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Original poster

Which Estate Car or SUV do you have and are you pleased with it?

75 replies

mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 19:43

Ok so my dh bought a dog of a car in march, a range rover which eats petrol quicker than we can fill it up (amongst other things!) it was a dream of his to own one but its a bit of a nightmare really!
previously we had a vw passat estate which was quite nice.

he has a week off work to find a replacement car!!!
have been looking at a mercedes ml or c or e class estate or maybe an audi a6 estate

anyone any experience of these ?

what do you have and what do you think of it?

what should we consider?
we're both finally fed up

OP posts:
lemonice · 18/07/2005 19:46

I had a Subaru Forester Turbo which was great, very quick and great to drive but had to give it up and now have the opposite extreme which I also like for different reasons but you would hate I'm sure a Fiat Doblo!!!

vickiyumyum · 18/07/2005 19:47

only got experience of the audi rs6 estate which is a fantastic looking car, but not very fuel efficeint, and is used by a single man for business so not sure how stands up to test of famliy life, although i should imagine very well as it has leather seats, so no worries about stains etc. the boot is a fair size although imo as with all modern estates much smaller than older estates. (we had an L reg mondeo estate which had a huge boot, but when we looked at replacing it the new mondeo boot was much smaller, anyway i fell in love with a new focus so brought that instead three doors, not v practical with 2 kids! )

Babyannabel · 18/07/2005 19:49

we've got an Audi A6 quattro estate and it's fab. Huge boot and feels spacious, not as high up as a Range Rover but still has the four wheel drive and a posh interior. Would definitely recommend one.

vickiyumyum · 18/07/2005 19:55

my mum has the ford focus c-max ( cna't remeber which version, but the 'fully loaded' one with leather seats, air con, electric windows, mirrors etc) and is very practical in fatc after years of them always borrowing our car for runs to the dump, b&q etc we had to borrow there car to got to b&q last weekend.

is quite nice to drive as well, although they have it in black and i wouldn't recommend that colour as looks dusty too quickly i would have gone for a dark metallic grey or silver.

Original poster
mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 20:05

dh has just suggested a bmw as well...

OP posts:
Posey · 18/07/2005 20:07

Our last car was a Peugeot 405 estate and have recently replaced it with a 406. Really pleased with it, roomy with a great sized boot yet I feel happy driving it in the city.

Original poster
mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 20:24

ty for your quick responses....
any more anyone?

OP posts:
Milliways · 18/07/2005 20:56

A big vote for the Volvo V70 here.

Are you buying brand new or nearly new? My DH is interested in this thread & asked about budget.

KBear · 18/07/2005 20:58

VW Passat Estate but again, drinks petrol. Would definitely buy another one should 15 grand fall into my lap but a diesel model.

PrettyCandles · 18/07/2005 21:03

We have a Ford Mondeo diesel (turbodiesel or something like that). We chose it mainly because our shortlist were the Ford, VW, Volvo and Skoda estates and of all of them it was (a) the one with the best room in the back seat so that children's legs weren't wedged unsafely against the back of the front seats as long as the children ride in Gp1 carseats, and (b) it was the one we both liked best to drive. The only problem I have with driving it is that I find the front pillars sometimes get in the way at junctions. Apart from that we're very satisfied.

We really like the Skoda Octavia - excellent layout in the boot, but the cabin was one of the smallest.

Original poster
mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 21:06

Milliways, it would be nearly new, we got the passat as an end of year car, it was a 53, then dh (in his infinite wisdom) did a direct trade for the range rover on a v plate? why oh why oh why? lol
trouble is that the range rover has most bells and whistles and is big so to downsize is going to be strange... have also mentioned the volvo v70
we're thinking about diesel (the vw was) and possibly remaining with the automatic of the range rover, the passat was manual.

OP posts:
PandaBear · 18/07/2005 21:10

Depends whether you want it just for practicalities or for fun as well (which is important to me). We have a Volvo V70 2.5 LPT which is a lovely drive and fast, but is heavy on the petrol!!! Great boot size and I wouldn't swap it for the world! (Leather seats as well, essential for two children!)

Milliways · 18/07/2005 21:15

DH says a V70 D5 is worth a look, manual/automatic or geartronic. TV/Sat Nav etc - all bells & whistles avl. We have the V70 T5, get 30mpg on a run but 24mpg round town. The SatNav is greeat - we bought the europe upgrade & get full details of tiny french roads on hols, and it brings back 100+ bootles of plonk in boot with luggage & bikes on roof!

Original poster
mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 21:17

both my dh and i have had 'fun' cars and i think both of us are reluctant to get a 'boring, sensible, family' car, however we do need to think about the practicalities of a huge double buggy, 2 large car seats, 1/2 a tonne of toys, changing bag, changes of clothes, half the fridge etc that we seem to take out anywhere with us, supermarket shopping etc
so i guess it is fun/practical with a bit of a unique /style thrown in.
drinks petrol is a bit worrying, but as dh has just pointed out at the moment we might as well have a petrol station on our driveway!

OP posts:
RTKangaMummy · 18/07/2005 21:21

VOLVO XC70

WITH SAT NAV + TV + INTEGRATED TELEPHONE {with hands free in mirror and another handset in arm rest}

Absolutlely DEFFO BRILL

RTKangaMummy · 18/07/2005 21:22

PETROL GEARTRONIC = DEFFO BRILL FUN

Original poster
mrspink27 · 18/07/2005 21:51

volvo seems to be coming out well. will deffo be taking a trip to the volvo dealership tomorrow.

anyone else?

OP posts:
starlover · 18/07/2005 21:54

i have a renault scenic.

cheap as chips second hand and a HUUUUUUUGE boot. lovely to drive. reasonably fuel economic... love it!

RTKangaMummy · 18/07/2005 21:57

here you go for volvo used cars

They are all DEFFO BRILL but XC70 is the best unless you want to go for XC90

depends on your budget really

I am hiring an XC90 in a few weeks to take parents on holiday so can tell you about it later in august

BadHair · 18/07/2005 22:00

Having spent many hours importing a brand new Mercedes ML55 for my boss a couple of years ago, I can heartily recommend it for being roomy, luxurious and hideously expensive. He loved it - he bought it to replace his Jag as he was soon to become a dad and wanted safety, luxury and style. This car had the lot.
Don't imagine it was much cop on fuel economy though.

Distracted · 18/07/2005 22:00

Have an Audi A6 Avant and I love it to bits! It's not the new model, so I think engine sizes have changed, but we have a 1.9 TD, which sounds really measley for such a big car. However, it feels like it's much more powerful - really pulls well (easier to overtake in than my husband's Golf GTI (turbo model), even if not as quick off the mark). Because the engine is so small it's pretty fuel efficient too - have to say I've been sooo impressed with it.

Boot size is good, as you'd expect from such a big car, but as someone else said, somehow modern estates aren't quite as big as you'd think.

bran · 18/07/2005 22:05

I have a 3-series BMW estate, which my brother told me to buy. Initially I didn't like the image that goes with BMWs so I test drove lots of other cars, but ended up buying the BMW because it had no faults, the others had one or two things that let them down. I have an automatic and it's reasonable with petrol, although it does use quite a lot when the air-conditioning is on.

Janh · 18/07/2005 22:19

They all use a lot when the AC is on, bran! (But isn't it worth it!)

I have a diesel Zafira, mrsp - pretty happy with it, although the newer ones are better in terms of seat configuration and belts. If money was no object though I would get something bigger.

bran · 18/07/2005 22:30

Oooh yes Janh, I love my a/c. I do feel guilty about the extra burden on the environment, but the important thing is that I feel cool and guilty, as opposed to hot and cross.

RTKangaMummy · 18/07/2005 22:31

hot + cross drivers = road rage