Twins Arrived. What Family Car?

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Having had an A4 avant, and now a bigger XC60, i'd be looking at mid size estates like the Superb. The A4,C class and 3 series cars just dont seem all that big even in estate guise. The crap that you have to carry with babies is crazy, and women lose the plot and buy the dearest and largest sodding pram, which means big boot.

Kodiaq, or its sister the Ateca are a good shout, the Tiguan is over priced imo.
 
Wife has a auto Hyundai Tucson 1.6 premium (for the wipe clean leather seats also) we only have 1 child but have plenty of space in it for a car seat. Boot is a good size and its got loads of tech for the price and its got enough poke for what it is. Similar to a Sportage inside but cheaper and bit more toys
 
Tinders said:
The crap that you have to carry with babies is crazy, and women lose the plot and buy the dearest and largest sodding pram, which means big boot.

Kodiaq, or its sister the Ateca are a good shout, the Tiguan is over priced imo.
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Agree with this, I went from a 1 series to a suv. The raised height of a SUV type car makes it so much easier on the back to get them in and out. Remember you will often be lugging them out in the car seat a lot when they fall asleep.
 
2 series gran tourer. Very big, useable boot. We've found ours great for lugging kids and their crap around.
 
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Tinders said:
Kodiaq, or its sister the Ateca are a good shout, the Tiguan is over priced imo.
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The Kodiaq is bigger than the Ateca, which is the same chassis as the Karoq and the Tiguan.

We went with an Ateca FR and its perfect for us with one little toot + pram + crap. I wanted the Kodiaq or the XC60 so that I was ready for toot#2 but wifey 'felt' they were too big for her to drive comfortably. She was coming from a Micra so size was a really issue vs choice for us.

If I was expecting twins, I'd go straight for the Kodiaq or volvo tbh. Now that wife's baseline has been reset, I'll push for the bigger SUV when change times comes.

Oh and +1 for SUV over estate. Lifting prams and camping equipment + baby paraphernalia in and out of an estate would have broken my back by now. That and wifey prefers the elevated driving position.
 
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If you want something with 'poke' for £25k, get a BMW F25 X3 35d, 313BHP, 8 Speed Auto, 0-60 in 5.3 seconds etc, yet will still do over 30MPG even in the worst of commutes and can even get mid to high 40's if driven like a saint.
The funny thing is, the 35d in this is the exact same engine as in all the 40d variants in other models (313BHP)

This one (2017) has an amazing spec list for very close to £25K (https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201906289517902)
- Dynamic Damping (Really helps as the standard M-Sport suspension is a bit harsh, this allows you the choice)
- Surround View (very useful to help the Mrs gain confidence when manoeuvring around tight spaces)
- Adaptive LED Headlights (Nice to look at, I don't really notice much difference from any
- Heated Electric Front Seats (even electric seats was not 'standard', the only option I had to forego :( )
- Heated Steering Wheel
- NBT Evo infotainment (that bit newer/nicer, only added in the last year of production)

I've just swapped the Mrs' X-Trail to one of these (slightly older, but has a good options list including the surround view, LED headlights, and even a Pan Roof) and can't really fault it, the performance is so smooth and it really hauls..

Had this one been around 2 month ago I'd have persuaded the Mrs to get over her fear of white cars (The X3 looks good in white, my Mrs just hates anything in white) as bar the Pan Roof it has every option I'd care about and some of those are very rare (in fact Surround view was on our essential list, only 2 X3's in the country had it when we where looking).
 
Tinders said:
Having had an A4 avant, and now a bigger XC60, i'd be looking at mid size estates like the Superb. The A4,C class and 3 series cars just dont seem all that big even in estate guise. The crap that you have to carry with babies is crazy, and women lose the plot and buy the dearest and largest sodding pram, which means big boot.

Kodiaq, or its sister the Ateca are a good shout, the Tiguan is over priced imo.
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Mid Size? I thought the Superb was the largest estate available lol?

I moved from a Mazda 6 to a Ford Grand C Max when our 2 arrived, 100% all the stuff wouldn't have fit in the boot on the 6.
Was a saloon not the estate mind and would happily go back to the 6 lol

Once theyre at a stage where we don't need to take everything and the kitchen sink wiht us I think I;ll be looking at one of the higher power Octavia or Superbs
Whilst the v Class does indeed look awesome theres no denying that price tag haha

Also once you've got an idea which yuo're looking at I'd deffo head over to carwow.
I was looking a little earlier in the year and getting offers of upto 22% discount
 
I've just bought a C7 A6 Avant 3.0 as my family car, could not be more pleased with it. Tons of room and a fantastic car to drive. Make sure you get one with a good spec with thighs like the tech pack. And for me dsg was a must too.
 
Congrats on the twins;

Can't really offer any advice - I don't have kids, so never really looked into any proper practical cars. But congrats! :)
 
I really like the superb...its such a smart looking car

just looks so pin sharp in the sportline trim
 
Hilly said:
Congrats on the twins;

Can't really offer any advice - I don't have kids, so never really looked into any proper practical cars. But congrats! :)
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Thanks buddy. 2 for the price of 1. Certainly keeps us busy!


Demon said:
If you want something with 'poke' for £25k, get a BMW F25 X3 35d, 313BHP, 8 Speed Auto, 0-60 in 5.3 seconds etc, yet will still do over 30MPG even in the worst of commutes and can even get mid to high 40's if driven like a saint.
The funny thing is, the 35d in this is the exact same engine as in all the 40d variants in other models (313BHP)

This one (2017) has an amazing spec list for very close to £25K (https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201906289517902)
- Dynamic Damping (Really helps as the standard M-Sport suspension is a bit harsh, this allows you the choice)
- Surround View (very useful to help the Mrs gain confidence when manoeuvring around tight spaces)
- Adaptive LED Headlights (Nice to look at, I don't really notice much difference from any
- Heated Electric Front Seats (even electric seats was not 'standard', the only option I had to forego :( )
- Heated Steering Wheel
- NBT Evo infotainment (that bit newer/nicer, only added in the last year of production)

I've just swapped the Mrs' X-Trail to one of these (slightly older, but has a good options list including the surround view, LED headlights, and even a Pan Roof) and can't really fault it, the performance is so smooth and it really hauls..

Had this one been around 2 month ago I'd have persuaded the Mrs to get over her fear of white cars (The X3 looks good in white, my Mrs just hates anything in white) as bar the Pan Roof it has every option I'd care about and some of those are very rare (in fact Surround view was on our essential list, only 2 X3's in the country had it when we where looking).
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That's really helpful - thanks for taking the time. I'll look into it.

FTM said:
I really like the superb...its such a smart looking car

just looks so pin sharp in the sportline trim
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Quite like the Superb styling (more than the Octavia). All this SUV talk has got me thinking of something that sits a bit higher. To me, I prefer a lower car but I can see the thought process behind a higher car for ease of ingress with kids.
 
mk1_salami said:
Quite like the Superb styling (more than the Octavia). All this SUV talk has got me thinking of something that sits a bit higher. To me, I prefer a lower car but I can see the thought process behind a higher car for ease of ingress with kids.
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This is a myth. I am 6ft 3 and have no problem what so ever with an estate. Two kids and a dog. If anything it is easier for them to get in and out of. A lot easier to get prams in as well as estates generally have a longer load area rather than higher which is far more use in the real world.
 
adam cool dude said:
This is a myth.
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It's obviously not a myth, it's called a preference. What an odd thing to say. Lifting something heavy from near waist height, is far easier than something at knee height.

People will give their opinions and preferences, the op will make his own informed choice.
 
~Divine~Wind~ said:
Mid Size? I thought the Superb was the largest estate available lol?
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Not sure why i've singled you out to ask.....But any idea where i could get inside dimensions which give the inside length all the way through? I sometimes struggle to get 2.4m lengths of wood in my Alfa and it'd be great id any estates allowed really long things.
 
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