Cars that look better as estates

mumblin deaf ro

The Saab thread got me thinking. I think both the 9-3 and 9-5 look better in estate form. I think the volvo V50 looks better than the S40. I also have a soft spot for the Mondeo estate.

Any others?

.Longshanks.

thebiglad

Peugeot 406, Renault Laguna & Opel Insignia

TomMc

Legacy & 5-Series.

Seweryn

mumblin deaf ro wrote: »

The Saab thread got me thinking. I think both the 9-3 and 9-5 look better in estate form. I think the volvo V50 looks better than the S40. I also have a soft spot for the Mondeo estate.

Any others?

Any Mercedes-Benz looks beter as a Station Wagon. These two are the good examples:

TomMc

156/159 Sportwagen.

Saab Ed

Citroen ami8

Do you know what , now that I look at them Im not so sure....No scrap that the saloon looks better.....sorry

Nforce

Volvo 850 T5R

Run_to_da_hills

My favourite estate ever.

joolsveer

Current Honda Accord. I rented one in France a couple of weeks ago.
http://www.topspeed.com/cars/honda/2009-honda-accord-european-version-type-s-ar71344/picture289034.html

fm

the c5

Lord Nikon

Need I say more??

Lobster

neuromancer wrote: »

Need I say more??

I came in here to say Audi's but looks like you got that covered!

samsemtex

bazz26

Jaguar X-Type estate:

craichoe

neuromancer wrote: »

Need I say more??

MMMMM ....

Had a 2.0 TDI for the weekend,
The avant was nice.... but i think the Headlights did alot for it !

The Real B-man

Ok Ok not as good as the Saloon but seriously cool estate

Lex Luthor

so fairly much all of them....I'm not so sure about the merc estates though.
The 9-5 aswell seems a little over complicated, but Audi's have always looked better in the Avants.

The new C5 is one of my favourite looking estates

Anan1

This thread would have been a lot shorter if it had been called 'Cars that don't look better as estates' The only three I would have been able to come up with off the top of my head would have been the Alfa 156, the Peugeot 406, and the original SAAB 9-5.

Wossack

'hot-hearses'

Stevie Dakota

BlackWizard

Most people haven't got image zoom for Firefox, so I don't see the point in posting huge images. Having to scroll around looking at it takes away from just looking at a beautiful image

EPM

Wossack wrote: »

'hot-hearses'

kikel

So Estates are now cool again, I've noticed alot more around. Alot of yummy mummies seem to be ditching there 4x4's for estates. Looks like the eco warriers are winning or maybe the recession is to blame.

Saab Ed

Now I fully expect to be alone on this but I really like these...

Drummerboy08

Does it for me everytime.

mike65

Estates are cool, prestigue German cars esp seem to gain an extra something (apart from an extra foot ot two).

Try parallel parking this



LOL I just spotted this baby in the ugly thread!

Lord Nikon

There is a seperate thread for estate cars that look bad.

Eoin

M3 Estate


In fact, the last two three series estates looked better than the saloon as well.

Anan1 wrote: »

This thread would have been a lot shorter if it had been called 'Cars that don't look better as estates'

Weird Irish attitude towards estates, isn't it?

Lex Luthor

Stevie Dakota wrote: »

I actually prefer the hatchback megane

Drummerboy08 wrote: »

Does it for me everytime.

ME TOO...:D

eoin wrote: »

M3 Estate


In fact, the last two three series estates looked better than the saloon as well.



Weird Irish attitude towards estates, isn't it?

I'd prefer the RS6 Avant though anyday

Eoin

Lex Luthor wrote: »

I'd prefer the RS6 Avant though anyday

Yeah, but I'd prefer it to the M3 saloon, which is the point of the thread!

mcwhirter

http://www.checker-motors.co.jp/shop/yokohama/sud_Giardinetta1.jpg

Alfasud estate

Matt Simis

How about.. M5?


I do like the Saloon, but it looks a bit flat by comparison.

Stevie Dakota

Funny with all this appreciation of estates styling that so few Irish actually buy them. We bought our first one a couple of years ago and could never go saloon again.

Matt Simis

Stevie Dakota wrote: »

Funny with all this appreciation of estates styling that so few Irish actually buy them. We bought our first one a couple of years ago and could never go saloon again.

Mainly because the 11 of us on this thread are a few years ahead of "most Irish people". They will catch up in time. :P

I also like the A8 Avantissimo that never made it to production (from 2001):

Lex Luthor

The m5 estate is a looker but the standard one isn't....

Muckie

Liking these's.

samsemtex

Stevie Dakota wrote: »

Funny with all this appreciation of estates styling that so few Irish actually buy them. We bought our first one a couple of years ago and could never go saloon again.

This stat alone shows something about Irish attitudes to estates. Of the 950 Toyota Avensis that are on car zone, how many do you think are estates?























26. Or in other words 2% of one of the most popular cars in Ireland is an estate.

Eoin

samsemtex wrote: »

This stat alone shows something about Irish attitudes to estates. Of the 950 Toyota Avensis that are on car zone, how many do you think are estates?
<snip annoying whitespace>
26. Or in other words 2% of one of the most popular cars in Ireland is an estate.

Or the estates are so brilliant that nobody wants to sell theirs. But probably not.

samsemtex

eoin wrote: »

Or the estates are so brilliant that nobody wants to sell theirs. But probably not.

I thought the white space gave the thread a more spacious feeling myself. Really opened it out...

If people think they are so brilliant then my brother would like to find these people as he cant get rid of his for neither love nor money.

Dave.

Id love one of these

Eoin

Dave. wrote: »

Id love one of these

Me too - I love the 300c, but can't explain it.

Dave.

Brian

That R35 estate looks crazy. Something very Honda about the back, the rear lights. I can't really think of any that haven't been mentioned, but I particularly like the Mazda 6 that was posted earlier - I've never seen an estate version of it. Speaking of which, I never even knew there was an IS200 estate until I saw one recently -



Not that fond of the Altezza's looks in general though ... so let's have more of that Mazda 6.

crosstownk

Saab Ed wrote: »

Now I fully expect to be alone on this but I really like these...

Not exactly an estate but practical nonetheless. Those sliding rear doors are a gift in a car park when your trying to get small children out of the car - they also mean that the car beside is not going to get damaged by a thoughtless driver. But in the looks department they are definitely an acquired taste!

I do like the C5 Tourer......especially with those 19" wheels.

denat

Britain, US and Middle East seem to be where estates are most popular. A huge proportion of cars in London are estates and most of the rest are hatchbacks.

In my experience, many hatchbacks are less practical than their saloon sisters for carrying loads. A flat-slanted rear-window can preclude any load that might damage the glass or heated elements. A saloon with folding rear seats can sometimes safely carry a load that the hatchback equivalent cannot (without leaving the hatch open, which is likely illegal and definitely not safe). The Granada (hatchback c1984) and Omega saloon were very useful for transporting varied loads. The Laguna, for example, is not.

IMO estates are the most practical and, to address the OP, I think most Toyotas look better in estate format. I notice the Corolla estate is no longer available here, only Auris van version which, I think, looks obnoxious and is too small.

My next car will probably be an estate, either mondeo or avensis, if I can find a decent one secondhand.

Cmar-Ireland

Eoin

denat wrote: »

In my experience, many hatchbacks are less practical than their saloon sisters for carrying loads. A flat-slanted rear-window can preclude any load that might damage the glass or heated elements. A saloon with folding rear seats can sometimes safely carry a load that the hatchback equivalent cannot (without leaving the hatch open, which is likely illegal and definitely not safe).

A saloon might have more capacity, but the chances are that it won't have the same access for bulkier items. Best hatch I remember for moving stuff was my mate's Peugeot 306. The rear seat backs were able to fold down completely flat, so it was like a mini van.

Brian

Estates, or "Station wagons" as they are called, are pretty popular in New Zealand too. Good for fishing gear.

Seweryn

Baza210 wrote: »

Estates, or "Station wagons" as they are called, are pretty popular in New Zealand too. Good for fishing gear.

Station Wagons are popular nearly everywhere outside of this country, where people would choose the high chair option.

Lex Luthor

Dave. wrote: »

Id love one of these

that is mental looking....

the C5 gets my vote...

any chance of a poll of the list shown to see which one we think looks best?