Best "practical" car in the world.

[James_B]

I find myself needing a four door car, with a decent sized boot. I've had sports cars and coupes in recent years (I've an R8 and an M2 at the moment), and am not really sure what to get.

I like good handling. I like a car that turns in hard with the first bit of movement of the steering wheel, something "Darty", which obviously is going to be hard to get in a "family" car.

I looked at the new Tesla X-type, and the 2.5 second 0-60 appealed, but I can't have a charger in my garage, so I can't get one. It's not really sporty either, it's just fast.

Can anyone suggest what they'd think of as the best practical car for someone who likes performance?

Thanks.

[MajorMantra]

Not sure what budget you've got in mind, but the current Focus ST estate could be a good shout?

[James_B]

I've not set a budget, which was semi-intentional. I could stretch to six figures, but if you write that, no-one suggests excellent but far cheaper cars, like the focus, or a Subaru Legacy.

Edited by James_B on Saturday 29th April 20:46

Edited by James_B on Saturday 29th April 20:47

[anonymous-user]

M5

[Yipper]

VW Golf R.

[Marvtec]

JPJPJP said:

M5

You got there before me!

My first thought, for sheer bang for your buck and ultra practical was this

[ZX10R NIN]

Seeing as you have those two in the garage maybe go for something that may not be the best dynamically but could be fun in a different way.

Insignia VXR Supersport often overlooked car but with a good amount of BHP it'll surprise a lot of people & they're very well priced considering the performance available.

2016 VXR Supersport 14k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2008 VXR8 26k (same price as the above but more capable)

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2016 VXR8 GTS 3k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

2016 Focus ST-3 Estate10k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2016 Mondeo Vignale 9k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2010 Maserati Quattroporte 4.7S GT 24k lovely N/A V8 always feels special & a great looker too

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2014 Ghibli S 11k nice car but I'd take the Maserati above.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2012 Jaguar XJ Supersport 30k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2007 E63 (one of the best N/A V8's ever built) 43k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2005 M5 (or get yourself an Iconic V10) 38k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2009 RS6 V10 (you'd just have to Map it) 30k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

2016 Lexus GSF 8k

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...


When it comes to practical then the St or VXR are the places to look after that then only you know how practical you want to be.

[James_B]

That's a nice step of suggestions, thanks, I'll have a look, and a think.

The Porsche Panamera estate car looks pretty nice, too.

[joshcowin]

The new alfa guilia looks great and is reasonably priced with a good image.

Volvo polestar, no idea what they handle like but they have 300bhp and in black/silver discreet.

The brand new RS3 saloon has had a good write up in the recent EVO mag.

My BIL runs a Mk V R32 golf as a family car and its got great character and still looks the part.

What about something older (lighter) with some poke - http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Higher priced cars -

30 Jahre m3 - http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

S8 Plus

The alfa Giulia - http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Edited by joshcowin on Tuesday 9th May 12:57

[99dndd]

Vauxhall Morano?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

[LM95]

I think THE best practical performance car has to be the RS6. A slightly used 2016 one for c£60k would blend the performance, handling and above all practicality that you are looking for. If it were my money and I could feasibly have something in this price range this would be it for sure.

To blow the budget the new E63 must be worth a look, but at 90K + you would have to REALLY like it!

Back in the real world where most of us have to reside the Gold R estate is on ok shout; fast and practical but image is not great with them. There is a new BMW 5 series, which may well do a 535i touring which will no doubt be very good. Insignia VXR looks an interesting car for good money but it is not as fast as it should be and interior will feel cheap compared to the premium brands you seem to be used to. The New Alfa Romeo Giulia, looks great but would loose out on the practicality of not having an estate (yet).

A Skoda Superb 280 4x4 SportLine could be something worth considering, huge space, 4 wheel drive, performance and all of this for about £35k new. They look great too and I doubt they will sell too many in this variant so may well hold some value.

Slightly left field would be the Audi SQ5 or BMW X50m may be worth a look but I suspect that the SUV type vehicle is not one you fancy.

Probably one of the more interesting sectors to be looking at as there is a lot of practical cars / suv's that offer plenty of performance.

[GR_TVR]

+1 on the RS6.

Or the RS7 depending on exactly how much space you wanted, the hatchback boot is still cavernous, you just lose height with the sloping roof line.

[Stevemr]

Best practical car:-
BMW 335 x drive estate.
40 mpg
cheap tax and insurance
0-60 4.8 seconds
launch control
handles
decent size boot.

[tankplanker]

If you have the money then a E63S estate would be my pick, looks more fun to drive than the current RS6. If you wanted a SUV then the X5M, unless you need 7 seats, then I'd get the XC90 T8. If you could live with less carrying capacity then the best Panamera you can afford would be a good pick as it would be the best drive out of this lot.

[Heaveho]

Lexus IS-F. Better ownership prospect than an M5 from a reliability point of view, at least in my experience.