To be honest, within your budget & type of driving/use you can't beat a Passat.

I have had 3 in the past for covering the SE, as far up as Skegness and for economey & motorway miles takes some beating.140bhp smoother than 170 & the DSG highline was the best for travelling excepted I hated reverse gear ( parking ) ! you have to rev it in reverse to move it ! awkard in tiny parking spot as there is no creep.I had 2 estates & one saloon, not pretty but did the job 100%

How about Audi 4 motion?

Old CRV the seats are a little soft & they are prone to side wind on a motorway. The passenger glove box is a real pain going all the way to the floor & the spare wheel on the tail gate is a pain in supermarket car parks.My diesel used to get about 40 on a run.

Old type Freelander slow & reliability isn't its strongest point. Hard work on very long drive.

New Freelander 2 totally different animal but still pricey

Even just the kent & Essex coast from Surrey can be hard when the traffics bad, done it many times & spent ,many hours queing at the Dartford bridge!

BMW 3 series, just a common old reps car now, on a motorway if a car is hard on your tail 9/10 its a beamer driven by a rep ! Diesel one expensive when it goes wrong, suffer with Turbo's & auto boxes

If you already have a Passat estate to take the family in, do you need another big car for your work? Something like a Ford Focus - as new as you can afford - would probably do the job just as well and more economically.

I am starting a new job in Feb which has a non-car allowance of £400 p/m. Having never had such a thing I am a bit lost.

Don't forget you'll be taxed on the allowance.

I would keep the Passat. If you find it doesn't cope with winter conditions then just get a second set of winter wheels and tyres. Unfortunately the Germans have been buying up all winter tyres as they changed the law here so you may have to wait until the summer. Sorry about that!

Steven Quas , Hamburg