat at a button press so it’s all boot space. That said when we were in wales we carried 2 kids, 4 adults and 2 big dogs and it was reasonably comfy for a journey of just under an hour.

I know it’s diesel but it’s also massively cut our costs from the previous Kia Sportage and it’s secondhand sooo…. And I honestly see us having it until we run it into the ground and buy another one. It was 12k.

Look at a Volvo xc60 from around 2016- we are on our third- brilliant cars

Don’t listen to the anti Land Rover brigade on here. I work in the motor trade. You won’t get a better car than the disco. It’s practical, comfortable and most importantly when someone idiot hits you your kids will be safe.