What is the best car for a family of 4?

Question

I have 2 babies aged 1 & 2 and I am looking for a car. It will be a second car as my husband already has a C class Mercedes. I want to buy new and have around £15,000 to spend, any suggestions?

Answer 1

Best thing I can suggest is a Vaxhaul. Either a Meriva or Zafira. The Meriva is very good and reasonably priced, well within your price range. The Zafira is a little more expensive but still some models are within your range and also have the benefit of 7 seats or extra boot space , great with kids!

Good Luck x

Answer 2

Everyone harked on about the current Renault Megane's 5-star EuroNCAP safety rating a few years ago, but now, much of the competition has caught up. You either like the styling of the Renault, or you hate it. Also, earlier versions of the second-generation Megane are known to have a number of reliability issues, such as water leaks and loose trim.

Among the cars that have caught up is the Vauxhall Astra. The current version has been around for the last two years or so, and has the same top safety rating. Lots of room too, and reliability-sise, generally good.

Better still, though prehaps not as pretty, is the second-generation Ford Focus. Everyone has one of these, but it's for a good reason. Reliable, and the typical Ford virtues of affordable parts and maintenance, plus better interior quality than the old car. It's roomy enough, and while perhaps not a priority, is a great car to drive. Again, this has a 5-star NCAP rating.

Out of the above, I'd personally take either the Focus or the Astra.

If you need pushchair room, of course, estate versions of the above are available.

There's also choices from the less well-known Korean companies, such as Hyundai, and Daewoo (now branded as Chevrolet). They're cheap, but they're cheap for a reason. These cars are built to a price, which in particular, means a cheap, poor quality interior, expensive spare parts, and heavier depreciation.Some may have some great warranty packages, but I personally wouldn't recommend them.

And of course, MPVs are an option, but in your circumstances, they might seem like overkill. Though I'd reccomend a Zafira, which is similar to the Astra.

Answer 3

One word "japanese" because there probobly the most reliable cars your ever likely to come across.

You have two kids so you probobly need something spacious and practical, try a subaru imppreza or a mitsubishi lancer or maybe a honda civic or toyota corolla.

There all extremely reliable cars and should all be well within your
budget, i have a lancer at the moment and have nothing but good things to say about it, i also owned an impreza and am sorry i
ever sold it.

I have a friend with a civic and he loves it i also have a friend with a corolla who praises it,

I hope this helps you with your search for a new car.

Answer 4

if your looking for a second car with 2 young kids try the Renault Modus
5 star NCAP safety rating and isofix points for fitting child seats.
This is a fairly new model so the looks are modern
also the whole range will come within your price so you are not stuck for choice try the diesel engined 1.5dci 86bhp. frugal and more punch than the 1.6 engine
If you don't fancy that try a skoda octavia vw build quality without the vw price these are cracking cars either in diesel or petrol and have a better reliability record than vw (JD power reliability survey) plenty of room for the kids too

Answer 5

try a Renault Scenic or a Citroen Picasso, these are nearly the same size inside, big enough to get a large pushchair in the boot (i have a big 3 wheeler for my daughter and it fits with a little room for a few shopping bags) these are not too big if you don't want a 4x4 like a Range Rover. The price new are not that bad either, The Picasso starts at around £9'000.
Depends what you like,im driving a Landrover Discovery at the moment theres plenty of room in them too!

Answer 6

For a family, safety has got to be the priority. Check the Euro Ncap ratings, but five star cars such as the Renault range are the ones to go for.

Answer 7

Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf, Renault Megane have the best Euro NCAP safety ratings.

Answer 8

I was gonna suggest a Puegeot 306 but with that sort of money you could probably go for a 307

Answer 9

15k? Go Japanesey! If that's cold hard cash though, get an Audi A6 or A4 Avant! You'll never look back!

Answer 10

I just bought a KIA Sorento.
I bought it one year old and got a really good deal on it.
Think about this, it has a 10 year and 10,000 mile warranty on it.
That means a lot to me considering I drive a lot.
Excellent car!!!!