Reliable estate car

[MaggieWelly]

Hello!

I’ll start this by saying I’m not a car person so all advice is very welcome!

I’m expecting a baby in a couple of months so am therefore looking for an estate car to fit 2 car seats and a pushchair and largeish dog in the boot!

What’s most important to us is reliability, as well as economy. And the bigger the better! Our budget is 12k but would rather pay 10ish. We’d like a car that’s going to last us a number of years.

I’ve had a trawl through autotrader and there’s so many options… not sure whether to go for a lower spec but younger and lower mileage model like an Astra or a slightly older, higher mileage model like a Scoda Superb.

Completely open to suggestions!

Also, do you think it’s worth holding off at all for second hand car prices to fall and if so are there any thoughts on when that might be?

Thanks 😊

[MaggieWelly]

And what’s most important when looking at specific cars? Age, mileage, service history? And is there anything specific that needs to be checked with specific models / e.g xyz should be changed at 40k miles in an Astra

[MaggieWelly]

Thanks so much all! I would have replied sooner, but the forum wouldn't let me, as I'm a new member and might spam you all?!

In terms of SUVs - they're a no! Although they're a bigger car in general the boot space doesnt seem to match that of an estate unless you go for a tank. Also, my partner's sister is getting rid of her Volvo xc90 due to the running costs, so don't want to get stuck with something that costs a fortune to tax/is a fuel guzzler etc.

MPVs are also a no... as much as I say I'm not a car person, I can't bring myself to get a mum-wagon! Also the boot space is an issue.

I used to have a 2003 Volvo V40 estate and that was great size-wise. Could fit a pushchair and the dog (smallish lab sized) in the back without any problems, so need a boot that kind of size again. The issue with the volvo was that it's was a 2 litre turbo diesel and I felt like I was filling it up every 5 minutes. We've currently got an Astra hatchback which is fine, but dog and pushchair won't fit in the boot together... if prices are likely to come down in the next 6 months we can survive, as have a roof box and the dog can sit between my legs for journeys less than 30 mins or so! If it's going to be longer than that we'll just have to bite the bullet.

In terms of other questions - we live fairly near London so something ULEZ compliant would be ideal, but not a deal breaker as we'll be keeping the Astra and that is ULEZ compliant. In terms of mileage... I'd say useage would be pretty average?

Thanks so much for the car suggestions. I think I'm still pretty open to models - there have been quite a few mentioned here and they all look good to me. Particularly liking the Mazda 6 in terms of looks... seems pretty solid too. The Toyota looks good too in terms of economy, which the more I think about it, the more important that is. As I'm not a massive car person I resent pouring my earnings into a fuel tank!