Brilliant. Thanks for the info

Yes you need next size up, Leon estate, Octavia estate etc for a family car. SUVs? Well, good visibility, easy access if you're getting on a bit, otherwise it's all negative, less economical, more expensive to buy, worse handling ( higher centre of gravity), heavier tyre wear etc. There's often less available space in them too compared to the equivalent estate.

Personal preference. Room for two is what I need.

Edited by Alex Rankin on 14/03/2021 at 15:19

Neither are what I would call "family cars". The Ibiza is too narrow for more than 2 in the back.

That surely depends how big the family is and how old its younger members.

If the Seat is an estate and is the Seat equivalent of the Skoda Fabia then the issue could be rear legroom. Mine is driven solo 90% of the time and for another 9% with only a front seat passenger. I did however offer colleagues a lift home from a work function pre-covid and the 5' 8" female who drew the short straw looked a bit cramped.

I would go for a Skoda Octavia as the best value for money family car

Thanks for that. I like how unpretentious it is too. I'm not showy about my vehicles. Good to know you had a good experience with kids and not too cumbersome to take to work either I imagine.

For a moment there I thought the Meriva was on a VAG (love saying that as though it’s a word!) platform and that BBD hates them. Glad I read it again lol.

Sorry Metropolis, I'm Scottish, sarcasm is nine tenths of the law ;-)

If you are investing in a family car the youngsters are going to grow rapidly in just a few years and it is not long they are in car seats> Better to go for the right size car from the outset rather than loose money chopping and changing.

If you are investing in a family car the youngsters are going to grow rapidly in just a few years ....... Better to go for the right size car from the outset rather than lose money chopping and changing.

I agree - and did so (see my above post).

Most people change cars every two or three years,

I find that hard to believe. Certainly some do, but I would think more than 50% of car buyers keep their cars considerably longer than that.

..........Far more sensible to buy a car of the size you need now and for the next few years. If you need a bigger car when the kids are bigger, get it then.

This is the advice one would expect to get from a car salesman.

BBD your comment above seems to suggest that everyone should be running around in little boxes

Neither of the two cars the OP himself put forward are 'little boxes', and I am in favour of both as family cars.

nobody on here is persuading the OP to buy anything.

skidpan says, "If you want a proper family car you need to look at the next size up."

Bazza says, "Yes you need next size up,"

You say, "I would go for a Skoda Octavia as the best value for money family car"

All five of SLO's offerings are from the next size up on an Ibiza.

The OP is asking a question and others are giving of their experience of family transport.

Actually the OP was asking for opinions on the two cars he posted adverts to, along with some general opinions on estates vs SUV's with regards to running costs and wear and tear.

That's a bit like the iPhone effect - you didn't know you needed one until you bought it.

I would never knowingly oversize but that's my preference. I'm looking to upgrade mainly due to the state and age of the car (Note 2006), but some extra boot space is also necessary. I think estates might be the way to go.

I would never knowingly oversize but that's my preference. I'm looking to upgrade mainly due to the state and age of the car (Note 2006), but some extra boot space is also necessary. I think estates might be the way to go.

Thanks for enlightening us about your current car. That will help people advise you better. What would help now would be if you told us about your space needs for the foreseeable future.

With regards to the Note, having owned one (albeit the later Mk2 for 2015) I can tell you 100% that it had more rear space than our current Skoda Fabia (hach) and that will have the same rear space as the Seat Ibiza (estate). The Note also had a very good boot for the size of car, bigger than that quoted for the S-Cross, it was also very flexible in our since it had the sliding rear seat feature. Many on the Nissan forum say that the Mk1 Note (like yours) had more space for both people and luggage than the later Mk2 (like ours) but cannot honestly comment since we never owned one.

With regards to the MPV or Estate debate we have owned both and to be honest its a draw. If the car is big enough and you like it what category it comes from is immaterial. My last 2 cars have both been Skoda Superb hatches, no need to buy the estate since the hatch has more space than any estate of MPV we have owned.

One fact to make you think, hatches have been far more refined that both MPV's and estates. We have only owned one estate and it was OK but it was a bit boomy from the rear end, we have driven others and most were far noisier than would could bear on a longer trip. Of the 2 MPV's we have owned the C-Max was pretty noisy (but just bearable) but the Note was actually fine. Not had a boomy hatch yet.