Best estate/suv car for around 5-6k

coupe69

coupe69

coupe69

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As our family has doubled in the last few months (twins) my better half needs to sidegrade (downgrade) her 14 plate Ford Fiesta Zetec S 3 door to something considerably bigger.

What's considered the best value for money car in this price bracket with plenty of room? I've been out of the car buying loop for so long now as I've had company cars for the last 15 years, so have no idea what's good and what's trash.

Unfortunately we're going to have to take a hit on the fiesta as it's leased (another 2 years) and the lease company will not allow her to upgrade!

Another couple of things to take into consideration are;

A: She does very few miles a year, roughly 3-4000, so presumably petrol would be better?
B: She's obsessed with Fords quick clear front windscreen. She works out in the sticks only a couple of miles from home and previous cars without the quick clear function have always suffered from severe condensation.
I can only presume this is down to the fact it's not had time to warm up on the way to work? But I really don't know?
C: As it will be a bigger car parking aids may come in handy!

Thanks in advance for your advice :)
 
How about something like S max? Only SUV in this bracket for me would be something like a Honda CRV. Qashqai is a bit small ime.

I think best bang for buck would be the model or Skoda Superb estate.
 
Obviously the 2.5t kuga is the answer. They have horrendous depreciation as everyone wants the diesel.

....

Scratch that they are still more than your budget for a decent one. Mondeo estate then :)
 
There is much hate in motors for them, but go for an MPV / crossover with small children for the sake of your backs. Being able to stand while strapping the sprogs in saves all sorts of painful contortions. The 'functional' interiors are also great when it comes to sick, mud, food and all sorts of other nasties that will be in the back seat.
 
If you can stretch your budget just a little, to say £6k-£7k, you should be able to have a decent choice of MK3 Ford Focus Estates, or MK2 Ford C-Max's.

Either of which should feel right at home coming from a Fiesta.

E.g. something like:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201608237066534
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201608176867187

or

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201403042232726


For the budget, the age of SMAX you would get, would likely feel too much of a downgrade (not to mention feeling "bigger" to drive and park, and noticeable higher running costs than a fiesta)
 
I'd go for a large estate, or MPV. We had a Golf for the first couple of years with our son, but the upgrade to a Passat estate was so much better for fitting in family stuff, especially once our daughter arrived.

If she likes the Ford features, then Mondeo estate is the obvious choice. S-Max is based on the Mondeo platform, and offers extra headroom and a couple of extra seats in the boot.

At that price bracket, you get similar age/condition Mondeos as you would Focus or Fiesta. They're great value.
 
The Mondeo available for this budget is going to be an older design (released in 2007~) compared with a Focus (2011~) - not sure if that makes a difference but wouldn't the Focus be a better buy for the money?
 
cheesyboy said:
Surely B-Max isn't 'considerably bigger' than a fiesta? Isn't is just a tall version of one?
Click to expand...

Boot space is marginally bigger than a current Focus.

Whilst I get the need to have more space when having Children, most people seem to unnecessarily go to the extreme.

The sliding doors and higher position of the B-Max make getting Kids in and out of child seats far easier than say a Mondeo.
 
The boot in a focus is significantly more usable with better length and width, enough to be the difference between the boot being totally full when a pram is in there and having a decent amount of room.for other stuff - those capacities don't feel right, but even if they are it doesn't tell the whole story.

The extra load height of the B Max would be useful too
 
Thanks for all the suggestions :)

The Mazda CX7 really caught my eye, didn't realise they had such a powerful engine. Unfortunately I very much doubt that the wife would go for anything so extravagant!

Looks like a Mondeo estate is probably the best bet with our budget. Loads of room and would come in handy for our imminent house move and has that all important front windscreen demister. Presumably the Titanium model would be the one to go for? What do I need to look out for when making a purchase?

I was also looking at Audi A4 Avants 1.8 & 2.0 TFSI's. What are peoples thoughts on these? Seems a lot of car for the money, but I may be missing some issues?
 
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