Family Car Options - Estates Vs Saloons which car?

[Turnip Farmer]

Morning Everyone

Just wondering if anyone can help and just want to see how the above cars are good at being family cars.

Currently got 2015 Volvo V40 d3 R design and wanted to change cars, want to go with an estate but not sure if should go for saloon instead, so that's the first question, pros and cons of estate Vs saloon?

I've narrowed it down to these choices

Skoda Octavia - VRS ideally
Seat Leon - Cupra ideally
Ford Mondeo - Titanium I think
Subaru Levorg - yes bit left-field but could be option.

All petrol, not buying diesel again

To me estates look good and more practical.

Anyone own the cars above? How are they being family cars and anything I should look out for when buying them? Looking at cars that are around 2015 or newer.

Open to other car suggestions too

Many thanks all

[ZX10R NIN]

The Mondeo's are great cars you don't say what your budget is? I'm guessing it's a newer model which is the one I have in Vignale trim it's a fantastic car I looked at & test drove all the relevant alternatives but kept coming back to the Mondeo they have huge boots as hatchbacks so you may find you don't need an estate.

I found the Mondeo to be the best steer of the FWD alternatives equipment levels are great, they're good value & it's a great family car.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Estate

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[Roger Irrelevant]

You'll probably be told before long how a family of 5 used to go on six-week camping holidays round Europe in a Fiat 500, so why do you need an estate? I'd suggest you ignore such tales and focus solely on estates if you want a family car. Yes the vast majority of the time it won't actually make any difference, but buy a saloon and you'll soon get fed up of playing 3D Tetris or faffing around with roofboxes every time you need to carry a lot of stuff. Of those listed I'd go for the Mondeo. I do actually drive a Subaru estate (Outback) but I think that unless you need the AWD (which clearly you don't), you can get better for your money.

[Ian Geary]

I had a Alfa 156 saloon for a couple of years. Before that a Avensis estate, and after a focus hatchback.

Advantages of saloons: none imo , other than widening choice of vehicle if load lugging isn't an issue. Fixed rear seats were a complete pita.

Estate was good for load lugging, but noiser on the mway, and the wife never really caught onto the idea of working out how long it was when reversing, and would just generally stop when it bumped something.

There were very few times I ever filled it to the roof, but the roof rails were good diy purchases like fences and timber.

Hatchbacks are obviously the compromise, which is why focii, golfs, astras etc sell in huge numbers. Plus estate versions of these cars are probably better still, losing out most I guess on the image front.

Ian

[Turnip Farmer]

ZX10R NIN said:

The Mondeo's are great cars you don't say what your budget is? I'm guessing it's a newer model which is the one I have in Vignale trim it's a fantastic car I looked at & test drove all the relevant alternatives but kept coming back to the Mondeo they have huge boots as hatchbacks so you may find you don't need an estate.

I found the Mondeo to be the best steer of the FWD alternatives equipment levels are great, they're good value & it's a great family car.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Estate

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Just depends what we get for our Volvo in terms of budget. Yet to test drive a Mondeo but will do. What's difference between the vignale and titanium in terms of spec?

[Turnip Farmer]

Roger Irrelevant said:

You'll probably be told before long how a family of 5 used to go on six-week camping holidays round Europe in a Fiat 500, so why do you need an estate? I'd suggest you ignore such tales and focus solely on estates if you want a family car. Yes the vast majority of the time it won't actually make any difference, but buy a saloon and you'll soon get fed up of playing 3D Tetris or faffing around with roofboxes every time you need to carry a lot of stuff. Of those listed I'd go for the Mondeo. I do actually drive a Subaru estate (Outback) but I think that unless you need the AWD (which clearly you don't), you can get better for your money.

I keep coming back to Estates and some look great. Looked at the Skoda Octavia and boot looked same size on them both but I think the height in an estate will help when we have to load the car up.

How do you find the Subaru? Is it worth me looking at the lavorg?

[Roger Irrelevant]

Turnip Farmer said:

Roger Irrelevant said:

You'll probably be told before long how a family of 5 used to go on six-week camping holidays round Europe in a Fiat 500, so why do you need an estate? I'd suggest you ignore such tales and focus solely on estates if you want a family car. Yes the vast majority of the time it won't actually make any difference, but buy a saloon and you'll soon get fed up of playing 3D Tetris or faffing around with roofboxes every time you need to carry a lot of stuff. Of those listed I'd go for the Mondeo. I do actually drive a Subaru estate (Outback) but I think that unless you need the AWD (which clearly you don't), you can get better for your money.

I keep coming back to Estates and some look great. Looked at the Skoda Octavia and boot looked same size on them both but I think the height in an estate will help when we have to load the car up.

How do you find the Subaru? Is it worth me looking at the lavorg?

I'm afraid I don't know much about Levorgs, and since my Outback is from another era (2005), I dunno whether telling you about that will be much use either. However for what it's worth: for my needs it's really good and I dearly hope Subaru bring the new Outback with their new 2.4 turbo engine to the UK as that's what I'd really want to replace it with. The caveat there is that I do make use of it's off-road and snow capabilities often enough to make the fairly high cost of servicing/parts worthwhile. I know a fair few people who have used ostensibly similar cars (Audi Allroads, Volvo XC70s etc), for the same sort of thing I use mine for and they all say that they don't seem to be able to put up with the same sort of abuse without going expensively wrong. Tbh if I was using it as a pure road car, though, I think the extra expense of having the fancy AWD system wouldn't be worth it, and that's going to apply to the Levorg too.

[Croutons]

I really wanted to like the Levorg, despite the incredibly average (and below) economy/ VED/ speed figures (you can have a 1.6 petrol, or a 1.6 petrol, 8.9 to 60, £195 tax, couldn't find an owner getting anywhere near the claimed 39ish average mpg. Despite the massive, slightly council, bonnet scoop ramming air into the engine).

I didn't. Subaru haven't updated their dash plastics for 15 years. It's just not good enough. Rear seats fold near flat, cubbies below the floor are well thought out, obvs being 4wd you don't have a sizeable flat space as the rear drive intrudes into the boot. Seats firm. Fronts Heated well. Dash is fine, big screen for nav, steering wheel has way too many buttons on.

But it was just unremarkable. There was nothing stand out, bar the mediocre materials.

They've sold very few, which is justification for keeping prices high. Once they leave the dealer network that lack of volume will mean hard to find parts, and prices drop off a cliff.

I suppose I was hoping that the scoop hid some crazy rally boxer lump that would wow me, and if they put a 2.0/+ turbo lump in it with some serious go, I would see if a triumphant heart could overcome the dismal interior.

Until then, unless there's a Subaru dealer very close, I wouldn't waste your time.

[lornemalvo]

Turnip Farmer said:

I keep coming back to Estates and some look great. Looked at the Skoda Octavia and boot looked same size on them both but I think the height in an estate will help when we have to load the car up.

How do you find the Subaru? Is it worth me looking at the lavorg?

I would think the last thing you want to do with a Levorg is to look at it. Ugly as sin IMHO. I rate the Octavia, which has a good choice of engines and in my view, is the perfect size for a car, very roomy, especially the boot, whilst being a manageable size for parking (I've had a mk 2 for six years and am looking at upgrading soon)