Flexible family car with big boot... Settle our 'debate'!

[Indecisivelurcher]

I want an estate. Dh wants a hatchback. An mpv might even be an option. We just can't agree! Hit me up with your recommendations please mumsnet!

Must be able to fit 2 car seats without getting kneed in the back. D-dog must be able to fit comfortably and jump in himself. I'd like to be able to sling kids bikes in the boot. Got to be efficient and comfortable, style optional!

We've currently got a dying Renault megane estate which has been brill but dh thinks too big / defo no bigger. And a seat ibiza hatchback which is pretty cramped. We're going down to one car.

I've just bought a Peugeot 3008 and that has a big boot

Vast boot in a Vauxhall Insignia.
Cheap to buy if you get one pre registered and cheap to repair.
Reliable workhorse.

Oh, and you can fit an adult mountain bike in the back with the seats down,

Handy list of compact cars with big boots

We have a Peugeot 3008. We bought it because the boot is huge and adaptable. It has a shelf that means you can split the boot in two, effectively doubling the 'floor space'. Plenty of room for 2 car seats and legroom in the front seats too. This is our second one as we love it. The newer models also look a bit Range Rovery so you get the look without the bonkers RR price!

I 2nd or 3rd the 3008 we have 2 car seats in back and a Labrador in the boot and still have lots of room. The boot is huge with a split level shelf the boot also opens down to make it easy for the dog to jump into if that makes sense. We have the old shape but the new shape is really nice if I changed cars I'd get another one without a doubt.

Another vote for Octavia. Recommended to us by friends who also do driving hols to France and have two kids. On last year's holiday we fitted in 60 bottles of wine along with all normal luggage. I used to drive a Polo and was apprehensive that Oct would feel huge by comparison but it's something to do with the chassis not being massive according to DH. We bought second hand and i specifically made sure it had front and back sensors which makes it a piece of cake to park - and we are on-street.

I'm going to offer up the Hyundai i4 for consideration. It doesn't feel any bigger than driving a Focus, but it's a proper estate. Capacity between the Octavia and the insignia I think.
Ours also has: heated seats; front and rear sensors and rear parking camera. And it's pretty. And has a fair amount odd oomph. And tons of leg room.

Subaru. I've got a later model Imprezza WRX STI and it's awesome. A Forester might be a better option for you but definitely look into Subaru.

We have the Skoda Superb estate and I can fit comfortably in the boot along with my giant dog (not while the car is moving obvs) it's absolutely huge, but it drives nicely and feels more like a hatchback tbh. Not awkward at all. It's almost certainly too big for you (we only have it because of said ginormous dogs) but if you look at the Superb first then the Octavia will seem very reasonable in comparison

YY to the Vauxhall Insignia. We’ve got a second hand one that is now 8 years old, hugely reliable.

DH is 6ft 2 and he can lie down in the boot. We’ve also had him driving with 6ft 6 FIL and 6ft 5 BIL in the back, both with heaps of leg room.

It’s huge but manoeuvrable, doesn’t feel like you are driving a tank.

Hyundai i30 Tourer may be an option too.

Seat Leon estate, save loads compared to buying a VW Golf & get loads more equipment. Reliable, economical good looking car, built on the same base as the Golf, Audi A3, Skoda Octavia.

I’d second the Civic tourer and avoid anything VAG or French like my life depended on it.

I've got a Skoda Fabia estate - little car with a big inside ! Rear flat packs and fits loads of stuff .

@gottheshirt my sister sold her fabia Estate because she found the back too small for child seats. I'm a bit confused by this as we have child seats in our little seat. Admittedly it's cramped.

Estates (or small hatches like a Corsa) are better shapes for dogs than the bigger hatches which are more saloon shaped but open the back window. Or crossovers. Mondeo is huge. Focus not a bad size, Octavia bigger than golf smaller than Passat.

Interesting no one has mentioned an astra or astra estate

@Indecisivelurcher

‘my sister sold her fabia Estate because she found the back too small for child seats.’

I think its the shape. We tried the Fabia but couldn’t get DS in rear facing. However the seat did fit in a Micra.

Vauxhalls don't tend to be as reliable as other manufacturers, that's probably why. I've known two Vauxhall Astras need over £1k worth of fixes in recent months.

Another happy former Octavia user here. We ran the mk1 vRS estate for 8 years and it was very good, although we did have one year fo those 8 where it racked up some serious bills. That year's MOT and repairs about £1000, then service and repairs was also about £1000, so £2000 total that year.

We now have a 1.6 Zetec Grand C-Max. I like the popup seats in the rear, but sometimes miss the power and the huge boot I had on the Octavia. So far it has been the most reliable car I have ever owned.

We’ve had Vauxhalls for 30 years. Never had a major issues. All the repairs have been due to wear and tear. Buy pre registered, annual service and run them until they aren’t cost effective to repair.

Skoda Octavia (hatchback not estate) is my suggestion too. It has the same wheelbase as a Golf. It is perfectly easy to park, takes massive amounts of stuff in the boot and is pretty solid and reliable.

Font know about the gov bit but in terms of car seats, huge boot and not snvestate we have a Mazda 6 as our family car. It has sports modexwhich convinced my husband!😂
It's a nice car and far more comfortable than my mums megane.

Thanks for the info, people! I'm not sure about tall ddog in a plain octavia or other large hatchback because of the angle of the rear window and needing to hop over a lip to jump in, but will need to look in the flesh.

Ta for the comment about Vauxhall @allthenames

Got quite a few types in my list to look at now. And some I'd never have thought of.