Family bus £30k ish
Discussion
We're looking to get a new family wagon, but one that the wife will drive daily. Budget around £30k - give or take for the right car. Ideally new, or <18 months old ex-demo kind of mileage.
Needs to be able to take a family of four in comfort away on holiday, and will do 12-14k per year. Want 4wd (rural area, on a hill) and a bit of grunt (0-60 in 8ish seconds is okay). Economy not that important, but would be nice if it'd do over 30mpg on a run.
Wife likes SUV-style things, but also isn't keen on having a car that's massive on the outside. We looked at Skoda Kodiaq and she felt it was a bit big. Volvo XC60 was perfect, but the boot space is a bit on the small side (460ish litres?).
Current favourite is the 2-series xDrive Gran Tourer - what else are we missing?
Needs to be able to take a family of four in comfort away on holiday, and will do 12-14k per year. Want 4wd (rural area, on a hill) and a bit of grunt (0-60 in 8ish seconds is okay). Economy not that important, but would be nice if it'd do over 30mpg on a run.
Wife likes SUV-style things, but also isn't keen on having a car that's massive on the outside. We looked at Skoda Kodiaq and she felt it was a bit big. Volvo XC60 was perfect, but the boot space is a bit on the small side (460ish litres?).
Current favourite is the 2-series xDrive Gran Tourer - what else are we missing?
Look at the VW Tiguan 1.5 dsg or 2.0tdi. my mum has a late 2017 model SEL which comes with excellent standard kit including 8" sat navs with Android auto, digital cockpit, adaptive cruise control and lane assist, panoramic roof, led lights etc etc. The r line (now called r line tech) is another step on from this and has even more standard kit like 360 cameras. The rear legspace is great, interior is nice enough however the boot isn't the biggest in the world
NDA said:
I had a Skoda Yeti in the family fleet for a while - easily affordable in your budget. I was pretty impressed with it.
What's the VW T-Roc like? I've read some good reviews. Again, would fit your budget.
We had a Yeti in the past (with 320bhp - see here), nice car, but the boot is a little small. We used to take the rear middle seat out when going away to fit everything in. Just double-checked the Karoq though, and that's got a bigger boot - need to go back and have a look at that again!What's the VW T-Roc like? I've read some good reviews. Again, would fit your budget.
amstrange1 said:
We had a Yeti in the past (with 320bhp - see here), nice car, but the boot is a little small. We used to take the rear middle seat out when going away to fit everything in. Just double-checked the Karoq though, and that's got a bigger boot - need to go back and have a look at that again!
The Karoq gets very good reviews.Mrs NDA thought it was some kind of negative coded message when I bought her a Skoda.... however she fell in love with it and it was a great car. I would have another and the Karoq looks interesting, not sure what engine flavours they come in.
We have a 220d gran tourer (can’t bring myself to call it a GT)..
Not sure on the 0-60 and ours is fwd but it’s got ok performance- economy is reasonable and as a family wagon it does the job well - its a different proposition to an SUV but it’s been very cheap to run so far.
We had an s max before and the 220d has a better engine and gearbox combo - its the 8spd auto but isn’t a ZF like you’ll find in a 5er.
I had an F11 530d before and the 220d has more space
Ours even has 17” non run flat tyres so the ride is pretty decent too.
I expect we’ll keep it a while yet
Not sure on the 0-60 and ours is fwd but it’s got ok performance- economy is reasonable and as a family wagon it does the job well - its a different proposition to an SUV but it’s been very cheap to run so far.
We had an s max before and the 220d has a better engine and gearbox combo - its the 8spd auto but isn’t a ZF like you’ll find in a 5er.
I had an F11 530d before and the 220d has more space
Ours even has 17” non run flat tyres so the ride is pretty decent too.
I expect we’ll keep it a while yet
Doubt if the odd litre makes a huge difference with boot space TBH.
I would go for the XC60
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Lots more choice if you go for the diesel and you seem to get more for your money as well
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
I would go for the XC60
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Lots more choice if you go for the diesel and you seem to get more for your money as well
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
akadk said:
You can get a nearly new AWD XF Sportbrake R-Sport 240PS twin turbo for £30k
Ticks all your boxes and leaves you with a car that is still fun to drive then the road allows, rather than a wallowy SUV pointlessmobile
Sadly doesn’t take 3 isofix in the back row so not even on the list Ticks all your boxes and leaves you with a car that is still fun to drive then the road allows, rather than a wallowy SUV pointlessmobile
Thanks for all the suggestions!
Nice cars, wife a bit concerned about the length - she doesn't like driving my current A6 Avant, but somehow feels more comfortable with a slightly elevated driving position.
FWIW said:
Funny you mention that, we went into the BMW dealer to look at one when we stumbled across the idea of the 2-series Gran Tourer!Nice cars, wife a bit concerned about the length - she doesn't like driving my current A6 Avant, but somehow feels more comfortable with a slightly elevated driving position.
JackReacher said:
I don't think there is much difference in size between a Kodiaq and XC60.
Very good point! I'd overlooked that - another reason to go back to the Skoda dealer.NDA said:
Mrs NDA thought it was some kind of negative coded message when I bought her a Skoda...
The wife's currently got a Fabia, so no issues there. sp222 said:
We have a 220d gran tourer (can’t bring myself to call it a GT)..
....
I expect we’ll keep it a while yet
Thanks for the feedback - it's useful to know that they're well liked by owners.....
I expect we’ll keep it a while yet
GreatGranny said:
Doubt if the odd litre makes a huge difference with boot space TBH.
It's about 100 litres difference, which is significant.akadk said:
You can get a nearly new AWD XF Sportbrake R-Sport 240PS twin turbo for £30k
We've had a couple of XF Sportbrakes in the past, they're nice to drive, but bottom of the class for packaging efficiency IMO.Edible Roadkill said:
I really liked my ford Smax for doing the family journeys perfectly. Would have had another if we hadn’t sat inside a Volvo xc90 
Therin lies my challenge... We went into the Volvo dealer and were very impressed!troika said:
Audi Allroad? So much nicer than the SUV’s. Surprisingly capable when required.
Good shout - we're binning off my A6 Avant 3.0TFSI for this new family bus. Wife won't drive the A6 though as she finds the size difficult. If I were the main driver of the car it'd most likely be another large estate or hatch as you get a lot more for your money, with better economy and handling to boot.Gassing Station | Car Buying | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff