Used Car Hunter: low-cost, automatic estate cars for £17,000
Our Car Hunter has a budget of £17,000 for a family-friendly car with an automatic gearbox. Here’s what we’ve found
"Dear Auto Express, I’ve got £17,000 for a classy estate car with an automatic gearbox. What do you recommend?" - Richard Baker, E-mail
Few cars come close to estate cars when it comes to blending style, driving enjoyment and, most importantly of all, practicality. With acres of boot space and roomy cabins, the best estates can take on just about any every day task, ranging from the daily school run to a big furniture shop.
As well as all that luggage lugging capacity, a number of top estate cars also offer a rather enjoyable experience from behind the wheel, as well as sensible running costs. Pick the right model and you can even enjoy an upmarket cabin with plenty of tech and plush materials. Whatever your preference, estate cars are a fantastic choice for family car duties.
So which used estates can you pick up for a budget of £17,000? Well, you’ll be pleased to hear that our reigning Family Car of the Year, the Skoda Octavia, can be found in abundance in this price range. This extremely sensible machine packs a vast boot and spacious cabin, yet it’s also good to drive and comes loaded with plenty of standard kit.
Alternatively, you could have its closely-related sibling, the Volkswagen Golf Estate. This is essentially the same as the Skoda under the skin but with an extra sheen of style and a big dose of premium appeal.
If fun is more important to you than function, then the quirky MINI Clubman should fit the bill perfectly. It’s slightly less spacious than the other two, but there’s no resisting its retro charms.
Skoda Octavia Estate - the practical choice
- For: Efficient, eager engine, vast interior and boot
- Against: Looks and feels a little plain in this company
It might look the least glamorous on the outside, but the Skoda Octavia Estate makes plenty of sense. A firmer low-speed ride means it’s not quite as comfy as the VW Golf, but the suspension soaks up bigger bumps with ease. Light steering and the slick DSG gearbox (manual pictured) make it easy around town, while precise handling inspires confidence elsewhere. £16,200 gets you a 71-plate 1.0 e-Tec DSG Technology) with 16,500 miles.
Like the exterior, the Skoda Octavia’s robustly built interior and dashboard favour function over form. Quality is good and the layout very logical, with the intuitive touchscreen infotainment featuring Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for ease of use. Having lots of seat and wheel adjustment makes it easy to find the perfect driving position, while rear-seat passengers get the most leg and headroom here. There’s also loads of really handy storage dotted around the cabin. Star of the show is the boot, which packs 610 litres of capacity, and that stretches to a cavernous 1,740 litres with the rear seats folded flat.
Used Skoda Octavia Estate deals
MINI Clubman - the fun choice
- For: Combines agile handling with low running costs
- Against: Cramped interior and boot limit practicality
With its great reputation for delivering sharp driving dynamics, the low-slung MINI Clubman is the most entertaining car here. There’s bags of grip and strong body control, while quick steering helps the Clubman feel much lighter on its feet than the other two. Its 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine lacks the Skoda’s punch, but it sounds sporty and responds keenly. However, the stiff suspension set-up means it’s less composed over bumps and its eight-speed auto can be a bit clunky. Visibility isn’t great either. We found a 20-plate 2.0 Cooper S Exclusive with 45,000 miles for £17,000.
With its retro-inspired design, the MINI Clubman’s cabin delivers the same sense of fun that the exterior and driving experience also provide. It feels as upmarket as the Golf in fact, with plenty of soft-touch materials found throughout the interior. The layout of the dashboard is a bit messy, but the funky-looking circular infotainment system is easy to use thanks to its BMW-derived iDrive-style rotary controller. What’s lacking in the MINI – as suggested by the name – is space, with those in the back feeling more cramped than they would in either of its two rivals. The twin rear ‘barn’ doors look great, but the 360-litre boot is much smaller than its rivals’ here. Even folding the rear bench liberates only 1,250 litres of space.
Volkswagen Golf Estate - the upmarket choice
- For: Almost as roomy as the Skoda with excellent comfort
- Against: Not as frugal; strong residuals push prices up
Comfort and refinement are the order of the day with the Volkswagen Golf Estate, which looks classier and more upmarket than its rivals. There’s less wind and road noise on the move, plus the plush ride deals well with poor road surfaces. Yet it’s still engaging to drive, with agile handling. It has the same smooth twin-clutch gearbox as the Skoda, and while its 1.5-litre petrol engine isn’t as powerful, it’s a quiet and eager performer. With £16,200 you can bag a 20-plate, 40,000 mile Golf Estate 1.0 1.0 TSI 115 Match Edition.
Smartly designed and packed with top-notch materials, the Golf Estate’s interior looks the smartest here and is easy to use. GT trim adds some sporty touches, plus you get VW’s excellent Discover Navigation touchscreen infotainment screen that boasts loads of useful features. Those sitting in the rear get more space than in the MINI, while large windows create an airy atmosphere. At 605 litres, the boot just trails the Octavia’s, but handy features such as a variable-height floor enhance versatility. There are handy levers for folding down the rear bench, which increases capacity to 1,620 litres.
Used Volkswagen Golf Estate deals
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