UKC

ill soon be looking to replace my Vauxhall Astra estate as its getting on for 150k miles (1.8 petrol).
My main criteria are large enough to carry bikes inside and passengers (I usually take the front wheel and saddle off to get it in vertically), manual, either petrol or diesel, but I think diesel would be more suitable as I do 20k miles a year mostly on A and B roads - currently getting 40mpg average.
If I were looking for used then something around the £10k mark or if new then it would have to be a 0% finance deal.
Im not looking for a BIG car, a small people carrier or decent size estate would be fine, ive been looking at -

Vauxhall Astra estate
Vauxhall Zafira (from dealership with heater issue checked)
Skoda Octavia estate
Hyundai i40 estate

Any comments or further suggestions welcomed please.

In reply to Pesda potato:

at the risk of being a UKC cliche, I have an Octavia estate 2.0TDI and love it. about 42mpg, can fit 2 bikes + camping kit in the back easy (also 5 people plus winter kit with some careful tetris). Decent poke and it tends not to break.

However, I have a mate with the i40 estate who also really rates it. I personally think they look nice as well.

In reply to Pesda potato:

I had an Octavia for 3 years, couldn't fault it. I have a Superb now, but only because I needed a bit more oomph for long distances/high mileage.

In reply to TomGB:

only 42mpg? I wonder what their petrols get.

In reply to Pesda potato:

thats mostly commuting in Birmingham city centre. Much better longer distance

In reply to Pesda potato:
I have an i40 estate (136 Bhp version). Been a good car, bought it when 1.5 years old for just under 50% of new & therefore got 3.5 years of warranty and roadside assistance. Its comfortable for long distances and the boot is big enough for kids stuff and bikes etc.

Would have bought the new style Octavia estate (old one looks a bit dated) but they were too new at the time to hit my price point. Other alternative is a Superb which are massive!

I typically get c.48 Mpg out of it (mix of rural roads to station and then motorway driving to customers) and it moves along okay, plus only £30 road tax. Only issue is its Euro 4 not Euro 5 (new ones in showrooms are 5 are as they have tweaked the management system).

Had the rear camera replaced and a errant parking sensor sorted, all done under warranty with no fuss. Service every two years which also keeps cost down.

In reply to Pesda potato:

How about a low mileage van http://www.woldsideclassics.co.uk/bedford-astravan-1.3l-with-79-miles-only-... !

In reply to LittleRob:

79 miles! thats about a days driving for me.

jonfun21 - that sounds promising!

In reply to TomGB:


really glad I still have my 2007 1.9 tdi then. average 58mpg on my (admittedly slow) commute and regularly get over 50mpg driving around the south Lanarkshire A roads.

In reply to graeme jackson:

hmmn, it's possible I've got that wrong then. I'll have another check tonight.

In reply to Pesda potato:

I have a zafira and confess to quite liking it despite it's faults. The 7 seats are great for lugging the kids friends around, or extra family members. It's often saved another car on the road.

When the back seats are down (either flat, or folded up against the front seats) the boot is pretty huge, but the rear bench seat is not great. Also, with the seats down there is quite a step between seats and boot. -You could not sleep in the boot without modification (either personal or automobile).
My car is the SRI so it goes OK. The 'sport' button is fun and normally I get 40-50MPG which for a diesel could be better (2006reg , 157K miles), but it does have to push quite a bit of air out of the way when it's moving.
Getting bikes or roofboxes on the roof is a challenge for the short. - you should be able to fit bikes in the back OK.
Repair wise, I think I've spent a bit more fixing it because I got it cheap. New timing belt X2, new fly wheel, several alternators, brake disks tend to warp for some reason, DPF problems initially, EGR problems finally solved by removing it and changing the software.

My biggest gripe is the front roof pillars either side of the windscreen are huge. You can lose a whole car in it, which can make T junctions fun sometimes.

With the anti-diesel furore at the moment, I'm considering a petrol when I trade it in, but do love getting well over 600 miles from the tank on a long run.

In reply to Pesda potato:

I've owned the Octavia 2.0 and driven the i40. I have to say the i40 was lovely, but the boot lacked in height so you might struggle to get bikes in easily.The Octavia was a hatchback and I could get the bike in flat without removing anything (mountain bike or road bike) with the rear seat folded down. I got 55mpg driving sensibly and it was absolutely fine when I was in a hurry too.

In reply to Pesda potato:

Subaru Forester?

In reply to Big Ger:

I do like the look of them, been around for ages too, I think it'll be to small though

In reply to Pesda potato:

We have a 1.6L Ford Focus estate, which will fit two moon saturns and a warrior in the boot and have the back seats free. I would definitely get a new version again or go for the bigger Mondeo estate. It fits two MTB bikes with the wheels on with the seats down.

We got ours from Car Giant, the fords are ex fleet cars with 50-75k on, 3-4yrs old, we picked ours up for 4K but could get cheaper.

It's been an absolute beast, could not fault it and if you check on the car forums very few ford models have had known issues reported on them as they age.

In reply to Pesda potato:
It's bigger than the Octavia surely?

https://www.carwow.co.uk/blog/Skoda-Octavia-dimensions-017

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subaru_Forester

In reply to Big Ger:
octavia luggage capacity 610L
Forrester luggage capacity 450L

Ok seems like the Zafira wouldnt be as suitable as an estate then, thanks for the tips.
Ill look in to a Ford also, im quite handy with maintenance and repairs so vauxhall or ford would be ideal as parts are cheap.

In reply to alx:

Haven't owned/driven enough cars to have a rounded opinion, but can confirm similar experiences with my 11 year old 1.6 TDi Ford Focus estate. Complete workhorse, tons of room in the back. Drives amazingly well given that

Had a Subaru Legacy estate when I lived in Canada - you have to be a bit more careful with regular oil checks, but great boot layout and goes like a tank. AWD is good in rough conditions or twisty roads as well.

In reply to Pesda potato:
I'm surprised!

Is that seats up or down?

Oops down;

With seats down the forester gets 1,474 litre the Octavia 1,580 litre.

Ignore me, I know sod all about cars then!

In reply to Pesda potato:

I had an i40 as a hire car in Australia - I was expecting it to be crap, but was pleasantly surprised with it, even if it was a bit plasticky inside. My wife didn't like it, as the passenger seat wasn't height adjustable, but that may just have been the spec level/regional difference we had - higher/UK spec might have it.

Otherwise, I'd say Ford Focus estate - by far the best car I've ever had for boot space. The rear suspension design means you don't lose space for the shock turrets. The resulting width means it's possible to get 2 bikes in the boot without putting the seats down, so they stay hidden from view.

I've had, I think, 6 bikes in the back of mine - seats down, front wheel and saddles off and racked side by side. Managed 3 bikes, 3 people and a weekend's worth of camping gear inside it.

In reply to Big Ger:

I've just bought a Forester and so far I'm impressed (compared to an x trail, which had a bigger boot, but was very basic)

I did consider the skoda octavia scout, and there didn't seem to be much to call between them space-wise. The subaru seats don't fold completely flat, though

What about the Outback?

In reply to toad:

Smaller still. Mind you I'm on my second one, and find them highly trustworthy and reliable.

In reply to Pesda potato:

I've had an Octavia 1.4tsi 122 PS ( petrol) Estate from new for almost 4 years. Don't do a big mileage, but do occasional trips of around 200 miles each way to visit family. It will cruise happily all day at around 70mph and give around 45mpg
On holiday round Scotland a couple of years back with a couple of bikes on the roof rack it was still giving over 35mpg.

It's also a lot quicker and quieter than the 1.9tdi estate it replaced.