recommend a good estate?

KillerWatt

Another couple of hundred quid gets you a "middle of the road" model 7 seater Isuzu Bighorn (Jap version of the Trooper).

You don't get any bull$hit "safety features" (such as airbags, ABS, traction control, etc) or any of the crap electronics that only a dealer can sort when it goes wrong.
By the same token you will spend next to sod all keeping it on the road, because they simply don't go wrong (and when they do, you can fix it yourself for next to nothing if you have even a passing knowledge of motor mechanics).
Make no mistake though, even though they are "agricultaral" they do come "fully loaded" with leccy seats, mirrors, windows, central locking, PAS, climate control, Recaro interior, Lotus suspension, tank heaters, fuel line heaters, in fact it has everything you find in "expensive" motors as standard (the top of the range model does anyway)

If you can find one with a manual gearbox (very rare) then you will get 30mpg all day long....quite impressive for something that weighs 2½ tons and is about as aerodynamic as a housebrick.

Lum

Seconding the old Passat recommendation. A few years back I got the 72bhp "Umwelt" diesel version on an L reg for £700. Sure it was no performer but it had enough torque for pulling loads and the like. It had 250,000 miles on it and the only thing wrong with it (apart from a missing electric window motor, replaced with a table leg) was a tiny little pin !!!!! hole in one of the flexible fuel lines, not enough to make it leak diesel but enough for it to lose fuel pressure overnight if parked facing uphill, cost me about a quid to fix.

It was pretty much entirely mechanical too, apart from the obvious things like starter motor, one time the battery came disconnected while I was on the M25 (previous owner had lost the battery clamp and not tightened the negative terminal properly) and apart from losing my headlights it just chugged along like nothing had happened.

I'd still have that car if vandals hadn't smashed every pane of glass on it. It's been the best spare banger I've ever had. It was also funny as hell overtaking posh company cars on a single carriageway with streamers of gaffer tape hanging off the window (my fix after the table leg failed in duty).

Only real problem was, since it was grey it seemed to be invisible, since the horn had turned into a spherical blob of rust I replaced it with some £15 Halfords air horns which solved that issue. I sent one taxi driver into a bollard with those things when he tried to merge into the side of me without looking.

I'd definitely get another one if I needed a cheap reliable estate.

Dave_Z

Volvo V40 would be my recommendation. Might struggle to find a good one for your money but worth a look.

AlwaysPondering

Would second the Octavia Estate - used to have one.. sold it at 168k for 650 quid.. wish I still had it..

BillScarab

I'd thrid the Octavia.

They have a massive boot and are built to last. As they're cheap new they're cheap to buy second hand as well. The mark 2 is a bit nicer inside than the mark 1 and has more rear leg room but the for your budget look for a good mark 1.

They still make the mark 1 for some markets so spares won't be a problem for years.

TiTheRev

Hintza wrote: »

What year would you say the last of the bomb proof ones were made?.

They are all good, but went a bit funny 2007-2009ish with the PD engine, hence going back to the common-rail lumps.