Family Wagons

[btm]

Just after everyone's thoughts/advice/reviews on medium sized family wagons

The ones that first pop up in my head are:

Opel Astra & Insignia Sports Tourer
VW Passat
Holden Cruze Sportwagon
Audi A4 Wagon or A3 Sportsback
Subaru Liberty

They obviously come with a wide range of engine options, but what have you guys owned out there, or currently own?

Open to any and all suggestions, but i am under strict instructions to make sure whatever i choose "its safe" :wink5:

And yes, the missus is pregnant :thumbs:

[dutchy]

Congratulations mate :thumbs: When we had to look for a family car, none of these were on my list. We opted for the new Peugeot 4008 and the Astra 5 door. I did have a look though at the A3 sportsback but was uttely disappointed with the features vs price.

[guy 27]

Opels, the vw without dsg or the Subaru would be my picks out of that bunch. Take each one out once you decide on pram to see which one is suitable.


Congrats on the baby.

[hazrd]

Congrats.




Opel Astra & Insignia Sports Tourer yes
VW Passat no - only comes in DSG - @Vectracious can explain why
Holden Cruze Sportwagon no - probably too big for the engine imo
Audi A4 Wagon or A3 Sportsback yes to the A4 because the A3 sportback is not at big as it seems
Subaru Liberty - yes most scoobies are pretty good imo

[ChrisMaz]

Insignia CDTi Wagon is a nice bit of kit.
Liberty, never driven one but a couple of mates are driving current models and have never complained about them. Also very roomy.

I hate to say it.... Have you considered baby SUV's? Hyundai's, Captiva's etc? Most are cheap and offer the same amount of room for a rear facing baby capsule.

[Vectracious]

Congrats on the impending arrival btm! :D - hope it all goes well for you and the mrs :)

I had a bad experience with VW - which is a shame because the R36 was a great car - but it was that bad that I will go out of my way to try and dissuade people from buying VW products. Otherwise the Passat was quiet, roomy, had a billion airbags and a good drive especially in V6 form.

Cruze wagon - the 1.8 lets it down - it needs the turbo motors in it.

Subaru Liberty - Yes

Opels - Yes - have heard the Insignia's are a bit noisy though.

Audi - in a manual (do they come in manual???) yes.
ChrisMaz makes a good point - current SUV's are very good. We have an 08 CR-V and it has been nothing but faultless. Huge inside, swallows everything, interior quality is better than normal for a Jap car, uses a bit more fuel than you would expect but the current CR-V is a lot more efficient. The current ones are also very quiet and have adequate performance too considering it's a fake 4WD with a 4 cylinder in it.

[chrissn89]

Stay away from the Captiva's. The 1.8ltr Cruze wagons are fairly under powered. I see far to many problems with the Captiva's we carry the diesel camshafts on the shelf we have that much call for them.

[Bloodnok]

Stay away from the Captiva's.

+1 on that, but for totally different reasons. We looked at both the '5' and the '7' variant (which actually appear to be different vehicles, rather than just modifications), and neither would fit the baby capsule in the back.

[Shortstuff]

Stay away from the Captiva's. The 1.8ltr Cruze wagons are fairly under powered

+2

V6 is a thirsty unit and the diesels seem to leak oil amongst other things.

I wonder if they will put the new 1.6 turbo in the Cruze wagon? That might be a good option if it happened.

My choice would be an A4 or Passat depending on budget.

[poita]

Not on your list, but what about a Mazda 6 Wagon?

Personally on your list I would go either Insignia or Audi.

The new Liberty's are horrible imo. My boss has just bought one and I hate the look of it, they may as well be an SUV

[btm]

interesting opinions all around, thank you

those of you with small SUVs, do you have the AWD models? my understanding is that can make them considerably thirstier?

[Greg K]

Hey Bryan,

Congrats on the up-coming arrival!

we are in a similar situation, where we are outgrowing the Mazda 3. The passat alltrack wagon is ontop of our list at the moment, and I believe that the newer 6speed dsg's are entirely different from the earlier (read: prone to fail) versions. The other vehicle we have yet to look at is the new Hyundai Santa Fe.

In terms of baby SUV's, imo some offer less boot and cabin space than conventional wagons, and tend to be thirstier. However, the higher ride height does make it easier to maneuver bubba in and out of the capsule without doing your or your missus back in. A raised wagon like the alltrack or the A4 allroad might be a better option perhaps.

Cheers
Greg K

[Vectracious]

those of you with small SUVs, do you have the AWD models? my understanding is that can make them considerably thirstier?

Purely because the AWD systems add weight. To be honest, if I were buying a current CR-V I would probably just get the FWD version. Our MY08 is AWD (no FWD option) and we've never had to use it, and also the "real time" Honda AWD is very very slow to respond anyway.



In terms of baby SUV's, imo some offer less boot and cabin space than conventional wagons, and tend to be thirstier.

Yep - eg the Tiguan - boot is basically the same size as a hatchback - might as well get the hatchback. Using our CR-V and the R36 as an example again - I had used both for family holidays away and both fit the exact same stuff no problems. The Passat was longer, but the CRV is higher and wider. And yes, the fact the SUV's are higher do save your back!

[kabel]

I have an Audi A3 Sportback 2.0T DSG. Great car but I would not buy one new.
Left field....but how about a Skoda Octavia RS Wagon. Same VAG underpinnings as the A3/Golf GTI but priced better.
Or a Skoda Fabia RS Sportwagon ( Polo GTI with extra storage ! )

Astra Sportourer seems to be getting good reviews.

[J]

Congratulations btm! :thumbs:

Here is a helpful web site for choosing a child friendly car:
http://www.mynrma.com.au/motoring/reviews/child-restraint-fitting-guide.htm
Click on a particular make to see how well each particular model fits particular types of child seats. Some of the results are surprising to say the least e.g. the Accord Euro supposedly can only fit 2, whereas any Mazda 6 and even a Cruze sedan can fit 3...

In terms of cabin space, perhaps the biggest factors are the rear cabin width and rear seat bolster shape. I suppose this only applies more when you need to seat 3 across the back, which may not happen that often now, but perhaps later on e.g. if you plan to have another child. This is where a lot of the compact SUVs fall down on, because most are based on small cars, and do not have the width of medium-sized wagons. If you prefer a compact SUV rather than a wagon, the tip is to try to find one that is based on a medium car rather than a small car. E.g. the CX-7 (which is based on the previous-gen Mazda 6) should have more rear cabin width than the CX-5 (which is based on the upcoming Mazda 3). Pity about the CX-7 turbo's thirst, though...

And if you want a higher ride height than a normal car with (perhaps) less running cost than a compact FWD SUV, and don't mind the look or having less cabin width (albeit similar to most other compact SUVs), then besides the Outback/Octavia Scout/AllRoad/AllTrack etc., there is also the Rukus, which is basically a boxier Corolla hatch with the running mechanicals of the previous-gen FWD RAV4 (or the 2002-2007 Camry four). I actually test drove one last weekend, and was quite pleasantly surprised, despite a gearbox that kicks down a bit slower than I would like.

But if it was me (on a limited budget of up to $20K, with a need to really "future proof" my purchase), I would pick either the Mazda 6 wagon or the Mitsubishi Grandis (if I need > 5 seats. Fair bit of body roll, but can carry up to 5 child seats stock, lap-sash belts on all 7 seats, curtain airbags up to the second row, realistic 3rd row plus some boot space simultaneously, and probably better at hauling loads than the Kia Rondo). They may not the most impressive, but they have more than reasonable levels of safety, reliability, and running costs...which are somewhat more important to me now than outright dynamic ability!

Regardless, I pray for a smooth and safe delivery. And have fun car shopping! :)

[dutchy]

interesting opinions all around, thank you

those of you with small SUVs, do you have the AWD models? my understanding is that can make them considerably thirstier?

We've have the Peugeot 4008 suv and chose for the 2wd version mainly because there was a price difference. It's not an offroad car and we'll never take it off road anyway. It also uses less fuel than the 4wd version (though the 4wd can be switched in 2wd but its a heavier car). The wife drives it and she dont car about those sorts of things The BIG plus for the suv is the height of the boot. It is much easier to get a pram in and out of the car plus the high rear can be used for changing the baby while away from home. The Astra has got a big boot and easy fits our pram (the absolute biggest single pram on earth!!!!!) but the boot is rather deep. So you got to lift it first in order to get it out. With the suv, you can just slide it out. It's not what we men want... it's what the woman wants and they'll start naggin about the car (sorry to any female readers) if they are not 100% happy. So as someone already mentioned before, get a pram and then start shopping for a car. Fit the pram and see if she can take it out easy. Had to go through exactly the same thing.

[Bloodnok]

... plus the high rear can be used for changing the baby while away from home.

Don't underestimate the parcel shelf on a big hatchback for this. We've done it with the Vectra parcel shelf, it's just the right height to work with. (You just have to remember about the towball if you have one fitted...).

[btm]

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/E6347AC4B860210ECA257B640007051C
http://www.caradvice.com.au/thumb/640/321/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/renault-megane-gt-220-estate-9-e1367911948818.jpg

damn that is good looking!

[dutchy]

Don't underestimate the parcel shelf on a big hatchback for this. We've done it with the Vectra parcel shelf, it's just the right height to work with. (You just have to remember about the towball if you have one fitted...).

Or the bonnet :smile5:

[sooty]

If you're looking at a passat , have you thought about an Octavia VRS?
Also although the gen 5 liberty is a bit ugly, they can be made to look awesome, are extremely safe, and absolutely bulletproof

[Vectracious]

damn that is good looking!

Wow! Do want

[rocky424]

Just after everyone's thoughts/advice/reviews on medium sized family wagons

The ones that first pop up in my head are:

Opel Astra & Insignia Sports Tourer
VW Passat
Holden Cruze Sportwagon
Audi A4 Wagon or A3 Sportsback
Subaru Liberty

They obviously come with a wide range of engine options, but what have you guys owned out there, or currently own?

Open to any and all suggestions, but i am under strict instructions to make sure whatever i choose "its safe" :wink5:

And yes, the missus is pregnant :thumbs:

Congratulations with the baby on the way. I too went through this phase of car shopping because of the baby. The 08 corolla hatch just didn't have much boot space. It could ate our bugaboo pram but nothing else after. It took our peg pereggio capsule fine. Now we have an infa secure neon.

But now that my son is 5.5 months, we needed a bigger convertible seat and more boot space. We traded in the corolla for an astra sports tourer 1.6 turbo. I'm happy with the overall interior space, definitely bigger than the corolla. I am only 173 cm in height so don't necessarily need a big car or an suv.

The astra st has a huge boot, slightly bigger than the insignia. We wanted a car that had style, safe, good space, huge boot, decent power, decent economy, good handling, and good maintenance cost - capped service. It ticked the boxes for us. We did visit a number of dealers and brought our pram along to see how we can manuever and fit the pram in.

Test drove a dualis+2 ti, nice but is tight inside and underpowered. Cruze sportwagon cdx share similar parts with the astra but not as solid and refined to drive. It also has the older 1.8 engine too which feels underpowered, did not try the diesels as I don't have long drives often to justify the cost and to get the dpf clean cycle.

I suggest picking a pram and a car seat, then see how it fits in the cars you check out. Check how much interior space you really need as going up a class means going up on the budget as well up front and moving forward.

So far, really happy with the astra st, looks so sleek compared to the bulky SUVs around but does compete in terms of interior space, it's quite clever packaging actually. Good luck with your shopping!