I'm looking at buying a small estate car
Got about £8k to spend, probably looking at a small efficient diesel as most of my millage is motorway cruising.
I've been looking at the Skoda Fabia estate but open to other options.
Thanks
Andrew
I have a ford focus estate. very reasonably priced secondhand and reliable its the second one I've owned the first one lasted me 10 years without a hitch.
I've got a 2012 skoda fabia 1.6 diesel and I'm really pleased with it. Get good MPG around town and really good MPG on the motor way. Boots pretty good only complaint is that when the seats fold down there's a step in it.
Think you'll be looking at a newer model with that budget though.
Can't help with other cars I'm afraid.
Loved my fabia estate (petrol) - super reliable and a lovely drive
Also loved my mk4 Golf estate (diesel) which was also super reliable - I had it from 24K to 180k with minimal work other than services and brake pads - MOT checker says it’s still on the road with >250k on the clock...
Big fan of small VAG cars
Ford Focus estates are good. I have a 2013 1.6 diesel, which has nearly 90,000 on the clock. About 55-60mpg on a motorway run. The downside is that at about 60,000 the dual density flywheel shattered, meaning a full gearbox assembly replacement. Ford coughed up some of the cost. I think that kind of failure was unusual for this model.
The Megane estate I had years ago was ok, not sure what they are like now, or price. I seem to remember some of the diesel engines were better than others, you'd have to have a look at reviews. I particularly liked that the boot opening was properly flat and low making it very easy to get big items in and out.
I have a Skoda Fabia 1.6.diesel which has done about 80,000 miles. It does a fabulous mpg (60 - 80 depending on how I decide to drive)
However 2 out of 4 fuel injectors have failed (at about 60k and 70 k) and cost respectively £600 and £500 to replace which has rather obviated the fuel costs savings. My next car will probably be petrol mainly for environmental issues (Nox emissions unacceptable)
I am now somewhat nervous on any long journey that injectors 3 and 4 may fail at any time.
I've got a Peugeot 308 estate. Phenomenal amount of space for the size of car.
Not sure if it'll fit budget, possibly above, but Kia Ceed SW/Hyunda I30 are worth a look.
Seat Leon? I picked up a 2l diesel with only 21k miles for under 10k. You should be able to get a 1.6l for around 8k, or maybe a higher mileage 2l.
I get 60mpg on the motorway and plenty fun off it.
Andy F
I've currently got a Fabia 1.6tdi at nearly 160,000 and had 1 injector go soon after I purchased it at 83K but since then fine.
Recently the mpg has dropped to less than 45-50 on journeys that I used to get nearer 60 on.
Does anyone have any experience of the newer 1.4 TDI engines as can't seem to find much about the long term reliability of them online.
A Seat ibiza estate will match the Fabia in most respects (if they still make it) and is arguably better looking.
One of my friends has a Hyundai i30 Tourer and I really like the look of it, a sort of Korean mini cross of a C Class and CLA shooting brake. Apparently the 1.0 triple is a great little engine and up to motorway work. It loses out on handling to Ford and VAG but that wouldn't put me off, neither would a small lip in the boot when seats are folded.
Another vote for the Focus. We bought our ‘07 1.6 petrol zetec in 2016 for not very much money at all. It had 82k on the clock and now has 145ish, not a spot of serious bother with it the whole time.
I fear its not got long left now mind, but has been an absolute warrior for us these past years. Only ever once not started for me an that was last week. New battery sorted that.
I got a Citroen C3 Picasso this August and am pleased with it. It’s certainly small and maybe you would not class it as an estate; depends what you mean by small and what you mean by estate, I guess! You can fit a lot into it thanks to the “boxy” rear, and make you sure you get the “Exclusive” trim with the folding front passenger seat.
I have the 1.6l HDi diesel, the 8 valve version as recommended by knowledgable bods in here. Mine is a 2011, £3500 with 52k on the clock, I average 50mpg (54-55 on motorway runs), £30 a year VED and I guess the engine and injectors are tough because I did that numpty thing of filling up with unleaded and driving 14 miles before engine management spotted that something wasn’t right and “crippled” the car. Had it drained and flushed and it’s fine now. Do this on some cars and you will at the very least trash the injectors. So I assume that if they coped with that, they are pretty resilient!
It won’t set any speed records but I quite like it on the motorway, it’s comfortable. Maybe a bit tinny and unrefined. It’s a nippy little thing too.
I believe diesel emissions, not petrol, were identified as a contributory cause of death of the girl in South London. My petrol car has still averaged 62.8 mpg over the last 6 months and is road tax exempt.
> Not sure if it'll fit budget, possibly above, but Kia Ceed SW/Hyunda I30 are worth a look.
I have the Ceed estate (or sportswagon as they call it). Very impessed, (I had a secondhand hatchback version for 5 years and 150,000 miles prior to that).
Fractionally larger boot that the focus and golf alternatives when I looked at the figures.
Another vote for the Focus followed by the Skoda a close 2nd
The engineering is fantastic they just keep going I recommend you look at reliability reviews on Honda, if you intend to keep the car a long time they are worth considering.
Great to drive and cheaper than a Focus, Golf for same age / mileage.
> I. My petrol car has still averaged 62.8 mpg over the last 6 months and is road tax exempt.
Impressive! What make / model is that?
I was going to suggest the Fabia. They have a big following. Speaking as someone who has a bit of persistent back trouble I would recommend the Monte Carlo spec. Those bucket seats are the best I've had in any car bar none.
I bought a Honda Accord a few years back because of the reliability record. It was about 2 years old I think. After about another two years the flywheel failed and while it was in the garage the guy said did I know the fuel pump needed replacing. The estimate for all that was nearly £5k. I decided to cut my losses and sold it for £800 to someone who was going to do the work himself. Haven't looked at Honda since.
> Impressive! What make / model is that?
Not an estate. A very boring Aygo. But does the job, until something electric comes along.
> I've got a Peugeot 308 estate. Phenomenal amount of space for the size of car.
We used to have a 307 estate and it was the most wretched vehicle ever. It made you drive like a nervous pensioner.
Snap, I had a skoda fabia 1.6 2010 Scout diesel model. Two fuel injectors started playing up at 100K, EGRV was temperamental and always on the cusp of packing in post 80K if it didn't get a lot of long easy miles, along with some other widget or sensor buried deep in the engine compartment (quote from the garage...that will be a real bugger when it goes), brake calipers post 80K were regularly binding and needing replacing, and from new if you didn't drive gently round corners in scrubbed tyre shoulders...even after tracking and balancing being checked.
I had it from < 2 years old with 13K on the clock & treated it well with two services every year. It got a good mix of town and open road. Had hoped to get 200K on the clock, but got to 110K and needed to ditch.
Body work was nearly immaculate, underside had no evidence of significant rust or corrosion, until the fuel injectors started playing up the engine performed reliable, economy was a bit less than I hoped post 60K (perhaps the injectors were already on the way out). With the seats down you could get two bikes in the boot without taking the wheels off (though it was easier to take the front wheels off).
So impressed with the utility of it as a small compact estate, I replaced it with a Skoda fabia estate 1.2 petrol. Which lacks a bit of pick up and power when laden with four people compared to the larger diesel engine, but by being newer gets very similar mileage in petrol to that the older diesel did.
Too early to comment on the current Skoda's long term triats
To echo Rog, I sat in a mates monte carlo and the seats were more comfortable.
> We used to have a 307 estate and it was the most wretched vehicle ever. It made you drive like a nervous pensioner.
I had a 307 before.yes its not great. 308 1.6d is much better. But you don't get Peugeot for the drive experience - it's a tool for getting from A to B economically and with great load space (we can easily fit two bikes, wheels on, and a week's luggage in the back).
Thanks for the replies everyone, looks like fabia estate and focus estate are popular options, are there any engine options that are particularly worth looking at or avoiding.
Does anyone have any experience of the new 1.4 TDI engine in the mk3 fabia as not seen much on the long term reliability of them.
I have had loads of cars and the £370 Skoda Fabia I bought 2 years ago is one of the best of them. Diesel and gives me well over 50mpg after 200,000 miles. Last week we squeezed 3 people, 2 dogs and 4 boulder mats in it. The seats are easy to get in and out and it's just blooming brilliant. Yes the door electrics can fail but that's about it. Loads of spares due to vw audi parents. Buy one 🙂
I was very interested in a fabia earlier in the year but a little research showed quite a lot of problems requiring engine replacement.
I was looking at vrs, not the standard. The older diesel vrs were pretty sturdy, lots of poor reports about the more modern petrol model.
I had a Volvo V50 1.6D from about 95k. It was still running when I retired it at 220k with nothing more than standard servicing (airbag light randomly came on and it was getting a bit rattly so cut my loses before it died/failed MoT/needed £££s spending in it). Just spent 8kish on a V40 with 40k on the clock and hoping to get the same out of it.
I appreciate that you have only a small estate, but nevertheless you should consider the Skoda Octavia. I am on my second one (a 4x4 Scout) and have gone to the expense of having changed to Spanish plates, as I cannot find anything available easily in Spain nearly as good near the price.
Same here. We;ve owned a Focus diesel estate for 10 years with no problems at all and its done around 114k.
Octavia a bit big but take a look at your nearest taxi rank to see wots the most popular. Octe VRS Estate here but that's not what OP wanted,
I'll add another vote for the Focus estate - I loved mine and still miss the space in it at times.
Had the 1.8 TDDI for about 10 years and it was brilliant. These days, you'd be looking at the 1.6 TDCI.
Looks like 1.5TDCI is the engine of choice now for the Focus estate, does anyone know how they are for long term reliability, not much seems to jump out on a quick search which must be a good thing.
70k miles so far on my FF 1.5 TDCi without missing a beat.
My last lease car was a 1.2l petrol fabia estate. Never went near the dealers other than for its service and I did a lot of miles.
Previously had two diesel models. The 1.2 was very under powered and helpfully blew an injector on the m9, 1.4l from memory seemed stable.