Estate or Not Estate?

Coz

Hi All,

I'm in the process of looking for a 2nd hand car. To date I've been driving a hatchback but with a little one on the way we're looking to get something bigger.

The obvious option seems to be to go for an Estate (size and ease of loading) but seeing as there are less of them on the road I was wondering if people know of any pro's or con's to choosing one over a Saloon.

Did a quick Google on this and I couldn't find any discussions on the Pros and Cons of buying an Estate car.

Any thoughts?!!?

Coz

Anan1

Estates have more space, the space is more accessible, and they tend to look better. On the downside, they tend to cost a bit more.

langdang

Limited market*, for them unfortunately,maybe slow to sell.
Limited supply*, hard to find, less choice

*It's just an Irish thing. Saloons are very "prestigious" here somehow....

You might find it hard to get parts for the back end of the car - try replacing a boot door or rear lights on a Civic aerodeck or a Mazda 626 estate. You'd be searching a while I'd say!

bazz26

Family cars like the Mondeo, etc have hatchback varients for extra practicality. Most have slip folding rear seats also. I really thing an estate car is overkill for one child. We managed fine with one child in saloon/hatchbacks.

John_Rambo

langdang wrote: »

*It's just an Irish thing. Saloons are very "prestigious" here somehow...

It's mad! The estate BMW, Mercs, Volvos all look better than the saloons and they are more practical! I guess the saloon gives off the 'business man, bank official' company car look that certain people want. My lifestyle (sports, family, dog, holidaying in Ireland a lot) called for me to move from a hatch to a large estate. I looked at a few and one salesman told me he simply wouldn't be seen in an estate! He would only drive saloons, I asked him why and it was because of the stigma he felt that was associated with estates.

maddness

Estate cars rock. Simple.

John_Rambo

Double post, sorry.

John_Rambo

maddness wrote: »

Estate cars rock. Simple.

There's a good few estate sleepers out there too . I looked at Suburu, Merc, Audi and Volvo. Great spec in the estate versions in Ireland for some reason.

deandean

IMO, in terms of both practicality and aesthetics, the hatchback is about 70% better than the saloon (you can put in a washing machine, etc) and the estate is another 30% better than the hatchback (if ya saw what I have put, and done, in the back of the few estate cars I've had ).

I'd find it very difficult to go back to a saloon, especially when in the family stage with dogs, in-laws, kids etc.

Of course the SUV crapola took away a huge lot of would-be estate car drivers in recent years.

The latest Megane estate is a very nice looking bus, if a little on the small side for me.

And in answer to your question: no difference at all in driving betw saloon/hatch/estate versions. Maybe a few more Kg at the rear but that's it.

L-M

i'd be hard pushed to go back to a saloon to be honest, Bloody love the space and practicality that the estate brings.

They're that bit dearer though, but seem to hold a better resale value too, though.

John_Rambo

deandean wrote: »

And in answer to your question: no difference at all in driving betw saloon/hatch/estate versions. Maybe a few more Kg at the rear but that's it.

Sorry, thanks for the reminder deandean, in answer to the OP question, the estate wins all round. No difference to driving a saloon except maybe easier to park (window at the back)... Brilliant for holidays, dogs and sports if your sports involves water, getting changed on a beach etc... handy to sleep in if you get stuck! Trips to IKEA, DIY places, collecting bikes etc all made easy.

L-M

John_Rambo wrote: »

Sorry, in answer to your question, the estate wins all round. No difference to driving a saloon except maybe easier to park (window at the back)... Brilliant for holidays, dogs and sports if your sports involves water, getting changed on a beach etc... handy to sleep in if you get stuck! Trips to IKEA, DIY places, collecting bikes etc all made easy.

Bad point of them is family and friends comes from a far to borrow it

John_Rambo

Limerick man wrote: »

Bad point of them is family and friends comes from a far to borrow it

You can't complain when you have a Clio 172 at your disposal. Shame on you.

L-M

John_Rambo wrote: »

You can't complain when you have a Clio 172 at your disposal. Shame on you.

Not mine! Belongs to a friend, but technically still at my disposal :L

langdang

deandean wrote: »

Of course the SUV crapola took away a huge lot of would-be estate car drivers in recent years.

had to go SUV myself recently as there were no practical bangernomics estates. My last estate had more room and more practicality. And obviously a lower COG.

whippet

I'm almost 12 months in to driving an estate and I reckon I could never be without one.

Dogs, Football gear, driving holidays to the south of france, trips to the recycling place, IKEA ........... the list goes on ..

I used to have to borrow the van from our office every second week to do bits and pieces at the weekends but very rarely now.

Dubstar07

John_Rambo wrote: »

There's a good few estate sleepers out there too . I looked at Suburu, Merc, Audi and Volvo. Great spec in the estate versions in Ireland for some reason.

Rambo, Any Merc / Audi / Volvo / Saab that you could share a link to as I'm hoping to get one. As other have said the extra space is the main draw. Not a fan of the SUV or the extra over for the privilige. Would expect we'll hang onto it for a while. Anything say between 2002 to 2006 or even a year or two older thanks

John_Rambo

Dubstar07 wrote: »

Rambo, Any Merc / Audi / Volvo / Saab that you could share a link to as I'm hoping to get one

Hi Dubstar. I started by picking the brands I liked on carzone and clicking on the estate option only, the years I wanted and the max price I could afford. Choosing the fuel type narrows it down even further. This gave me an idea of what was out there at my price range, the rest was down to colour, mileage, extras etc...

So, if I pick all models of Audi, BMW, SAAB, Volvo and Merc, click on estate models only, narrow the year to 2005 only, you get 54 cars. Further adjust the fuel, mileage etc.. and you narrow it down further.

Check this Volvo ocean race V70

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/V70/V70-D5-S/413262876253420/advert?channel=CARS

Dilbert75

John_Rambo wrote: »

Check this Volvo ocean race V70

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/V70/V70-D5-S/413262876253420/advert?channel=CARS

Nom. Pity about the cloth seats.

L-M

That is a verrry nice Volvo, very very nice!

Coz

Thanks for all the advice folks!

deandean

Here is the one I have a bit of a horn for at the moment...Ocean Race XC70

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/XC70/DIESEL-A/131420008244386/advert?channel=CARS

ToxicPaddy

deandean wrote: »

Here is the one I have a bit of a horn for at the moment...Ocean Race XC70

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/XC70/DIESEL-A/131420008244386/advert?channel=CARS

I spotted one of these for sale in Tipp a few weeks back but when I went to enquire about it, it was gone. Looks like the same one but not sure. Lovely car, ticks all the boxes and 4wd for the added bonus.

Defo a good option if in the estate market.

Anan1

The XC70 is a lovely place to sit, but it's a vague and wallowy drive. The Volvo's awd system is also very poor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De0RstOO_iY

biko

I like estate cars. They're a bit bigger to park etc but if you're ok with that then go for it.
I actually find them easier to drive/park as they are boxier. Also I learned to drive in a Volvo 245 tank.

moodrater

+1 for estates

Very hard to go back to a normal car, had a 6ft sideboard in ours a couple of days ago, my dad carries windsurfer, boom, mast, sails in his no need for roofrack or flapping bags, vibrating straps on the motorway. Smelly dog goes in the boot along with suitcases, buggy etc. I've even slept comfortably in the back of ours when everone elses tents got blown down in a gale.

Only a fraction less economical than a saloon, much better aerodynamics and *much* cheaper tyres than suvs and 'crossover' vehicles.

As already said can be hard to get parts, I had an old primera estate, fabulous car enormous wishbone, ball joint, anti roll bar part had to come from uk I only ever saw 3 of them anywhere. But if you get something like a passat should be no problem - I was parked just off main street in tralee christmas eve there were four other b5 passat estates out of 18 cars.

I'd avoid faux estates like golf, cordoba etc. if you can, the bootlip really reduces the functionality of the space in the back.

The one thing I will say is if your looking at used diesel estates take the mileage on the clock with a giant pinch of salt.

Tea 1000

John_Rambo wrote: »

It's mad! The estate BMW, Mercs, Volvos all look better than the saloons and they are more practical! I guess the saloon gives off the 'business man, bank official' company car look that certain people want. My lifestyle (sports, family, dog, holidaying in Ireland a lot) called for me to move from a hatch to a large estate. I looked at a few and one salesman told me he simply wouldn't be seen in an estate! He would only drive saloons, I asked him why and it was because of the stigma he felt that was associated with estates.

I'd disagree a bit there, I think the E39, E46 and E93 estates look a bit kak, and the C-Class estate is definitely kak. Audi estates do look better than a lot of the saloons, as do the New and last shape Avensis, and Subaru Legacy estates look good too. The Superb estate is nicer than the saloon. The Accord estate looks good, but the last one looked shíte. As did the two generation old Avensis estate. Mondeo estate looks better than the saloon too.
To answer the OP's question as to estate drawbacks, most people in Ireland, particularly women, don't like the look of them. Therefore they won't let the (whipped) men buy one. So they're rare. So used values are higher.
If you're nit-picking, you do loose a little structural rigidity, but no more than a hatch and really you'd want a decent engine and suspension setup before you start noticing that!

keithclancy

I want one of these:

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Ford/Mondeo/TITANIUM/613257826265700/advert?channel=CARS

Pique

keithclancy wrote: »

I want one of these:

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Ford/Mondeo/TITANIUM/613257826265700/advert?channel=CARS

Meh.

I want one of these:

deandean

I looked at one of these once, HAHAHAHA you could park another estate in the back, and keep it long enough it would do as a hearse, and bring all your mates (+bar) to the funeral: Chrysler 300C Touring

whippet

deandean wrote: »

I looked at one of these once, HAHAHAHA you could park another estate in the back, and keep it long enough it would do as a hearse, and bring all your mates (+bar) to the funeral: Chrysler 300C Touring

it only has a paltry 1602 Litres of boot space .. my Superb Combi has 1865 Litres .. thats enough to fit an Octavia (with it's boot) in !!

Pique

Yeah, bu the Chrysler makes you look like a gangster....or a pimp

langdang

Pique wrote: »

Yeah, bu the Chrysler makes you look like a gangster....or a pimp

Ya, you'd still get a rake of copper tanks into it. Do you like dags?

Tea 1000

whippet wrote: »

it only has a paltry 1602 Litres of boot space .. my Superb Combi has 1865 Litres .. thats enough to fit an Octavia (with it's boot) in !!

Meh... it's no E-Class estate, with 1950 litres!!

Raskolnikov

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Meh... it's no E-Class estate, with 1950 litres!!

I like! My Skoda has 1460 litres of space and feels frickin' massive, can only imagine what it would be like to have another 33% more space.

Matt Simis

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Meh... it's no E-Class estate, with 1950 litres!!

At a certain point "enough" has been reached..
The OP has just one new child on the way, they arent planning to taking every child to the creche in the boot.

Lex Luthor

been driving an estate now over 2yrs and dont think I'd be going back to a hatch or saloon quite soon unless it was something special

This is something like my own, same yr & mileage except mines in grey but price wise you wont go far wrong with them

http://www.driving.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=713258382533410

biko

I like the Honda Accord Tourer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGl9Iqr84wo

keithclancy

Pique wrote: »

Meh.

I want one of these:

Ah right .. no, I mean what I'm actually going to BUY for a 40k/year commute

Although they're WAY cheaper over there

Dubstar07

Thanks Rambo. I had been looking on carzone previously, was trying to widen the net...on with the search...

John_Rambo

Dubstar07 wrote: »

Thanks Rambo. I had been looking on carzone previously, was trying to widen the net...on with the search...

So, I just told you to do exactly what you were doing?

I briefly looked to the UK, but I couldn't justify the hassle, mind you, the cars were much much nicer colours, not all grey and silver. I didn't bother with donedeal as I wanted to buy from a dealer with warranty. The only advice I can give is to really research the extras that are available on the used car you have settled for and wait for one that is fully loaded. Best of luck.

biko wrote: »

I like the Honda Accord Tourer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGl9Iqr84wo

Cool car, really nice, but I don't think I have ever seen one.