What car to buy for a new mum with a dog

[Oli16]

our much loved second hand Golf finally has given up and broken down - the clutch repair quote was more than the car itself is worth, so time to look for a new / used car!

im due in August with my first and we also have a 5 year old dog - our parents live in the Lake District and we are in London. So any new parents / car suggestions for us?

something ULEZ compliant, perhaps bigger than a Golf!

What size dog? Will you be hoping to have more kids?

not sure yet about having more kids, going to see how we get on with the first one haha! Dog is medium size. I also drive a lot for work (work in film) and would be using it for that when I go back to work. In the meantime would be driving it in London for errands

One with a rear section for dog to travel in. So a 4x4 with dog restrained in the “boot”. Not with the baby on the rear seat.

I've got a Honda CRV and it's perfect for my daughter and dog with loads of extra room for all the stuff. I got the two wheel drive version because the tax is much cheaper/insurance is cheaper and it's more economical to run.

I have had a few Nissan XTrails over the last 12 years for dog and child purposes always been great. Quashqais are very popular too.

Kia niro has worked well for us with child and dog.

If you’re needing to travel to the lakes but also need ulez compliant, definitely a hybrid - proper full hybrid eg Toyota not ‘mild hybrid’.
we had a golf estate, replaced it with Corolla touring sport which is almost exactly the same size, good load capacity.

My neighbour has just changed her old polo for a small Suzuki SUV. It looks very smart, and not too big - if size is important. I’m looking at Dacias at the moment as a replacement for my Golf.

I’d love to know if there was a car “just like a Golf” but even better!

During the likely lifetime of your next car the dog will become elderly and struggle to get into boots with high floors, which is most SUVs.

I think you'd be better off looking at an estate car. The Toyota Corolla Touring Sport mentioned above is a good shout. We've got a Dacia Jogger Hybrid which is about the same size but considerably cheaper and has seven seats.

Hyundai Tucson

Dacia Duster or Jogger.

We’ve also been looking at family cars recently as we’ve second baby on the way, long trips to family and lots of luggage. Don’t underestimate how much room a pram and travel cot will take up alongside your usual bags and the dog! We’re looking at Skoda and VW estates as we quickly realised that most SUVs wouldn’t be big enough for a pram + bags - no idea how you’d get a dog in too. I see a few people above have recommended Dacias, but definitely check out the crash ratings for these, I wouldn’t put my kids in one.

Please don't peddle uninformed garbage. Read the EuroNCAP report and the many pages which have been written about this matter.

The Dacia Jogger has a one star EuroNCAP rating. It has never even been crashed by EuroNCAP - they based it on the crash results from the Sandero hatchback and docked points for not having seat belt warnings for the third row. The Sandero itself was penalised for the lack of ADAS (advanced driver aids) which all the research shows people just switch off. The ADAS things became compulsory in the EU last July anyway so any Jogger ordered after 4th April 2024 has them fitted, but the one star EuroNCAP rating is still derived from a (smaller) car which didn't have them.

They are structurally sound in a crash. I am perfectly happy to drive my kids around in one.

You cannot get a load of baby gear and a dog into some of the cheap and cheerful cars being suggested here! I’d look for a Disco sport at least. An elderly dog can have a ramp or be lifted! Ours managed to get into our Disco! I’d buy a car for people more than a dog.

Look at safety rankings, car magazine rankings with recommended models, decide on petrol or diesel or hybrid. Think about air bags and build quality and how the child seats fit.

I’d not be seen dead in a Dacia! I like higher quality and it’s a relatively small car. The recent one is ok but with 2 dc and a dog it’s tight fit with luggage.

@Springadorabledo you realise your child is in that picture?

@Oli16 if you loved your golf I'd get an skoda octavia estate. After 14 years of company car golf's I bought a VRS version and loved that it felt familiar (same VaG group platform) was a similar width and was an absolutely tardis. Unbelievably practical for family life and everything you can throw at it.